Essay. Shooting. Groups.

[Rez 4,961]

Is todays air gunner to obsessed by absolute accuracy? The key word being 'todays'.

 

As in literally one hole groups (springers mainly). It's something that I've just asked myself while watching what is the best shooting video(s) available. John Darlings hunting videos. Im watching them. Again. To any airgunner, the man is a legend, and I've never seen a better advocate of the sport of air gunning game than the man himself. Not just his knowledge, but the way he put his point across. And his hunting and rifle choices... let's be honest... Rapid in .22 and a HW80 in .22 say no more.

 

These days, we see videos, mostly on the tube, where the shooter is bangin pellet on pellet at a set distance, whether that be 25 yards, or 50 yards and as much as this is great to see, does such videos or content take the essence away from shooting air rifles or hunting with air rifles? I don't know why, but when I watch JD shooting, I don't think about the fact that he's not putting pellet on pellet, far from it, maybe just within an inch, so "today" he's not that good of a shot but I don't think he's not a good shot, far from it, I think he knows what he's on about. Does he care about it that much? Thinking about it, if he could see the accuracy that some shooters are putting in today, he'd be amazed, but the point is, I don't think he'd care.

 

Mr pittaway, absolutely a spot on shot, great videos, great channel, but I don't know if he has 'that thing' that JD had. Again, no disrespect. What he's done for the air gun community is outstanding, but I suppose maybe something is getting lost in this modern content of "showing how good we are" as opposed to content of the past. I only point him out as it's a name and channel most will recognize. There are many good shots on the internet to see. I'm also to blame

 

I understand the tech has come on a long way, fine, but in all honesty, the best and most accurate rifles are ones that indeed are from the age of JD. The most accurate rifle I've shot was older than me. I hate to say it, a 77 Lazaglide. Jesus. Anyway. His for example, it most be touching 30 years old where ever it is (owner...name your price in a pm if you read this), would maybe put pellet on pellet out to the usual, but it would seem that his focus wasn't perhaps on the fact that he cares as long as he's out and about with it. And yet, his airgun experiences set the standard.

 

So, with everything that surrounds air gunning and the personal battle of bangin in those in one hole groups, do they really matter because you've seen some else doing the same online... Is it more about the experiences that we have? Naturally, I'm not saying wounding is ok, so don't start, all I'm saying, is from watching his videos, again, it makes me re think my own goals. Do I care that I'm not getting one whole groups?

 

At the end of the day, the point I'm making, is why didn't JD or any of the original airgunning VHS videos, set a target up at 45 yards and then pull one off over the fact that the rifle there shooting has dropped pellet on pellet time after time... at huge distances? Why didn't he talk about how well his rifle is tuned?

 

So are we to obsessed with one whole groups these days? And has all that occurred from watching other people do it? Are such videos more about proving ourselves to the rest of the world? When really, there just air guns...

[si brown 8,486]

you get an A* for that you insomniac loon

i think your spot on with TODAYS shooter... any half decent shooter can pull off a one hole group with a quality pcp and the right pellet and this is replicated into

spinger land but its nowhere near as easy, you can tune your springer as much as you like but you've got to know how to handle it, sat on a bench at a range is all well but what goods that in areal world situation!

i'll just accept that with a springer i can pull of pcp shots but not consistently and I'm more than happy with a clover group

 

atb si

[bigmac 97kt 13,803]

Im happy if i can put ten shots in under a 5p group then i know any vermin is not going to suffer when i shoot them

 

there dead end off

 

atvbjimmy :thumbs:

[villaman 9,983]

Things have come a long way rez ,its the same with football back in the early eighties to now ,we all move on and we strive to be the best and each generation will do the same

[pianoman 3,587]

Great article Rez, very thought-provoking!

 

I cannot remember their names now but, JD's HW80 .22 was sold in the 1990s, on to a young chap who formed a hunting/writing partnership with another chap who shot with a rather nice BSA Goldstar underlever. They were actively hunting and writing of their exploits for either AIRGUNNER or AIRGUN WORLD. Then, they just stopped, or were dropped from the editorial team. There was no more from them by about 2002/3 time.

 

That HW80 was a beautiful looking rifle. Walnut classical hunting rifle stock by (I think) Gary Cane. It was that simple, yet, highly effective spring rifle shooting that made me persist with springers instead of going down the PCP rout when pre-charged rifles began to take hold of the market.

 

I agree that Si Pittaway has done marvellous things for the sport. He's gone through the whole air rifle accuracy spectrum and shown how greatly accurate a spring rifle can be. He's even brought the best out of a basic, cheap Chinese rifle he used to have.

 

I've certainly benefitted from having met and shot with him on numerous occasions,- including a full day out with him on my permission in North Yorkshire as well as a few friendly comps we've shot together with Davy T.

 

From a historical standpoint of accuracy with spring rifles, I dare say there were some really nice spring rifles from BSA and Webley & Scott in the 1970s, 80s and 90s and, in .22 meant you had an effective reach out to 40 yards effectively. ( I had no great experience of hunting with .177.). More than enough to put rabbits in the bag. But, for me, the first really precision accurate spring rifle I had was the Feinwerkbau Sport .22 I bought in 1978 when that marvellous rifle was first launched in the UK.

 

I curse myself for selling it but, I moved on to an HW80 .22 that I still own and hold in absolute awe. This rifle, and my HW77 .22 that came a while later are still my top rifles for serious hunting and are incredibly accurate and reliable after many years of hunting with them now .

 

But it takes a great deal of dedicated practice to get the best out of them and get them "singing". But once you've mastered the techniques.....

 

I recently shot with Philpot's .177 Air Arms TX200HC and that was a lovely experience. A true pellet on pellet accurate air rifle. I put about 5 or six shots right into the hole of the first pellet with it at 35 metres range. The current stock is a lot nicer in feel than the previous MkIII stock, which is another factor in smooth accuracy.

 

PCPs today, well, they are alright I suppose. They can put phenominal accuracy in the hands of a novice shooter, which is no bad thing. They are absolutely no more accurate than a well-sorted HW80 or HW77, or TX200 series or Prosport. Not in my experience at any rate. But, as I've said, a PCP will get anyone up and running with a precision accurate shooting arm. I still would argue that it still takes a proper understanding of marksmanship principals and practice to achieve the best of them though.

 

But the satisfaction and sheer elation at pulling off a fine kill on a rabbit or woodpigeon, clean and sweet at 50 metres and more, with a beautiful, classical spring rifle in your hands is a priceless reward for dedicated practice put in to achieve it.

 

The kit today is amazingly good. It looks good, it handles well. But not as good as it was 20-30-odd years ago when the major gun makers cared more about quality than costs.

 

The only gripe I have, is the less than perfect standards with which it is being made and sold these days, with corner-cut, cost-conscious rubbish that has been getting into the works.

 

I hope these are now being addressed and sorted for good.

 

ATB

PIANOMAN

[The one 8,487]

But if you don't have absolute accuracy how can you be killing quarry quickly and humanly ?. If no you spend a lot of time looking for wounded quarry that's in pain and its bad enough for me who does a lot of lamping if a rabbit throws its selfs down a burrow or into cover with its death throes it takes a lot of time to find and end that quarries suffering and anything that's no killed out right gets a rush of adrenaline and can taste the meat

Target shooters also would loose points ?. so knowing your guns hitting one hole groups at whatever range seems the decent humane thing for me ?.

[secretagentmole 1,701]

I like to get to a single hole group when rested off of a bipod because that way I know the gun is set up properly. Then shooting standing I can get the shots to fall within a 25mm circle at 25 metres which is good enough to off a bunny!