Gamo, Crosman or Hatsan

[gdr_11]

I am looking for an inexpensive .177 Nitro Piston rifle for quiet back yard pest shooting of squirrels. I am considering, in order:
- Gamo Raptor Whisper
- Crosman F4
- Hatsan 95

The Gamo is my first choice but that brand has a lot of bad press; the Hatsan is obviously the best quality but the wood stock makes it heavier which is an issue for my 74 year old carcass. The Crosman is available in factory refurbished for $70 which is a great deal on a $250 air rifle.

Would appreciate any comments from first hand experience.

[k1dude]

I'm curious why you narrowed it down to those 3.

Also, consider .22 instead of .177 for pest control.

[Ishooter]

I am looking for an inexpensive .177 Nitro Piston rifle for quiet back yard pest shooting of squirrels. I am considering, in order:
- Gamo Raptor Whisper
- Crosman F4
- Hatsan 95

The Gamo is my first choice but that brand has a lot of bad press; the Hatsan is obviously the best quality but the wood stock makes it heavier which is an issue for my 74 year old carcass. The Crosman is available in factory refurbished for $70 which is a great deal on a $250 air rifle.

Would appreciate any comments from first hand experience.

Reviews on pyramidair.com shows that Gamo Raptor Whisper has lots of good reviews.
I have Gamo 220 and Crossman Nitro. Both are great and accurate. I have no complaints.

[flatbedtruckin]

i have the Gamo Maxxum swarm 10x in .22 great for pest control and has a 10 shot mag (damn ca) but it does have a built in supressor making it extra quiet.. i love it!

[freonr22]

I bought 2) Hatsans, and requested an RMA. not happy

[k1dude]

I would suggest the Gamo Swarm Whisper in .22. Comes with a 10 round magazine.

Only 5.4 pounds and gets great reviews. Price is very reasonable at $179. Even less if you get it on sale.

[gdr_11]

I ended up with the Gamo Raptor Whisper in .177.

I have had a Benjamin Trail NP in .177 and. Ruger NP in .22. Of the two, the .177 was more accurate and did a good job on dozens of squirrels. The reason I did not go with another one was the noise factor plus the fact that they are around $250 now.

I paid $118 for the Gamo on Amazon. I put the scope on and ran 5 Crosman Premier 7.4 gr pellets through it. At 30 yds I put all 5 pellets into a 1” circle with no adjustments to the scope. The sound was much lower than either of my two previous air rifles. I plan on buying a can of the Gamo Whisper pellets which the reviews say are the quietest ammo for this rifle.

I never liked Gamo by reputation but the various YouTube and other reviews convinced me to give it a try. If it goes well, the squirrels and tomato eating birds are in for a tough summer

[CartridgeCalls]

I highly recommend this rifle.

https://www.shopmyexchange.com/benjamin-sheridan-prowler-nitro-piston-22-air-rifle-bp2sxs/3515310

[JagerDog]

Not a Nitro piston, but I went with Browning Leverage. Avoid some of the cock-barrel issues.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I started out with a Weihrauch HW35 EB .177 in 1978. I still have it along with 3 other Weihrauch guns. It was $189 back then and Now they are about $500. I am 73 and these guns will easily outlive me and I have had the first one for 45+ years so far and some of the others for about 30+ years.



These guns are a little nicer than any of the ones you mentioned and they are as nice as any of my Firearms and that's why they cost more.

This is a situation where you pay a little more, but you get something that works perfectly and is dead accurate.

For you I would recommend this gun Beeman R7/Weihrauch HW30 https://www.pyramydair.com/product/b...le?m=1899#8724

You and everyone in your family can enjoy shooting this gun for the rest of their lives, and you will enjoy it more because it just feels good in your hands. (Tactile Gratification, The joy of the feeling.)

At this stage of your life you should be rewarding yourself for a life well lived, and a nice Air Rifle would be a suitable gift to yourself. I bought myself a new PCP Air Rifle last year for my 73rd Birthday. My Wife still doesn't know I got it. Its just another gun in the shop.

Randy