.177 pellet rifle + back porch + boredom =

[knot4reel]

The solution to holes through the underside of conventional sheet metal roofs is to stick to air rifles (if .177 caliber) that don't exceed about 500fps.
This is why inside the barn, pump guns (the Crosman 2100 is a very good one) and pumping only five to six times instead of a full ten pumps are the way to go.
If outside and with a backstop that can withstand it (circular shaped much thicker steel corn cribs, cement silos, etc.), you can step up to even the likes of a the more powerful pre-charged pneumatics that go up beyond 1000fps.
As a side note, it's a mistake to go for the most powerful air rifles possible that go beyond the 950fps-1000fps level because airgun pellets destabilize when the shock wave catches up with them soon after they go out of the barrel, which in turn throws off your accuracy quite badly.
You should no no faster than 900 fps for that reason.
Also, you can use a pre-charged pneumatic even indoors with a sheet metal barn roof if it has a regulator that allows you to limit the velocity down to the 500fps level, which many (Benjamin Marauder) can indeed do.

I've got a feeling you know what you're talking about.

 

[Fullmag]

When I was still in junior high, I shot two with my Crosman 2100 (pumped 10 times for 790fps and loaded with Daisy pellets), the first from not even a yard away, and the second from about 20 yards, too.
Just saying that it's true about the need to keep pellets below supersonic, unless you limit your shots to very short enough range (20 yards, but it varies) at which the pellet is still outrunning its wake.
Conventional airgun pellets don't stabilize in quite the same way that firearm projectiles do, with the flared skirt on the former acting as a major component of that working with the rifling spin.
That flared skirt makes it easier to keep the pellet on course with the relatively (compared to firearm projectiles) slow spin from the rifling, but it also slows down the airgun pellet much more rapidly than the much more streamlined firearm projectile.
The flared skirt also makes the effect of what's called transonic shock more pronounced than it is with firearm projectiles.
Firearm projectiles rely purely upon spin stabilization, and their rate of deceleration in general is nowhere near as rapid as it is with airgun pellets.
You may already know all this, but I just wanted to take the opportunity to explain it a bit better for those who don't really understand the nature of airgun exterior ballistics.
It could get really eye-glazing having to explain the subject of spring-piston airguns and the need to hold them lightly to allow them to recoil freely for consistent accuracy.

Thanks for explanation about springer guns. Heard that they took some getting used to but not why. Pellets also need to be specially designed to go 1000fps have heard that.

 

[oldpink]

Thanks for explanation about springer guns. Heard that they took some getting used to but not why. Pellets also need to be specially designed to go 1000fps have heard that.

You're welcome.
About those specially designed pellets, yes, there are some unusual airguns that use pellets that don't use flared skirts, aka "diablo" style.
Daystate makes just such an air rifle in .22 caliber, and the specially designed pellets are actually pulled .22 LR bullets.
Not kidding here.

 

[Bigtanker]

I used to take a .177 pellet and cut a + in the backside of it. Loaded backwards, it worked great on squirrels.

I usually wore out a bb gun every summer. Thousands of bb's shot at just about everything. Leaves, twigs, chipmunks, cans etc, etc, etc.

 

[knot4reel]

Oldpink your my new authority on all things involving pellet pushers.

 

[oldpink]

I used to take a .177 pellet and cut a + in the backside of it. Loaded backwards, it worked great on squirrels.

I usually wore out a bb gun every summer. Thousands of bb's shot at just about everything. Leaves, twigs, chipmunks, cans etc, etc, etc.

H&N (one of the better pellet makers) has a pellet that has that feature right out of the box:

https://www.amazon.com/Baracuda-Extreme-Hollowpoint-Pellets-Caliber/dp/B00B7399TW
I haven't personally used these pellets, but their Baracuda is one of the most accurate pellets that I have used out of around twenty different types.

 

[Thor]

Good to bring up the springer effect...keep that puppy on target until you think it's already hit it...the recoil happens before the round leaves the bbl...

 

[Fullmag]

Good to bring up the springer effect...keep that puppy on target until you think it's already hit it...the recoil happens before the round leaves the bbl...

Been doing research on an adult airgun. Used to work with a guy that was heavily into air guns. Had some Daystates that were extremely accurate. The PCP's are where I thought about going but they have a moderate investment to start up or do I go and get a start up bench rifle? Maybe the air gun would be cheaper in the long run.

 

[Fullmag]

Daystate makes just such an air rifle in .22 caliber, and the specially designed pellets are actually pulled .22 LR bullets.
Not kidding here.

Can 22's be cast? A prepper's dream.

 

[oldpink]

Can 22's be cast? A prepper's dream.

It sounds feasible, as long as you have a mold, lead, and a guy who knows all the details for how to get decently filled out bullets.
I've never gotten into casting, but (could be wrong about this) I believe I heard somewhere that casting gets a bit more difficult the smaller the projectile, but it would be interesting to see how a skilled caster would do.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Shot a bumble bee with a BB gun once. No pics.

I broke a launched clay on my 2nd try with a mare's leg "sawed off" shotgun loaded with Aguila mini shells. No pics but two witnesses.

Needless to say I took that hit and called it quits. Lucky shot indeed.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Oh, and I really need to try more pellets in my mom's 22 springer. Supposedly a decent rifle but the groupings are crap. (4-6" at 25 yds bench rest) I read somewhere that these things are very finicky and to get good accuracy you REALLY need to try various brands, weights, etc to find what your pellet gun eats best.

She wanted a pellet gun for varmints but didnt want to freak out the neighbors using a 22LR.

 

[knot4reel]

I have a feeling that their are a lot of air gunners among us here. A forum for all things air gun would be a nice addition I think.

 

[Gluemanz28]

My Dad had me throw a 1/2" flat washer in the air and he shot right through it with a daisy RR.

 

[oldpink]

Oh, and I really need to try more pellets in my mom's 22 springer. Supposedly a decent rifle but the groupings are crap. I read somewhere that these things are very finicky and to get good accuracy you REALLY need to try various brands, weights, etc to find what your pellet gun eats best.

She wanted a pellet gun for varmints but didnt want to freak out the neighbors using a 22LR.

Read this article to learn about the technique that you must master for shooting springers.
The artillery hold

 

[Cameramonkey]

Read this article to learn about the technique that you must master for shooting springers.
The artillery hold

Yep. Aware of that. Thanks. I have only tried 1 pellet brand so far.

 

[oldpink]

Yep. Aware of that. Thanks. I have only tried 1 pellet brand so far.

Good on you for that.
As was already mentioned above, many springers can be temperamental about which pellets do best out of them, and as with powder burners, each gun is an individual, with no one perfect pellet.
With that said, there are some pellets I can suggest trying in small quantities to see what produces decent groups, and some of the ones I'll mention are actually manufactured by H&N, but are also sold under the Beeman label under a different name.
These are upper tier pellets, and I can say that you're better off avoiding any pellets made by Gamo altogether:

H&N Baracuda/Beeman Kodiak - A German company making a fairly heavy pellet that lots of people (myself included) swear by
H&N Target Trophy Domed/Beeman FTS - a bit lighter than the Baracuda/Kodiak, but these are the very best for accuracy out of my .177 Gamo CFX
JSB Exact - A Czech company making arguably the finest commercial pellet, and most likely to produce the best results over the widest variety of air rifles. I can't say enough good about these pellets.
Crosman Premier domed - About 20 years ago, these were considered the best or nearly the best pellets. These were so good that they spurred the German and Czech companies to really up their game and compete. The Premier is still a very good pellet, though, and it has the advantage of availability in your average big box retail stores.
RWS Superdome - Another top shelf German pellet that both of my rifles love

You'll notice that all of the recommended pellets are domed, and that's because pellets of that nose profile tend to be the most likely to produce excellent results, plus they are the most aerodynamic.
You can experiment a bit with the hollowpoints, flat noses, and pointed variety, but most people will get what they're looking for with this type of pellet.
The single best way to evaluate a variety of pellets is to get one of the sampler packs with quality pellets to test, and Straight Shooters, Pyramyd Air, and others sell those.
Just search with "airgun pellet sampler pack" in the search engine of your choice.
If your hold technique is right and none of these quality pellets combined produces groups small enough to make you smile, then it's probably the rifle itself that's the issue.

 

[Thor]

My Walther really like the Crossman Pointed Premium pellets for paper and critters (.177).