I 've had the Hammerli 850 .22 for a little over a week now and have been practicing with it at 20yds with a Tasco Golden Antler 3-9x32. It 's a very accurate little gun using CP's, Beeman FTS and Superdomes, with CP's being the most accurate. I can hit 3 same hole shots out of 5 and usually average 0.25" CTC groups. The gun also shoots relatively well around 600-608fps at room temperature (72-73deg.) with all 3 of these pellets which it likes the most. FTS 14.6gr are the fastest averaging 607fps for 12fpe but the others are not far behind it.
Well this morning there were at least 10 crows on my lawn about 39-40yds out. I figured thi was the 850's opportunity to prove itself. I used a different window downstairs this time to throw them off and they had no clue I was there! I carefully placed the crosshairs about 1" above the crows head but another walks right in front of it. Now the 2nd crow is a yard or so closer. I reposition the crosshairs over the new crow's head and squeeze the trigger. To my amazement I see the pellet strike not more than 1" short of the crows feet! That was almost 1 foot lower than where I was aiming! Needless to say all the crows disappeared in a flash. I then realized I grabbed the wrong clip that had Beeman FTS in it. In my haste I did not grab the magazine that was full of CP's and intended for hunting use. I 'm sure the CP would have shot low too and have wounded the crow at best, but the CP does have a better trajectory than the FTS and retains more energy.
Now I was determined to make the first kill with the 850. It could feel it was her time and she was in heat :) I continued walking around the house looking out the windows and 30min. later who shows up but the neighborhood squirrel coming down the street. Must be the same one I 've been watching for the last week or so coming from up the street all the time. I know exactly what tree he lives in because I see come down from it all the time and climb back up - a nice big oak tree like the 2 on my property, 2 houses down close to the road and very visible from my living room window. I saw him playing with another squirrel up the road a couple of days ago so I know there 's at least 1 other one out there. I figure he might as well be #17.. (I 'll stop counting when I get to 20, hehehe). He circles my property and reaches the trees in the back of the house. He used the same path that all the others before him did so I named it the green 70yd mile :) He immediately starts jumping from tree to tree at the edge of my property making his way to the rear center directly behind my house. I position myself in the bedroom window but he 's around 30yds away when he finally stops looking like he 's munching on something. I have his ear in my crosshairs and then I hesitate and re-evaluate. Having only practiced at 20yds and failed miserably earlier I decide to get a little closer. I also did not know the knock down power of this gun and I feared I had held it near an open window for a while and the power had dropped. I quickly run to my enclosed porch and slowly open a backyard facing window. I get down to my knees and rest my non-shooting arm on the sill. The tree rat has now moved a little closer towards me on a branch and I 'm estimating the distance to no less than 20yds. Perfect. As a matter of fact he 's almost right over the log where I shoot target paper! Only problem is he is facing me. I decide to try for a shot between the eyes. I have the crosshairs on his forhead but all of a sudden he turns like he saw me and nervously jumps on a much larger branch about 3yrds back. He is now facing up ready to climb higher and I see much less of him. I zoom in to 9X and adjust the A/O lightly. I can see about half his left side of his body and very little of his head. I then move about 12ft to the right and open the porch door. He hasn't moved. I look through the scope and I can now see mor than 1/2 his head including his ear. I rest slightly on the door frame while I 'm holding the door open with my right leg and put the crosshairs on his left ear. I squeeze the trigger and heard a crack sound, not as loud as I 'm used to with the 350, but it was still there.
The beauty of a CO2 or a recoiless gun is that you can see if your quarry has been hit right away through the scope. Well I knew he was hit when I saw him drop right out of the tree and I believe I saw the POI as well but it was all too fast. The squirrel twitched for no more than 5 secs and expired. Upon closer examination, I saw the CP had struck the ear exactly where the crosshairs were and to my amazement it went through the other side! That's what I was actually looking for. I did not expect that with a 600fps MV gun shooting a CP wtih only 11.5 FPE at 22-23yds, but I guess the CP has that reputation of deep penetration and hard hitting characteristics. I 'm assuming the pellet did not find much resistance entering the ear cavity and only had to negotiate and exert its energy on the exit point. It also makes sense to me that an ear shot is probably the best with a low-mid powered airgun so it transfers much of the energy inside instead of on the outside trying to penetrate the skull. Some pics for your enjoyment :-)
