My bird feeder has been a hit all Winter, but now that Spring is here it has become a Red Squirrel Smorgasbord.

I popped one with my Single Six and some rat shot, but I need a more stealthy option.

I'm thinking pellet pistol. Doesn't really need to be accurate beyond 10 yards nor have .22 LR class power.

Around $100

.17 or .22?

Pump or spring? It'll spend a LOT of time just sitting so I don't see CO2 being an option, but I'm willing to be convinced.

Brands/Models?

Crossman p1377 is what you ought to look at. Pump action pistol, can be tinkered with to improve performance, about $50. Lots of web resources and youtube videos for the pistol. It also comes in a .22 version (p1322)

Ken

I have a Crosman .177 pump pistol called the "American Classic" that might possibly work for your purposes. It was well under a hundy. You'll have to make head shots with one in .177, though.

Probably the same thing mentioned in the above post.

quote:

Originally posted by arfmel:
I have a Crosman .177 pump pistol called the "American Classic" that might possibly work for your purposes. It was well under a hundy. You'll have to make head shots with one in .177, though.

Probably the same thing mentioned in the above post.

Looks like it. On Amazon for $50 in either .177 or .22

I think the American Classic is the newest version of the one I've got. I got mine in 1952 so they look a little different. 20 pumps and it will go through 1/2 inch plywood with ease

Mine is a .22 and yes, it still works

Thats the best bet. Get one in 22.

They can be modded, but pumping is a bitch.
They are easy enough to work on you can leave them charged up.

Over 200 reviews of the p1377 at this site.

http://www.pyramydair.com/s/m/Crosman_1377C_PC77/198

The .22 caliber pellets are much easier to handle with my trembling, feeble old fingers that alone would be reason enough to go with the .22 IMO.

My experience with CO2 powered pellet guns has been uniformly bad over the past 50 years. They all leak pressure to varying degrees.

Well, that seems pretty clear.

Ordered the 1322, the 459MT optics mount (old eyes ya know...) and a can of pellets.

Thanks, all!

Don't know your setup gut physical barriers might help, and though I haven't tried it hot pepper mixed in the seed is supposed to deter them.
Squirrels have a sense of taste and smell but birds do not and are unaffected by pepper they say.

We like seeing the squirrels as well as the birds, so I don't worry about them, as long as there are only a few.

quote:

Originally posted by cparktd:
Don't know your setup gut physical barriers might help, and though I haven't tried it hot pepper mixed in the seed is supposed to deter them.
Squirrels have a sense of taste and smell but birds do not and are unaffected by pepper they say.
We like seeing the squirrels as well as the birds, so I don't worry about them, as long as there are only a few.

I could probably live with a few squirrels dining off my generosity, but the furry bastards also dig up my bulbs and eat them and we are NOT having any of that.

Push comes to shove, the feeder will go away.

I have a Webley Hurricane that kicks ass on small rodents. Don't know if they still make them, but I paid about 50 bucks. Break action single pump.

Single Six with some CCI quiet?

Probably just a tad louder (if at all) than a pellet gun.

I've had good luck with my Marlin 39a and cb caps, it's quieter than my gammo spring pellet rifle, plenty accurate for head shots, no complaints from the neighbors. I tried the pepper trick, no joy. Finally got tired of feeding the tree rats and no longer have a bird feeder. Rat traps baited with peanut butter also works well, but it's a good idea to anchor the trap or a foot catch means a trap being carried off.

The Crosman "pumpers" are addictive.

Custom Shop 1300KT in .177 over a modified P1322 in .22



As an aside during my "journey" I tried the 459MT mounts. Ultimately I tossed them as they just didn't do the job in favor of a steel breech and normal dovetail rings to mount my optics.

.22 bolt action rifle loaded with .22CB's has more power than pellet gun, and is way quieter to boot.

quote:

Originally posted by Warhorse:
.22 bolt action rifle loaded with .22CB's has more power than pellet gun, and is way quieter to boot.

With just the primer and 0 powder? More powerful than a pellet gun? Not even close buddy. I have several pellet pistols and rifles that range from 500fps to 1400 fps. We shoot those .22cbs at the shop for shits and giggles cause they won't penetrate thick cardboard at 30ft and the neighbors cant hear them. I have a co2 pellet rifle that i had to get some sheet metal for my backstop so as not to penetrate to layers of osb and my neighbors fence.

quote:

Originally posted by arfmel:
The .22 caliber pellets are much easier to handle with my trembling, feeble old fingers that alone would be reason enough to go with the .22 IMO.

.22 caliber pellets have more energy at the impact point, at least within 25 yards. Cottontails, black tail jackrabbits, no problem with a good hit at 25 yards with a .22 pellet.
 

I just found this review on amazon and had to pass it on.

This is a great American classic pellet gun. But, it’s been made with upgrades in mind right out of the box. This forces the buyer to upgrade many of its parts to bring its status up to excellent. But once you upgrade its components to fit your needs or wants, you’ll be happy to own it and have a pleasure to use it. This is going to be a long review because it’s not only about the P1377 but about why I had to choose it and how I was going to use it; regardless of how much money I had to spend to accomplish my goal (killing mice). Before I go any further, let me state why, and then how. With mice, I’ve tried almost everything with zero success (glue traps, snap traps, electric zapper trap, and homemade traps) even the green pellets; and they eat them like there’s no tomorrow for days on end. BTW this new “generation” of mice won’t go for bait on traps and only grab food and “split” fast to another area to eat it (To learn mouse behavior I used the Bushnell 6MP Trophy Cam with Night Vision game camera; just set it on the floor and it’ll auto-record 1 min video clips on an SD card). And then there’s the “mouse droppings” all over the floor. Keep in mind this room is where I eat, sleep, and walk on (barefoot after shower). But even with a pellet gun at the right time and place you’re not going to be in the same playing field with a mouse. Mice only come out at night or when it’s dark and disappear like magic when lights go on. But with an inexpensive door motion sensor and a pricey 3 pound night vision rifle scope (plus adaptors) things change quite a bit. Still, you must practice shooting in the dark and make sure that you are not going to miss a (live) 3 inch target (with a single shot) at a minimum distance of 9ft (blurry at 6ft) and set up target site that will welcome the mouse; covering a small area of the wall and floor with ¾ inch cardboard cause you don’t want holes on the wall nor blood on your floor once the pellet hits. I found the best position for shooting with this (now) 5 lb. weapon was laying in bed flat with a pillow on your elbows and something to rest the pellet gun on top while aiming at the target site 9ft in front of you. The p1377 will hold its air charge all night (3 pumps and safety “on”) with no problem. The scope has long life lithium batteries. Once you’re alerted of the mouse presence, (either by a motion sensor or plain ear), turn on the scope, IR light “ON”, set into aiming position, safety “off” and… the rest is history. My Crosman p1377 had the Custom shoulder stock, the steel breach conversion kit, UTG Dovetail to Picatinny rail adaptor (MNT-DT2PW01), and the Crosman 2289 fatter forearm pump arm. I used Benjamin .177 hallow point pellets and the 200 Mega Pack 4 inch target stickers for practice shooting; all bought thru Amazon. The only thing I couldn’t buy from them was the Armasight WWZ scope because they won’t deliver this item to my area. It’s nice to know that… next time this happens again; the same process will be repeated and I will succeed again without a doubt.

quote:

Originally posted by Jaywendland1981:

quote:

Originally posted by Warhorse:
.22 bolt action rifle loaded with .22CB's has more power than pellet gun, and is way quieter to boot.

With just the primer and 0 powder? More powerful than a pellet gun? Not even close buddy. I have several pellet pistols and rifles that range from 500fps to 1400 fps. We shoot those .22cbs at the shop for shits and giggles cause they won't penetrate thick cardboard at 30ft and the neighbors cant hear them. I have a co2 pellet rifle that i had to get some sheet metal for my backstop so as not to penetrate to layers of osb and my neighbors fence.

I had no problem killing marauding raccoons at 15 yards with my .22 loaded with.22cb's.