best 177 break action for $150

[adirondacker]

i am looking for a good quality air rifle for around $150.ai christmas i bought 3 gamo's for myself and my sons.two 440 hunter combos and a youth hunter combo.i was not at all impressed with these rifles.very inaccurate and lots of plastic parts that started breaking almost immediately.i have returned them and i need 3 new ones to replace them.any info would be appreciated.thanks,adker

[bigferret]

There are two Crosmans at Walmart that are OK.  Crosman Summit for $150 and G1 Extreme for $125.  They come with decent scopes and although they say the shoot 1000 FPS it is more like 700-800 with a proper pellet.  I bought both to test them out and later returned them.  If I was spending $150 and no more I would get the Summit.  I think it was about 7 pounds, wood stock, 3-9X40 scope, easy to cock, and if you don't like it you can always return it.   

[adirondacker]

any advice regarding the beeman air rifles?they look like the quality may be a little better than an equal priced gamo.

[sixgunSal]

For another $50 you can get a nice RWS 34 in either .177 or .22 - a very nice rifle!  Break barrel, wood, and good quality - you can't go wrong.  If I see a used model 34 at a good price, I'll probably pick it up.

sgS

[adirondacker]

these guns are for my sons,13 and 8 the oldest can easily operate any cocking weight.i need a lighter cocking weight gun for my little son.if i am going to spend $200 dollars or more i will just buy them each another .22 rifle.beeman has a couple of diferent size/cocking effort rifles under $150.has anyone tried any of these.thanks,adker

[Bugflipper]

No offence to the guys who like the rws 34, but I wasn't impressed by it, most rifles are 30-100 fps less than advertised but my 34 was 200 fps less than advertised. This was a .22 for hunting and it never was acurate or powerful enough for anything besides gray squirrel. People speak highly of the quest in 177. I had one in .22 which was better than my 34. I belive all of crosman brands are similar, they are made by two firms in china. My quest was in the mid 700 fps, advertised at 800 which is acceptable. It had great acurasy and power. The reason I got shed of it was the terrible recoil which ravaged scopes. The rifle is to light which means it is hold sensitive and has a heavy recoil. The trigger was better than a high power remington bolt action, but a little grainy and a tad heavy by airgun standards. It was good enough for head shots on rabbits to 45 yards being my best.
 The sportsman series you are speaking of by beeman carry the lifetime warranty compared to the 1 year crosman. They are made in spain and are slightly better than the crosmans(winchester, benjamin sheridan, remington) because of the triggers and better qc. You may look at the ss1000h for you and the older guy and maybe the sh650 for the little one. Personally I like the gh950 which is on par with my rws 48. Look into midsouth shooters supply and cabelas. You may also want to check out http://www.reviewcentre.com/products9.html
for user reviews on specific models.
good luck

[sixgunSal]

If you don't want to go that route theres always a Benjamin Sheridan Bluestreak or the Benjamin Sheridan 392 - both very accurate and pwerful enough for small game.

[alfsauve]

The problem is you want "quality" for $150.

Consider this:  Some activities you can use some pretty low quality hardware with which to instruct..  Like driving a car.  Most any old car can be used to teach the basics.  But some activities this doesn't work well.  Shooting is an "accuracy" thing from the first shot.  That's how you measure your success.  If you buy a gun that will only shoot 10 MOA then how will your sons know if they're shooting correctly or not?   

Here's an analogy.  Let's say they've never played baseball and you want teach them to bat.   You want to buy them a pitching machine so they can get lot's of practice.  Would you buy them a cheap ($150) pitching machine which pitches wild 9 out of 10 times only occasionally putting one near the strike zone?  Or would you step up to a better quality one say $300, that will put 9 out of 10 INTO the strike zone.

I think if you go with a inexpensive airguns, you'll do your children a disservice.  I speak from having made this mistake with my own guns and with my children. 

Yes, you can go too far, but $150 isn't the optimal point on the cost/quality curve.  I think you need to be thinking more in the $250-$300 range.   Of the break barrels there's always the R-7.

My 2 cents,  Alf

[buffermop]

I bought a Daisey break barrel at Wally World with a scope for $110. Works fine, very accurate. 1000fps, took many a squirrel and crows with it .

[AirCajun]

I own about 20 air guns.  In the price range you specify, I personally like the RWS 94, 93, 34, and 24.  My 94 clocks an honest 934 f/s (avg) with 7.9 CPLs (cost around 160 bucks if you can find one) and I think one of the best air gun values around. It is a clone of  the famous FWB 124 and is very well made.  The 93 is plain looking but is 'extremely" accurate (a sleeper) and can be had for around 120 bucks - clocks in the 740 f/s range. The 34 is a great gun IMHO - most folks seem to get in the mid to high 800's.  The 24 is one of the most accurate guns around for the money (around 150 bucks) but generally shoots in the 535 f/s range so not the best for hunting - My 24 and my 93 are more accurate than my Beeman R-7, which cost more than twice as much.  The RWS 24 is a smaller gun and could be the ticket for your younger son.  I also have a Quest 1000 and find it less accurate than any of my RWS guns and a bit rough.  The trigger is typical Chinese and needs to be replaced, which I plan to do.  I have also owned a RM 600 (Mexican), TF 99, and TF 97 (99 and 97 are Chinese underleavers) and would not recommend these guns for a kid - I got rid of mine.  They generally need work to make into good shooters and can be a bit crude.  I have found the German and Spanish made RWS guns to be of superior quality and they also have a lifetime warranty. 

Good luck,

Jim

[alfsauve]

Well, there you have it.  The RWS fans believe it can be done for $150.  I'm out voted.  Whatever you buy, I would after a break-in period, test the gun out on sandbags to get a good idea of it's accuracy.

Have fun whatever you buy.

[sixgunSal]

Springers are normally hold dependant - the poi changes a bit each time you hold it different.  Wouldn't think 2 younsters are going to want to spend the time learning how to hold it the same and practicing that hold time after time - after all, pellet guns are supposed to be "fun" - jmho
I would go with the Bejamin 392/C9 pumpers - very accurate and can be used anywhere from plinking to hunting - and will last forever with very little care.