Innholdsfortegnelse for July 2019 i Airgun Shooter

AS I WRITE, many of us are struggling to get our heads around when, how and if we will be able to continue with our shooting as usual. A challenge by Wild Justice, a group led by television’s Chris Packham, among others, has forced Natural England (NE) to revoke the general licences used for the control of pest birds including crows, magpies, rooks, jackdaws, jays, pigeons, feral pigeons and collared doves. The licences were revoked with around 48 hours’ notice, without consultation, and effectively made the shooting and trapping of these pests illegal. Farmers and pest controllers were left powerless as mobs of corvids pecked the eyes out of newborn lambs, and countless thousands of acres of cereal crops were decimated by woodpigeons. The move really couldn’t have come at…

MANUFACTURER: Aztec Optics UK DISTRIBUTOR: Xabla Accessories (www.xabla.co.uk) MODEL: 5.5-25x50 FFP PRICE: £549 TUBE DIAMETER: 30mm OBJECTIVE LENS: 50mm MAGNIFICATION RANGE: 5.5-25 RETICLE: DYND-1 (MOA) TURRET ADJUSTMENTS: ¼ minute of angle FOCUS: Side focus PARALLAX: 10 yards (nine metres) to infinity FIELD OF VIEW: 19.1yds to 4.2yds at 33yds (17.5m to 3.8m at 30m) EYE RELIEF: 3.54” to 3.94” (8.9cm to 10cm) LENGTH: 14.38” (36.5cm) WEIGHT: 25.4oz (720g) ILLUMINATION: Red and green, each with five levels of illumination RESETTABLE TURRETS: Yes FEATURES: Sidewheel, lens covers, sunshade…

Did you shoot before starting Funky Dipz – and do you shoot today? I went shooting when I first moved here (Uckfield, East Sussex) as I didn’t get much chance when we lived in London. Having seen some of the rifles we get to dip, I really want to get involved, so it is definitely on the cards. How did the business start? We have a car body shop, and I love painting cars and panel beating. As I’ve always done art, I felt like I needed to do something more creative, and came across hydrodipping. I thought with my experience in painting and art that this was the way forward for me, and after a lot of training and practice, I opened up Funky Dipz. What was the first…

When it comes to controlling grey squirrels, there’s no better tactic than setting up a peanut feeder. So why not save time by buying a feeder from Squirrel Management UK? Set up by Ian Hampton, one of the rangers at the Cornwall Red Squirrel Project, SMUK feeders have been designed with Ian’s hours of experience. Available in two sizes – 4.5kg and 9kg – the feeders are designed to resist squirrels’ antics thanks to armoured mesh and a metal feed tray. The deep feed tray reduces the bait thrown onto the floor, and the platform ensures the shooter has a perfect, side-on profile each time. The 3mm back plate is aluminium to reduce the potential for ricochets, increased to 6mm to handle FAC-rated rifles. A double-camber ramp inside the feeder…

MY FIRST STEPS I started shooting airguns when my father purchased a Webley Hawk for him to use. As you can imagine, being 14, my younger brother and I were using it quite a lot more than he was. We were both very competitive, and it wasn’t long before I was outshooting both my brother and my father. My next air rifle wasn’t until I was 35, when I purchased a Webley Xocet, just for a bit of plinking in the garden. MY CURRENT GUN I really got into airgun shooting after we moved house, and my new permissions were around sheep and horses, so my shotgun wasn’t usable. Through forums and Airgun Shooter magazine, I got the bug for tuning, and tuned the Xocet so that I could start…

Don’t focus on the overall power of a particular airgun. Consistency and accuracy are far more important. An airgun producing 10 foot pounds, and doing so smoothly and consistently, will be far more enjoyable to shoot than one producing a muzzle energy right on the legal limit with an inconsistent or harsh firing cycle. Never fire a spring-powered airgun without loading a pellet first. No cushion of air can form in front of the piston without the resistance of a pellet in the breech, and this means the piston will then slam straight into the front of the cylinder, potentially causing serious damage to the internals of your airgun. It’s a good idea not to leave spring-powered airguns cocked for extended periods. Leaving the mainspring in a cocked state places…

IT CAN GET very messy underfoot around the farm, and the muck can sometimes be ankle-deep – so not the place for lace-up shoes. Mat has opted for a pair of rubber boots to seal out the wet, and he’s gone for a quality brand so he doesn’t have to compromise on comfort. Just because farmyard pest control usually entails shooting over close- to mid-range distances, it doesn’t mean you can take shortcuts with ammo. The pellet of choice for today delivers plenty of shock energy, but it also ensures precision, if and when those longer-range shots are required. Mat always likes to have a knife in his pocket when he’s out shooting, and his preference is for a small, manoeuvrable blade. A compact knife comes in handy for all…

Q If an air rifle is made and sold as an FAC gun and is subsequently reduced in power to under 12 foot pounds (in this particular case by bleeding the gas ram), can it now be owned and sold as a legal-limit gun? A In most cases the answer is no. The wording of Section 7(2) of the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 is complex, but in essence, once air weapons are prescribed as ‘specially dangerous’, they cannot be back-converted, and remain in their relevant categories (ie Section 1 & 5) regardless of what is done to them other than deactivation or destruction. The only exception is for airguns (smoothbore air weapons) or for air rifles, which have barrels in excess of 24 inches in length. These are the only…

The SMLE will take either a genuine First World War webbing sling or Lee-Enfield (Guns) Ltd’s 1913-stamped reproduction. Either way, the sling needs to be fitted the correct way round for both the shooter’s comfort and to protect the woodwork. Thread the brass tip of the sling through the swivel from the outside in – it may feel more natural to fit it from the inside out, but this will orientate the sling the wrong way round. Hook the lugs over the webbing one at a time, so the hooks are lying on the outside of the sling and away from the woodwork, rather than facing inwards where they could dig in. Adjust the tension in the sling by sliding one set of lugs over the strap. Wartime photos show…

AUTHORITY AIRGUN Shooter is written by airgunners for airgunners. Our team has decades of combined experience in everything from target shooting to hunting and is committed to bringing you the highest quality advice around in print and video form every month. PASSION WE are absolutely obsessed with airguns and we love writing about them. We’re here to share our knowledge with you and focus on helping you become a better shooter, and we hope you’ll share your knowledge and expertise with us, too! INDEPENDENCE THE views you read in Airgun Shooter are entirely our own, which means you can trust every word you read in these pages. We’ve built up reputations from years in the field – we’re not prepared to pull any punches when it comes to telling you…

Eley Tenex Air pellets are a flathead design firmly aimed at high-level competition target shooters – and have already been delivering some world-class results. Eley gave prototype pellets to three elite shooters at the European Championships in Hungary and the ISSF World Cup in Mexico. The pellets turned out to be a huge success, coming away with four medals and a new world record. The pellets are available in .177 calibre in three head sizes, 4.49mm, 4.50mm and 4.51mm, and weigh 8.2 grains. Eley says the key to their consistency is in the materials selected, the manufacturing techniques employed, and the analysis and selection processes used to maintain strict standards. For more details contact Eley Ltd (www.eley.co.uk)on 0121313 4567.…

Visitors will be able to see more than 20 gundog breeds all under one roof at The Game Fair this summer. The Sporting Dog Pavilion will feature familiar favourites as well as some more unusual breeds when The Game Fair returns, for the second time, to Hatfield House in Hertfordshire from Friday 26 July to Sunday 28 July. It’s headed up for the fifth consecutive year by gundog breeder and trainer Neil Rice, who explained: “This year, we will have examples of all the main gundog groups – retrievers, spaniels, setters and HPRs (Hunt, Point, Retrieve). Visitors will get a chance to see some of the stalwarts of the English sporting scene. “We will have a wide variety of minor and venerable breeds, as well as some breeds usually only…

Cornwall Airgunners Club has become the latest to take part in our multi-club competition, with members shooting a two-round contest appropriately named The Oggy Shoot to win some goodies. Named after a slang term for a Cornish pasty, the Oggy was part of the ongoing competition supported by BSA Guns, the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC) and Airgun Shooter. Sixteen members put their names forward for the competition, with 12 eventually going ahead to shoot the contest, which involved two rounds, each consisting of 30 targets from the club’s 60-target course. Targets for each round were selected by a random number generator. Only four targets were the same on both rounds. Round 1 was 30 targets shot freestyle on a dry, but very windy day. Round 2 saw…

The Ridgeline Torrent jacket has gained a reputation for being a great all-rounder. It’s a hard-wearing field jacket with all the features you need, but without a massive price tag. It has a large wired hood, Velcro and elasticated cuffs, plus loads of pockets. It also has a silent shell, so won’t rustle or give away your position to wary quarry. The all-new Torrent III retains all of these great features, and is now made with the RL Quiet-Tex 5K membrane, which is 100% waterproof and has a 5,000 MVT-rated membrane. All this takes the Torrent III from being a great all-round jacket to being one of the very best value for money all-round jackets available. Its key features are: • Waterproof 10,000 H20 • Breathable 5,000 MVT • Silent shell • Large, roomy…

Always ensure that you fill your pre-charged airgun in a clean, dust-free environment. Dirt and grit can cause havoc if they find their way into the inner workings of your PCP. And remember to cover the fill port with the relevant dust cap or dust plug after you’ve finished topping up with air. While PCPs generate far less recoil than a springer or gas-ram, it’s wise to regularly check the screws holding the scope mounts to ensure they’re still nice and tight. If a scope is allowed to move even a tiny amount, your pellets are unlikely to end up exactly where you were aiming for. Unlike springers and gas-rams, which must be allowed to recoil without interference, PCPs can be supported by a range bag or bipod, or rested…

ONE OF THE best things about farmyards is the shelter provided by sheds and barns. Being able to shoot inside these buildings means you can still have a comfortable shooting session on days when unfavourable weather – anything from heavy rain to burning sunshine – makes setting up on the open countryside uncomfortable and unproductive. And if extreme weather has forced you to seek shelter on the farmyard, it’s very likely that your quarry will be thinking the same thing. Tuck yourself up in a discreet hiding place among the farm buildings, and you’ll be able to pick off the pests as they swoop in to seek out shelter and easy pickings.…

Most HFT competition shooters will be using single-shot rifles for competition purposes. There are, of course, many good reasons why this is the case. Firstly, HFT competition rules state that if a rifle is equipped with a magazine, this should be removed from the action following every shot, for obvious safety reasons. It would not be safe practice to have a shooter moving from peg to peg with a gun that has a pellet ready to enter the breech at the flick of a bolt or sidelever, even if the gun has a safety catch – which specialised target rifles do not possess in most cases anyway. Safety must always come first when we consider any shooting activity, with other shooters being assured that their compatriots are not wandering around…

Although I shoot throughout the winter, it’s a huge relief to get out and stalk the hedgerows for rabbits in the pale spring sun. That doesn’t mean I can put my night vision gear away just yet though; one of my permissions is a free-range egg farm, and my rat control duties are a year-round obligation. With more than 6,000 birds, there’s always plenty of feed, and while the activity slows down in the summer, there are numerous rats as well. A recent visit with my shooting buddies Neil and Kev coincided with a warm spring evening. We arrived with about 40 minutes of daylight left, and spent the time drinking tea and chatting to the farmer. It was time well spent, as he told us about some new rabbit…

STRUGGLING with a scope? Having hassles with your hunting? Well, don’t despair because you’ve arrived at the right place to discover remedies for your airgun anxieties! Whether you’re looking for a quick fix to a nagging problem or simply want advice on your next piece of gear, email us at airgunshooter@futurenet.com or write to us at the address below: one of our experts will soon get you on the right track! Airgun Shooter, Future Publishing, Units 1 & 2, Sugarbrook Court, Aston Road, Bromsgrove B60 3EX MEET YOUR TEAM OF AIRGUN ADVISERS MIKE MORTON MIKE talks cleaning regimes as he muses on overdoing gun maintenance and how to keep your head when you’re shooting. SIMON EVERETT SIMON advises on how to confirm you’ve ended a squirrel’s life humanely, and whether…

BRINGING you the best reviews coverage we can is of critical importance to us so we have put together a manifesto (below) that explains exactly what you can expect from our tests. Enjoy this month’s selection of products and please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any queries about any of the reviews in the magazine. THE AIRGUN SHOOTER TEST PROMISE RIGOROUS: We take reviews very seriously at Airgun Shooter.Notonlydoweensurethat every product is evaluated rigorously and objectively in the field, but we only use experienced reviewers who know the subject inside out. With literally decades of combined experience, our team is equipped to deliver the toughest tests around. REAL-WORLD: We understand that you want to see what a product can do rather than just hear about its…

American optics brand Bushnell has relaunched its hunting offerings with three new lines called the Prime, Nitro and Forge, which it says are designed to provide clarity in any conditions. Top of the range is the Forge line of rifle scopes, binoculars and spotting scopes, which are all built with the best lens coatings Bushnell has to offer for premium brightness, resolution and colour. As Bushnell puts it, when the light isn’t ideal, your optics need to be. Forge rifle scopes provide every feature that hunters have asked for, including exposed, locking zero-stop turrets and first-and second-focal plane models, as well as ballistic reticles and adjustable-height magnification change levers. For more details contact Edgar Brothers (www.edgarbrothers.com) on 016 2561 3177.…

The way that farmers, pest controllers and conservationists are able to control certain birds has been thrown into uncertainty, following the withdrawal of three general licences by Natural England. The three licences cover 16 bird species, including several members of the crow family (crows, magpies, rooks, jackdaws and jays), feral pigeons and woodpigeons, as well as a number of invasive, non-native species, such as Canada geese. The move followed a challenge to the legality of the licences by pressure group Wild Justice – one of the directors of which is BBC presenter Chris Packham. Countryside groups including BASC, the Countryside Alliance and the National Farmers’ Union have written to Environment Secretary Michael Gove to demand an investigation into the way NE handled the issue, which they have branded a “disaster”.…

I have introduced a number of friends and clubmates to the great pastime of hunting rabbits. Most are already shooters, so are confident they can place a shot in the killzone. Through example, you can show them the areas where rabbits are likely to congregate and how to carefully stalk up within range. From experience, I’ve found that spooked rabbits take at least 20 minutes to venture out, but if you’ve taken a shot and missed, it can be over half an hour. Depending on the time of year, the young rabbits tend to come out first, either because they are less cautious or they get pushed out by the adults to see if the coast is clear! So the decision has to be made to wait or move on.…

BE QUIET I read with interest the article Silence(r) is Golden. A silencer is a handy piece of kit when in hunting mode as it cuts noise down. And if you are hunting near a wooded area without a silencer, the crack from the barrel will vibrate throughout the wood, creating high noise and causing all the quarry to retreat to the next parish – which does nothing for the game bag. May I pass on a tip? My silencer diffuses air through the large holes which are drilled out of the core. This does cut down noise, but to improve on that, I use rifle cleaning patches wrapped around the plastic core holes. I managed two tight turns and then held them in place with a piece of PVC.…

IT MAKES SENSE to use the cover offered by buildings and machinery as you stalk around the farm, but the direction you choose for your route around the yard can make a big difference to concealment when the time comes to take a shot. If you’re right-handed and choose to walk around the outside of a building in a clockwise direction, the shoulder you mount your gun into will be on the inside. You’ll have to step out and away from cover in order to get your muzzle clear so you can line up on the target. Move in an anti-clockwise direction and your right shoulder will be on the outside. In this position, you can mount the gun and keep the muzzle clear of whatever it is you’re using…

ALL products are scored out of 100, with scores for airguns being broken down into greater detail so you can understand exactly how we arrive at our final total. Accuracy is always king in our tests so we give this particular consideration when evaluating the features and performance of a product. Standout products are eligible to receive one of our three accolades, so look out for the awards opposite as you read through our reviews. GIVEN to any product winning a test of two or more similar products – if you see this you can buy with total confidence. DISCRETIONARY award denoting exceptional value for money, regardless of whether the product is the test winner. THIS is the gold standard of airgun awards, and only products scoring over 90% in…

GUN SUPPLIED BY: The Shooting Party (www.shootingparty.uk) MANUFACTURER: Lee-Enfield (Guns) Ltd MODEL: Lee-Enfield SMLE PRICE: £429 POWERPLANT: CO2 (1 x 12g capsule) CALIBRE: .177 (4.5mm) BB SHOTS PER CAPSULE: Approximately 30 ACTION: Bolt (removable) MAGAZINE: 15-shot removable LENGTH: 44 5/8” (1,134mm) WEIGHT: 8lb 1oz (3.65kg) SIGHTS: Notch and post; height-adjustable rear SAFETY: Manual safety catch, removable bolt COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: China FEATURES: Accepts original slings and bayonets…

MANUFACTURER: Hawke (www.uk.hawkeoptics.com) MODEL: Airmax 30 SF Compact 3-12 x 40 PRICE: £259 TUBE DIAMETER: 30mm MAGNIFICATION RANGE: 3-12 OBJECTIVE LENS: 40mm RETICLE: AMX IR ILLUMINATION: Red, with six levels of illumination TURRET ADJUSTMENT: 1/10 mil W/E RANGE: 30 milliradians FOCUS: Side focus PARALLAX: Nine metres (10 yards) to infinity OCULAR TYPE: Fast focus EYE RELIEF: 76mm (3”) LENGTH: 277mm (10.9”) WEIGHT: 589g (20.8oz) FEATURES: Waterproof, shockproof, nitrogen-purged RATED FOR: All calibres…