Try PCP for your next air gun

In the past several years, the hunting world has seen some huge advancements. That is especially true with air guns.

Among hunters in the Carolinas, air gun usage is still in the minority, but the trend is growing, for many different reasons.

I’ve hunted deer with air guns for years, and every year when I drop my deer off at the processor or taxidermist, I run into other hunters. The talk eventually turns to firearms, and when I say I shot my deer with an air gun, I’m almost always told something along the lines of “Oh man, keep that to yourself. It’s illegal.”

Of course, it’s 100 percent legal, in both Carolinas, without question. It’s also completely ethical, another comment I’m always questioned on.

PCP, or precharged pneumatic, air guns, are extremely powerful, shooting numerous calibers at speeds well above what many traditional rifles send their bullets downrange.

In Africa, hunters kill everything from lions to water buffalo with air guns, and air guns are completely effective at killing any game animals we’re allowed to hunt in the Carolinas.

The stigma is, most people think of the old Red Ryder BB gun, or a cheap break-barrel version of an air rifle when they hear the term air gun. And certainly, we don’t want to hunt anything with those guns.

But a quick delve into the world of modern air guns will quickly lay to rest any qualms or myths anyone has about hunting game animals with air guns.

We’ll talk more about big game hunting with air guns when the time is right, but for now, it’s squirrel season in the Carolinas, and squirrel hunters have tons of options when it comes to shooting these critters.

Safe and effective

Squirrels can be effectively killed with just about any air rifle, but the most accurate and reliable air guns are PCP powered. And that’s what I enjoy hunting squirrels with the most.

Available in .22 caliber and .17, PCP air rifles are a joy to shoot, do little damage to the meat, and can drop a squirrel just as quickly and effectively as a Ruger .22

So, what is a PCP air rifle? PCP air guns are precharged pneumatic guns. This basically means a compressor or external air tank fills the air gun’s reservoir, which powers the gun. Each gun’s shot count is limited by the size of its reservoir, but they are inexpensive and easy to refill, even in the field with the proper gear.

Air rifles are great options for squirrel hunting. The quiet shots allow a hunter to shoot multiple squirrels, where a conventional rifle would send the little critters scurrying through the woods as soon as the first shot rings out.

Air guns are also easy for anyone to shoot, so introducing kids to hunting, or even adults with little hunting experience, is not a problem.

Air guns are also safer to hunt squirrels in areas with houses nearby. Cleanly missing a squirrel high in a tree when shooting a conventional rifle can be problematic for neighbors. But a clean miss with an air gun just means a small pellet will fall harmlessly out of the sky very quickly.

Pure fun

And even for experienced sportsmen, hunting squirrels with air guns is simply a joy.

Air guns are also, generally speaking, less expensive to purchase, and to shoot, than conventional rifles. Now just like any other hobby, if you absolutely want to spend a fortune on your air guns and ammo, you’ll find some extremely high-priced options. But you’ll also find plenty of very good, highly accurate air guns, and ammo, for bargain prices in comparison.

Another benefit to air rifles is that you can purchase them online and have them sent straight to your house, no paperwork required. This means you’re not bound to whatever your local store has in stock, or required to fill out forms that involve FFLs to have your desired gun shipped to another store that will charge you an additional transfer fee. And thanks to the internet, you have every option available, from the most mundane to the most extravagent air guns on the market.

One of the top resources for air guns and all the necessary accessories is Pyramyd Air (www.pyramydair.com). And at Pyramyd Air’s website, you can do much more than just make purchases. The website includes a bevy of resources, from ballistic calculators, a hunting map that tells hunters what’s legal to hunt in their states with an air gun, buying guides to help you purchase the right gun for your desired activity, an option to design and build your own custom air gun, schematics, a glossary of terms for those new to the world of air guns, and much, much more.