Today's World is a very specialized one:Many shooters on the GTA can be considered experts at their style of shooting. I have no doubt that Ed, Mark, Jonnie or Airgun Buff are or were expert shooters ... doing what they do best .Their opinions have been formed by experiences and are rightly correct for their style of shooting ... and shouldn't be diminished - but should be a "guide" for everyone.New airgunners and older one's (myself) need to mine the nuggets of information from their stories - most applicable to their needs. There is no perfect caliber for a Springer from .177 to 30 caliber - just depends on what you want to do .I only shoot targets ... so .177/.20 calibers are all I need out to 80 yards. Sure, I could adjust to doping the .22 caliber drop at 80 yards, but why would I want to spend my time doing this when great pellets are available with high BC in .177/.20 relative to a .22 caliber?There are just too many things in life to spend ones time on ....... with work and kids at home - come on .However, I do believe the younger generation expects everything to come easy. The cure - Life Experience. An additional 20+ years experience added to a teenager life will be rewarded greatly by generating better decisions/thinking needed to get things done.My Dad taught me how to shoot, but mainly how to Safely shoot. I got clobbered a few times before it became clear - I needed to Listen ... carefully .That said, I can only shoot about 1/2 hour before my eyes (cataracts) fuzz out .... but what fun that is .
Quote from: airgunbuff on May 06, 2021, 11:38:06 AMEd not to put you down in any manner BUT !! I remember you from the yellow of many years ago and your oring piston seals. That said learning to shoot doping the wind and hold over and under are talents which must be learned. Just putting the crosshairs on the target and squeezing the trigger is not shooting.Very few people know how to shoot well !! Its called marksmanship. It does not come easy. It is a disapline which takes study and years to perfect. Air guns make it even harder to learn because of the limited power. I am an old fart and my eyes are not what they used to be.. I still see quite well but judging distance gets harder everyday.I find that most airgunners like the 177 because it shoots pretty flat compared to other cal. Translation most people never take the time to learn the gun, ammo and learn the variables of what makes a good marksman.This may sound like I am all high and mighty but I am not trying to toot my own horn. It just is what it is. My now long gone granddad taught me how to shoot and he demanded that I do it well. To be honest he took a lot of the fun out of it in a manner but I did learn. To him it was a science and he made me approach it it as such.Today as an old fart who is disabled I shoot to relax and not to brag I am quite good. Not like I used to be but Still it is what I know and love.Today folks are just lazy, "dang" lazy really !! Just a reality of todays world. Long ago I wanted to play guitar and I started taking lessons.. after about ten lessons the teacher asked me how much I practiced.. He did not like my respnse and told me to go home and play the radio... LOL !! Thing was I was too busy shooting.Most here will flame me but to shoot well it must become a passion and it is work !! I had a good teacher and I miss him more with each passing day.as clint would say "a man has got to know his limitations" some never do learn !!KindlyronIn Ed's (and Mine) defense why beat your head against a wall learning to shoot like you say you do, if the shooter is satisfied with the results of shooting a flatter shooting gun. Also to be as proficient as you say you are, one must practice often and with only one gun and one pellet under several conditions. "Beware the man with one gun for he knows how to use it". If you use multiple guns, calibers and pellet types doping all of them the way you say you do becomes impossible. There's too many variables. That's why people like me play the radio and shoot the flatest shooting air guns we can. By time trajectory becomes a problem we have no business taking a shot at a critter. Whether it's our talent or the lack of power there comes a time to know what a practical range is. I like to stretch out my shots and do ok but it still takes me a while to get it right. Probably has to do with I show up at the range with 5 different guns between 8 and 15 fpe, 2 different calibers and run two or three types of pellets through each. Then I shoot targets ANYWHERE between 25 to 110 yards. So call me a lazy radio listener but only Jimi Hendrix could play that many different guitars well. Who knows maybe you're the Jimi Hendrix of airguns. If so God bless. Me I like the radio because I know my limitations.
Ed not to put you down in any manner BUT !! I remember you from the yellow of many years ago and your oring piston seals. That said learning to shoot doping the wind and hold over and under are talents which must be learned. Just putting the crosshairs on the target and squeezing the trigger is not shooting.Very few people know how to shoot well !! Its called marksmanship. It does not come easy. It is a disapline which takes study and years to perfect. Air guns make it even harder to learn because of the limited power. I am an old fart and my eyes are not what they used to be.. I still see quite well but judging distance gets harder everyday.I find that most airgunners like the 177 because it shoots pretty flat compared to other cal. Translation most people never take the time to learn the gun, ammo and learn the variables of what makes a good marksman.This may sound like I am all high and mighty but I am not trying to toot my own horn. It just is what it is. My now long gone granddad taught me how to shoot and he demanded that I do it well. To be honest he took a lot of the fun out of it in a manner but I did learn. To him it was a science and he made me approach it it as such.Today as an old fart who is disabled I shoot to relax and not to brag I am quite good. Not like I used to be but Still it is what I know and love.Today folks are just lazy, "dang" lazy really !! Just a reality of todays world. Long ago I wanted to play guitar and I started taking lessons.. after about ten lessons the teacher asked me how much I practiced.. He did not like my respnse and told me to go home and play the radio... LOL !! Thing was I was too busy shooting.Most here will flame me but to shoot well it must become a passion and it is work !! I had a good teacher and I miss him more with each passing day.as clint would say "a man has got to know his limitations" some never do learn !!Kindlyron
All you hero marksman should take your spring guns to a field target match sometime. That will separate the talk from the walk. Just saying....
All you hero marksman should take your spring guns to a field target match sometime. That will separate the talk from the walk. Just saying ....
Quote from: limbshaker on May 06, 2021, 02:24:24 PMAll you hero marksman should take your spring guns to a field target match sometime. That will separate the talk from the walk. Just saying .... Yeah ...Sometimes ....... chest pounding isn't enough .
Quote from: SpiralGroove on May 06, 2021, 03:10:58 PMQuote from: limbshaker on May 06, 2021, 02:24:24 PMAll you hero marksman should take your spring guns to a field target match sometime. That will separate the talk from the walk. Just saying .... Yeah ...Sometimes ....... chest pounding isn't enough .Just an observation that all the best shots, also coincidentally don't have cameras. LOL
I don't know about being an expert and I sure don't see myself as being a hero. Heck, I thought for awhile that I got that Senior Contributor ranking because of my age. There was day when I did compete in formal pistol bullseye, 50 foot rimfire rifle and, especially, in handgun silhouette. I was fortunate enough to have an excellent coach and mentor or two. Problem was that competing against others was just too intense and not a good match for my easy going personality. Stressed me to the point of losing sleep and almost getting ulcers. These days, even if I wanted to shoot FT, we'd have to get in the car and drive to another state. That's NOT going to happen. No thanks. That said, I do compete with myself, sometimes ferociously, every time I shoot, but after all these years, I know when to back off, relax and not take myself too seriously. Tomorrow is another day and another shooting session. For me, it's always been about the love of shooting, period. That's what motivates me to post what I do. Everything else is a distant second. May it always be.
Opp's my last post was stated wrong! I'm not here to toot my horn!!! I'm here to share my experiences of a life time of shooting air guns! to many beer's last night LOL!!!
.20 caliber and it's MERITS .... so we're on that subject again ?Lol, no further comment required