Benjamin Discovery or RWS 350 Magnum in .177?

[Kumarnishith]

I have applied for a rifle club membership and hopefully would be getting it soon.
I am dying to import an Air rifle but am pretty confused right now...

I would be using the air rifle for casual plinking most of the time...bursting tin cans, matchboxes at 50-80 yards and occasional pest control (farm rats, crow etc). My budget is of around Rs 30,000 including postage..

Did an extensive research on net...but now I am fairly confused between two very different air guns I.e.

Benjamin Dicovery .177 (PCP+pump combo)

RWS (Diana) 350 Magnum .177 ( Springer)

Both guns have good reviews on net. Benjamin Discovery is an entry level PCP on the other hand RWS 350 is a magnum break barrel springer. I already own 3 springers... A Webley & Scott Mark II in .22, IHP 35 in .177 and one SDB in .22...I have very limited experience with PCPs. Have used couple of FWBs in club for target practice but never for casual plinking.

My thoughts..

Benjamin Discovery (gun+pump) combo seems interesting to me...It has fairly decent review on net. It is pretty light (3.5lbs)...fairly powerful & accurate at 50-80 yards...recoil less...fill pressure is around 2000psi..25-35 pellets in one go..I would like to put a scope on it and since it is a PCP I don't think it will pose much problem. Only concern is that since its a PCP in case of any problem with the gun/pump (not planning to use SCUBA tank in near future) , I am not sure how many gunsmiths will be able to tackle a PCP in India. More over I have heard that PCPs are delicate and need proper maintenance.

RWS 350 magnum..well German engineering at its best.. It's a beast...simple design, low on maintenance..Exceptional quality..fairly powerful. A bit heavy. It's strength seems to be its biggest weakness. It is a known scope breaker. Now that everyone out here knows, how difficult and costly is to get hold of a decent scope in India! It doesn't seem feasible to buy a new scope every now and then. I have read That It's recoil is pretty heavy as its a magnum springer so accuracy may suffer. I am well versed with artillery hold so that doesn't seem to be a big problem or does it?

I know they are two very different guns...it's like comparing a sports car with a 4X4 SUV...but still...

As of now, I am a bit inclined towards Discovery..Suggestions are welcome, so that I can make a right decision. Any other air gun in the same price range??

Thanks in advance ..

-Nishith

P.s. I am planning to go Relishsports.com route

[adilmaroof]

In springers 350 Magnum is the best but use heavy pellets for good accuracy.

[mercury]

Kumarnishith , i am kind of faced with the same dilemma on wether to move on to a pcp...and like you the only reason that has stoped me from getting one is mantainence and parts. i am clueless on pcp's.

my two favourite springers are diana and bsa...of course there are better ones...AA . HW, etc out there...but i am hooked on them. i have a 350 and a mercury , both in 22 and they are a great shooters.

the 350 is a great gun.....but in 177 , and this is only my thought, is a little too much gun. its not " fairly powerful" , but very powerful. forget the advertised 1250 fps but you will be close to 950 fps with medium weight pellets....around 18 ft lbs, which is ideal. good trajectory even if zeroed in at 45 to 50 yarrds. it is accurate and the recoil, shot cycle can be toned with a proper home lube tune. the weight and the length can be bothersome when out in the field. not complaining....just facts.

50 yard shots at pest control with the 350...easy picking. may be i am ot of sync..but i would limit my ' hunting' magnum gun range to 60 yards and sub magnum to 35yards. crows are not just cany ....but very , very strong , making shot placement very critical for a clean kill.

i find it difficult to explain what i mean by the ' too much gun' bit . lets just say it is a much better/ easier to handle shooter in the 22 format.

maybe i will get a pcp some day....but the challanges and innovations that can be had with the humble springer will make it a very difficult decission.

[Kumarnishith]

Thanks adilmaroof and mercury for your prompt reply!

I really dont know if this is true, but I've read so much about these Magnum springers destroying scopes... I didn't want to drop 5k-10k every now and then on optics! What's your experience ?

-Nishith

[snIPer]

UTG & Centerpoint can handle springers better than others.
/S