if you could only have one of each air gun type and you were on a tight budget ?

[joek]

ssp daisy 953 $90-$129 depending on sights
msp umarex nxg $50
spend the rest of your budget on a  nice springer
Diana 350m .177 $249
hw30s $299
hw30s dlx $329
hw50s $369

[D14Jeff]

it's all good avator .

i'll admit i'm kinda jealous of deep pocketed folks that can afford the high dollar rigs . but i guess i'm just not dedicated enough to this hobby to be willing to invest soooooo much money into one springer purchase considering my income bracket . i see/read across several AG forums folks that are thrilled with their $200 and under hatsan springers and XS-25/28/26 based springers getting 1 inch and smaller groups at 30 yards and more , with some claiming 1/2 inch or better . i realize a good part of that is technique/mastering that particular springers hold and finding it's prefered pellet ...... but for my purposes something like that would do me just fine . i'm not a collector , don't have any powder burners , don't hunt , no children/grandchildren to pass them down to and don't have folks coming over to admire my stuff . and honestly , sometimes i'm a bit of a clutz and i'd freak out dropping or knocking over something that cost several hundred dollars or more ..... not that i'd be happy about doing it to something that only cost a hundred bucks . i post this so folks won't think that i ignore their suggestions or don't respect their opinions ...... it's just not feasible for me to invest that much .
all the comments and suggestions y'all have shared are appreciated .

i had forgotten about the refurb 34s , it is a excellent "cheap" springer choice ..... but they rarely pop up and go FAST .

I'll agree with you, for the most part I was perfectly content with my mm , xs25. It was only after shooting joe P's hw98 that I realized what I wanted out of a springer. I would have never spent that kind of money(on the hw95) if it were not for joe P.

That Joe P is quite the enabler now, isn't he Steve.     My TX is with Motorhead right now, getting his magic dust sprinkled on it.

yes! he is the best, after i pulled the trigger on his rifle, i turned to him and cursed him.

If I'm not mistaken I witnessed that at Tom's fun shoot I was at last year great day and  loved the look on your face when you had that amazed look but the best was the silly look and the ear splitting grin

Joe P seems to be quite the carrier of the airgun disease .

[Sfttailrdr46]

I could easily be happy with under $200.00 airguns. I shot a friends Hw 97 for a bit earlier this year, then put it down, along with the other more expense guns and spent the rest of the day shooting my MTR77NP. No doubt more expensive rifles are nice, but I don't need them to enjoy shooting. Heck, most of my guns cost under 200.00.     

Most of the Inexpensive AG's are fine for what they are and what I'm about to say is not intended to knock them just a slight correction in their true cost. Cost of rifle ~ $200 break down and clean/lube 2hr @ $26 per hr (time = money) shims $10, CDT trigger $35 If all we did was go to the sporting goods store yes the rifle was roughly $200 but if you are an avid shooter then decent accuracy to at least 25 to 30 yards is important to us and without some serious TLC the $200 rifle will rarely fill that bill. My Gamo Whisper .177 looked like I was using a shot gun at 10 yards and after a CDT trigger, home tune with relube (JM lube KIT) homemade spring compressor and 3 hrs of my labor will shoot quarter size groups at 25 yards when the wind is calm JMO most inexpensive rifles are what they are and with a little home grown TLC can be great shooters but please remember that the TLC has value which equates to real dollars and cents. so  in my honest opinion that $200 rifle when it finally becomes a tack driver has a real value of closed to ~$400 to maybe $500 real dollars again JMO

[avator]

Don... I agree with most of this. However, I truely enjoy tinkering as much as I do shooting. It was great to pull the MM tuned XS-25 out of the box and begin shooting it as if it were a hign end airgun but, I get such a warm fuzzy feeling when I take a gun down and do all those things that I have learned here on the GTA in the past year or so.. it's not like labor at all. And when it all comes together and I get dime size groups at 30yds with my $100 airgun and a few hours of "tinkering".... well..... it's kind of like a puzzle, do you get more enjoyment from putting it together or looking at it when it's done.... I say they both combine to create the journey.

[Sfttailrdr46]

Don... I agree with most of this. However, I truely enjoy tinkering as much as I do shooting. It was great to pull the MM tuned XS-25 out of the box and begin shooting it as if it were a hign end airgun but, I get such a warm fuzzy feeling when I take a gun down and do all those things that I have learned here on the GTA in the past year or so.. it's not like labor at all. And when it all comes together and I get dime size groups at 30yds with my $100 airgun and a few hours of "tinkering".... well..... it's kind of like a puzzle, do you get more enjoyment from putting it together or looking at it when it's done.... I say they both combine to create the journey.

Bill I agree with you 100% I live the challenge of tinkering and making it mine and I guess what I have been trying to say is that no mater what the cost even if the improvements is "free" they still have value. If we call a plumber to fix a leaking pipe it costs $150 to $200+ depending on the plumber. If we do it our self the repair was "free" but it has value . I gues what I was trying to say was that the $100 rifle after home tuning is really of greater value than the original $100

[avator]

Don... I agree with most of this. However, I truely enjoy tinkering as much as I do shooting. It was great to pull the MM tuned XS-25 out of the box and begin shooting it as if it were a hign end airgun but, I get such a warm fuzzy feeling when I take a gun down and do all those things that I have learned here on the GTA in the past year or so.. it's not like labor at all. And when it all comes together and I get dime size groups at 30yds with my $100 airgun and a few hours of "tinkering".... well..... it's kind of like a puzzle, do you get more enjoyment from putting it together or looking at it when it's done.... I say they both combine to create the journey.

Bill I agree with you 100% I live the challenge of tinkering and making it mine and I guess what I have been trying to say is that no mater what the cost even if the improvements is "free" they still have value. If we call a plumber to fix a leaking pipe it costs $150 to $200+ depending on the plumber. If we do it our self the repair was "free" but it has value . I gues what I was trying to say was that the $100 rifle after home tuning is really of greater value than the original $100

agreed

[D14Jeff]

buying a diamond in the rough and polishing it yourself has value that buying perfection off the shelf for a much higher price can't provide . and admittedly some "diamonds" can't be polished because they're really cubic zirconia . fortunately there's forums to help folks get a heads up on what's a waste of time and what has potential .
 
"value" is a relative term defined by the individual .