Air rifle problem

josecasillas

josecasillas

If it flies it dies, if it hops it drops....
I bought my son (8yr old) a gamo hornet pellet gun. I just can't seem to sight it in. Im using the redfire pellets and can't get it to zero. Its got the factory 4x32 gamo scope on it. Something I'm doing wrong? Im sighting in at 20 yards. Any suggestions? Thnx
 
Are you using the artillery hold? Air rifles are different from regular rifles. The spring causes a double recoil /barrel twang. You have to just rest the forestock on your palm (don't grip) and barely grip with your trigger hand. That will give you a more repeatable pattern.
 
Other than that, people often report:
1) a 'springer' air rifle takes between 100-1000 shots to 'settle down'.
2) different pellets will give you different accuracy, so try a bunch until you find one that goes (after the break-in and artillery hold)
 
One last thing...

I just looked up that gun. It says it will shoot 1200 fps with non-lead ammo and 1000 fps with lead. You def want to use the lead pellets in that gun. Pellets are so light that when they break the sound barrier (1100 fps) they start to tumble and lose accuracy. Furthermore, slower/heavier pellets will maintain their momentum (and accuracy) to further distances because air resistance is proportional to velocity squared.

So yeah, use lead. It will be quieter too.
 
Thnx! I appreciate u taking ur time to look that up for me. That's why I love this site!
 
Try out a bunch of different pellets, eventually you will find one the gun likes. Pyramydair.com is an awesome website, check em out.

And the scopes tend to get knocked of zero easily, because of the spring, so I would recommend upgrading the scope rings, and maybe even the scope.
 
Just a side piece... I have a Gamo Rocket. I've shot maybe 100 pellets through it. All sorts of different tips but generally the same weights. I used to get a lot of fliers, but now it groups extremely well. Takes a little while to break in those Gamo's but nothing too crazy. I just use 1 tip now (magnum hunter). They report that it'll shoot 1200-1250 fps with the ballistic gold rounds. It's cool to hear a pellet gun make that loud of a pop, but crazy how inaccurate it is. An even better sound is the THWAP on a ground squirrel from 50 yards! Make sure after you put a good bit of pellets through it, you run a cleaning rod and some patches through it. That lead cakes up like crazy.
 
Thnx guys! Another quick question. When I load a pellet, it fits nice and tight. Just out of curiosity, I checked it through the top of the barrel and the pellet slides right through. I was thinking maybe it has a barrel defect. I thought it was suppose to fit snug like a regular rifle? Im NEW to air rifles. Lol. Sorry and thnx guys!
 
If you think about it, the pellet needs a seal in order to be propelled out of the gun so no wonder why it will slide out the muzzle end.
 
TonyS said:
If you think about it, the pellet needs a seal in order to be propelled out of the gun so no wonder why it will slide out the muzzle end.
Click to expand...
Tony, did you mean to say "I wonder why" instead of "no wonder why"?
 
JoseC. said:
Thnx guys! Another quick question. When I load a pellet, it fits nice and tight. Just out of curiosity, I checked it through the top of the barrel and the pellet slides right through. I was thinking maybe it has a barrel defect. I thought it was suppose to fit snug like a regular rifle? Im NEW to air rifles. Lol. Sorry and thnx guys!
Click to expand...

I just checked mine... the pellet will slide through the muzzle a little less than 1/4 inch. It shouldn't slide the whole way through to your load point or anything like that.
 
Well I bought a ruger air rifle a couple years ago and it came with the factory 4x32 scope and I have the same problem. So I'm thinking the scopes are not very well made to where they won't sight in. I've tried very hard to sight it in but it just won't. I got it somewhat close but I couldn't hit a 2 inch diameter target from 20 yards. I'm probably going to get a better 4x32 scope.
 
Thnx 8st. That's exactly what this one does. I guess I'll just get a new scope and keep shooting through it till I find a good pellet. Thnx guys! !
 
Multichris4000 said:
Well I bought a ruger air rifle a couple years ago and it came with the factory 4x32 scope and I have the same problem. So I'm thinking the scopes are not very well made to where they won't sight in. I've tried very hard to sight it in but it just won't. I got it somewhat close but I couldn't hit a 2 inch diameter target from 20 yards. I'm probably going to get a better 4x32 scope.
Click to expand...

He's got a point. I forgot about my scope. Couldn't get it to zero and had the windage and elevation peg'd. Had to get a different scope.
 
There are 2 or 3 big screws on each pellet gun.......Make sure they're all tight........With the recoil factor, they loosen easily.......For whatever reason, I've never had a problem with RWS pellet guns.......Other brands have been a major pain to keep sighted in.
 
Thnx guys! I ended up returning it and got him the gamo zombie. Shoots DEAD CENTER at 20 yards. I appreciate all the feedback. Have a happy thanksgiving!
 
TaftHunter said:
Try out a bunch of different pellets, eventually you will find one the gun likes. Pyramydair.com is an awesome website, check em out.

[size=24pt]And the scopes tend to get knocked of zero easily, because of the spring, so I would recommend upgrading the scope rings, and maybe even the scope.[/size]
Click to expand...

This one.
 
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