New guy. BC1200 question.

[Brian-D]

Hey guys. I just bought the Big cat today after being away from air rifles forever! I used to love shooting my crosman pumps and was nailing toothpicks across the basement when I was young.
I got into the whole 10/22 modding and built me a .22 that is a tackdriver. The problem is finding a place to shoot it! I was going to try subsonic rounds but I'm sure that will still be to loud.

So I decided to get into airguns again. I'm not sure if i'm liking this break barrel stuff! I've always used pumps and they've all been very accurate.
I thought I'd try something new with my return to airguns. This gun doesn't seem to accurate! I shoot in my yard from 25 yards to about 50 yards or so.
 
I've been able to hit the bottom of a coke can at 50yds but it's not consistent at all! Are these guns known to be erratic? I'm using crosman pointed pellets for now, which have always done me good in the past. Many a red squirrel fell to them!
 Even at 25 yards it feels like I'm constantly adjusting my scope. I'm using the mounts that came with it and a simmons 3x9 i had laying around.
I put my tasco 10x40 on and you can see a flys ass at 50 yards! I use these for very accurate shooting on my .22 and .17HMR. I can hit dimes at 100 yards with my scope set to 40x zoom. But the mounts I had (leapould high rise) just slid right off the back! So I put the stock mounts back in and a smaller scope. I guess you really need that scope stop!
Anyways the real question is. Is there anywhere that has a list of mods you can do to this rifle? I've seen you guys talk about the trigger mod and I'm thinking about buying it. That stock trigger is horrible! I know how much help a trigger can be from modding 10/22's it can make a world of difference. I was just wondering if there were other mods people are doing successfully. Or a good resource for goodies for this rifle? What scope mounts are people having success with? I hate being a newbie again!

Thanks

[leftcoast1]

Just spend the money and send it to CDT before he retires later this year. The gun will not be the same when it returns. Springers also require a different style hold then powder burners do. Check out so of the articles in the library section black bar top of the page left hand side Library. There is a ton of info in there some on scopes as well. Good luck keep us updated on your progress. Welcome to the GTA

[Lord_Jereth]

Hey Brian and welcome to the GTA.

I just recently got a Big Kitty, myself and I have to say, although I love this rifle, I've had the same frustration. First off, GET THAT TRIGGER!!! There's no ifs, ands or buts about it. It will go a long way to taming the Cat. You'll need a set of scope rings that won't creep at all so yeah, get one with a stop in it. My suggestion would be the Gamo One-Piece but others have their fave's also. With my Leapers 3-9x40 Mil-Dot scope it seats it nice and low to the barrel. In my opinion, the closer to the barrel the scope is, the better and easier the accuracy will be, but that's a contested theory and up to personal preference.

One of the biggest and best pieces of advice I've learned in my short time being on this forum was: putting enough rounds down range through her until the parts wear in and she settles down. It takes time and I've heard numbers from anywhere between 150 to 1500 rounds before she'll do that. I have noticed that after about 150 through mine that she's coming to heal, slowly but surely. Time will tell.

Since these are also mass-produced weapons, of course the tolerances will be relatively loose on the inner workings. I have heard that a good tuning will do wonders not only for accuracy and ease of shooting, but also for the life of the weapon. As yet I haven't had the chance or resources to find that out for myself but I don't doubt the many testimonies you will find on this site that attest to this fact. Maybe when my stimulus check finally arrives I'll get around to sending her off. As always, YMMV.

As for mods, just for kicks I'll post a pic of mine just to give you some ideas, as I'm sure others will, too. You can also read the short list of the simple mods I've made to mine in my signature, below. I'm sure I'll add more as my tastes refine but for now, she's mine and I'm happy with her. You've got a good rifle on your hands, she just needs some taming, yet.

 Good luck and keep shootin'!

LJ

:EDIT:

P.S. also, pointed pellets seem to be erratic by nature for most folks' babies. That may be a good deal of the problem. You're Kitty needs a varied diet until you find a pellet that she likes. I'd suggest wad-cutters or domed pellets to start with as they seem to work for most folks and their "girls". For mine, she used to like the Gamo Rockets, but since I put the bipod on her, she likes the Crosman Premier Hollow Points better. Get a sample pack of different pellets from your favorite website or store and see what she will spit most accurately. Again, good luck!

[Big_Bill]

Welcome to the GTA Forums Brian,

If pest control or hunting is in your future, we would love to see your posts and photos !

As for your Gamo Big Cat, she's a fine and accurate rifle when set up properly. The scopes needed for springer's are airgun rated and have AO scopes, other Big Cat Posts can lead you to a proper scope. With the hard, doubble recoil, normal powder burner scopes will not hold up for long ! As for the scope mount, the Leopold was probably for a 3/8" mount, you will need an 11 m.m. mount, I, as well as others would recomend the Leapers one piece Accushot, one of the best for the money. When you mount this, let us know, there is a procedure longislandhunter uses that is great !

As for the GRT-III trigger, it has, and is the best money I have ever spent ! Just follow the simple instructions and your done. This trigger is so much better than the Gamo, I recomend that you do not touch the trigger until your on target, and ready to fire, some have been surprised by how light it is !

As for the pointed pellets, I don't recomend them for long range, round nosed pellets like the Crosman Premier Pellet, Crossman Hollow point pellet, and JSB Exact are recomended.

If I missed something, give a shout ! I hope to see you here often !

Bill

[vinceb]

Pyramydair.com once sent me a bunch of Crosman Pointed's by mistake. Absolutely horrible in any of my guns - including Gamo's. Try something else - my vote is for Crosman Premier domed 7.9gr (or Benjamin Sheridan Diablo's - same pellet).

[gamo2hammerli]

Yep, got one of those Big Cat's too. Works good with domed pellets and wadcutters for under 20 meter shots. Not too accurate with pointed pellets. Mine Cat is completely stock....haven't changed or added anything on her, even the original Gamo cheapo scope and mount is holding up, they haven't moved or broke yet. Knock on wood.

Maybe you need to add some foam (Pillow type) into the stock to give it some weight so the barrel don't sway if you're shooting freehand.

[RainDog]

Hey. I got a Big Cat for my son about three weeks ago, so we know your pain. It's difficult, though not impossible, to deal with out of the box.

 Like everyone says, the GRT trigger is a big help. With the recoil it has you need a good airgun rated scope and mounts. The Accushot one-piece mount is popular here, and that's what I got. It has a stop screw that goes into the hole on the top of your receiver, so you'll need no additional scope stop. The rifle ate the scope it came within in two weeks, and was replaced by a Walmart Centerpoint 4-16X40 which is holding up great.

 Some suggest a tune-up, but I'm too chintzy right now to pay out $140 for a tune on a $140 airgun. Time (and finances) will tell on that.

 Spingers are hold sensitive, and although I've had break-barrels before, this one took extra experimentation. The sweet-spot on the Gamo, unlike other springers I've had, was not directly in front of the trigger guard but about halfway up the fore-stock. I had to modify my standing position too.

 For me, the extremely light hold usually prescribed for springers didn't work out well. A "medium-low" strength hold puts me in the black. You'll have to experiment.

 She simply isn't very good off a bench rest for me, and I've tried everything. A supported left arm off the rest works best or me. Again, you'll have to experiment. One size does not fit all. I generally just shoot off-hand. Can't ever get too much practice in that most difficult of positions.

 The gun also likes Gamo Hunters, and luckily, Walmart-bought Crosman Premier Hollow Points. Haven't experimented with much else, but I hear Crosman Premier Lights work well too, among others. Basically you're looking for domed pellets.

 Oh, yeah... I also stuffed foam into the stock, but can't really tell if it helped the recoil and twang. Maybe "Great Stuff" spray foam or memory foam, both of which have gotten decent reviews, would work better.

 Good luck, and please keep us abreast of your experiences with your new acquisition.

 Seeya,
 Parks

[Brian-D]

Thanks guys. I found I was shooting completely wrong! I was shooting it like a powder rifle. I had no idea about springers being hold sensitive like that. I like the great stuff idea in the stock and will probably go that route.
Are there any sites that walk you through a tune-up? I can't afford to send mine out but would like to give it a go.
Thanks again for the help. All of it was helpful! I'm getting ready to go to Bass Pro just for something to do and probably pick up domed pellets, hopefully not another gun! I really like the look of those benj. pumps though!

[PeakChick]

Yep, The Big Cat can be modded and can be an outstanding shooter:


http://www.gatewaytoairguns.com/airguns/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=7543&posts=7&highlight=Gamo%20Big%20Cat&highlightmode=1#M54257

A good scope and mounts made for a springer and a GRT-III trigger will be your best start.