Recommendations for larger varmints?
- Thread starter aray
- Start date
The #1 community for Gun Owners of the Northeast
Member Benefits:
No ad networks! Discuss all aspects of firearm ownership Discuss anti-gun legislation Buy, sell, and trade in the classified section Chat with Local gun shops, ranges, trainers & other businesses Discover free outdoor shooting areas View up to date on firearm-related events Share photos & video with other members ...and so much more!
Member Benefits:
Update: As I said last year I got a Crosman Benjamin Discovery last fall. It was fun target shooting but the big test was to come when trapping for nuisance wildlife (i.e. raccoons) came along. That time was today.
I set my trap up yesterday for the first time this year. Overnight, I had bagged my first raccoon.
So out came my Disco. I was a bit surprised to see that it had retained all of the air I put in it last fall; none had leaked out over the winter. Extraordinary.
I set up a measured distance of 10 yards. Pyramydair advertises 900 fps and 23 ft-lbs for the .22 pellets with regular high pressure air. I loaded it with a Crosman .22 domed 14.3 gr premier pellet. Chronos I've seen online for 14.3 grains out of that rifle run between 820 to 906 fps at a full 2000 psi load. (It tails off to 750 fps as the tank pressure drops to 1000 psi.) So by Pyramydair's energy calculator (http://www.pyramydair.com/article/What_is_Muzzle_Energy_August_2003/5) that should give me between 21 to 26 ft-lbs of energy. (18 at 750 fps but I was firing at the high end of pressure.)
Lined up the shot, aimed right between and slightly above the eyes, and pulled the trigger.
One shot one kill. Complete success. In the past, even when I was able to bring down raccoons with .177 pellets at slower speeds, sometimes it was hard to even tell where I even hit the raccoon. They might bleed through the mouth after a shot, but often the entrance wound was so small it was hard to see in their fur, and there was no exit wound. Not so this afternoon. Not to be too graphic, but it punched a noticeable pinky-finger sized hole in the top of his skull. There was no chance any raccoon was going to survive that. He immediately went into the death spiral and it was instant lights out.
I am very impressed with this rifle. It's accurate, fun to shoot, and now it's a known efficient and effective gun for varmint control at least up to the size of adult raccoons. It's a keeper and I'd highly recommend it to others.
I set my trap up yesterday for the first time this year. Overnight, I had bagged my first raccoon.
So out came my Disco. I was a bit surprised to see that it had retained all of the air I put in it last fall; none had leaked out over the winter. Extraordinary.
I set up a measured distance of 10 yards. Pyramydair advertises 900 fps and 23 ft-lbs for the .22 pellets with regular high pressure air. I loaded it with a Crosman .22 domed 14.3 gr premier pellet. Chronos I've seen online for 14.3 grains out of that rifle run between 820 to 906 fps at a full 2000 psi load. (It tails off to 750 fps as the tank pressure drops to 1000 psi.) So by Pyramydair's energy calculator (http://www.pyramydair.com/article/What_is_Muzzle_Energy_August_2003/5) that should give me between 21 to 26 ft-lbs of energy. (18 at 750 fps but I was firing at the high end of pressure.)
Lined up the shot, aimed right between and slightly above the eyes, and pulled the trigger.
One shot one kill. Complete success. In the past, even when I was able to bring down raccoons with .177 pellets at slower speeds, sometimes it was hard to even tell where I even hit the raccoon. They might bleed through the mouth after a shot, but often the entrance wound was so small it was hard to see in their fur, and there was no exit wound. Not so this afternoon. Not to be too graphic, but it punched a noticeable pinky-finger sized hole in the top of his skull. There was no chance any raccoon was going to survive that. He immediately went into the death spiral and it was instant lights out.
I am very impressed with this rifle. It's accurate, fun to shoot, and now it's a known efficient and effective gun for varmint control at least up to the size of adult raccoons. It's a keeper and I'd highly recommend it to others.
Last edited:
GlockMafia
Glock and Sig!
I just purchased the Benjamin Power Pack which is virtually the same rifle. I gotta say that these rifles are not kid's toys! Within 100 shots I was shooting groups of 3" @ 30 yards without even trying! Is there any ammo that your using that you've found to be a little more accurate? The Crosman pellets are ok but I find that too many of them have cruddy skirts, so velocity has varied...
So far I haven't experimented with any other pellets than the Crosman brand. I think there is a video on Ted's Holdover YouTube channel where he tries various pellets and shows the accuracy he gets but I've yet to do my own testing.
FYI since my last post on this subject I've trapped and felled several more varmints & at least for raccoons the Disco is more than sufficient. The last one wouldn't face me square on so I had to shoot him from the side; he still dropped in one shot.
FYI since my last post on this subject I've trapped and felled several more varmints & at least for raccoons the Disco is more than sufficient. The last one wouldn't face me square on so I had to shoot him from the side; he still dropped in one shot.
Last edited:
jtb81100
Ultimate Member
Henry golden boy .22 with .22 shorts from point blank range.
Yeah no doubt that's ideal however for those of us stuck in residential areas we're also stuck with air rifle options only. Love to get me a cowboy style lever action rifle someday like the Henry however. Sweet gun.
And oh on a related but side topic, a little birdy told me that even though the Disco is just fine for coons it is a bit under powered for possums who have a thicker skull. I'm guessing if you were shooting those routinely you might want to upgrade to the Benjamin Marauder instead.
And oh on a related but side topic, a little birdy told me that even though the Disco is just fine for coons it is a bit under powered for possums who have a thicker skull. I'm guessing if you were shooting those routinely you might want to upgrade to the Benjamin Marauder instead.
Vic
Ultimate Member
Pellets are key. Benjamin pellets are good. The only ones I have found to be better are JSB's. With my MRod I can put 5 JSB's through almost the same hole at 25 yards. They are some of the best. I like them.
GlockMafia
Glock and Sig!
Sounds good, I'll be trying some different brands...here's 40 yards today, just messing around.
GlockMafia
Glock and Sig!
So I fiddled around with the "adjustable" trigger and really didn't feel a difference...in the manual, there is nothing about what the adjustment screw does, do you know and have you adjusted clockwise or counter clockwise?
I can assure you that with a few tweaks the Discovery is easily capable of game larger than a opossum. Here's my old .22 Disco setup with a TKO LDC, longer pellet probe and a Disco-R-us power adjuster. Mine absolutely loved the 18.1 JSB pellets and I had it tuned for 28ft/lbs with a 2200 psi fill and got 10 shots between fills. I shot this fox at 30ish yards right above the eye and it fell like a rock. I took four foxes with the Disco because it just worked best for a quiet dispatch of anything that messed with the chickens.
Attachments
jtb81100
Ultimate Member
Since you are trapping them (assuming a cage trap), the other option is the redneck gas chamber. Stick a hose from your exhaust to the trap and toss a tarp over it.
ohen cepel
Ultimate Member
Glock,
I did the bearing trigger job (youtube videos on how to do it and part can be found on ebay for a few $$) on my Venom after I was also not happy with the "adjustments". Most air rifles have the same trigger, there is a spring in them simply to make them harder to pull as a safety feature which can also be removed while you're in there. Then, the bearing makes it much smoother while also changing the angles some. Mine is very crisp and light now, yet still drop safe (I beat it hard since I didn't want anything unsafe).
It's worth a look, or buy a Charlie the Tuna trigger if he makes one for your gun. I opted for cheap and liked learning in the process.
I did the bearing trigger job (youtube videos on how to do it and part can be found on ebay for a few $$) on my Venom after I was also not happy with the "adjustments". Most air rifles have the same trigger, there is a spring in them simply to make them harder to pull as a safety feature which can also be removed while you're in there. Then, the bearing makes it much smoother while also changing the angles some. Mine is very crisp and light now, yet still drop safe (I beat it hard since I didn't want anything unsafe).
It's worth a look, or buy a Charlie the Tuna trigger if he makes one for your gun. I opted for cheap and liked learning in the process.
GlockMafia
Glock and Sig!
Not trying to jack the post but...I did the bearing trigger job and it was not successful, so it went back to stock...love the rifle, hate the trigger.
Personally, I'd use a .22 rifle - it's only going to be marginally louder than a powerful airgun, and even if a neighbor complains, you can always say that you used the airgun.
GlockMafia
Glock and Sig!
I've used the Marlin XT22 in the back yard plenty, it's just a tad too loud. I like the idea of the Nitro Piston rifle, it's much quieter than a spring piston rifle or Colibri ammo in .22
I just gotta get the trigger right...
GlockMafia
Glock and Sig!
So I just figured out what I wrong did with the trigger job...now, it's smooth as butter! Thanks Ohen...
Vic
Ultimate Member
On my MRod they called that the lawyer spring. I adjusted mine and it made it much better.
wilcam47
Ultimate Member
What kind of trap you using? Is your air rifle quiet?
I use one of the Havahart traps. They're commonly available at Lowe's or online at Amazon, etc. It works extremely well. As for sound my Disco was loud enough to be noticeable to the neighbors until I added a TKO LDC/Muzzle Brake: http://tko22.com/. Now when I target practice (I setup a small archery & airgun range in my backyard) the sound of the pellet hitting the tree I use as a backstop behind my target stand is much louder than the gun itself.
Follow-up on traps:
The first year I trapped I used borrowed Havahart traps from fellow MDS member SRD. You can see a couple of pictures of successful captures using that trap here: http://www.mdshooters.com/showpost.php?p=1246042&postcount=46
The next year I bought my own since it was clear I'd be doing this yearly. SRD's traps had two doors; the model I have now only has one door but I still bag bandits, ref: http://www.mdshooters.com/showpost.php?p=1794533&postcount=57 Also the new models have a larger metal protection plate up top to keep the coons from trying to reach through the bars and scratch your carrying hand. They're also a bit easier to set up. I do prefer the modern design.
Fellow MDS member foxtrapper also uses Lil Griz Getterz dog proof coon traps for cage-shy coons; you can see some of her trapping photos here: http://www.mdshooters.com/showpost.php?p=1235033&postcount=22 I've thought about adding one of those to my collection but so far have been successful using just the Havahart traps alone. (Duke is another popular brand of these types of traps as well.)
The first year I trapped I used borrowed Havahart traps from fellow MDS member SRD. You can see a couple of pictures of successful captures using that trap here: http://www.mdshooters.com/showpost.php?p=1246042&postcount=46
The next year I bought my own since it was clear I'd be doing this yearly. SRD's traps had two doors; the model I have now only has one door but I still bag bandits, ref: http://www.mdshooters.com/showpost.php?p=1794533&postcount=57 Also the new models have a larger metal protection plate up top to keep the coons from trying to reach through the bars and scratch your carrying hand. They're also a bit easier to set up. I do prefer the modern design.
Fellow MDS member foxtrapper also uses Lil Griz Getterz dog proof coon traps for cage-shy coons; you can see some of her trapping photos here: http://www.mdshooters.com/showpost.php?p=1235033&postcount=22 I've thought about adding one of those to my collection but so far have been successful using just the Havahart traps alone. (Duke is another popular brand of these types of traps as well.)
Users who are viewing this thread
Latest posts
-
-
-
-
Clearance Liqui Moly Motorbike 4T SAE 15W-50 Street | Full Synthetic Motor Oil | 4 Liter (6 Viewers)
- Latest: Docster
Forum statistics
Latest threads
-
Clearance Liqui Moly Motorbike 4T SAE 15W-50 Street | Full Synthetic Motor Oil | 4 Liter (6 Viewers)- Started by mpollan1
- Replies: 3
-
-
-
-
-
-