Pellet rifle for hunting rabbits and woodchucks to 50 yards?

[Huggy]

When it comes to pellet guns, and pellet rifles in particular, I am no "authority," but I DO have and shoot my two Break Barrel rifles in my yard (one in .177 and the other in .22 cal), from inside my house with the backdoor opened. I've also shot them free-hand standing out in the wide open, too.
What I noticed straight away when first touching off either rifle (particularly when new and sighting them in) is that they are NOT "Stealthy Quiet."
Not by a LONG shot! (No pun intended.)
In fact, my rough and tumble not-skeered-of-ANYTHING-On-This-Planet Belgian Malinois, will leave the immediate vicinity due to the report.
Don't know if it is the mechanisms that create an unpleasant noise(s), the muzzle blast or what, but he leaves the AO straight away when I shoot either.
My point being, (as I'm sure you've figured out) is that you'll be hard pressed to find a whisper quiet gun that won't alarm nearby neighbors, be they anti-gun, anti-hunting or just concerned about being downrange inadvertent targets themselves.
Which brings me to my point.
As was mentioned above, you might opt to try some of the Aquila Colibri (sp?) Hummingbird cartridges out of an accurate .22LR firearm. I CAN speak with authority about how quiet they are in comparison to a typical pellet gun AND their performance at the terminal position is surely up to the task for bunnies and other troublesome varmints.
They don't have any propellant/gunpowder and rely strictly on the primer compound to propel the projectile towards the target.
Very quiet INDEED!
Are they 100% undetectable to the human ear? Nope. But then, "silencers" aren't perfectly quiet or Hollyweird quiet, either. Unless you have LOTS of Cashola to buy the best. Then you'll be rewarded with the sound of a bolt slapping closed or the impact of the projo downrange.
Assuming you already own a decent .22LR that displays great accuracy, you'll be both money AND time ahead over searching for, buying and setting up a new rifle using pellets.
And if you DON'T already own a .22 caliber rimfire rifle, GASP!!!
GIT YOU ONE, SON!
All kidding aside, spend a few dollars on a box of the Hummingbird rounds and give them a try. I believe you'll be MUCH happier and more efficient in dispatching those pesky Wabbits, Sir, and less likely to alarm the neighbors.
As always, it goes without saying, keep in mind your backstop when shooting either a pellet gun OR a rimfire, etc.
Good Luck and let us know what you ultimately do as well as your experiences and results.
Overnout

 

[Wedgy]

This guy is a championship shooter, check out his channel and 100 yard shots;


10 shots in 1/2" at 100 yards ??
Setting a turret to 100 yards

 

[blkdog]

.22 Cal PCP with sound attenuation spend the $ the first time on good quality and you will be happier in the end. Air guns of Arizona is a good place to start. Mine will head shoot English sparrows at 50 yards all day long if I do my part. I had a spring barrel before but it was louder than my >22 LR.

 

[charlesasmith]

Good earlier posts RE: PCP pellet guns. Buying an expensive tank is imperative as using a hand pump building up to 200 BAR pressure is exhausting. Head shots are a must and my buddy aims between the eye and ear of rock chucks. My .22 FX 400 Royale killed 43 rock chucks on one outing @ 45 yds. The factory "lead dust collector," silencer is very effective as it does not scare off the critters.

 

[tmmcampbell]

Have you ever tried .22 shorts? I shoot them out of my Remington bolt gun. They will reach 50 yds and sound like they are silenced. Way quieter than my pellet rifle.

If you want more power go with .22 subsonic. They aren't as quiet as the shorts though.

 

[Jspeed]

CCI 22 short CB...won't cycle a semi-auto, but If you've got a Pump or lever that shoots lights out...these rounds only travel about 700 FPS and are super quiet...no problem taking squirrels out at these distances

 

[Rick_W]

I was headed down this road and finally decided on a Savage MK II FV-SR.

Firing CCI 22 CB Long 29 grain LRN ammo, it's silly quiet.

Not sure exactly how accurate as I just received the scope rings yesterday.

This purchase has made me really start looking for a high quality .22LR bolt rifle.

 

[S96743]

PCP check out wicked air rifles. Modular and custom built to your specs. Pricey but good. A friend of mine has 3-4 of them.

Sub Sonics are good. 22 caps may not have enough gas at 50yds but a thought.

 

[Wedgy]

The CCI Quiet 40 grain segmented hollow point are pretty quiet and do cycle my 10/22, you can always get a softer spring from Kidd if they don't, and the bolt release and bolt buffer. Or just buy a Kidd gun.
https://www.coolguyguns.com/KIDD-Guide-Rod-Spring-Kit_p_30.html
https://www.coolguyguns.com/Accessories_c_24.html

 

[Bull_Mtn]

I am an avid airgun shooter. Our club has the largest dedicated airgun range in the US. We have 20 shooting lanes and regularly shoot out to 100 yds. Some spring powered air guns have enough power to make clean kills out to 50 yards or beyond. You can't buy one of these at Walmart! Head shots are best with .22 cal shooting 16 gr pellets at 950 fps. out to 75 yds. .25 and .30 cal, shooting .33 and .44 grain pellets are good beyond 100 yds, with a super accurate PCP rifle. I shoot a Rapid Air Weapon, PCP .22 cal. with a 10x50x56 Sightron Scope. I have the regulator set to shoot a 25 gr pellet at 920 fps. I would have no problem killing a gopher at 100 yds, even with a body shot. I shoot in competition against, .25 and .30 caliber airguns, with good results. Regarding scopes and airguns. Spring powered guns can be deadly on scopes. Only a few manufacturers warrant their scopes for use on Springers. PCP or CO2 powered guns are OK with any scope.

 

[Wedgy]

I was headed down this road and finally decided on a Savage MK II FV-SR.

Firing CCI 22 CB Long 29 grain LRN ammo, it's silly quiet.

Not sure exactly how accurate as I just received the scope rings yesterday.

This purchase has made me really start looking for a high quality .22LR bolt rifle.

I have a couple of these and had one relined with an 8 twist barrel to shoot the Aguilla 60 grain SSS subs. It's super quiet and much less wind drift at distance. If you've never seen them it's a funny looking round. I have a little fixture with a drill stop to make a hollow point in them. I think the flexible plastic stock is the weakest point of the Savage Mark 2.

 

[bengineer]

I have a Marauder in 22 caliber. Using a side-parallax adjustable Bushnell and the domed or hp-domed Benjamin or Crosman pellets I kill smaller stuff to 75 yards quite often. I haven't shot a marmot/rock chuck with it for personal reasons, but skunks and house cats die with head shots. Birds are no match at all, even with body shots. Rabbits are also no match, even at 75 yards.
I used a Benjamin 397 for years. The PCP isn't a kids gun, though they can shoot them, too. The Marauder has a built-in shroud, moderator, silencer, whatever you want to call it. It makes the gun quieter than a suppressed 22 pistol. There is a little ping which makes more noise than a suppressed 22 bolt rifle, but it's no big deal. I deal silencers, so I think my experience there is a fair basis.

 

[JPBCA]

If you have the coin to spend PCP's are the way to go. I've got a .25 FX Impact, and once you learn the nuances of tuning them they shoot lights out and they pack enough punch to dispatch small critters at longer ranges. Check out Utah Airguns, Jessica is very helpful, also Airguns of Arizona or Precision Airguns. PCP's range anywhere from .177 to .50 cal. You are sure to find a PCP that will get the job done for you.

 

[coop2564]

I've tried two springers and for the life of me can not get them accurate. Gave up and back to 22 LR