Lead or non-lead.. that is the question…
Given that the Little Cat is focused on the youth market, I spent a lot of time looking for an accurate lead free pellet. There were two that were pretty good. The H&N Field Target Trophy Green and the GTO Match grade pellets from Predator International. Generally speaking, lead free pellets are not that accurate which is why lead is the preferred material when accuracy is most important. There were some consistency issues with both lead free options with the GTO pellets having the edge. If shooting lead free is important, and you want to get accuracy close to what lead pellets will produce, the GTO pellets from Predator International would be my suggestion.
I really wanted to see the best that the Little Cat can produce which meant looking at traditional lead pellets. Given the low power the Little Cat produces, I stuck with testing lead pellets that were in the 7 to 8 grain range. In the end I found the 7.33 grain JSB RS pellets to be a great fit. They produced a very consistent 496 FPS which proved ideal for 10 yard target practice.
Another important point of note before we jump into looking at the shot cards, is the noise level of the Little Cat. While it buzzes quite a bit, it’s not all that loud overall. We were able to shoot in our yard for extended periods of time without drawing any attention from our nearby neighbors. If you live in tight quarters but still want your young ones to get in some supervised trigger time, the Little Cat should do the trick.
Accuracy tests…
I’ve got 3 groups to show you. The first was mine shot group which I shot indoors at 10 yards. The second and 3rd were shot at 10 yards on our outdoor range by my 6 year old daughter Naomi. She did very well with the exception of one errant shot on each group. The errant shot in the first group occurred when she was distracted by Granddads new quadcopter as he was taking video of our shoot. The second errant shot was a result of being a 6 year old and easily distracted. I guess I’ll need to work with her on that.
Gamo Little Cat from 10 yards, indoors. This is a typical group. You can get these basically all day long if you watch your trigger pull. Gamo Little Cat shot by my 6 year old daughter Naomi at 10 yards. 5 shots in the main group, 1 errant shot up high left caused by grandpa’s new Parrot AR Aerial Drone crashing behind us!Again shot at 10 yards outdoors by Naomi. 6 shots in the center with 1 errant shot high left. No valid excuses on this one.. She just lost her concentration.. but hey she is only 6!
Here’s the final word on the Gamo Little Cat.
The gamo lilcat is a very unique offering from Gamo. It’s light, easy to shoot and sized great for young shooters.
I have to say that I find it odd that Gamo took the time to create a nice wood stock and steal barrel, only to then use composite in the most critical area of the gun, the breach. Since this is going to be my primary training tool for Naomi, it will certainly get a work out. So we’ll be able to report how it holds up over the long term.
Overall, the Gamo Little Cat is a real winner. While certainly way too small for me, it’s perfectly sized for its intended market; the youth airgun market that’s looking to move up from pump pneumatic bb guns into something more accurate. It took no time at all for Naomi to start putting shot after shot in the center of the target. Because it’s so easy to shoot and delivers good accuracy, it really instills confidence and a desire to go further in the sport.
