Daisy 880

[jmdavis984]

Allow me to start with a short story.  I am a springer guy.  Nothing against multi-pumps, I just haven't liked any of the ones I've used.  Too much effort to launch a pellet down range.  CO2 is good too, but I rely on springers.  Along comes the weekend of my sister's wedding, and I am providing the "entertainment" with a box full of pellets, my guns, and some spray-paint cans (good fun at 50 yards).  Unfortunately, my CO2 gun was out needing repairs, so I "needed" another gun to keep everybody happy.  I ran to the local walmart and picked up a Crosman 760, a Daisy 880, and a can of BB's (for the 760).

The way I had the range set up was paper targets at 10 and 25-yards, resettable knock-down targets at 10 and 25, coffee creamer packets at 10 yards, and paint cans and an old 6" sauce pan at 50 yds.  My brother in law proceded to sight in the 880 at 10 yards using 10 pumps, and I started on the 760 with 3 pumps.  Three things became apparent very quicly.  BB's aren't going to be much fun beyond 10 yards, and the 880 is WAY easier to pump than the 760.  I was blown away with how smooth and light the pumping action is on the 880.  The pump arm is so long it reduces the effort a lot.

Anyway, back to sighting in.  The 880 was putting RWS Diabolo Basic wadcutter pellets through the bulls-eye at 10 yards with the sights raised all the way up.  I was a little saddened by the fact that the sight was maxed out at only 10 yards, but since I assumed it would be a short-range plinker, I gave it no more thought.  The rifle has a rather loud report at 10 pumps, and sounded really nice compared to the springers.

We did some shooting at 25 yards, but weren't hitting anything.  It was then that I realized that the pellet was still climbing when it was hitting at 10 yards, because everything was REALLY high at 25 yards.  And, since we couldn't hit the 2" targets at 25 yards, we decided to start shooting at 50 yards.

Here comes another story.  For the longest time, I have been trying to find a light, accurate, short (carbine), cheap rifle that I could use to plink at long range.  My TF87 can do it with ease, but it is WAY too heavy to shoot standing.  My IZH-61 is more than accurate enough, but lackes the power to shoot out that far without jacking up the sights.  And, I wanted something in a synthetic stock, so I could bang it around and not cry over dented wood.  So, I have considered GAMOs, Stoegers, Crosmans, Hatsans, and none of them really fit ALL of my criteria.

That's where the 880 comes back into the picture.  I HATE MSP's for plinking because of all of the work, but the 880 is so easy to pump I don't really think about it.  It is really annoying to load pellets into the breech, but I will get better with practice.  but, other than not being a springer, it meets all of other criteria.  It is only 38" long (I wanted 40" or less), 3 lbs (I wanted less than 7), one-hole accurate at 10 yards, and cheaper than any springer on the market.  But, could it shoot 50 yards?

With the frint sight occluding the sauce pan, 10 pumps puts cheap pellets on the gong every time.  WITH OPEN SIGHTS!  This gun is WAY more than I had hoped for in the accuracy department.  With a few shots we were able to shoot the lids off of some spray paint cans at 50 yards.  I would say it is WAY more than accurate enough to plink with out to that range.

The gun does have a few down-sides to it.  The first the trigger.  Like I said, my primary other shooters are the TF87 and the IZH-61.  Both of them have really nice triggers, one being a two-stage adjustable hunting trigger and the other being a light movement-free target trigger.  The trigger on the 880 is neither.  It is REALLY heavy, and REALLY mushy, with no real staging or warning before the break.  The gun is light enough that you can keep it on target through the pull, but if I ever open this gun up the trigger will be the first thing I touch.

Another down-side is the all-plastic construction.  The gun is almost entirely made of cheap plastic.  The pumping handle seems to be decently strong, but I know I could break the "stock" off if I tried twisting it.  The main chassis being all plastic makes me think the gun wouldn't be a very good candidate for an optic, but since this is a plinker I probably won't care too much.  The "bolt" or cocking handle is another sore point with me.  It just feels like it will break every time I cycle it.  It has held up fine so far, but the plastic definitely tells the shooter that it is a $40 gun.

The sights are quite crisp, though only crudely adjustable.  the windage adjustment is almost useless for long-range shooting, with the blade wiggling constantly as you try to tighten the adjusting screw.  The ramp-style elevation adjuster is something I thought we could have moved past by now as a society, but these cheap guns seem to keep it alive.

All in all, I am quite pleased with my purchase.  I still have to put it through my collection of pellets to see if it has a preference, but I would say I can definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a MSP plinker or a short-range pester.

[jmdavis984]

Here are some groups I shot with the 880.  All groups are 10 shots (unless they just grew too quickly) at 10 yards off of a rest, 3-pumps per shot.  The groups are not selective, I shot one group of each pellet I have to weed out the junk ones.

Gamo Hunter: 1.19
Gamo Tomahawk: 0.78
Gamo Match: 0.75
Gamo Magnum: 2.125
Gamo Master Point: 0.75


Crosman CPHP: 1
Crosman Pointed (from the carton): 1.41
Crosman Destroyer EX: 1
Crosman Premier Super Match: 0.56
Crosman Wadcutter (from the carton): 0.91


Daisy Pointed: 1.16
Daisy Wadcutter: 1.41
Daisy Hollowpoint: 1.28


H&N Excite Econ: 0.72
RWS Hobby: 0.69
Beeman Laser: 0.59
H&N Sport: 0.53
Crosman SSP: 2.75


I got REALLY close to that 1/2" mark with a few of these.  I think that Crosman Premier Super Match group could have been smaller, but I tore out my aim point.  I am getting some RWS Diabolo Basic's in a few days, and I'm sure they will do well.  They were the pellets that went out to 50 yards with accuracy.

I'll post back soon with 25 yard shooting.  Don't expect anything as good, I'll still be shooting open sights.  Scope mounts on a plastic "body" just don't seem like a good idea.

[Sqrl Klr]

Try some RWS superdomes too. Those worked the best for me but you're not going to get consistent accuracy past 10yds with it. I made some 35yd kills with it but missed a lot because of the gun. Scopes hold fine on that plastic stock so that's no worry at all. I used 30mm scopes on it and never had an issue. The gun itself is what will eventually break. Been through 5 of them and none lasted long. You can grind the trigger down then sand it and lube it for a much smoother pull where you won't pull shots to the side as will happen with the unmodified trigger. Enjoy it while it lasts. I couldn't get more than 1.5yrs out of one.

[starlingassassin]

i think the 880's are great little guns capable of much better accuracy than you would think



mine loves the H&N baracuda match pellets.


i removed the outer barrel covering on mine to let the barrel float
(which requires that you scope it because the sights are built into the barrel covering)


doing only this the groups shrunk greatly.

[jmdavis984]

Try some RWS superdomes too. Those worked the best for me but you're not going to get consistent accuracy past 10yds with it. I made some 35yd kills with it but missed a lot because of the gun. Scopes hold fine on that plastic stock so that's no worry at all. I used 30mm scopes on it and never had an issue. The gun itself is what will eventually break. Been through 5 of them and none lasted long. You can grind the trigger down then sand it and lube it for a much smoother pull where you won't pull shots to the side as will happen with the unmodified trigger. Enjoy it while it lasts. I couldn't get more than 1.5yrs out of one.

Believe it or not I added some RWS Superdomes to my amazon order just last night since they were cheap.  The gun seems to be partial to wadcutters, but I would like to find some domes that it likes out to more than 10 yards.

I've heard that the gun's aren't terribly resilient.  What ends up breaking on yours?

For those of you that have owned one, have you tried putting expanding foam in the butt stock?  It won't add much weight but I am wondering if it takes away some of the CHEAP feel.

[Sqrl Klr]

The pumps would stop holding air. I didn't try the foam but that could help try and see.

[lillysdad621]

the 880 is a great rifle, shame that daisy decided to outsource it to keep costs down, because if it was made here and kept the metal receiver and handle, it would give the 397 a run for its money. It light, it shoulders well, it can be pumped by an arthritic grandma with only one arm, and the barrel has that dodecahidral rifling and it takes on a lot of different pellets well. Take the barrel shroud off, put electric tape around the barrel so that the shroud does not dance and helps to support the barrel. be easy with the cocking mechanism and be generous with the oil... mine just failed. the foam felt finally broke into pieces. I'll make one soon or i'll order one from daisy. That is the gun that you can just throw on a sleeve on the truck, and if you got an hour to burn in the woods you'll be hard pressed to find another better companion... I also have the 22sg... same gun but in .22 with wood. both very quiet and accurate.

[Sqrl Klr]

They're sold at walkmart, academy and other local stores so unless you're in the boonies there's no reason to order from daisy.

[lillysdad621]

nah ,man... those china made... all i need is the seal. then my metal beast would be back in business.

[neric]

I bought the 880 to plink dogs in my yard with just a single pump to discourage their visiting.  I started playing with it to see what it would do.  I fell in love with its accuracy, I pretty much couldn't believe the accuracy for such a cheap price. 

I hated the trigger so I took it apart to see if I could lighten it up a bit.  I was thinking:  Man,,,this could be the real sweet deal! 

But alas,,,there is no sliding hammer to release the charged valve body (like Crosman has) so all the pressure to release the charge has to come from the trigger:  6-7 lbs,,,,,bummer.  I didn't see any way to make it lighter because of its design.  I didn't bother to polish the trigger after I found that out.

I put a scope on mine for a little while with no problems,,,since there is no recoil,,,there shouldn't be any problems.

I found JSBs shot the best for me.  It is a great little gun.  I almost bought the SG22 but knowing the trigger would be the same kept me away.

Plinking dogs with BBs on one pump is the only duty my 880 sees,,,for that job a 6 lb trigger is just fine. 

But after reading this posting,,,I'll have to get it out and revisit it again.

[Sqrl Klr]

Grind the trigger down where it holds the sear. You'll see that it's square and you want to round it so it will take less lbs of pull to fire it. Sand then lube and you'll feel a big difference. When your 880 bites the dust remove the trigger and install it in a new 880 if you plan to get another one.

[neric]

Thanks Squrl Klr, I will do that trigger mod.  I really do like that gun.  Plus taking off the barrel shroud,,,I didn't know about that either.  I'm looking forward to tinkering some more. 

Thanks for all the info sharing.

[jmdavis984]

I shot some more groups with the 880 with some new pellets that I added to the list.  Here's some results:
Winchester Pointed: 0.64"
Winchester Round Nose: 0.84"
Winchester Hollowpoint: 1.02"
RWS Superdome: 1.02"

... and the winner is ...

RWS Diabolo Basic: 0.53" (one group was 0.34" if you discounted one shot that was obviously outside the main group)

This little rifle continues to surprise me.  If Crosman could figure out how to make a multi-pump this easy to pump, I might have to pick one up.  But until then, I'll stick with this little shooter.