Break Barrel VS Under Lever

[karmveer]

Friends
I am going to buy air rifle soon please give your opinion
Which is the best between Break Barrel V/S Under Lever

[Kumarnishith]

Hi Karmveer,

Both have pros & cons...

Break barrel are the most common type of spring-piston Air gun..They are lighter and quicker to load..they are quite easy to clean because of the good access to the barrel. They have simpler mechanisms thus easy to repair! But the break barrel do have a common problem called "Barrel Droop" which makes the process of mounting a scope on the air gun & shooting with it accurately a challenge!! Barrel droop relates to the air gun barrel that points downward in relation to the top of the receiver. So, a scope will be sensitive to where the barrel points, while the open sights will be just fine!! But you don't need to worry much..Break barrel air guns are fairly accurate & can be a pleasure to shoot..Some of the best Indian made air guns (IHP 35, Precihole etc) are break barrel! It's very difficult to go wrong with either RWS 34 or 350 magnum. I would say they are the best value for money springer air guns!

Fixed barrel (under lever) are inherently more accurate but heavier and harder/slower to load...Also, barrel cleaning in a case of fixed barrel air gun is a cumbersome process!! There are very few Indian manufacturers who makes under lever air guns..Jimmy, SDB 300 etc are Indian made under levers..I am afraid to say that I haven't handled either of them so can't talk about their accuracy. But yes..Air arms TX200 series, Weihrauch 77/97 etc are renowned for their accuracy and probably the best springers that money can buy!

Hope this helps & do let us know about your final decision

-Nishith

P.S. Which one I would buy if given a choice? Both RWS 350 Magnum & Air Arms TX 200 MKIII
But if you want to buy an Indian made air gun..then I would suggest you to buy either IHP 35 or Precihole Orion!

[karmveer]

and which is the best between .22 or .177 ? ( Economical and shooting both views)

[bennedose]

and which is the best between .22 or .177 ? ( Economical and shooting both views)

0.22 not allowed in shooting clubs. If you have any intention of shooting in a club/range then 0.177 is the way to go. I prefer 0.22 for plinking because I like to see the tin cans fly.

[pratik_mahale]

.177
Flat trajectory
Imported .177 pellets are cheaper & easy to get compare to .22
& you can make tin cans fly with .177 also

[FN-Five-Seven]

Given the choice between a Break Barrel and an Under ( or Side ) Lever , I would go for the Break Barrel for the following reasons

Looks : I like the slim looks of a Break Barrel , contrary to the front bulky looks of a Under Lever .

Feel : Under Levers are generally front heavy due to the extra metal in the front . It is a inconvenience for those used to a Break Barrel . Some manufactures attach a bigger and heavier stock to the rifle to make it more balanced , but it just increases the weight , make the gun more clumsy .

Inspection of the Rifling : In case of a Break Barrel , before buying it , you can break the barrel , point the muzzle towards any light source and check the rifling by looking from the breach end . You can't do this with an Under Lever . You can shine a flash light from the muzzle end and try to see the rifling , but in most cases it would be a exercise in futility .

Cleaning : With a Break Barrel , cleaning is not only easy , but you have a option of a push rod , pull throughs and cleaning pellets . In case of Under Levers , you are pretty much limited to Cleaning Pellets , and if a cleaning pellet gets stuck in the barrel , you can forget about shooting for the day , as you will be dismantling the rifle all day long . Same goes for pellets too.

Also if you have slings attached to your under barrel , the cocking lever may get entangled with sling .

I don't agree with the part that Break Barrels are less inaccurate compared to Under Levers . That's because the performance of the rifle depends on the amount of the precision of the manufacturing process . So an Imported Break Barrel will be more accurate than a Indian Under Lever .

Barrel Drop can be avoided to much extent if the rifle in question has a " Ball Catch " instead "Chisel Lock " mechanism . Barrel Drop can also be rectified by replacing / repairing the wore out part .

If you are going to participate in Shooting competitions , you have to go for .177 .
If you are going to be plinker , .22 is for you . Yes , you can plink with a .177 , but plinking is more fun with a .22

F-N-Five-Seven

[Basu]

All the Indian underlever AR that I have seen, are tap loaders.
Unlike TX 200 or Bam 40 , where one needs to push the pellet
in the direction of barrel.
These tap loading slots are generally a little too larger and even
in new guns also air tend to come out from the slot area when fired.
Once the air starts leaking, there is no easy way to stop that.
Break barrel on the other hand does not have this problem.
However choice goes to buyer only.

Basu