Give me a recommendation

[wbo3]

Ok, I need an air rifle.  I have been looking at the Ruger that Sportsman's Guide has http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/ruger-air-hawk-177-caliber-air-rifle-combo.aspx?a=436725.  What I need it for primarily is to kill those damn squirrels and rabbits in my garden.  I have a cheap daisy BB pistol that I use in the house with my trap, but need to reach out accurately to 50' or so.  I do not want to spend more than $100-150, so the super high powered jobs are most likely out.  Give me some suggestions quick before I do not have a garden left.  Oh, to answer anyone's question, I live in a neighborhood, I can't just use the .22, otherwise I would not have this problem.  it has to be quiet, preferably something I can sit in the great room, point it out the window and rain death down on all the varmints in my back yard.

[spooky-1]

I am an avid airgunner and know a few things about them.
The truth is, as with centerfire rifles, when buying a pellet gun it is almost impossible to get a bad one. As long as you stick with name brands.
Beeman, Gamo, Crosman, Daisy, Crosman, all have good .177 or .22 cal rifles in that price range.
If I had to give you one recommendation, I'd say the Gamo Whisper, it is quiet, accurate, and reliable.
I have a .25 caliber Theoben and it does the trick for me, but then again, it is more than $150.

I also suggest you mount a scope on it, airguns are very precise weapons that require good optics, more good news is since airguns are only good to ranges out to 50 meters or so most scopes will do the trick, just make sure you use an AIRGUN scope, not a regular rifle scope.

Let me know if you have any more questions, like I said I love this stuff.

[brisco]

I am an avid airgunner as well and as much as I like break barrel and pre-charged rifles my favorite for all around shooting (target and small game hunting) is my Benjamin 392 .22 pumper. Accuracy is excellent and the price was around $140. Drop a Williams peep sight or scope (just make sure you get the four piece scope mount) and you got an excellent rabbit & squirrel rifle. I keep all my hunting shots within 30 yards and practice hitting small bottle caps at that distance. These rifles can be a bit tiresome pumping up during a long range session, but that makes you appreciate every shot more. Good luck and happy shooting!

[Jimbo]

"just make sure you use an AIRGUN scope, not a regular rifle scope."

BUMP-ECHO!!!!

 I bought an RWS scope that I thought was an airgun scope... It was for center fire, surprise-surprise, the reticule broke. Ouch

[Bryan E.]

The Ruger Air Hawk can be had on sale for $75 right now, sometimes less.  It's a copy of the Diana 34.  Copies are rarely as good as the original so I would recommend the original 34, and if your on a tight budget, check with Umarex about getting a 34 refurb gun.  These will save a lot of money.

For your application though, I expect even this Air Hawk would work fine for you.  Open sights at this range should let you easily take the pests that you are asking about.  If you need a scope, your going to want a tougher scope and mount that are made for the double recoil of an air rifle.  Scope and mount would easily cost as much as this gun to get a cheap one that will last.  I would just keep it with open sights to make it easier.

Bryan