Airgun Depot's Airsenal News

Airgun Hunting is a growing sport that actually has a history that is much further developed than many people think. Of course, small game has always been viable prey for the avid airgunner, but many folks resist the idea of hunting larger game such as coyote, hogs, deer, and even larger animals with the air-powered gun.

Now, the statements that I am going to make in this blog entry are my own opinion, based on personal experience hunting both small game and big game on two different continents with air guns, both small and big bore. I have been lucky enough to enjoy some airgunning experiences that many people will never get the chance to do. So understand that I make my statements based on experience, not just what I think is appropriate. I've actually done the things I will refer to, or personally know the individuals who did some of the hunting that I will bring up in this blog article.

The first unusual animal that I shot with an airgun was a 120-lb wild hog shot at the Lonestar Hunting Reserve in Henrietta, TX. I accompanied Eric Henderson, of Sachse, TX, who has several hogs under his belt and is quite experienced with bigbore airguns. The owner of Lonestar Hunts, Alan, has a nice hunting area that will let you get up-close and personal with the hogs that are in the area. Using a Quackenbush .50 caliber Bandit, I shot a wild hog at 32 yards using a .495 roundball that weighed 180 grains. The shot was right behind the eye, between the eye and ear. The hog went down and twitched for a few moments, but it never took a step after the shot. With an airgun, you want to aim for head shots that provide less muscle to go through than the traditional shot behind the front leg. Hogs have too much natural armor behind the front leg, and they are tough animals. This particular hunt is on video if you want to purchase it. Here is the address where you can get this video:

http://www.bigboreairguns.com/ 

The next big game animal I took with an airgun was a whitetail deer in the state of Kentucky. In Kentucky, you can use an airgun as long as it is a muzzleloader. I called and asked permission to do the hunt, and was assured that it was legal by the head of their law-enforcement division of the Department of Fish and Wildlife. Using a muzzleloading .50 caliber air rifle, I was able to take Kentucky's first legally harvested deer with an airgun. At 50 yards, the roundball hit the spine and came to rest just under the skin on the other side of the deer. The deer dropped in place without taking a step.

I managed to take a deer with an airgun for two more years in Kentucky. I accompanied Jim Chapman on a deer hunt in Kentucky, and watched him take a nice 12-pointed with my .50 caliber Bandit at 50 yards. It was an exciting hunt, one that I wished we had on film.

That sort of hunting experience led Jim Chapman to inquire about hunting in Africa with his airguns from some friends of his. As it turned out, Jim was able to be the first man to hunt South Africa with modern bigbore airguns. He wrote a book about it, and you can see if he still has any copies at his website:

www.americanairgunhunter.com 

The year after Jim made the first trip to Africa, Eric Henderson and I were able to accompany him on another African Airgun Safari. We are, to my knowledge, the only 3 American hunters who have ever been allowed to hunt South Africa with airguns for plains game. While there, we took impala, springbok, duiker, steenbok, kudu, warthog, bushbuck, and several other smaller species. It was an exciting hunt, and the airguns used proved well up to the task.

Now from time to time, folks will ask me what the largest animal ever killed with an airgun might be. To my knowledge, the world record is held by Stephan Boles, another acquaintance of mine, who took a 2000 lb American Bison with a .457 caliber air rifle. It shot a 510 grain slug, and two shots into the area of the heart took this monster down at just over 50 yards if I remember the story right. One or two other individuals have also taken buffalo, and I know two individuals who have taken elk with an airgun. By the way, you can read the story of the buffalo hunt at the following website:

http://sniper99.wordpress.com/ 

Is airgun hunting for big game a new thing? Not really. Lewis and Clark carried an airgun on the Voyage of Discovery in the early 1800's. And if you will download the free online magazine from Jim Chapman's website listed above, you'll find a big game issue (#2 I think) that will clue you in on some of history's examples of big game hunting with air guns. The thing you have to remember is that you need to match your airgun to the animal you are hunting, just like in the firearm world. And accuracy is the main issue. You won't be knocking the animal head over heels with an airgun. You are aiming for vital areas that bring about quick kills. The issue is more about the hunter than the airgun.

There are lots of airguns here at Airgun Depot. Many of them will allow you to hunt animals you would not have dreamed possible in years past. But if you have the desire, Airgun Depot can help you out with the appropriate airgun for the job. And if you have questions, just ask me in the comments section of this blog entry. I'll be glad to help you out with any answers that I have.