GTA

All Springer/NP/PCP Air Gun Discussion General => Hunting Gate => Topic started by: PasadenaMike on December 01, 2023, 01:32:56 AM

Title: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: PasadenaMike on December 01, 2023, 01:32:56 AM
Several days ago I was smacking sparrows with my Katran .22 with Hades running them at 870. The smacks and pops were pretty darn loud. What is in your opinion the loudest pellet when game get greased? Also what pellet is the quietest? You can have a quiet gun but can’t silence the smacking echo.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: brewbear on December 01, 2023, 01:37:13 AM
I think wadcutters would be the loudest "poppers".
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: Horatio on December 01, 2023, 05:14:06 AM
I think wadcutters would be the loudest "poppers".

I really like a heavy wadcutter for close range pesting. I want a paper punch effect, not a slip through effect.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: Horatio on December 01, 2023, 05:15:14 AM
OP.

No idea. I’d assume a point of harder lead would be quieter? And a smaller caliber.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: maraudinglizard on December 01, 2023, 07:09:46 AM
Domed pellets still make a pop but not as loud as a wadcutter or hollow point pellet. Since I hunt around the house I prefer the flat pellet over domed to reduce the amount of pass through on game. Also I like the pop, it lets me know that I have hit the target. So long as the gun quiet when shooting, the pop is a welcomed sound.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: avator on December 01, 2023, 08:20:23 AM
Call me a sick puppy but when it comes to shooting pest birds, I like seeing the puff of feathers flying more than the sound of impacts. Squirrels are a different story. I want that sound to be that last thing they hear.  ;D  As for snakes, I don't care either way as long as they die quick, fast and in a hurry.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: Back_Roads on December 01, 2023, 08:26:35 AM
 Just yesterday Nick reminded me why I liked Poly and metal mags, when he shot a Hosp @ 30 yards, it made a pop and blew to pieces  :o Notos BTW :)
 I would go with a domed for quieter impact and less mess ;)
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: Bayman on December 01, 2023, 09:03:43 AM
H&N Crow Magnums! They're the loudest pellets I've ever heard. They completely wreck everything they hit. Problem for me is I have a hard time hitting anything with them. Terrible accuracy in my springers.

I used to use wadcutters when space was tight. They were safer to use and made a nice pop! I've since moved to the country and I use domes because I get better accuracy and energy at longer ranges. I can still hear them hit but its more of a thud than pop.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: 3crows on December 01, 2023, 01:10:25 PM
H&N Crow Magnums! They're the loudest pellets I've ever heard. They completely wreck everything they hit. Problem for me is I have a hard time hitting anything with them. Terrible accuracy in my springers.

I used to use wadcutters when space was tight. They were safer to use and made a nice pop! I've since moved to the country and I use domes because I get better accuracy and energy at longer ranges. I can still hear them hit but its more of a thud than pop.

When a .25 Crow Magnum does manage to hit something trucking along at 900 fps the smack down is just plain awesome :o. I find they do tend to wander around some, especially out beyond about 25 yards. Crow Mags so completely destroy a HOSP there is not even a body part left and armadillos, it is just horrible  8).
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: ER00z on December 01, 2023, 05:13:27 PM
You don't need that much gun or lead for HOSP's! Lol.  ;D

If you want quiet for general use/pesting, .177 JSB 8.44gr or H&N FTT's at 12fpe to 15fpe will do the trick. Between my soft tuned Marauder, full power HW97 or HW95 w/Weirauch can, many critters have been taken without disturbing people or animals in the area. These pellets at said powers allow reaching out to 50+ yards accurately, but really any domed pellet will do at shorter ranges and/or lower powers given good placement.

As for loud, once you get around 30fpe or better in .22 or .25 about all pellet impacts get noisy. Big hollow points will make a noticeable pop, even at lower powers. It's been a long time since I've used .25cal on pests or game, but remember impacts at 50 yards being louder than the muzzle report/action noise while using JSB 25.4's, being shot at a mild 708fps (+/-) from my Remington VTR 725 break barrel.   

Edited in:
I recently (de)tuned my .177 D54 to about 8.5ftlbs, it's as recoilless as a springer can get and crazy accurate with wadcutters. Thinking it might become my dedicated HOSP rifle...
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: Horatio on December 01, 2023, 05:17:57 PM
You don't need that much gun or lead for HOSP's! Lol.  ;D

If you want quiet for general use/pesting, .177 JSB 8.44gr or H&N FTT's at 12fpe to 15fpe will do the trick. Between my soft tuned Marauder, full power HW97 or HW95 w/Weirauch can, many critters have been taken without disturbing people or animals in the area. These pellets at said powers allow reaching out to 50+ yards accurately, but really any domed pellet will do at shorter ranges and/or lower powers given good placement.

As for loud, once you get around 30fpe or better in .22 or .25 about all pellet impacts get noisy. Big hollow points will make a noticeable pop, even at lower powers. It's been a long time since I've used .25cal on pests or game, but remember impacts at 50 yards being louder than the muzzle report/action noise while using JSB 25.4's, being shot at a mild 708fps (+/-) from my Remington VTR 725 break barrel.

When Supermags from my 880 hit a HOSP, the sound of the pellet hitting the game is much quieter than the pellet hitting the plywood behind the bird.

My guess is they’re being hit with around 8fpe. Definitely don’t need a lot of HP to put down HOSP.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: Snatchcan on December 01, 2023, 07:57:45 PM
Hades in .25 at 950 fps make quite a smack on chippers, especially at 10 feet in the face, straight on and through the body.  I've never heard another projectile make such a grizzly sound.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: PasadenaMike on December 02, 2023, 12:32:10 AM
Maybe next time I’ll pack my Dreamtact .177 maybe that’s quieter with 10.34 JSB. Only one way to see
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: Back_Roads on December 02, 2023, 10:28:21 AM
 a .25 25.xx gr pellet  sub 600 fps, makes more of a bone crushing sound on small mammal head shots, imaging a 1" stick breaking sound. no pass through either.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: starlingassassin on December 02, 2023, 10:42:45 AM
for sheer eardrum pleasure,
i like the fx hybrid slugs at 995fps  8)

the sound is just..........GLORIOUS!
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: chutesnreloads on December 03, 2023, 09:02:26 AM
As for audible rewards, I always liked the sound of a wadcutter in the chest area. Like thumping a ripe watermelon
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: sicumj on December 06, 2023, 11:19:51 AM
Poly mags make the loudest pop for me. 
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: sonnysan on December 27, 2023, 11:54:47 AM
Slugs make the loudest report.  Keep in mind the animal falling to the ground also makes a lot of noise, especially if it is crashing through the branches.  Kodiak pellets seem to be the quietest for me.  However, while shooting them I do have to contend with springer/ram noise at the same time. 
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: PasadenaMike on December 27, 2023, 02:56:01 PM
There’s no absolute silent airgun hunting
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: EdinGa on December 27, 2023, 03:00:59 PM
My cast .25 wadcutters make a heck of pop even at sub 500 fps velocities. 10.3 Knockouts at 1000 are the kings of pop at my house though.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: screwwork on December 28, 2023, 03:01:35 AM
There’s no absolute silent airgun hunting
For super quiet shooting in the backyard, lower your fps to lower your impact sound. Domed pellets or pointed pellets work the best but then you get pass-through noise into a backstop. Back when I was backyard pesting I would keep one gun tuned super low for this and shooting a .177 at 5/6fpe.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: Back_Roads on December 28, 2023, 08:46:28 AM
 I should of bought a DB meter when I started my squirrel eradication project, As the population decreased the distances and caliber of airgun increased, now up to .25 and domed pellets are sounding like 2" branches being snapped in half on impact.
 NOE cast pellets have a flat nose and really pop the loudest of anything "domed" I have shot.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: Struckat on December 28, 2023, 11:16:57 AM
Shooting Hobby 11.7 out of my stock Prod makes a “Zip” sound.
Shooting a chippy makes a pleasing “Zip-Pop”
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: only1harry on December 28, 2023, 11:56:55 PM
The "loudest" pellet I have ever used is the Polymag Predator (hollow-point with the red tip).  Every time I shot something with the Polymag from the Condor .22 or .25 it would make a very loud "crack" when it came in contact with the skull of a squirrel or Groundhog and shattered it.  Same with Starlings - loud crack that was a lot louder than the muffled report, and it echoed through the neighborhood.  If I hit the vitals of a squirrel it would be a loud "thud".  FPE has a lot to do with how loud the impact is too, and obviously I was using very high FPE PCP's with this particular pellet.  I stopped using hollow-points and went back to domed pellets that were a lot less "quiet" by comparison. 

No matter what pellet you use, the velocity or power of your gun will determine how loud or how quiet it will be on impact.
Title: Re: What pellets pop the loudest and quietest on game ?
Post by: sonnysan on December 29, 2023, 12:28:53 PM
With my dB meter, the quietest airgun hunting is about 105dB at the muzzle and at the target (measured both ends from a 16FPE .177 Daystate Regal Classic).