Quick Poll .22 or .177

[Devonian]

OK then, just a quick poll to gauge opinions, in a post SHTF world where you are have to hunt and scavenge for food, if you have the choice of only one air rifle, would it be a .22 or a .177

Yes you may also have shotguns, bows, crossbows, fishing gear, traps etc as well, but this is purely related to your choice of ONE air rifle.

So what would be "your" choice....

[Lightspeed]

.177 is now our favoured calibre ( originally it was .22) as its much more forgiving of range assessing errors and the pellets hit home faster than comparable powered .22s

[Scythe13]

How controversial will this be.

I am a .22 fan, through and through. I've been playing around with a .177 more recently and am hugely enjoying it.

As a group we are working on building standardised equipment, all in .22 size.

However, if I had to have ONLY 1 air rifle, I would opt for a .177, simply because of the increased range. The lighter ammo is nice as well, but not a major factor.

When in a group, we're going for the .22's for many reasons, but if it was just me and I had to have just 1 rifle....I would go with .177's.

Contraversial hu?

Put it into a group scenario, and we opted for .22's for many reasons. Firstly, defence, a .22 will be a harder impact because it's a larger round. Plus the .22 will enjoy the ability to take a .177 pellet. Granted it will not be the healthiest for the air rifle, but it's an option if need be.

The .22 rounds are easier to load and are less fiddley to work with. Easier for smaller hands and larger hands to use.

But just me, alone, no wife or team, I'd go out with a .177 and bring back a bunny or 2.

[Midnitemo]

I have a .22 (bought a long time ago before I knew any better) but would choose .177 for the same reason lightspeed quotes.

[Devonian]

Good comments, keep them coming, so far we have a clear favourite.......

[Midnitemo]

I have missed a few for the pot that I don't think would have been so lucky had I had a .177 in my hand.....on two occasion's I have shot rabbits only on retrieval to find I had shot them once before as proven by there pierced ears

[bigpaul]

.22 every time for me, that's just my personal preference.

[Mortblanc]

(16 May 2014, 12:41)Devonian Wrote: Good comments, keep them coming, so far we have a clear favourite.......

Which is the clear favorite?

So far I see no big winner.

This resembles a castrated form of the .5.56 NATO vs. 7.62x39 arguments on the American forums!

[Devonian]

(16 May 2014, 16:10)Mortblanc Wrote: Which is the clear favorite?

Well it was 4 to 1 when I wrote that post, but it has changed a bit since then....

Add your vote to the poll at the top of thread and we'll see what everyone else selects over the next couple of days....

[Steve]

I'm a .177 fan. After 15 minutes crawling through cow-pats and nettles I don't like to see the rabbit run away because I misjudged the range. Easiest is best.