# Hunting > Varminting and Small Game Hunting >  BACK YARD RABBITS

## Trout

Been looking at getting a quieta rabbit killer,brought this hardly used Cometa Fusion air rifle on TM.Its got some knock down power,but my best grouping at 25 yrds is about 2.5 inchs.Any info on better ammo would be appreciated.
Any how, went out the back of my house this morning at 1st light,Just tipped over this rabbit at 45 paces,bang flop.And shot another out back a couple of days ago.
Just what i need for our rabbit invasion,just need more accurate ammo.

----------


## DavidGunn

Is that a muzzle brake on an air gun?...*shakes head*

----------


## Trout

Yes,no recoil,still a quiet rifle to shoot.Rifle bigger than my 308.After firing about 10 shots,you feel like you been to the gym even with my bit of horse power.She is a bit of a misssion to break barrel and load,bloody strong spring.Nice rifle to shoot tho.With scope on top,got it at about 1/2 price on new.

----------


## Myson

I'd trade that Cometa in for either a Weirauch HW97KT or SIG ASP20 if I were you.

The Cometa will never group well, even with the best pellet for your particular barrel. The two springers I recommend produce sub-1" groups of 8 pellets at 50yds. Both will kill cleanly at 75yds and the SIG has the grunt and accuracy to kill at 100yds!!! Not bad for a springer eh?!  :Thumbsup:

----------


## veitnamcam

As above it will likely never shoot really accurately.
Best you can do is try lots of different pellets in it.
High power springers can be difficult to shoot accurately also, they generally dont like a free recoil style and require a firm forend hold to deal with the vibration.

----------


## MB

I thought those Cometa air rifles were meant to be pretty good?

----------


## Trout

No recoil and intent to shoot only about 30 to 40yds at most.It shoots about a 2.5 inch group=rabbit sholder is all i need  at the moment.Good enough for close rabbits but il will improve it.

----------


## Trout

Its shoots thru about 220 pages of huntn magazine,so got some power,maybe 25-27lbs of energy,i could be wrong.Pellets that came with it are light weight.
Thanks Berg il try that.
Bit of practice gets me this.

----------


## Trout

Just compared cometa s power to my winchester ammo,sub sonic 22 norico near the muzzel,stopped at 216 pages of the same magazines at the cometa at 220 pages.Interesting.

----------


## Mintie

> Is that a muzzle brake on an air gun?...*shakes head*


* Air stripper

----------


## Mintie

You guys talking down about the Cometa don't have a clue, these are one of the best value for money airguns on the market - yes the $1200 Air Arms or Weihrauch will out shoot them but only just, and the Cometa is half the price.

I have owned a few of them over the years and killed hundreds of rabbits, possums and ever turkeys with them. Like all springers they are hold sensitive so google the artillery hold, and get some decent pellets to try - JSB Exacts are always top of my list to try, preferably the middle to heavier weight ones. Power on these is normally 15-19fpe so plenty for pesting.

Have fun and remember to put plenty of pellets through it, they don't wear in until you are about 800 shots deep.

----------


## Myson

> You guys talking down about the Cometa don't have a clue, these are one of the best value for money airguns on the market - yes the $1200 Air Arms or Weihrauch will out shoot them but only just, and the Cometa is half the price.
> 
> I have owned a few of them over the years and killed hundreds of rabbits, possums and ever turkeys with them. Like all springers they are hold sensitive so google the artillery hold, and get some decent pellets to try - JSB Exacts are always top of my list to try, preferably the middle to heavier weight ones. Power on these is normally 15-19fpe so plenty for pesting.
> 
> Have fun and remember to put plenty of pellets through it, they don't wear in until you are about 800 shots deep.


I too have had several Cometas in my time Mintie and despite finding the *best pellet* for each barrel, despite using the *Artillery Hold* (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kV7zqBcW83Y), despite using good _Trigger_ and _Follow Through_ techniques, *none* of my Cometas produced better groups than 2.5" at 50yds. They are, in my opinion, a very average rifle.... a keen newbies' startup air rifle! They certainly got me interested in Air Rifle Shooting again - after 50 years of rimfire, centrefire and shotgun shooting - but then I traded them in when I discovered Air Arms, Weihrauch, SIG, Walther, etc...

My advice stands: _Trade it in_... and ensure you apply the four basic rules of good air rifle shooting:

Determine the best pellet for your barrelUse the Artillery Hold for SpringersApply good trigger techniqueAlways Follow Through each shot with your air rifle
And by the way, the SIG is great for _hunting_ because you don't have to worry about Spring Strain - you can carry it cocked all day as it's a Gas-Ram springer (at 19FPE), not a coiled spring springer!

----------


## Mintie

> I too have had several Cometas in my time Mintie


Which ones did you have? Only the Fenix and Fusion were any good, the 100,200,300 were all pretty average. 

I have heard good things about the Sig but not had a go myself yet, I'm more of a PCP man myself so tend not to spend money on break barrels anymore.

----------


## Trout

My wife got sick of the rabbits around our house,rifle only a boundry keeper for $400,doesnt need to be a $1200 show poney.It works and shoots rabbits.If the rabbits get bigger il get the 308 or the 300wm to sort them out.

----------


## Myson

> Which ones did you have? Only the Fenix and Fusion were any good, the 100,200,300 were all pretty average. 
> 
> I have heard good things about the Sig but not had a go myself yet, I'm more of a PCP man myself so tend not to spend money on break barrels anymore.


1 Fenix, 2 Fusions Mintie.

Yeah - the SIG is *superb* for *NZD$849*! The trigger isn't as smooth as the _Weihrauchs_ or _Air Arms_ but it's very good. Once I started using the *Air Arms Heavy* .177 pellets (10.3gr) - 4.52 headsize - the MV reduced from 1020fps to a perfect 910fps and the groups shrank to lovely 20mm - 23mm at 50yds!

For a magnum springer that's *astounding* in my opinion.

Of course, the PCP's are better for hunting (I use two: *AA S510* and *AA S410*) but there's still something very special about hunting with high-quality springers! Such a precise and challenging sport!

I used to shoot 1,000yds at Bisley many moons ago but long range shooting with PCP's and/or Springers over 200yds nowadays is even more challenging I reckon!!! The wind effects are more pronounced with pellets, making such shooting the hardest to get right!

Or am I just getting older?!!!!!!  :Grin: 
*Ha!*

----------


## Trout

Springers over 200yds,pellets must be flying.

----------


## time out

I have an ongoing problem with lawn diggers so decided to try an air rifle - a Guy I knew sold me a near new Norica .22 for $100 - I put a lovely Gamo scope on it from a forum member - but I soon realised why it was so cheap - the trigger was shocking and it was very noisy - so I moved it on to a Guy down the road who also has a rabbit problem - he has put a low electric wire around his 4000m section - but they jump over that.  
I wandered into H&F about six months back and they were doing a special on a Stoeger RX20 - .22, silenced and scoped for $299 - so I bought it - it is quite silent, the scope is good and the trigger is adjustable and reasonable - it is a bitch of a thing to crack open and takes all my strength to load it. I have been using 21.14 gn Baracuda Power copper plated pellets. I have had a few rabbits flop over and kick - but most seem to run off and disappear. I guess they wont come back digging in my lawn - but the dog is a bit disappointed when she cant find them. I hit a magpie a few days back at about 5m and it flew away - minus a few feathers. Are these sharp pointed pellets the best to use on rabbits in the 25m type range?

----------


## Mintie

> I have an ongoing problem with lawn diggers so decided to try an air rifle - a Guy I knew sold me a near new Norica .22 for $100 - I put a lovely Gamo scope on it from a forum member - but I soon realised why it was so cheap - the trigger was shocking and it was very noisy - so I moved it on to a Guy down the road who also has a rabbit problem - he has put a low electric wire around his 4000m section - but they jump over that.  
> I wandered into H&F about six months back and they were doing a special on a Stoeger RX20 - .22, silenced and scoped for $299 - so I bought it - it is quite silent, the scope is good and the trigger is adjustable and reasonable - it is a bitch of a thing to crack open and takes all my strength to load it. I have been using 21.14 gn Baracuda Power copper plated pellets. I have had a few rabbits flop over and kick - but most seem to run off and disappear. I guess they wont come back digging in my lawn - but the dog is a bit disappointed when she cant find them. I hit a magpie a few days back at about 5m and it flew away - minus a few feathers. Are these sharp pointed pellets the best to use on rabbits in the 25m type range?


I mainly use dome type pellets on animals, they are far more accurate. Shot placement is absolutely key with airgun hunting.

----------


## Trout

Just went out the back of the house,shot one more rabbit,neighbor shot one with my gun.Then he shot a rabbit with his stoeger slug gun.Another 10 rabbits scatted down the back track.Just another 10000 out in the forest.
Pellets that came with rifle are RedStar=square face,flat nose.

----------


## Micky Duck

trout....for what its worth,I suggest STRONGLY you go and buy some elcheapho waisted air rifle pellets,like you used as a kid....$15 for 500 or there abouts...the domed ones hit harder than the pointed ones,funny as it seems...the pointy ones zip through and definately penertrate more but domed or betterstill flat ones deliver the little bit of energy they have...on rubbish dump rats the difference was HUGE....
most of the expensive top label pellets are lighter than old school....
DEFINATELY hold that foreend tightly...and see if it makes a difference...havent looked into this artillary hold,looked into bottom of bottle of atillery port though,highly recommended....
workmate gave me springer he couldnt get to group...cheap pellets and firm hold sorted it pronto.
them rabbits will get hurry up and you will feel better if pellets arent gold plated (I shit you not,they are out there) expensive fast ones.

----------


## Trout

These Red Star are 3.5mm flat across the front.Theres very little recoil with this,so called muzzel break seems to work ok.Nice to shoot,not a bouncy canon.Thanks for info MD.

----------


## Myson

> I have an ongoing problem with lawn diggers so decided to try an air rifle - a Guy I knew sold me a near new Norica .22 for $100 - I put a lovely Gamo scope on it from a forum member - but I soon realised why it was so cheap - the trigger was shocking and it was very noisy - so I moved it on to a Guy down the road who also has a rabbit problem - he has put a low electric wire around his 4000m section - but they jump over that.  
> I wandered into H&F about six months back and they were doing a special on a Stoeger RX20 - .22, silenced and scoped for $299 - so I bought it - it is quite silent, the scope is good and the trigger is adjustable and reasonable - it is a bitch of a thing to crack open and takes all my strength to load it. I have been using 21.14 gn Baracuda Power copper plated pellets. I have had a few rabbits flop over and kick - but most seem to run off and disappear. I guess they wont come back digging in my lawn - but the dog is a bit disappointed when she cant find them. I hit a magpie a few days back at about 5m and it flew away - minus a few feathers. Are these sharp pointed pellets the best to use on rabbits in the 25m type range?


The *best pellets* for accuracy and knock down power are the round nosed diabolos. Usually _Air Arms, JSB_ or _H&N_ are best in most barrels.

Please ignore any advice you receive regarding a "firm hold" on your rifle's stock. A firm hold will *never* give you the best accuracy with a Springer! Never ever! The Artillery Hold is the way to go... Youtube has many videos on this and once you practice it, watch your groups shrink!!!  :Thumbsup:

----------


## Trout

Got some Cometa 10.34grains,dome head,recommended by JSB.exact Heavey.Seems to shoot well.Allready dropped a couple of bunnys last night with it.Bang flop thru the shoulders about 25yrds away.This group i shot at 30yds yesterday morning after pellets arrived.Woow i thort,this rifle on form now.This what rabbits do to yr front garden every night.Thanks for yr info guys.

----------


## Myson

That's starting to look really good Trout! *Well done!*

Now add the _Artillery Hold_ to that and I bet you'll be singing and dancing again!!!!  :Grin:

----------


## Mintie

Yeh thats definitely looking more like the usual Cometa results, Well done! The Cometa pellets are just rebranded JSB, they knew they worked well in their rifles so did a deal with JSB.

Glad to see it all sorted

----------


## Trout

Took the 10mm travel out of the trigger,now just touch and slightly squeeze,bang.Meant to be a 2 stage trigger,i didnt like that.Cocked the rifle,gave it a good thump on the lawn,nothing, so all good.

----------


## Josan

I assume the scope is OK and all the bolts are tight. Add some loktite if they regularly loosen.
The barrel pivot bolt shouldn't be too tight or too loose. If it is one of either you will usually get vertical stringing.
Clean the barrel. Check whether your barrel crown is not damaged. If it is only shot with airstripper it is probably unlikely. Also test your grouping without the stripper.
Damaged breech seal or piston seal could also be a reason. If you have a chrony shoot a shotstring and check muzzle velocity spread. Should be like within plusminus 4-5 m/s, otherwise there is a problem.
Study the artillery hold like mentioned previously. Never support your springer on a hard surface and always support it consistently.
If all is OK, start with some JSB pellets. They are usually among the best grouping pellets in most air rifles.
Set your scope parallax at the testing distance to avoid parallax error when determining accuracy.
All this should cover most causes for inaccuracy of your airrifle.

PS your last results are really good!

----------


## Bol Tackshin

> Is that a muzzle brake on an air gun?...*shakes head*


More like a thread protector!  :Grin:

----------


## time out

I couldn’t find any slugs that were suggested in Tauranga or Hamilton – so I went for some hollow points from GC in Ham 
The Stoeger X20 was about 50mm low and left using the sharp pointed Stoeger slugs - after I had gone to a lot of trouble to get it accurate – it looks like the shock involved in breaking it open is shifting something in the scope – but I cant open it without a slight bump on the barrel 
So I now have the new slugs accurate at 20m – but the rabbits see the spotlight and run for their lives – I have had aa couple of shots at about 30m but free standing and missed
So I give up on the air rifle and yesterday resorted to an old favourite – a Fenn 6 – they don’t run past the end of the chain with this – 2 pieces of 150mm tube with a gap in the middle for the Fenn – they love running through culverts and pipes 
Dog is enjoying something to carry

----------


## Mintie

> I couldn’t find any slugs that were suggested in Tauranga or Hamilton – so I went for some hollow points from GC in Ham 
> The Stoeger X20 was about 50mm low and left using the sharp pointed Stoeger slugs - after I had gone to a lot of trouble to get it accurate – it looks like the shock involved in breaking it open is shifting something in the scope – but I cant open it without a slight bump on the barrel 
> So I now have the new slugs accurate at 20m – but the rabbits see the spotlight and run for their lives – I have had aa couple of shots at about 30m but free standing and missed
> So I give up on the air rifle and yesterday resorted to an old favourite – a Fenn 6 – they don’t run past the end of the chain with this – 2 pieces of 150mm tube with a gap in the middle for the Fenn – they love running through culverts and pipes 
> Dog is enjoying something to carry 
> 
> Attachment 165878
> 
> Attachment 165879


Thats a good trick with the Fenn, will have to try that one!

----------


## 6x47

> I..
> Damaged breech seal .. could also be a reason. ..


Had that exact problem with my BSA Supersport. It was originally quite accurate (for a springer) but found it had gone to pieces when I dragged it out. Replaced the breech seal and she was away again.

----------


## time out

Back yard rabbits still a problem – got a couple more in the Fenn but about three out there most nights digging holes. Got very light shy and run fast – but couple of nights back one sat still so had a standing shot at about 40m – he squealed and ran off. Walked over towards him and nearly tripped over one laying flat about 10m away. Put the light in my pocket and loaded the Stoeger – light back on and he was still there - aimed for the engine room and heard the thump – but he ran off. Dog found it next day – it ran about 40m. Hit it just behind the front legs – internals were pulverised – the slug was under the skin on other side – slightly depressed and miss shaped. So the hollow point certainly delivers some shock power even when not hitting any bones. Couldn’t find the poor buggar that squealed.

----------


## Finnwolf

From experience slugs just don’t have the ‘smack’ to quickly drop a rabbit shot in the body - my experience was when using a 22 BSA Meteor

----------


## Maca49

Try these

----------


## Mintie

> @time out try youngs airguns and get a packet of slugs not pellets. they sell fx slugs in .22 , only thing is you have to get 400.


The slugs need more power they are designed for pcp users.

----------


## Mintie

> From experience slugs just don’t have the ‘smack’ to quickly drop a rabbit shot in the body - my experience was when using a 22 BSA Meteor


The Meteor is quite low on power by today's standards, probably only half the energy that this Cometa with be running at.

----------


## time out

It looks like the rabbiter hollow tip slugs deliver some serious shock – got this girl today at about 15m – just behind the shoulder and just under the backbone – one entry hole but no exit – backbone was smashed – she went about half a meter and flopped - four young inside – so five that wont dig anymore holes.

----------


## Micky Duck

years back we shot thousands of rats at rubbish dump...and I mean thousands over many nights...pointed pellets do penertrate well...too well for rats,rounded are better but flat are the best at delivering all the energy in a hurry ...rabbits might be better off with pointed ones who poke hole right through. cheap waisted pellets like we used as kids work great.
for blackbirds on back lawn pointed or rounded work fine,no reason they wont be as good on rabbits. not a fan of the super light and fast ones.

----------


## 300CALMAN

I have to say that I have a nitro piston Gamo Black Bull which has the gas piston setup, yet to test it at any distance but it's already snotted a couple of possums. Heaps of grunt and not much recoil. I tried a Weihrauch high powered springer air rifle a few years ago and... the recoil and vibration was definitely nasty.

----------


## Trout

Shot a bunny few weeks ago with slug pellet went thru shoulder abd 7nder the skin on ither side.Rabbit babg flop

----------


## time out

One less lawn digger - if all else fails – just check the Fenn tunnel each day for a head shot

----------

