FWB 300 & 600 pellet choice for beyond 10 meters

[Royale]

I'm shooting mostly @ 20 to 25 yards with my FWB 603 off a bench, started @ 15 yards but had to move back to make it at least challenging. I understand it's a 10m gun designed to shoot wadcutters but at 25 yards they don't work as well as diabolo pellets for me. Could it be the shape of the pellet wadcutter vs diabolo at longer ranges, or I haven't found the right wadcutter?

Best pellet by far at 25 yards one tiny hole no fliers JSB Exact Premium Diabolo, .177 Cal, 8.44 Grains, Domed, 200ct in the fancy black box

Next AA 7.87 with the occasional flier, could work as good as the above JSBs if sorted but I don't sort yet.

I've tried all the JSB premium wadcutters in the black fancy box and a few others with no luck. Should I try eley, champions choice or other wadcutters for 25 yards and beyond or just stick with diabolos?

I have a good pellet that works great but I'd like to try more, you never know till you try.

[Frank in Fairfield]

I hear 7.33 work well and the 7.87.
No wadcutters.
You can take your scope off if you want a challenge.
I shot this group of five at 18 yards off the bench with my (new to me) 300S.
Click on the photo for the to read the text...

[Royale]

Thanks Frank, the scope has to stay on my old eyes can't see the peep. That some fine shootin my goal is to do that 25 times in a row.

[dtdtdtdt]

I did a series of 100 tests with about 80 different pellets a few years ago.  I have published it here numerous times.  That set used both my FWB300SU and my RWS54 with pellets ranging from 4-12 gr.  All tests were shot at 50' (17yds) on an indoor pistol range.  I recored the velocities, energies, and group size for virtually all of the pellets.  The overall  best groups for the 300 were with wadcutters but several domed or pointed pellets did nearly as well at that range.  See the columns in this spreadsheet for the FWB to get ideas on some to try. 

Recently, I compared my two RWS54s and the FWB300 at 30yds.  I shot each of the three with their "favorite" pellets.  The .177 RWS54 and the .20 RWS54 did quite well but the FWB300 had the best accuracy overall by a small margin even with the wadcutter at 30yds.  The test was five five shot groups shot with each rifle and the results averaged.  I'll find the information and insert it here in a couple minutes.   You can look down the string list about 3 pages and find my string on that comparison. Title starts with "FWB300, RWS54....Accuracy Comparison" It is pretty long and detailed so get a cup of coffee and a comfortable chair!!

FWB 300SU: Zero is 17yds. Point of Impact averaged 1.35" low.  Could easily hear the impact over the rifle noise.  Vel: about 550f/s at muzzle. Pellets H&N Rifle Match Finale Wadcutter.  8.18gr.

Groups Best to Worst:  0.571, 0.711, 0.857, 0.871, 1.279" Center-to-Center.  Ave:  0.858"  No excuse on biggest group could have been wind but light was getting to me at that time.

My suggestion would be to try several domed pellets in the 8gr range with your FWB300 to see how it does at 30yds.  This is like a broken record I have said it so often but I suggest purchasing the Pellet Sampler from straightshooters.com for about $25 plus shipping.  It includes 18 different pellets covering a weight range.  The kit includes mostly domed pellets.  You should be able to find a keeper in there somewhere for your FWB at 30yds. 

[Royale]

Thanks Dave so wadcutters do work well beyond 25 yards, I just need to find the right one for my barrel.

[dtdtdtdt]

Yes, they can be used but wind may be more an issue because of their lower ballistic coefficient and poorer velocity retention at longer ranges. 

Re-read the note I sent as I added to it while you were reading.   Speed of light thing!!!

[Yogi]

Shoot 10 meters free hand.  If you can one hole that, i'm impressed!

-Y

[Royale]

Shoot 10 meters free hand.  If you can one hole that, i'm impressed!

-Y

Now that's funny, I couldn't hit my arse with both hands standing unsupported. I do have a bogpod I might give that a try

[Royale]

Yes, they can be used but wind may be more an issue because of their lower ballistic coefficient and poorer velocity retention at longer ranges. 

Re-read the note I sent as I added to it while you were reading.   Speed of light thing!!!

Thanks for the update Dave. I'll give a few more wadcutters a try but at this point round nose pellets beyond 15 yards look like the way to go, I hardly ever get windless days at 610 fps it's a killer.

[Frank in Fairfield]

Thanks Frank, the scope has to stay on my old eyes can't see the peep. That some fine shootin my goal is to do that 25 times in a row.

I am 73.
I had catarac surgery last year...20/15 distant vision.
DMV says no glasses required on CDL.
Reading glasses for computer work.
You look through the peep.
Ignore it.
Your eye automatically centers your vision.
Concentrate on front sight only...

[lefeyelu]

Recently sold 250 empty pellet tins - so I'd say I've sampled quite a few.
I now shoot JSB 7.3's exclusively in all my springers - HW 50 - HW30 - FWB 300s - FWB 600 ( a ssp) . They all have grouped .50" or a bit under @ 50 yards. With zero wind. Those are the very best "cherry-picked groups and it is not going to happen every time... BTW -even small breezes are group killers w/these lower powered rifles...

[dtdtdtdt]

Good information and thanks!   I'll give them a try too.  Which pellets did NOT perform well in your rifles.  That is also useful information.

By the way, who would buy empty tins?

[lefeyelu]

I believe most quality domed pellets will shoot well, but all shoot to a different poi that must be adjusted for. I firmly believe this idea of flyers is simply an excuse for a miss - whether it be from a poor trigger pull, different hold or balance point on a higher fps springer, or wind influenced (which is much greater than most realize...) To shoot tight groups or highest scores in matches like the GTA's  - one will do far better to limit shooting attempts to dead calm winds, ie. dawn and dusk.

BTW ' sold the tins to a guy covering the ceiling in his mancave/gunroom for  $.50 each.....

[dtdtdtdt]

I agree that most pellets will do well in some rifle.  Interesting use of pellet tins.  Did he shoot pellet rifles or just liked the tins?

I did have a couple that didn't perform well under any conditions that were supposed to be "quality" pellets.  The non-lead pellets seemed particularly inconsistent at their higher velocities.   

I saw none that perform particularly well at supersonic velocities.  I had one that shot 7" groups at 50ft off a sandbag.  I was so puzzled I checked the rifles with their favorites and got the usual .4-.5" groups without special handling. 

I found one that seemed to shoot two groups out of the same tin.  About 1/2" apart.  On weighing some, I found two different populations of weights about 0.5gr different. 

I did enough testing to say that weighing pellets and separating them with a conventional powder scale is a waste of time.  The regular powder scale will read to 0.1gr but the pellets are so close to the end of calibration settings that sensitivity wasn't good enough.  I bought a gem scale that will differentiate 0.02gr reliably at the 7-11gr range.  It still didn't make the weighing important enough to do it at the ranges and intensity that  I shoot. 

Normally, I shoot run of the tin with no special treatment or culling.  Obviously damaged pellets are discarded but no others. 

[Royale]

I believe most quality domed pellets will shoot well, but all shoot to a different poi that must be adjusted for. I firmly believe this idea of flyers is simply an excuse for a miss - whether it be from a poor trigger pull, different hold or balance point on a higher fps springer, or wind influenced (which is much greater than most realize...) To shoot tight groups or highest scores in matches like the GTA's  - one will do far better to limit shooting attempts to dead calm winds, ie. dawn and dusk.

BTW ' sold the tins to a guy covering the ceiling in his mancave/gunroom for  $.50 each.....

I would agree the idea of a flyer is an excuse for a miss if I were shooting a springer. Shooting a FWB 603 there is no movement at all on a bench rest while shooting and the trigger is so good it's indescribable I don't see how anyone could make a bad trigger pull. You can see the pellet flight on the way to the target through the scope at 24 power, the target does not move at all when the trigger breaks. So let's just call a flyer an unexplainable shot due to imperfect pellet or environmental influences. 

[Yogi]

Shoot it off hand!

[Jason_Garvin]

I have done a fair mount of shooting over time with my FWB's.  The wadcutters punch clean round  holes at 10 yds.  And many of the match grades are exceptional.  But out to 50 yds, I have found JSB RS 7.3 is all I shoot.  I use to hang 3/8" washer on a string, and rock them until bored at 50 yds.  One small puff of wind, and the pellet is 4" off target.

Here is an example of a 30 yd 5 shot group,













I can reset this crow target at 30-50 yds also.



Jason G

[mafatone]

RWS R10 Pistol 7 grains for beyond 25 yards. R10 Rifle 8.2 grains for 10 yards. The FWB 300S & FWB 603 will even shoot the cheap Daisy @2.38 a tin or any other cheap pellet relatively well. Both of those rifles are capable of shooting screws and scoring 7's & 8's but not recommended. LOL

[mafatone]

...also, if you're going out beyond 25 yds., the FWB 300S will have more FPS than the FWB 603, if operating properly but the 603 should be more accurate with less FPS.

[Royale]

Recently sold 250 empty pellet tins - so I'd say I've sampled quite a few.
I now shoot JSB 7.3's exclusively in all my springers - HW 50 - HW30 - FWB 300s - FWB 600 ( a ssp) . They all have grouped .50" or a bit under @ 50 yards. With zero wind. Those are the very best "cherry-picked groups and it is not going to happen every time... BTW -even small breezes are group killers w/these lower powered rifles...

Thanks for the tip the work great. I found a tin of AA Falcon 7.33 gr pellets and gave them a try. As long as there is no wind ONE PELLET HOLE groups at 25 yards another pellet keeper.