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**Item: **Gamo Silent Cat .177 Air Rifle
Price: $129.99
Shipping Options: $5 Standard
Condition: Refurbished
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Great reviews from Amazon
Pretty good reviews (4.2 out of 5.0) over at amazon
Very good reviews (4.5 out of 5.0) over at pyramydair.com
So woot has had these before and I am always on the fence with them. I need one that is silent, or close to it. All the videos I watch show the rifle not as silent as I would like. Maybe it’s not possible to make an air rifle silent? I’m clueless when it comes to air rifles…can someone enlighten me on air rifles and what makes one more quiet then the other.
Does anyone know how that weird list of prohibited ZIP codes was arrived at? I happen to be covered by one of them (19355) and I’m pretty sure my locality (Chester County, PA) does not ban the mail order of air rifles.
This is a spring piston air rifle, so the pellet is propelled by the air in front of a piston which is pushed forward by a spring. Most of the noise of a spring piston air rifle is from the highly pressurized air leaving the barrel after the pellet. With a light enough pellet, powerful spring piston rifles (including this one) will propel the pellet past the speed of sound. This results in a dramatic loss of accuracy and a loud thwack from the tiny sonic boom. Using a heavier pellet in this gun will result in a slower velocity, which is quieter. Spring pistons also make noise from the spring and piston moving so fast inside the gun, but it is relatively quiet.
This gun uses a silencer that allows the pressurized air to decompress some before leaving the barrel. This keeps the noise down somewhat, but it will always make a noise.
Pyramyd Air rates their guns on how loud they are so that should help. Why do you want a silent air gun? For plinking or hunting?
I can forward your inquiry along to our staff.
In the mean time, the only piece of information I could find was:
Pennsylvania Air Rifle Statute
[QUOTE=81prelude, post:7, topic:392531]
So woot has had these before and I am always on the fence with them. I need one that is silent, or close to it. All the videos I watch show the rifle not as silent as I would like. Maybe it’s not possible to make an air rifle silent? I’m clueless when it comes to air rifles…can someone enlighten me on air rifles and what makes one more quiet then the other.
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I’ve got one. From 10 feet away, all you hear is a dull thud. From firing position, it seems loud. If you fire alloy pellets or cotton (for cleaning the barrel) it will be loud. I can plink away in my backyard without anyone noticing. The spring is somewhat loud, but it’s really only loud if you’re nearby.
Good point. The gun is a lot quieter than it seems to the shooter because they absorb the vibration from the spring and kickback from the piston. For a gun without vibration, check out either precharged pneumatic or pump air guns.
Also it’s worth mentioning that you need to use the “artillery hold” to get the most out of any spring piston airgun. That means letting the gun rest on the palm of your hand and generally holding the gun lightly. Let the gun vibrate, don’t clamp your hands down on it to stop the kickback. Search YouTube for some videos explaining the artillery hold. Hope that helps!
[QUOTE=81prelude, post:7, topic:392531]
I need one that is silent, or close to it. All the videos I watch show the rifle not as silent as I would like. Maybe it’s not possible to make an air rifle silent?
[/quote]
Watch for Nitro Piston powered air rifles. I think Woot has offered one earlier this year but not too often. Their cost is higher but they are quieter. Also, avoid using PBA lighter loads due to noise level increase as already mentioned in a post above.
“With a light enough pellet, powerful spring piston rifles (including this one) will propel the pellet past the speed of sound.”
You’re right. If you use non lead pellets they do break the sound barrier and are very useless for accuracy. However I have a different 1200 fps model Gamo air rifle that I use Gamo lead pellets that meet match grade standards. They are EXTREMELY accurate and do not break the sound barrier. A 750 count tin of them runs $12.50 at Bass Pro Shops. Since these pellets do not break the sound barrier, they are not quite reaching the 1200 fps. At 68 degrees Fahrenheit 1126.547 feet per second is what is required to break the sound barrier.
BTW, this rifle is approved for “Neighborhood Watch” patrols.
[QUOTE=ktappe, post:8, topic:392531]
Does anyone know how that weird list of prohibited ZIP codes was arrived at? I happen to be covered by one of them (19355) and I’m pretty sure my locality (Chester County, PA) does not ban the mail order of air rifles.
[/quote]
There is seemingly no rhyme or reason for the list of prohibited zip codes.
A lot of stuff won’t ship to NY because woot’s lawyers seem to think NYC covers all of the state. Like 3 or 4 zip codes will ship knives and airguns though, and 2 of them are literally bordering queens (one of the 5 boroughs of NYC).
[QUOTE=81prelude, post:7, topic:392531]
So woot has had these before and I am always on the fence with them. I need one that is silent, or close to it. All the videos I watch show the rifle not as silent as I would like. Maybe it’s not possible to make an air rifle silent? I’m clueless when it comes to air rifles…can someone enlighten me on air rifles and what makes one more quiet then the other.
[/quote]
Extending the barrel and putting small ported holes in the barrel allows the air to escape at different points and will decrease the sound of all the air coming out of the end of the barrel at the same time. It is the same technology used with paintball markers. The more ported holes the quieter the gun becomes when shooting. You can also add filtering around the ported holes and encase them which will cause a pillow affect. Basically silencing the expulsion of air leaving the barrel.
If I am just looking to have some fun shooting in the backyard (target shooting) what type of backstop do I need with these? I don’t want to be shooting across the yard and spraying holes in my fence into my neighbor’s yard. Do I just need to build a small dirt mound behind the targets?
I can answer this for you. In PA it is illegal to hunt with a rifle that projects via air (aka air rifle) and since this rifle was specifically made for hunting small vermin, they will not sell it to you in PA.
You can find the laws as Title 34, Chapt. 23 (a) Sec. 2308
You can buy air rifles in PA at most local walmart stores BUT you will typically not find high FPS air rifles specifically designed for hunting since it is in fact illegal in PA.
[QUOTE=ITPete, post:18, topic:392531]
If I am just looking to have some fun shooting in the backyard (target shooting) what type of backstop do I need with these? I don’t want to be shooting across the yard and spraying holes in my fence into my neighbor’s yard. Do I just need to build a small dirt mound behind the targets?
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Get something solid behind it, I have a similar Gamo in .22cal and it will easily go through 3/4" lumber as will my buddies .177 Beeman.