0verbets Posted February 1, 2009 Report Share Posted February 1, 2009 hi all, im brand new to the shooting scene so much so that i had never fired a gun of any sort up untill 2 weeks ago. iv now developed what can only be described as a near obssesion with all things airgunning!! iv bought every magazine in w.h smiths and scanned the net till my eyes start streaming .. on the advice of my brother-in-law iv just bought a new edgar bros model 60 (£100), which he claims is a good starter rifle,but im not over impressed. iv been reading all your posts for a few days now and you all seem a knowledgable bunch so im looking for advice on getting up to a decent standard so that i feel confident to go hunting and dispatch animals cleanly.. im very lucky in that on the way home from the gunsmiths,i stopped at a large house with acres of wooded grounds and was given permission to shoot rabbits and squirrels. at the moment all i do is target shooting from about 30 yards and have no consistency in my grouping so i'll leave the critters alone for now, but im itching to get my first tree rat. my current set up edgar model 60 .22 4x20 scope (no laughing,pressie from bro-in law) wasp pellets i will upgrade as standard improves and budget allows (love the looks and reviews of aa410) but any pointers will be a great help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeinVA Posted February 1, 2009 Report Share Posted February 1, 2009 (edited) hi all, im brand new to the shooting scene so much so that i had never fired a gun of any sort up untill 2 weeks ago. iv now developed what can only be described as a near obssesion with all things airgunning!! iv bought every magazine in w.h smiths and scanned the net till my eyes start streaming .. on the advice of my brother-in-law iv just bought a new edgar bros model 60 (£100), which he claims is a good starter rifle,but im not over impressed. iv been reading all your posts for a few days now and you all seem a knowledgable bunch so im looking for advice on getting up to a decent standard so that i feel confident to go hunting and dispatch animals cleanly.. im very lucky in that on the way home from the gunsmiths,i stopped at a large house with acres of wooded grounds and was given permission to shoot rabbits and squirrels. at the moment all i do is target shooting from about 30 yards and have no consistency in my grouping so i'll leave the critters alone for now, but im itching to get my first tree rat. my current set up edgar model 60 .22 4x20 scope (no laughing,pressie from bro-in law) wasp pellets i will upgrade as standard improves and budget allows (love the looks and reviews of aa410) but any pointers will be a great help. Welcome to PW bud Yes, there are some great lads on this site A couple things to know before you hit the field, and this will vary with each shooter.. Practice, practice, practice.. If shooting a springer remember that the resonance from the spring continues well after the pellet leaves the barrel.. I have always said that a good springer shooter makes an excellent rifle shooter.. Follow through with each shot, sort of like shooting a bow.. Second is your breathing control and trigger squeeze, which shall come with experience, and pellet selection.. That is finding the right pellet that you guns likes.. Your group will be tighter.. No one gun or pellet will give a clean kill.. Its 90% shooter and 10% gun.. have fun and good luck and be safe mate Edited February 1, 2009 by LeeinVA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robsmyth Posted February 1, 2009 Report Share Posted February 1, 2009 (edited) I think Lee has summed it up pretty well there and what a lucky chap you are getting a permission on your first knock, it's always agood idea to get it in writing though. Nothing wrong with the rifle, once you have mastered that, you'll be able to shoot with just about anything. Good luck. Edited February 1, 2009 by robsmyth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark_mjs93 Posted February 1, 2009 Report Share Posted February 1, 2009 (edited) howdy fella firstly welcome to PW befor you get onto the live quarry build confidence with your gun first practice practice practice thats very important, put a few hundred through it first i put 2000 pellets through my air rifle before i got out onto the live quarry, get insured BASC and country side alliance both offer great cover, learn the kill spots of your quarry (head or neck usually) and learn to think before pulling the trigger, if in doubt dont shoot, if your shooting rabbits makes sure they are aleast 2 or 3 metres from the burrow before shooting them and always have a way to dispatch, depending on what im shooting i use a few methods, if im shooting rooks, ill use a point blank shot or preist rabbits, neck break or preist squirrels are fast ******* but if you get a good shot and you do only injure best thing is to point blank it, we say max for an air rifle distance for a clean kill is 30 yards, with your scope i would limit that down a bit, if anything go invest in something a bit better scope wise i use a 4X40 smk scope on a gamo whisper X with accupell pellets, or AA pointed hunter pellets, and most important of all is to have fun but be wise think about your shot (learn to think quick squirrels are jittery its like they are on speed they are quick and agile) think of all the possible outcomes IE; backstop, clean kill, ricochet, and if in doubt dont shoot... have fun though the best part of shooting with an air rifle is learning fieldcraft to outwit that crafty bunny and get close enough to kill the ******, another good tip is learn to shoot with the wind in your face, its annoying at first but after a while you get used to it this stops bunnies squirrels etc catching your scent and scarpering, you will have alot of bad days and if you get a kill on your first trip out take yourself down the pub (if your old enough ) and have a pint because that is one HELL of an achievment and always remember what you shoot is food so treat it carefully learn to gut and skin and enjoy yourself you have done AMAZINGLY well already i still havent got a permission but i go with my cousin to some of his permissions occasionally enjoy yourself if i have forgotten anything ill ad it later, make sure your scope is zeroed aswell if you dont know how to PM me and ill send you a PM explaining... Happy Shooting Mark Edited February 1, 2009 by mark_mjs93 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
realtreedave Posted February 1, 2009 Report Share Posted February 1, 2009 lots to learn,thing is you never stop learning in this game.keep puting in the practice,check out plenty of different pelets[eventualy youl find the perfect pellet,try air arms]and upgrade that awful scope[4x32 bare minimum about£15].be patient it will all come good and welome to the best sport ever.good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark_mjs93 Posted February 1, 2009 Report Share Posted February 1, 2009 lots to learn,thing is you never stop learning in this game.keep puting in the practice,check out plenty of different pelets[eventualy youl find the perfect pellet,try air arms]and upgrade that awful scope[4x32 bare minimum about£15].be patient it will all come good and welome to the best sport ever.good luck i got an SMK 4X40 scope cost me £39.99 good ol' scope does me well will give you great clear view of your quarry mate and as dave says Upgrade that awful scope lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happyshooter Posted February 2, 2009 Report Share Posted February 2, 2009 hi overbets, welcome to the forum , it sounds from your post you have got your head screwed on, and the lads on here give their useful and helpful advice, well done PW as already said lots of practise and then live prey i would keep your ranges down to 25yds and good luck , safe ans happy shooting, pls remember help is aiways available on here. atb brian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smsguitarist Posted February 2, 2009 Report Share Posted February 2, 2009 Welcome to PW Everyones advice so far is invaluable my friend so listen The only other thing i can recommend to help improve your groups is to bring your practise range down to when you can group well. I regularly come down to 10 yards just to get the best groups i can. This might give you a bit of confidence as well then you can expand your range in 5 or 10 yard intervals to get in the practice. Cheers, Lewis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
realtreedave Posted February 2, 2009 Report Share Posted February 2, 2009 i too shorten the distances down to 20 and 10 yards particulary with a new rifle,all part of getting to know your rifle.the next big hurdle when you get to know your rifle is fieldcraft,and you never stop learning this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toombsy Posted February 2, 2009 Report Share Posted February 2, 2009 Welcome to the forum mate. Everything above is great advice and should be followed to the letter. One thing I would add is to really try to concentrate on your breathing when you're shooting. Either teach yourself to let off the shot when your taking a deep breath in or out (don't hold your breath). Learning to control your breathing when your target shooting will help enormously in the field, when your after rabbits and squirrels. When you have one of those in your sights your heartbeat will increase rapidly and you'll be breathing heavy. But good training from the very start will help you control all that and you'll be able to take a confident, stable and accurate shot at whatever, whenever. All the very best of luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0verbets Posted February 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2009 thanks for your time guys, iv read all your replys and really appreciate your input. theres some really good tips in there.iv noticed that pellets play a much bigger part then i first thought (almost as important as the gun),so ill go invest in a multi pack, and get down to my target range after iv closed in my targets to varied distances.. thanks again 0verbets Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thumpersniper Posted February 5, 2009 Report Share Posted February 5, 2009 Hey bud, i cant really welcome you to PW because im new to it myself! but i can certainly welcome you to shooting and hunting, you will love it for sure. As Toomsby said breating is important, i have been shooting for years, but only recently started concentrating more on the breathing, you need to do that from the start i used to hold my breath but i think you wobble more, and you are rushed because you need to get the shot off so you can breath again - not good! as you breath in and out fire halfway through breathing out i think is best. good luck! SP Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staglioni Posted February 5, 2009 Report Share Posted February 5, 2009 Hello and welcome to P.W some great advice there from the lads but dont try rushing it will be month's before you will get good groups.Dont try that much that you get bored and give up,just take your time mate,good luck stag Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noluv6 Posted February 5, 2009 Report Share Posted February 5, 2009 hi all, im brand new to the shooting scene so much so that i had never fired a gun of any sort up untill 2 weeks ago. iv now developed what can only be described as a near obssesion with all things airgunning!! iv bought every magazine in w.h smiths and scanned the net till my eyes start streaming .. on the advice of my brother-in-law iv just bought a new edgar bros model 60 (£100), which he claims is a good starter rifle,but im not over impressed. iv been reading all your posts for a few days now and you all seem a knowledgable bunch so im looking for advice on getting up to a decent standard so that i feel confident to go hunting and dispatch animals cleanly.. im very lucky in that on the way home from the gunsmiths,i stopped at a large house with acres of wooded grounds and was given permission to shoot rabbits and squirrels. at the moment all i do is target shooting from about 30 yards and have no consistency in my grouping so i'll leave the critters alone for now, but im itching to get my first tree rat. my current set up edgar model 60 .22 4x20 scope (no laughing,pressie from bro-in law) wasp pellets i will upgrade as standard improves and budget allows (love the looks and reviews of aa410) but any pointers will be a great help. helo mate, It is indeed a obsession,lucky you are only looking at springer's lol,wait till your on pcp regulators,177 or 22 then scopes,the list goes on but you soon find the perfect kit but pay threw the noise experiencing other guns 1st. good gun to start with and well worthy of hunting the edgar60 but your scope needs to be changed asap,i suggest you take a look at js ramsbottoms site 3-9x50 for 25-30 and ive seen bushnells and simmons for similar money. that scope you have will break very soon with out doubt. keep away from 4x20 and try for a 3-9 as then you can set what ever mag between 3-9 you like. wasp pellets,i use on my 22 guns as they shoot tight and my guns like them, they dont like the 5.6s though, which is the blue tin i thinks,its the purple tin you need. practice makes perfect fella but even when you can hold tight groups you will get a flier and miss. dont hold a springer to hard,thick thick glove for forend hand i would highly recommend to you to absorb recoil,other wise soft relaxed hold and let the gun recoil where it likes after youve pulled the trigger "obviously make sure you pull the trigger on target".. if you cant hold a tight group then bring your range lower to like 15-20 then work back out. welcome to the new addiction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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