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Shotguns in the garden are a bit of a no no, and besides, doesn't feel right for rabbit control. I know next to nothing about air rifles...
So, what air rifle for keeping numbers at bay. Over run with the blighters! Don't want anything too expensive, but needs to be able to get a good clean shot.
Oh, and yes, will be adding them to the pot!
Firstly, can you shoot? If you can’t, whatever you do don’t start on live targets!
After that, I suggest something like a BSA scorpion pre charged. No recoil, astonishing accuracy and I picked up a full setup, charging bottle, scope, silencer and bag for £380.
Of course, Any springer will do the job but you’ve got to be a bit better to get repeatable results with a spring rifle.
The other way is to post in a couple of hunting forums, you’ll be over run with offers!
Also think about what backstop you’ve got. Pellets winginging into neighbours gardens is a bad thing!
Firstly, can you shoot? If you can’t, whatever you do don’t start on live targets!
Yep. Usually pheasant.
Crossbow, longbow or catapult. Rock the old Skool Flashy.
Any public highways or footpaths within 20 (IIRC)) yards of where you'll be shooting?
Shooting pheasant with a 12 bore is a bit different to shooting rabbit with an air rifle..
For peak STW simply create a bespoke trebuchet from your wood pile....
If you’re going to do it, do it right!
You are Lady Campanula Tottington & I claim my £5!
As above, try the bunny buster, or try Mr Wallace and Mr Grommit of Anti-Pesto
Anything close to legal maximum power that you can hit its head with at say 20 yards. More may work but let's be cautious. Until this century a springer with open sights was regarded as fine for the job. Bit of practice will solve every thing. Or get a suppressed .410. Rember n+1 applies to shotguns as well.
[s]Crossbow, longbow or[/s] [b]cat[/b][s]apult[/s]. Rock the old Skool Flashy.
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Rent a fox? I hear the rates are reasonable 😉
Thanks, folks.
This looks a decent set up to me,
https://m.pellpax.co.uk/airguns/air-rifles/spring-powered-air-rifles/pellpax-rabbit-sniper-kit-22/209
Would be fun for target popping as well, I suppose.
No public rights of way.
Oh, and this would be the +1 in the equation! The proper guns are under lock and key. 😉
The proper guns are under lock and key.
In the shooting brake one assumes m'lud.
If only, Matt! Brakes are cooler than a penguin's pantry!
Where do you live flashy? Welcome to have a play with my weapon if close!!
Buy a decent brand and you,lol be doing fine. .177 is smaller, faster, flatter trajectory but can drill though quarry. .22 will drop more at range but tends to hit a bit harder as it imparts all the energy into the target. Both will take a bunny with a head shot at 35m. Modern pcp’s are amazingly accurate. 10shot groups at 30m with literally one pellet on top of the other. Springers I just can’t shoot as well anymore but used to hunt exclusively with them so they do work -with practice!
Good brands
Weihrauch
BSA
Airarms
Welcome to have a play with my weapon if close!!
😯
Tinybits, am in Hampshire. Amusingly, not too far from Watership Down.
Used spring rifles in my youth, and the simplicity appeals.
As long as you cook them after its all good. Please don't leave them out ask it attracts buzzards and other nasty burgers like magpies.
used to have a co2 jobbie that of course slowly leaked over the weeks between shots so of course was no good for "Annie get your gun" moments.
Swapped it with a friend for a simple brake barrel with built in suppressor. More clanky, not really as accurate, but easier to grab in a rush and sneak out in jim-jams commando-style between the herbaceous borders and nail the bastards at short notice.
Interesting re leakage, Stoner. The grab and bang approach is more what I need, I think.
Oh, and I don't wear pyjamas. 😉
Oh, and I don't wear pyjamas
Yet, what trousers for shooting rabbits...
I’ve got a Weirauch HW 90 which is a break barrel but uses a gas ram instead of a spring. It’s a big heavy beast but very accurate, little recoil & also quiet as long as I use a sound moderator.
You need to be able to hit a 20p piece at the the range you want to shoot the bunnies at, (30 yards tops realistically with a none fac rifle) as that’s about the size of Mr Lapin’s brain.
+1 for eating what you shoot. The offal fried up with wild garlic & mushrooms with some butter & chilli is a great post shoot breakfast.
Had this problem when we moved to our current place (4 ½ acre paddock out back.)
Starting by shooting a few myself. Realised that I wasn’t really making a dent so invited in some locals with better skills and a defender with hunting lights and they didn’t make much difference either (if any).
Then got an unwanted little cat (ginger type) who kills a couple a day for fun. Didn’t take him long to get them under control and requires no more effort then giving him some food ( yep, he can’t even be bothered to eat the bunnies, just kills them for fun).
Also, the moggy approach leaves more time for bike riding which, lets face it, is more fun.
I’m south of bath, even my weapon isn’t long enough to reach!
For springers, I’d be after an old hw77 or hw95. If I could track one down, a Theoben with the gas ram. Awesome rifles.
I honestly wouldn’t touch the one you linked to - it’s an air rifle bso!
Thanks, Tiny.
This sort of thing?
https://www.guntrader.uk/guns/air-rifles/theoben/break-barrel-gas-ram/22/eliminator-170908104501002
Right brand, wrong gun. That’s a firearm. If I remember correctly, it puts out 45ftlbs, legal limit is 12ftlbs.
Id buy this one -forgot about the Airarms 200’s, Excellent guns
AA TX200's and ProSports are probably some of the best sping powered guns there are - I own a .177 Mk2 TX200 🙂
The HW97 is probably the only other springer I would settle for.
Having said that when it came to bunny-bashing I would bag one bunny with the TX200 and the rest would go to ground. Once I got a silenced pre-charged with bipod and 10 round mag I could get 5 or 6 before the rest knew anything was up.
I miss hunting, it must be 10 or 11 years since I last went.
£300 seems a lot to spend on rabbit control gun. I doubt even shooting a few days a week you’ll control the numbers ? Why not just shoot them with your shotgun with some lighter shot ? Possibly a legal / neighbour reason ?
IIRC the HW90 has the theoben gas ram , It would be a very good call. I'm a .177 fan , it doesnt quite make the same THOK noise tho as the .22.
Get a springer, just more fun imo.
The Weihrauch 99 (lightweight) and 77 (heavy) both come with open sights so great for plinking and short range target shooting as well as hunting.
If you don't want open sights buy the one that feels nicest.
Air Arms, Weihrauch, Diana and Walther all make nice, quality springers.
No point in buying something cheap from an unknown brand, much more chance of it being a gun shaped object.
There are exceptions, Hatsan from Turkey are nice (and make Webley's guns for them now).
Hawke and Nikko Sterling make nice mid range scopes.
Get one that's adjustable for parallax.
Something like a 3-9 mag * 40mm is great for hunting, enabling you to focus down to realistic ranges.
You might want to go a bit longer, say 4*12 if you want to shoot targets at longer ranges.
And a rabbit's brain is about the size of a 2p coin.
You just can't risk a missed shot with an air rifle, the bunny will just go to ground and die slowly and agonisingly.
Your range should be limited accordingly.
It can be great fun, rabbits aren't stupid and it takes a bit of skill to get close enough.
Wood pigeons are even harder - their brains are tiny and chest shots aren't guaranteed to kill cleanly.
Prefer .177 myself.
Flatter, less affected by wind, cheaper and you can use it for target shooting if you like.
I used to enjoy hunting and everything apart from the rats got eaten.
Then we got a pet rabbit, I found out that wood pigeons mate for life and I became soft.
As said that pellpax thing is a heap.
HW90s have a hell of a kick to them but for some strange reason are still very usable.
You could pick up an old Falcon FN19 Hawk or Raptor for that sort of money, maybe a Prairie if you got lucky. you would still need a pump but you would have a perfect hunting setup. Barrels are Lothar-Walther too so no excuses for bad marksmanship.
Air Arms S200 is another good shout a good little gun made by CZ.
Cheapest springer to go for is the Hatsan 60S (or 50S in .177). Decent enough trigger group that can be great with minor fettling.
Walther LGV's, Air Arms TX200 or anything made by Weihrauch or Diana that is rated for 12fpe will do the job too. Latter two have excellent triggers, I'd be looking at a Hatsan or Weihrauch HW99 if buying new with scope or HW77/ Diana 430 if second hand. HW90 is out of your budget I think.
I would go for a spring powered purely because you don't need to do anything to it to be able to shoot.
I'd be looking at Airarms, Theoben or Weihrauch.
Also worth getting a nice torch as it's easier to shoot at night.
AA TX200's and ProSports are probably some of the best sping powered guns there are - I own a .177 Mk2 TX200
I had a Pro Elite when I was hunting. Amazing accuracy for a springer, was heavy though..
Oh, and I don't wear pyjamas
I once shot an elephant in my pyjamas!
What it was doing in my pyjamas I’ll never know!
One of my colleagues shoots foxes out of her bedroom window.
Me: "What's the furthest away you've got one?"
Her, straight faced: "Just under a mile."
They have quite a big garden and I don't think she uses an air rifle.
I had a Pro Elite when I was hunting. Amazing accuracy for a springer, was heavy though..
Yes, but I bet you didn't chip your nail polish on the under-lever 😉
Nope, no under-lever to worry about 😉
CFH you can borrow my setup as long as you let me drop [s]a few[/s] it off
One of my colleagues shoots foxes out of her bedroom window.Me: "What's the furthest away you've got one?"
Her, straight faced: "Just under a mile."
They have quite a big garden and I don't think she uses an air rifle.
Must have a seriously high powered rifle to be hitting anything at "just under a mile". Must also be missing and injuring quite a few as well. There aren't any legally available rifles in the UK that have a grouping capacity to reliably hit a fox from that distance, even if there was no wind.
I thought Flashers would have a man to do the shooting, whilst he himself just roamed the grounds of his vast estate?
Happy chrimbo CFH 🙂
One of my colleagues shoots foxes out of her bedroom window.
Me: "What's the furthest away you've got one?"Her, straight faced: "Just under a mile."
Is this her?
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*Can't quite believe that Flashy shoots [s]peasants[/s] Pheasants with a 12/20 gauge but doesn't know what air rifle to buy/has any contacts in the shoot he's in to come & do some rabbit control* 😉
Must have a seriously high powered rifle to be hitting anything at "just under a mile". Must also be missing and injuring quite a few as well. There aren't any legally available rifles in the UK that have a grouping capacity to reliably hit a fox from that distance, even if there was no wind
My thoughts entirely. Full bore target shooters can stretch a consistent round to 1000 yards. Modern calibres like 6.5 Creedmoor will stay consistent (ie supersonic) out to 1200 or more. In the real world I shoot rabbits and fox out to long distances, but that's with a tactical rifle, consistent loads and over forty years of experience. In .243 calibre I would confidently shoot out to 600-700 yards, but then it would have to be a consistent, readable wind. 450-500 is already starting to push the limits on most days. The rifle and scope combination has been built up over a decade to reach that level of confidence. The margin of error on what would be considered an accurate rifle out of the box (ie sub 1 MOA) would make a centre body-mass shot on a fox inhumane much beyond 300 yards.
One of my colleagues shoots foxes out of her bedroom window.Me: "What's the furthest away you've got one?"
Her, straight faced: "Just under a mile."
They have quite a big garden and I don't think she uses an air rifle.
Bullshitter of the highest order .
One of my colleagues shoots foxes out of her bedroom window.Me: "What's the furthest away you've got one?"
Her, straight faced: "Just under a mile."
They have quite a big garden and I don't think she uses an air rifle.
Maybe she's firing the foxes out of a cannon?
Maybe she's firing the foxes out of a cannon?
Maybe she's from Thailand and has a certain skill. Replacing ping-pong balls with these?
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If I could track one down, a Theoben with the gas ram. Awesome rifles.
Theoben Rapid 7 for bunny control, but then I would say that as I used to make them. 8)
but then I would say that as I used to make them
What happened to Theoben? Shot a few over the years, fantastic bits of kit.
I always wanted one but could never quite stretch to it.
Rapid? If the Op wants to spend 2.5x times his budget, sure.
Also Theoben springers don't have the best triggers, if you want a Theoben, buy a Weihrauch.
Jamba - £300 is a reasonable price for a bunny basher considering pellets come in at under £20 for 1000, how much does a slab of shotgun cartridges cost? Also, how likely is the OP to have a garden suitable for shooting a shotgun in? £300 or risking his licence, let's do the maths...
Theoben went under, financial trouble iirc. See also Parker Hale. I think AA and Daystate are the last ones standing, all the rest either went under or were bought out by other brands parent companies (BSA by Gamo, Webley by Hatsan, Falcon by AA etc.)
As this is an MTB forum, and we all now ride 180mm bikes along tow paths, i'm going to suggest that for shooting small rabbits in your garden then this:
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is clearly perfect for the job...... 😆
(if you think being "underbiked" is embarrassing, then you really, really don't ever want to be "undergunned")
Suppose it savs on the mincing if you want to make sausages...
Rabbit proof fencing...
Have a look at some of the second hand airguns on airgunbbs.com
Why bother - apply for your FAC and for the price of a half decent air rifle you can get an utterly lovely .22 rimfire,
stevied - MemberWhat happened to Theoben?
I believe quality went down when they took the manufacturing in house, coupled with very high prices and poor customer service.
Airarms S200 here - bloody lethal.
The muzzle velocity is also adjustable via a grub screw to make it very illegal if you're daft enough.
When I first got it I sighted it in by pinning a target to a piece of wood 25m away and rested the gun on a box to create a steady platform.
Once I was happy with the adjustments I then went on to shoot off the pushpins that held the target up!
[img] https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQDA4g94jUHwQzdYBy-V6I-THbnEA-Y5aivXMLL0oU0Jksp1_fYPw [/img]
One day I'll apply for my FAC then I can use my brothers .22 rimfire ad the 17HMR.
Couldn't you just drive over them like you do with deer?
They have learnt to stand between the headlights.....
how about small bore shot gun ? the local estate used us to keep the local rabbit population down with an old long barreled choked 4-10. good range for a shotgun not too loud and nice recoil.
Why bother - apply for your FAC and for the price of a half decent air rifle you can get an utterly lovely .22 rimfire,
How big do you think his garden is?
This is like someone asking what bike to take round red trails and everyone telling them they need a Brooklyn or Karpiel.
An air gun at sub 12 will be quiet enough to work at their ideal ranges which won't disturb neighbours or have the embarrassment of the local FEO laughing in your face when he realises you pissed £70 up against the wall to try and shoot rabbits in your garden with a gun utterly inappropriate for the job.
Rimfire is fine for clearing golf courses and working beyond 30odd yards. Provided the land is cleared and safe which unless he's the Duke of Hampshire I doubt it will be.
Shotguns are shit because they are noisy, one shot and everything runs for the night. Again, unless you're planning on moving far enough away to take the second shot you would be wasting your time. Just throw fireworks if that's your plan.
OP this man can help.
Very efficient too, good reviews.
[url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/i-like-cats-but ]Here[/url]
Spot on, Squirrelking. Thanks.
Just deal with them the way that they deal with Pigs in Texas...
'You can't do this in France' says Ted Nugent, whilst shooting pigs from a helicopter.
God help us all.
🙂
+1 for the cat solution. We have two who are really very good at self-feeding, especially in the springtime when the new crop of bunny youngsters is at their most vulnerable. We're on a mixed farm in the middle of Angus and I've not seen a single (self propelled) rabbit in the garden for over ten years.
The only down side is that the big ginger lad has also found a taste for hares and at 9kg, he can manage anything that he can ambush. He brought a live weasel into the house the other day; strangely enough, I wasn't putting my hands anywhere near that little confrontation, so left them to work it out between them. He didn't eat the tail...
Oh aye, and air rifles: I'd also vote for the HW77. You do need to use it often enough to become and stay familiar with it but it's excellent for small game.
Ok so I think I have this figured out, airifles are good but cats are better.
So why not get a cat with an airgun mounted to it's head, Ultimate bunny hunting machine...
CFH, do you shoot locally?
I don't know much about air rifles but the few precharged ones I've used have been epic (BSA super ten about 12 years ago being notably good).
This guy is pretty good as vermin control snipers go:
I hope you are going to eat them CFH - or maybe a nice pair of slippers?
The ideal killing spot is between the Eye and Ear. This is easily achievable with a PCP air rifle. A laser range finder will also help in judging distances.
My Air arms S410, can and does kill them at at 50 yards. That is what my scope is zeroed at.
Although its fun, a .22Lr with night vision is a lethal combination.
I've picked up quite a few old pre charged pneumatic rifles for as little as £120 if you hunt around .
I picked up a tatty project AirArms TX200 MK1 today for £99 in a local gunshop.
There's bargains out there, they even had an old BSA Mercury in need of a service for £50.
Get to some shops and see what they have knocking about, you may have to ask as they don't always put the more used examples on display.
I have all sorts of fancy rifles some costing over four figures, but you know what, most of the vermin I've shot has been killed with my old 1980's Weihrauch 35 in .22. It's in everyday use as a grab and shoot rifle. Probably had a couple of hundred squirrels with it this year.
So a basic spring gun can do the job.
I picked up a tatty project AirArms TX200 MK1 today for £99 in a local gunshop.
😯
thats a good deal
It was a great deal, but I only went in to get my two air bottles filled 😆
Ill offer you £100 so you can turn a profit 😉
@hammy - Thanks for the offer! Very kind. Think I'll buy and see what happens from there. Springers appear to be winning so far, if only for the simplicity of the grab & go aspect.
@jerrys - Happy Christmas to you and family, y'old fart! 🙂 Hope you're on great form and are finally going to get round to cutting that steerer tube down! No guest appearances planned in the near term, but likely to be dropping in later in the Christmas week. Need to take their presents in. Many changes in the offing there, big and good changes! Watch this space...
Well its sat there doing nowt 😉
It was a great deal, but I only went in to get my two air bottles filled
Isn't that how these things usually happen?
Theoben -
poor customer service
Too right. I spent £650+ on a Rapid 2. 2nd time out a seal went bang. I rang them up, yes, just send it back. We'll fix it.
Once they had it, they said I'd misused it, as 'that seal never fails'.
Right. Then they wanted me to pay the return postage, as their guns are totally reliable, and it wasnt a warranty failure.
The gun was totally spotless and had been used correctly. Never would I deal with them again.
Thread resurrection...
Had totally forgotten about this, if I'm honest. Had to go to Mole Valley for a few other bits and bobs and had an impulse purchase of one of these,
https://www.webleyandscott.com/products/vmx-quantum
So far so good! Getting the sights dialled in pretty well, grouping on a target the size of a 10p coin at about 30yds and gradually working on a bit more distance. Ever since buying it, the bunnies have disappeared! Still, a nice distraction to be able to plink away in the garden.