pellet guns

[big ed]

Who do you think has the best pellet gun .for popping rabbits and other small tasty critters.And  all around target shooting.

[Bob33]

For popping rabbits, none.  They're illegal for hunting in Washington.

[Austrian Hunter]

But what about does damn Magpie birds, I hate them!  They steeling my dogs food, water and depositing their crap all over my deck.  I have neighbors near by so .22 is out of the question.   

[big ed]

Well skip the rabbits how about varmits.Stupid washington rules.But thank for info just didn't catch it for some reason. Back to the . 410 come rabbit season neighbors to close for 22.

[BigGoonTuna]

For popping rabbits, none.  They're illegal for hunting in Washington.

where does it specifically say that?

[addicted]

the break action single pump ones i would say. hypothetically ofcourse. the new ones are almost as good as a 22 

you could always shoot 22 shorts for keepin the noise down to a click.

mmmmm love me some rabit. whole skinned rabbit over night in beer and seasoning then wrapped in aluminum foil and on the BBQ  so juicy.

[Houndhunter]

ya break barrel with one that has min 1000fps, there sweet for pickin off critters with neighbors

[Bob33]

Page 64 in the Big Game Pamphlet.

11. Prohibited firearms/hunting methods
It is illegal to:
• Hunt game birds with a shotgun capable
of holding more than three shells.
• Hunt game birds with a rifle or pistol,
except forest grouse.
• Hunt game birds or game animals with
anything other than a firearm, a bow and
arrow, or by falconry. Bullfrogs may only
be taken by angling, hand dip netting,
gigging, and bow and arrow.

Pellet guns are not considered firearms per WAC 9.41.010
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=9.41.010
"(1) "Firearm" means a weapon or device from which a projectile or projectiles may be fired by an explosive such as gunpowder."

[Houndhunter]

you can still shoot starlings rabbits crows ect, just gotta have a explantion if some doosh call game on you except for starlings hell you can even trap them

[Houndhunter]

 

[NRA4LIFE]

Gamo.  They make one right now that I think can go up to 1600 FPS  in .177 caliber.  I have a Gamo 440 at 1200 fps with the Gamo pellets.  Someone told me these can be effective on rabbits.

[Dean44]

Get a spring air gun with a cocking barrel and a 2 stage trigger. I have a Beenam R9 .20 cal and it has seen a few thousand rounds over 9 years and still shoots great. It is very accurate. The .20 cal is a good penetrator for critters. Beeman Field Target Specials are the best pellets that I have found.

This is a really fun gun to shoot!

The 2 stage trigger is pretty important on a spring air because the trigger holds back a very powerful spring and requires a second stage of leverage for a light and accurate trigger pull.

[Dean44]

Page 64 in the Big Game Pamphlet.

11. Prohibited firearms/hunting methods
It is illegal to:
• Hunt game birds with a shotgun capable
of holding more than three shells.
• Hunt game birds with a rifle or pistol,
except forest grouse.
• Hunt game birds or game animals with
anything other than a firearm, a bow and
arrow, or by falconry. Bullfrogs may only
be taken by angling, hand dip netting,
gigging, and bow and arrow.

Pellet guns are not considered firearms per WAC 9.41.010
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=9.41.010
"(1) "Firearm" means a weapon or device from which a projectile or projectiles may be fired by an explosive such as gunpowder."

Compressed air is the explosive that propells the projectile.

[bobcat]

Dean44,  good point. It just says an explosive such as gunpowder. Doesn't say it HAS to be gunpowder.   

[Mookie]

Find a really long barreled 22, an old cheap one works great. Use CCI Subs and it won't be to much louder than a pellet rifle. Another option for ammo is Aguilla SSS. 60 grain lead shot with a short casing, nice an quite, packs a punch also.

[BigGoonTuna]

i've used my $40 pumpmaster for dispatching rabbits in the garden.  even at 500fps, a pellet to the head puts them down quick.  i took one last year from about 40 yards

a better idea than using subsonic ammo in a .22:  get a box of CCI CB longs.  i've shot them out of my CZ 452(with a 21" bbl) and the report is no louder than my pellet gun.  they'll chamber and shoot fine in just about any bolt action .22.

the 60gr aguillas are very quiet, but they are junk unless you've got a 1:9 twist barrel.  out of my rifle, they'll keyhole after about 20 yards.

[Bofire]

Ya'll better rethink shooting Magpies, here at least. Unless you want to make a large donation to the Govt.
Carl

[Mookie]

Straight from the Big Game Hunting Regs. Page 65.

9. Depredating Wildlife:
Rock doves (pigeons), Eurasian collared doves,
starlings, and house sparrows may be taken
at any time. Crows may be taken during the
crow season or in the act of depredation. Crow
season: Statewide, no limit, October 1 - January
31. Magpies may be taken only in the act of
depredation (damaging crops or other property).

8. Protected Wildlife:
It is illegal to hunt, kill, possess, or control
protected wildlife. Protected wildlife are:
Cascade golden-mantled ground, golden
mantled ground, Washington ground, red,
Douglas, northern flying and western gray
squirrels; steller and California sea lions;
seals; dolphins; porpoises; whales, green sea,
loggerhead sea and painted turtles; Larch
Mountain salamanders; pygmy whitefish,
margined sculpins; Olympic mudminnows;
cony or pika; North American lynx; common
loon; least, yellow-pine, Townsend’s red-tailed
chipmunks; hoary and Olympic marmots;
wolverines; California mountain kingsnakes;
all birds not classified as game birds, except,
starlings, house sparrows, rock doves (pigeons)
and magpies; all bats, except when found in
or immediately adjacent to a dwelling or other
occupied building.

Now what does this mean?

all birds not classified as game birds, except,
starlings, house sparrows, rock doves (pigeons)
and magpies;

It seems to read that it is legal to hunt them from this paragraph, but the first quote says only in the act of depredation. I have never shot a Magpie and have never needed to, but am curious.

[BigGoonTuna]

don't magpies land on livestock and peck at them?

[Austrian Hunter]

don't magpies land on livestock and peck at them?

And they harass my dog  

[Bofire]

They are cleaning bugs off the stock

[machine]

I have a rws .22 that shoots 800 fps and am considering having it in the truck for grouse while big game hunting.I also have a 12 gauge but would love to use my pellet gun if it is legal.

[Bob33]

"I also have a 12 gauge but would love to use my pellet gun if it is legal."

Pellet guns are not legal for hunting in Washington.

[machine]

12 gauge it is.

[machine]

They have plenty of power for clean kills a shame they cant be used.My dad used to kill rabbits in the yard when i was a kid with a beeman.

[bobcat]

I don't see any reason why you couldn't use an air rifle to shoot a grouse. It's really just a technicality in the law. I'm pretty sure when they wrote the law they didn't intend to make air rifles illegal for grouse. I doubt any game warden would write you up for it.

[BigGoonTuna]

especially since there are big-bore(.45 cal) pellet guns capable of taking big game cleanly.

[Bob33]

Lewis and Clark killed big game with air rifles, but they are not considered a "firearm" in Washington.  Don't blame the enforcement officers; they didn't write the laws but they are expected to enforce them.

[Shadow Cat]

I shoot a Remington .177 pellet gun and live it. It scoots about 1600fps, weighs about as much as my M-700 .270 and is cheap to shoot.

[h2ofowlr]

I use an old Savage NRA bolt action rifle.  It is a long barrel with CCI CB longs.  It is very quiet and thumps the starlings good.
Gamo also makes good pellet guns.  If you check out some of the ones in Europe they have calibers for hunting big game.  The US pretty much sells, .177, .20 & .22.  Those are the common.

[Buckblaster]

I heard from a friend of this guy who knows this other guy that swears that Gamo Whisper pellet guns kill rabbits, squirrels and crows deader than hell. But that just what I heard...

[e55komp]

 gamo , its all about the RWS or brno (which makes a lot of rws) quarter groups at 30 feet with gamo pellets

[addicted]

i was talking with my buddy from england the other day and he says a good air rifle up there sells for about 1,500 british pounds    i guess that is the standard over there with how hard it is to get firearms.

[Clumber]

We lived dead-center in the city until almost 3 years ago and were keeping pigeons for dog-training.  No one bothered to clue us in that keeping pigeons results in keeping rats....  I got to be very very good at killing rats with my GAMO.  Put the varmint pack on it (light & laser)  and would lay prone in our driveway for hours picking off rats as they investigated my peanut butter bait pile.  Also killed a possum with it - it was predating.  At first I was all, "Oh cool, a possum! Wild Kingdom in my front yard!" but that feeling passed as soon as I saw her climb the flight pen, reach in and grab a sleeping (stupid) pigeon.  Damn things were costing me $5 each, no possum gets them!

Hyper-reactive neighbors had no idea.  Less of a "crack" then hammering a picture hanger into the wall.  And mine is not the "whisper" version, either.  It didn't like those PBR pellets that GAMO pimps - much much lower accuracy.  Regular pellets and I could shoot the eyeball of a nervous biggie norway rat from 15 yards.  I don't think *I* would want to go much bigger than the possum, but I know that some take feral hogs with pellet rifles.