I need some advice guys.
Ok I have saved 600 dollars and I am wondering what rifle I should buy. Should I buy a talon ss or should I save a little more and get the new condor ss.
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I don’t really know. My friend has had his for maybe 2 months, and is happy enough with it. I guess it would depend on how far you live from a place you can fill it. He only lives a mile or so from a scuba shop. It is $6 a fill there. For the few weeks between when I got my gun and I got my tank I would go shooting with him and we would fill both guns 3 or 4 times each while out. The last few fills would only get us to around 2800 psi. That is still a number of shots. A lot of people only fill to that. I think you would do a lot more shooting if you got the scuba tank than you would if you got the hand pump. I have no personal experience with the pump and not not a lot of knowledge about it. If you can just step outside and shoot it may be fine. I live in the city and have to drive to friends or a range to shoot. I whipped out the credit card and got a tank after shooting my friends condor from 3000 psi to 2000 psi then having to wait 40 minutes for him to pump it back up to 3000 psi. He would pump for 4 or 5 minutes and then let the pump cool off (him too) for 10 minutes or so. I felt the pump would cut too much into my shooting time.
Maybe someone who uses the hand pump could chime in with their experience and thoughts.
Any scuba tank users out there?
Thanks for the info Robert. I have seen several used scuba tanks on Craigslist . Maybe I received some bad advice I was told that I wouldn’t be able to get that many charges from an 80 cf tank.
I have the Condor SS in .22, and am very pleased with it.
Shooting 18.1 grain JSB’s, stock, with oring behind top hat, 3000 psi fill. With the PW at 2, I got 43 shots til 2000 psi. The first 20 shots are fairly consistant, high 1063 fps, low 1054 fps. The next 23 shots are a fairly straight line decline to 984 fps. With the PW at 12 from 3000 psi to 2000 psi I got 34 shots with a straight line decline from 1126 fps to 989 fps.
I have a cf tank but my friend bought a used scuba tank. With the valve and hose it was less than $200. A new pump will cost you more than that. You might call around to the scuba shops near you, also look online. ( just something to think about)
Yeah it’s quite an investment that’s for sure.
When saving and making a decision keep in mind that there will be other expenses. You will have to get a good scope and a way to charge the gun, along with possible upgrades like bipod. Those can add quite a bit to the amount you will have to save.
I’m fairly new to Air Force rifles, but here is my advice. Get the Condor and in .22 to start, knowing you can add barrels as your knowledge and uses expand. The .22 will allow you to shoot inexpensively and if you’re hand pumping the .25 will certainly reduce your shot count.
I think one of the big reasons I was thinking about the .22 is that I can get pellets easily. I have to admit the .25 has a certain draw to it though. I was thinking that I could convert it later and use it specifically for hunting.
I mainly need the rifle for small game the largest I plan to take is ground hogs. The thing is I also like to shoot a lot and I’m in an aeria where I can shoot daily if I want. I sort of plan to start with a hand pump so I was thinking that if I went with a talon that I would get more shots per fill. But converting to . 25 later seems like it would be more costly than just getting the condor. So is the shot count really all that different between the two ?
I’m waiting on a Condor SS in .25 🙂
I have a .177 pumper that is an absolute pigeon hammer out to 40 yards. It is my ‘go to’ gun for open the backyard door and shoot something, mainly because it is mouse fart quiet sending a 10.6 grain Kodiak @ 530 fps on 10 pumps.
My ‘real’ hunting rifle is my 22xx I built that shoots at 35 ft lbs. Predators @ 915 fps and Kodiaks @ 835 fps.
I have killed TONS of huge desert jackrabbits with it and my longest shot to date is 146 yards.
What’s my point? A .22 uses less air and there are so many pellet choices from light to heavy and they all kill pretty damn fast.
You can choose your penetration needs based on design and weight.
It depends on what you plan to do. I’m ordering the SS in .25 because I used to have a Diana 48 sidecocker in .25 that was a pest smashing machine.
I can only imagine what the Condor SS will do with a 25.4 grain JSB @ 935 fps!
I need a big hammer for rock chucks, skunks, raccoons, coyotes and even hogs.
BUT – I have my other 2 niches filled. With a new .25 I will have small, medium & large to fit my hunting and pest control needs.
I would have to agree – if I only had 1 it would be the 22 caliber.
If I were you and this is your first or only Airgun, get the Condor SS in 22. You can always spring for a 25 barrel down the road if you need big power.
Happy shooting!
🙂
Thanks man that’s great info. I was thinking the 18 in barrel in . 22 was a good all around compromise.
From the “What-it-is-worth-in-my-experience” department. 😉
I’ve had 22 and 25 in 12” 18” and 24” barrels. (This is why I love the AF guns. You can try so many different combinations to find the set up for your shooting needs.) I’ve had them hooked up to Condor and Talon tanks.
If I had to have only ONE gun (and I don’t think I could live like that) ——- I’d have to say a Condor .22 with 18” barrel. The .25 in a 18″ is a very close second.
Why ❓ ❓
My gun will yield over 20 shots on one fill which is more than a day of hunting for me. Mine will do just what AF says it will do and that’s shoot sub 1” groups at 50 yards. (All factory stock except the trigger)
The .25 uses a lot of air. (i.e. less shots per fill.) Don’t get me wrong; the .25 is a deadly hammer. A .25 Condor 24” barrel was my first AF rifle because I thought I needed all the power I could get. I love the gun and I shoot mine a regular basis; (see recent post in hunting catagory “crows”) particularly when the wind is up or my targets have a thicker skull. The 18” barrel requires me to use more air to achieve the same FPS and actually makes the gun louder too.
The .177 pellets are just too small for my clumsy fingers and they don’t kill what I want/need to kill.
The .22 in a 12” barrel just doesn’t do it for me. (sorry TSS owners. 😳 Nothin’ personal.) It to takes more air to get the same FPS than when using an 18″ barrel.
The .22 in a 24” barrel gets really long when using a decent LDC which makes it somewhat un-wielding in heavy brush.
As a side note….. I probably shoot my .22 18” barrel with the Talon valve installed the most.
My two cents……
and, oh by the way, keep the change. 🙂
I have to admit I’m getting excited .
I wouldn’t mind going the used route. Looks like there are a ton of rifles out there most of them have some mods.
you won’t regret waiting.
you will always know you didn’t rush in where wise men …..
Now we will hear from the die hards but the Condor is everything they can say about a Talon PLUS 💡
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Thanks Robert I think a scuba tank would be the ideal way to go. There are several scuba shops in town. Most of them are within 15 min drive.