Best Air Rifle for Prairie Dogs

[Nickofthewoods]

I have a big time prairie dog problem that's become significantly worse the last 2 years. I borrowed a pellet gun from my brother in law, it's a single shot with scope 1300 fps, and I can't hit anything beyond 25 yards and it's not even that great past 15 yards. I need to be able to reach out to 50 and reliably hit these things. I have less than 10 acres and neighbors on all sides with livestock so as a courtesy I won't even use a .22 or anything besides an air rifle since a lot of my shots are on the fence lines. Poison is not an option either. I'm open to other legal ideas but I think shooting is my only course here.

I want the best, quietest, most accurate, long range capable air rifle on the planet. If this didn't cost me a fortune that would be a bonus but I need a badass air gun. Hit me.

*Also hit me with a link if this has topic has been beaten, I searched for a few minutes but didn't find what I was looking for.

 

[nodakian]

Have you considered 22 Shorts? I don't know much about air guns, but 22 Shorts seem like a decent option. Or maybe 22 CBs. Super quiet especially in rifles, bigger bullet than pellets i believe, and cheaper than a new gun. When I was a kid we cut Xs in the bullets--they would gut the gophers we shot.

Good luck.

 

[rclouse79]

Are you an archery hunter? Might be fun and some good practice to use your compound.

 

[DRP]

A Precharched pneumatic is going to be the best pellet gun. Lot’s of great brands on the market that will consistently shoot 100+ yards accurately but they are going to be relatively expensive $2k. Look up a couple YouTube videos from Teds holdover or iguana solutions. They do pest control with pellet guns.

 

[Shooter2medic]

So it really depends on what your budget is. I would definitely go with a PCP style air gun. Keep your feet per second around 1000 fps and you will do much better accuracy wise. Consider going with the 25 caliber. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions or want to get into more conversations about your airguns.

 

[PhotoHunter]

I have a Benjamin Marauder .25 that is very accurate. It's shrouded to make it quiet and has a magazine for quick reload. It's less expensive than many PCPs. The wood stock is heavy so the composite stock might be better. It keeps the ground squirrel population down and the really close neighbors haven't complained.

I recommend getting an air tank rather than a high-pressure hand pump.

 

[B23]

Talk to these guys they sell/tune/setup some pretty badass airguns. They aren't cheap but they do have some really good stuff and will answer all your questions. https://utahairguns.com/

 

[Nickofthewoods]

Have you considered 22 Shorts?

Yes and I've heard the shorts are supposed to be quite than .22 LR but I'm still going to stick with air guns I think.

Are you an archery hunter? Might be fun and some good practice to use your compound.

Yes and that would be great practice but I'm looking more for speed and efficiency.


Thanks for the responses and links everyone! This is going to be a tougher decision than I thought.

 

[Tod osier]

.22 cb are quieter than many air rifles, they come in short and long, but have the same charge. At least try them before buying an air rifle. CCI CB caps.

 

[MontanaMarine]

I've got an Air Venturi Avenger. Look into one. It's a budget friendly PCP. Actually I have two of them, 22 and 25. One inch at 50 yards all day long. Externally adjustable regulator and hammer spring let you tune to the power you want/need. I fill with a hand pump no problem.

The 22 cal is my pest blaster.

 

[Nickofthewoods]

I'm going to look into the .22 cb rounds, I've actually got a great .22 rifle so if they are quiet enough that may be a good option.

That avenger is pretty close to what I'm looking for as well, both in price and accuracy. I would be in such good shape if I could hit within one inch at 50 yards.

 

[MallardSX2]

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[MontanaMarine]

.....I borrowed a pellet gun from my brother in law, it's a single shot with scope 1300 fps, and I can't hit anything beyond 25 yards and it's not even that great past 15 yards....

If this is a break-barrel style, they can be accurate with the right hold technique. If you search 'artillery hold' on youtube, you will see some vids on the technique. Basically a loose hold to let the gun move on firing.

I have a couple break-barrel air rifles too. They are hold-sensitive, and pellet-sensitive. They are a whole different animal than a PCP, or a 22 rimfire. It takes some time to figure out what pellets thay like, and how they need to be held to produce consistent accuracy.

 

[westslopelaker]

Maybe get a suppressor for your 22? Seems like it would be cheaper than a $1k air gun.

 

[Nickofthewoods]

Maybe get a suppressor for your 22? Seems like it would be cheaper than a $1k air gun.

So the last few days I've been shooting them with the .22 and it's definitely way more effective. As a courtesy I notified a few of the neighbors, but as cool as some of these air guns are, I ultimately had the same realization that you've pointed out.

Side note; On one side of the house the prairie dogs have been slowly encroaching closer and whenever I would go shoot from the porch they wpuld catch on really quickly and I would only get a few shots off before they retreated to their holes. So I went inside and opened a window for a sniper hide and I guess it muffles the shot enough that they aren't as spooked so I get way more shooting in before they catch on. Apparently the cat hates it though I haven't seen her for a few hours...

 

[Lawnboi]

Grab a suppressor and a 17hmr. Less ricochets, less chance of a miss, and kills them on the spot.

I used a 22 for varmints and predators around my house, which I have to be careful where I’m shooting. After a few ricochets I decided a 17 was a better choice.

More guns are cool though, a suppressed rimfire is quiet. Quieter than cb shorts, which Iv also shot a bunch of

 

[Wyobohunter]

.22 cb are quieter than many air rifles, they come in short and long, but have the same charge. At least try them before buying an air rifle. CCI CB caps.

My CZ 452 American is ridiculously quiet and accurate with CB longs. Much better than my .177 air rifle in both aspects.

 

[nikoavg]

I would use a 17 HMR and a suppressor. I have a .25 PCP airgun and shoot 39 slugs and it is accurate out to a 100yards. Same with the CZ 457 in .22, but both of those will ricochet. The 17 HMR has less ricochets as mentioned earlier. Shooting out a window from an easy chair sounds awesome, except for the cat

 

[HunterHawk]

sounds like you got things working for you.. but i am going to put in another positive comment for a .25 cal Benjamin marauder. shoots awesome and drops prairie dog size critters in their tracks.

 

[FLATHEAD]

Not specific to this forum, feel free to delete. But air rifle related.
BUT, I just discovered my cheap, Crosman pump pellet rifle
is absolute Hades on Leaf Foot Bugs in the garden. No projectiles
needed, 10 pumps and just the air annihilates them!!
And no damage to the maters.