TargetTalk

Hey everybody. I've been shooting on my high school 3P air rifle team for a year now, and I'm really enjoying the sport. I'm considering upgrading from the Walther club rifle that my school has lent me to my own rifle that I could use in college and as a hobby. I need something on the cheaper end of things ($2000?) and something that I could resell easily if I needed to (I'm a lefty though so it's a little harder). I was looking at Anschutz 8002, 9003, Feinwerkbau 700 Al, Walther LG300 Al and Anatomic. Do you guys have any suggestions as to which would be the best for my situation? I'm going to Champions Choice next week to try them out for myself.
Thanks!

Well you are doing the right thing by trying a number of guns out. Alot depends on how the gun feels in your hands. All the guns you have mentioned will allow you to shoot a great score, so your choice will most likely come down to personal preference. Also if you see any 2nd hand guns around which are older models give them a go. I am currently using a Feinwerkbau p70 in an alloy stock and I love it. Previously I was using a Feinwerkbau 700 Al and I would take my current gun over that any day. I prefer the older action and it just felt really good the moment I picked it up. The only down side was that the check piece didnt go high enough and the pistol grip wasnt adjustable. Both of these problems have been overcome with a block of wood, some body filler, and a rasp. I got this gun for 2000 NZD which included 2 air cylinders and an alloy gun case.

A good gun kept in reasonable condition doesn't really lose value. This is more so with left hand guns as they are usually harder to come by in the 2nd hand market.

Westy has given you some good advice, if you are looking at the cheaper end of the deal, the Anschutz 8002 is cheaper than the 9003.
Walther LG-300XT is cheaper than the Anatomic or Protouch or Carbontec. The Steyr LG-110 is cheaper than most other makes.
FWB 700 Al is not cheap but probably the best selling gun round the world and hold their second hand price.

Having said all that, every one of those guns have won championships and Katy Emmons won the Olympic gold with an old Anschutz 2002 so it goes to prove that the dearest is no guarantee you will shoot better.

Peeps

You know I agree. I think the improvements of the new guns over the fwb P70 and Ans 2002 are very marginal. If budget is limited I would look for one of those and your scores will not suffer. I still love my P70.

Just look at how Sonja Pfielshifter shoots with her old P-70 Al. She has won the world championships with it and is/was German female champ.
She also shot a 400 ex 400 with it.
She said she won't change it, no need.

JSB

Thanks for all the replies. I've pretty much decided against p700 Al because it seems a bit overpriced and possibly over-engineered as well. I also can't find any significant difference between 9003 and 8002, so 9003 and anatomic are out as well. So, its 8002 or LG300 Al, plus whatever used rifles I can find. I've looked around pretty extensively for a used lefty 2002 but can't find any yet (but our big home rifle tournament is coming up next weekend and I might be able to ask around). I didn't think of the p70 Al before, I'll see if I can find one. It seems like you don't need something extremely sophisticated as long as it works, so I'll keep that in mind.

You could look for a used right hand 2002 or LG-300 and convert them to a lefty by changing the grip and cheek piece. Check you can get these parts first from the importers/dealers.

There should be a much larger used market for right hand air rifles.

JSB

There is a real down side to the LG300. You can't see the back of the pellet once loaded. I know a very good air rifle shooter that in two different NCAA matches double loaded his rifle and I think it cost him 10 points each time. He has since changed to a P700. Our jr club has 3 of the LG300 jr's and this is a little down side here too. Often I work with very entry level shooters and you can't tell from the open breech gun if it has a pellet or not.

I don't think I've ever double loaded my club LG300 which has the same action. You can tell if a pellet has been loaded by opening the action - if there's almost no resistance, there's a pellet loaded (or you opened and closed the action without loading a pellet for some reason). I can see where it could be a problem though.

I'm going to compare 8002 and LG300 Al at Champion's Choice. I think they have used rifles too.

if you can find one, a Steyr LG110 or LG100 incredible guns. I borrowed an LG100 for my first time ever shooting air at the Canadian nationals this year and shot two 560s. Definitely a great gun. Not sure on price and availability though.