In our last article we took a look at air pistols that were around $100. In this article we’re going to use the same budget, but look for air rifles. Now, there are a TON of great guns that will fall in this category and I’m sure that I’m going to miss someone’s favorite airgun. But, that’s what the comments are for! Our blog is interactive. If you have some ideas that you’d like to share, go ahead and post them in the comments where we can all learn from each others experiences.
Umarex Surge Air Rifle – .177 CaliberComes with 4x32mm Mil-dot Scope
Power on a budget…
Now, on to some great air rifle deals for the New Year. The pellet gun that’s recently caught my attention is another new airgun from Umarex USA. I’m in the process of working more with it, but so far it has been impressive and is a great value. The Umarex Surge is a 1000 FPS class break barrel pellet gun that’s shooting over 1000 FPS with RWS Hobby pellets in my shop. If you’re familiar with the old Ruger Air Hawk, then the Surge is going to look very familiar as it’s the next generation in the line. Accuracy is really good for such a budget conscience airgun, due in part to the really nice trigger.
Continuing with high powered Break Barrel Rifles, Crosman’s had the Phantom out there for some time. It’s a reliable performer with plenty of power and accuracy for those on a really tight budget. It doesn’t have the best trigger for bench shooting, but it’s fine for field work. It’s a solid performer and has open sights, something the Surge does not have.
Crosman Model 1077 Air Rifle- .177 CalLet’s move on to some CO2 air rifles…
What can you say about the Crosman 1077? It’s an iconic airgun that’s been around for a very long time. While it’s no powerhouse, it has other advantages such as being semi-automatic. The accuracy is pretty darn good at 10 yards. It’s a great gun for shooting on an indoor range, or a short backyard range. It’s lightweight and easy for youngsters to handle, providing the pull length is ok and they have proper supervision. At well under $100, it is always a great option for a co2 air rifle.
This next product runs just a fraction over $100, but is definitely worth mentioning. It’s the Umarex Steel Force BB rifle. This rifle is a hoot. It can run semi-automatic for precision shooting. Or, if you’re more an “accuracy by volume” guy, you can switch it to full-auto and spit out 6 round bursts until the 32 round magazine is out. There’s a 300 round reservoir on board that fills the 32 round magazine between shooting sessions. The rifle’s powered by 2 12 gram co2 cartridges which deliver 150+ shots, depending on how you utilize them. 10 yard accuracy is surprisingly good for a smooth bore bb gun. I can routinely get my groups well under 1″ at 10 yards.
Crosman M4- 177 Tactical Pump .177 Caliber Air Rifle- Shoots BB’s or PelletsWe’re going to “pump you up” for 2014…
Some of the best values for inexpensive shooting are pump pneumatic airguns. They are where I started and I bet it’s where most of us gained our fist air gunning experiences. Crosman’s M4-177 Multi-Pump airgun is one of my favorites. It’s got a collapsible stock which allows shooters both young and old the ability to properly handle the airgun. It has a rifled barrel for accuracy, and good power for 10 to 15 yards target shooting. If you want to shoot BBs rather, it can do that too, but you’ll wear out the rifling over time. So keep that in mind.
Another multi-pump airgun that can’t go without mentioning, is the Daisy 880. If I dig way back into my memory banks, I think this may have been my first airgun I played with before getting hooked. It was “included” with a house that we bought out in the country. Even though it was well worn, that airgun still could put bbs and pellets down range with ease. I’m getting a bit nostalgic as I write this and may need to get a hold of Daisy and have them send me one!
What are your favorites?
There are way too many other great airguns to talk about and I need to wrap up this article. But, you all can keep the suggestions going in the comments section. I look forward to reading about some of your favorite airguns for under $100.
I’ve got one more article coming your way in this series. Ladies want to buy purses and bracelets as accessories. Well, we guys like accessories too; they just come in the form or lasers, scopes, bi-pods, targets, traps, and the list could keep going. You guessed it, our next article will be all about accessories, so be sure to check back in a couple of days for part 3.
