.22 okay for mostly plinking?

[PA1911]

Hey Folks

I have been trying to decide on my upcoming airgun purchase. I have decided I want to try the nitro piston guns. I had thought about the Titan GP but have decided I may be able swing a Benji Trail NP. I like the Benji better for the scope, weaver rail, shrouded barrel etc.

My main question is this. I would prefer a .177 (I have a few more pellet options with .177 locally, other than that I have no preference in caliber) gun but the Trail Xl and the Remingtons are out of my price range. Am I crazy to buy a .22 when I am mostly going to be punching paper?
I know alot of rifles like CPHPs and my local Wally Worlds have both calibers for the same price, so if those happen to work good in my rifle, there wouldnt be a cost difference.  I don't know about the cost difference with other brands of pellets.  

Also I heard that when orders get caught up at Crosman that I could possibly get a .177 barrel to swap with the .22 barrel, is that true?

Thanks for the help  

[gene_sc]

If you do mostly hole punching I suggest the Crosman NPSS or Remington NPSS. They come in .177 and .22 and the pellets are cheaper with the .177..

[ac12]

For plinking, if the .22 pellets are the same price as the .177 pellets, I would say go for it.

I plink w .177 because for me, when I got my pellet stash, the .177 pellets were cheaper than the .22.  OK not by that much, but sometimes I can get CHEAP.  And I don't need the impact of a heavier .22 pellet to make a hole in a paper target.

Now if you REALLY want a .177, then wait for it.  I've gone thru that before, and invariably I second guess myself for a LONG LONG time, thinking that I would have been happier with the one I REALLY wanted.

[LongIslandArcher]

I used to shoot .177, but I find that the .22 plinks just as well, if not better, than the .177.  The .22 pellets are easier to handle and will hit harder than a .177 if you decide you want to varmint hunt with it.  The heavier .22 pellets are less affected by wind drift and retain more energy downrange. 

[PA1911]

As far as local pellet availabilty, all I have is walmart, maybe 3 different Crosman varieties vs 1 kind for .22 (CPHP). These kind of decisions always confuse me. I second guess my self alot.

What is the difference between the regular nitro piston guns and the short stroke nitro guns?  What's the advantage?  Are those the ones that take Da Tunas polymer trigger?

Sorry for all the questions folks, I appreciate the help

[Tpatner412]

I'm pretty sure there is no difference between the two nitro pistons.  The trail NP's will take the GRT-III trigger while the NPSS will take the CBR.

Never apologize for asking questions here my friend.  We are all learning together.

[tightpack]

I would go with the Titan and use it for everything.

[Perry]

I've owned both and I would pass on the Titan and spend a little more and get the Trail NP. The Trail NP is a better built airgun with more power and like you said, better scope, weaver rail, shrouded barrel, sling, etc.

I mostly plink and target shoot with .22 anyway.

[airgunandy]

My thought is just buy the gun you want. Chances are whatever you get won't like the pellets they have at Wal-Mart. Most of my .177's won't shoot the Crosman pellets they have now. Wish Wallyworld still carried some kind of .177 wadcutters.
And .22 is fine for plinking and paper punching. All of my .22's like the Daisy wadcutters that Wallyworld used to sell (great plinking ammo) but most can't stand the Crosman hollow points. Shucks!
I tell ya, I almost didn't buy my vintage Sheridan because I can't find .20 cal pellets locally. The rifle is sweet enough to warrant the extra effort to order pellets online.

Buy the gun you want and let the pellets fall where they may.

[LongIslandArcher]

The .22 cal. CPHP pellets are a fantastically accurate (and inexpensive) pellet.  I've already set all my other pellets aside and exclusively shoot the CPHPs from my rifles.

[Perry]

The main issue I have with CPHP's is that they have inconsistant head sizes. The tight ones shoot great in my springers but one in four are loose fitting and are fliers. I refuse to sort, measure, clean and lube cheap CPHP pellets. I would rather spend a liitle more for JSB or H&N pellets and not have to worry about quality control.

CPHP's shoot great in my pumpers and I have several tins of them set aside for those guns.

[454 Big Block Chevy]

I've gotten nearly surgical precision with both calibers of cphp's. i love them.  yes, the pellet sizes are inconsistent... but for 6 bucks per 500... you can't really complain too much... good performing pellet, good penetration, good expansion if you have a good air rifle.  if your rifle doesn't like them, then i hope you are able to find something that it does like!  CPHP's are a great starting point to unlock a rifles accuracy.

[longislandhunter]

I don't see anything wrong with getting a .22 even though your main use will be paper punching.  You'll have just as good a time punching paper with a .22 as you will with a .177 and if you ever decide to do some pesting or small game hunting then you'll already have a potent hunter in the arsenal.  I echo the other members remarks on the CPHP's....... I love them in both calibers.  They are deadly accurate in most of my shooters, work well on game and since they're dirt cheap they're great for target shooting.

Jeff

[454 Big Block Chevy]

both .177 and .22 calibers are great guns.  here's the pro's and con's that ic an think of.

.177
Cheaper to shoot
easier to find ammunition
flatter trajectory
higher velocity
somewhat longer range over same velocity bigger caliber.
more effected by wind drift

.22
more FPE
still pretty cheap to shoot
still pretty easy to find .22 pellets
drop a lot faster
less wind drift

you can't really go wrong either way.  Ed (Shadow) shoots a lot of racoons with a .177 RWS 34P (panther) which is a 1k springer.  so, either caliber will work well.  I prefer to shoot .22, because i have big fat hands, that don't like .177 caliber pellets, but i do own and love a gamo big cat 1200, in .177.  the Titan GP is a fantastic rifle for the price.  Get it, and then get a .177 gun, so you have 2!  the crosman storm or quest in .177 is a good gun!  and you can pick them both up at walmart, locally.