Selecting my 2nd air pistol... advice please

[Purplenurple]

     I enjoyed air guns in my youth and centerfire pistol shooting for the last few years. Getting an air pistol and setting up a basement range seemed like a logical way to save money  (ammo$$!!, gas, range passes) and still get lots of trigger time. I bought a izh-53m from amazon for 57$ shipped and set up my range. I love the 53m but it has some recoil and I get occasional lower or higher velocity shots(measured with a chrono) resulting in "flyers". I have to admit that I have been quite taken in by my new found hobby. The guns are amazing! Ammo is cheap, even the premium stuff. I think i am ready to step up into a better pistol, and start going to matches! I have been saving for a new 1911 but my priorities have shifted. I think a single pump like the avanti 747 or possibly the izh-46m would be nice. Any advice about what else is available would be appreciated.

[Phoghat]

IF you are looking to go into competition, the Avanti is a great starter gun. I had one that I used to work with my four sons. Hardly any recoil as it is a single pump pneumatic, and I know it is used as a trainer in a lot of schools, and clubs. One of my sons was in the Sea Scouts and it was used as a target trainer

[wrecktangle]

The Avanti is a great pistol. Accurate as anything out there (except of course the expensive PCP's). It goes head to head with my Izzie 46m, and it's considerably cheaper than the Izzie. The trigger on the Izzie is much better, but the Avanti is no slouch. You won't be disappointed with either; but if money is an issue go with the Avanti.

[White Eagle]

The Avanti is a great pistol. Accurate as anything out there (except of course the expensive PCP's). It goes head to head with my Izzie 46m, and it's considerably cheaper than the Izzie. The trigger on the Izzie is much better, but the Avanti is no slouch. You won't be disappointed with either; but if money is an issue go with the Avanti.

+1!   And welcome to the GTA!

[tomykay12]

The 7xx gun is BIG. Almost cartoonish in the hand, but they shoot great. 360-380 fps. Sights are pretty clunky and crude/ easily disturbed. Watch the yellow classifieds, as they come up pretty often. Parts are available and they are easy to work on. Find one under 100.00 and be happy, tk

[ac12]

The 7x7 is a bit front heavy and the plastic grip a little slippery if you have sweaty hands (like me).  This causes the pistol to slip and rotate in my hand.
The fix for this problem for me was a small (about 1"x1") piece of non-skid from Ace hardware put onto the backstrap of the pistol.  No more slipping grip.

What I really like about the 7x7 is that you can easily dry fire the pistol.  Just cock the hammer, w/o charging the air, and you can dry fire all day long.  Great for working on your trigger pull.

[Purplenurple]

So the avanti and izh-46 are the only single pump competition pistols ? Is the beeman P3 competition quality ? any others worth considering?... Can i turn a 1377 into a single pump beast ?!

[UCChris]

You can make a 2240 into a pretty slick little target pistol. It's not going to be the best, but it will be pretty good.

[DobsOnly]

     I love the 53m but it has some recoil and I get occasional lower or higher velocity shots(measured with a chrono) resulting in "flyers". I have to admit that I have been quite taken in by my new found hobby. The guns are amazing! Ammo is cheap, even the premium stuff. I think i am ready to step up into a better pistol, and start going to matches! I have been saving for a new 1911 but my priorities have shifted. I think a single pump like the avanti 747 or possibly the izh-46m would be nice. Any advice about what else is available would be appreciated.

If you have a chance to go to a match, by all means go and see what others are using. See how the different pistols feel when held. Î have both the 747 and 46m. Both are very nice guns. Both are far more accurate than the guy using them, me.

Check the shooting match gate here. See what's being shot and the scores being posted.  Participate in the matches not being concerned with score at first. Work on stance, hold, breathing and trigger pull. Its a great way to be competitive and improve your shooting skills, regardless of the gun. In most cases, the person on the trigger has much more to do with the score than the gun they are holding. Just my opinion.

[robert w]

if you can find 1 a Diana 5g is accurate in the 450 fps range . I seen 2 for sale , used rebuilt over on the yeller but they are Winchester branded .same gun different name. my 5g is a accurate easy spring gun and isn't pellet picky either

[tomykay12]

So the avanti and izh-46 are the only single pump competition pistols ? Is the beeman P3 competition quality ? any others worth considering?... Can i turn a 1377 into a single pump beast ?!

Don't know from competition, but the P3 is an excellent pistol. Little more velocity than the 717/747, but not much. Mine has a great trigger that shames the Avanti trigger, nice sights, and shoots where it is pointed, for better or worse. It likes inexpensive pellets too. There are some good posts about improving the Avanti trigger, so possibly read up on that to see if you want to go that route.
   Lots of people like the P17 as well, a Chinese clone of the P3, but you WILL spend time fixing it.
   The 1377 lends itself to many mods, but SSP is probably not one of them. Best thing you can do to that pistol is adapt the 1701 grip frame to enjoy a decent trigger. Have fun with it, tk

[ac12]

For competition, there are also the following SSP pistols:

- Pardini K58 (out of production) much lighter than the IZH
- FWB 100 series; 100, 101, and 103 (I think out of production)
- Walther I think it is the LPM
- Gamo Compact (but not at the same competitive level as the above pistols)

The Beeman P3 is a nice casual pistol, but it is not a competition target pistol.

[althawk]

Beeman P17 /  Xisico XSP 120D /  HDS9 / WMN Mod. S 9 / Beeman P3 / Weihrauch HW40    [clone, clone, clone, clone, re-brand, original]

Daisy 747/777

IZH 46

A bit dated, but some other choices: http://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=20460.msg182035#msg182035
http://www.muzzle.de/N3/Druckluft/druckluft.html#Druckluft-Pistolen