The Smashing Coconut Test V: FX Wildcat MK2 .25

Behold, the quietest and most accurate lead-slinger in our collection. 

The  FX Wildcat Mark II is a  pre-charged pneumatic (PCP) air rifle. It can fling a .25cal pellet weighting 25.39gr at 895 feet per second. This compact and lightweight rifle wins gold for benchrest accuracy and hunting small to medium sized game.

Real-world stuff? I could make nearly single-hole groups at 50 meters and pellet on pellet hits at anything closer.

I ordered a suppressor from a local gunsmith and it matches the performance of imported designs. The OEM moderator was adequate but I got something that would make it inaudible from outside my window.

This belongs at the highest-end category for air rifles. It contrasts greatly to my break-barrel Gamo Whisper IGT in terms of price and performance.

At 45.15 Foot Pounds Energy, it is a little over half the power of a subsonic .22lr.


Accessories: 

• Coupled with a Vortex Ranger 1000 range finder and the Hawke Sidewinder 8-32x56 Mil Dot scope,  we could land all of our first hits out to a maximum of 200 meters. 

• Ammunition featured is the JSB Exact Kings Diabolo airgun pellet. Made in the Czech Republic, these are the gold standard for airgun pellets.

• I added a bipod and rifle sling to enhance its versatility in field conditions.

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Can it kill a zombie? Let's find out!

I brought along our young Zombie Hunter so she could do all of the shooting.

A. Target: 

Three fresh coconut shells with the husks removed for consistency. These simulate the hardness of a zombie skull.

B. Distance: 35 and 50 meters

C. Results: 

Zombie brains destroyed!

There were no exit holes at either distance. All pellets expanded completely flat inside the coconut for maximum damage and energy transfer.

The Wildcat is a certified zombie killer.

It has zero recoil and its laser-accuracy lets us hit any eyeball under 100 meters with ease.

As mentioned earlier, the suppressor is a major contributor to this weapon's effectiveness.

Imagine being able to silently eradicate hundreds of walkers without being noticed.

My daughter enjoys shooting this rifle. It is a bit large for her but she is growing very fast and that will cease to be an issue in a year or two.

Click the video to watch the test!

We shot all kinds of things so check out the video for the surprise at the end!

This was tremendous quality time.

Who knows what else we would yeet together?


Stay vigilant!


(Click here to check out to all previous Smashing Coconut Tests starting all the way back to 2011)

The Smashing Coconut Test III: GAMO Silent Stalker Whisper Air Rifle (.177)

I've had my Gamo Silent Stalker Whisper air rifle for nearly a year now with over a thousand rounds shot through it. With the Gamo Pro Magnum pellet I can group under 2 inches at 26 meters (or 28 yards) from the standing position. I'm a happy guy.

Why an Airgun?

This break-barrel air rifle is using a new IGT gas piston system that does not have the recoil and sensitivity that spring systems have. Unlike other airguns, it does not need to refill by a hand pump or CO2 tank.

This thing is no toy, it could shoot 7.8 grain .177 caliber pellets at an average of 970 feet per second. Ammo is cheap and lightweight, and you can use this to hunt small game and train your family very affordably. The sound moderator or silencer on the rifle is also quiet enough to do all these without attracting unwanted attention.

This is an ideal survival tool, but can it kill zombies?

Equipment:

• Gamo Silent Stalker Whisper (.177)
• Gamo Pro Magnum pellets
• a spoon 

Target: 

• 3 coconuts, husk removed (needs to be "ripe" for maximum shell strength)

The Test:

• Can an air rifle penetrate a human skull?

Technique:

We will most likely employ this weapon from an elevation so I shot at the coconut from my balcony at approximately 40 degrees and then from ground level.

The Results:

Coconut 1

Coconut 1 was fired upon from my balcony from 28 yards away five times. You could see in the photo that there are 3 holes on top and then two hits below that did not penetrate. This shows that you can punch through the shell if you hit it squarely.

The white stuff tasted good. I didn't eat the lead, don't worry. 

I cracked the coconut open with my United Cutlery M48 Tomahawk and was pleased to see three pellets inside. They were deformed flat and took out decent-sized chunks.

Coconut 2

The second coconut was a lot more interesting. I must have landed my shot at a certain spot that caused it to split open. Crack! Coconut juice flowing out! Gnarly.

I don't expect to split a zombie skull like that, but the impact was quite convincing.

The third coconut was a larger sample and had already gone stale. The shell is nearly twice as thick as the others but the pellet also punched through.

Check out the video below, note that from 26 yards away you could barely hear the rifle, good to know that the silencer works.

Conclusion:

I am very pleased to report that this air rifle chambered in .177 caliber pellets can punch through a coconut and do significant damage to the brain. With good aim, these are likely to penetrate a zombie's skull. I hope that destroying them would require less than two well-placed shots. 

 

I'm limited to relatively short distances with this weapon, but I'm good enough to hit a zed's eyeball at around 30 yards. That would definitely take them out.

This weapon is now part of my survival gear. My family can practice marksmanship and hunt small critters. With 2000 pellets easily stored in my pants, a comfy chair, and a cold drink with me on top of my hidden post at my roof, I could whittle down zombies that come close to my fortification.

The white coconut meat was my rewarding afternoon snack. Tasty!

*****

For my next round of tests I need to acquire a pig's skull for me to shoot at. Why a pig's skull? Because they can be readily obtained from our local butcher. These are thicker than human skulls but should prove to be a definitive penetration test. 

Stay vigilant!

GAMO Whisper Silent Stalker IGT (.177) Review

UPDATE: Click here for The Smashing Coconut Test!

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I discovered an impressive lineup of airguns at the Willi Hahn Enterprises booth at the gun show earlier this year.

Three things about their new airguns grabbed my attention:

1. It could shoot a lead .177 pellet weighing 7.66 grains at nearly 1000 FPS
2. It has a built-in "sound moderator" or silencer that greatly reduces the noise
3. These rifles did not need to be charged with CO2, the break-barrel cocking system powers the gun for each shot

After a lot of research I came back and bought my first break-action air rifle. Its been an interesting 3 months in the making.

Product Review: Gamo Silent Stalker Whisper IGT

 

click to zoom

I. VITAL STATS

Mechanism

• Velocity: 1300 feet per second (fps) with PBA Platinum 
• Single Shot 
• Break Barrel: Single Cocking System
• Automatic Cocking Safety system 
• Barrel: Fluted Polymer Jacketed Steel with ND52 Technology 
• Cocking Effort: 32 lbs 
• Trigger: Two stage adjustable SAT (Smooth Action Trigger) 
• Manual Safety 
• Rated for about 150,000 shots before changing the piston

Stock

• Stock: Tough All Weather molded Synthetic 
• Butt Plate: SWA (Shock Wave Absorber) Recoil pad with up to 74% recoil absorption 
• Cheekpiece: Thin cheekpad molded on each side for both Right hand and Left hand shooters Checkering: Non-Slip texture design on grip and forearm 

Optics

• Scope Ramp: Raised Rail 
• Scope: 3-9x40 air rifle scope with rings.
• Fiber-optic iron sights

Specifications

• Weight: 7.15 lbs 
• Length: 43’’ 
• Ammunition: Any .177 Pellet 
• Caliber: .177 
• Trigger Pull: 3.74 lbs 
• Barrel Length: 18 in

II. General Impressions
The gun is sturdily built and looks fantastic. I love the texture of the rifle and its contours. The stock has a openings that enables a light but solid grip. These also reduce its overall weight, and its easy to carry around.

The moving parts of the cocking mechanism does not wobble. The barrel is jacketed with polymer so it won't rust.

The cocking mechanism is very smooth and feels lighter than the published 30 pound effort when you get the technique right.

III. Smooth Action Trigger
The "SAT" can be adjusted to make it lighter. I've read that this has made significant improvements compared to previous models.

You can "stage" the trigger it near the end as it travels a small distance as you squeeze it, and then it gives just enough resistance before it breaks. I did not have difficulty getting used to this mechanism.


IV. Not So Silencer
The ND52 noise moderator thingamajig reduces sound "by nearly 50%". It actually is a lot quieter than the unsilenced airguns that I used to own.

Thing is, they are not as quiet as those high-end PCP airguns which really are stealthy. I can shoot those without waking anybody up! I was hoping that this air rifle would have similar performance but they are still loud for indoor shooting.

The good news is that the sound moderator becomes far more effective outdoors. I am happy to say that it then becomes quiet enough for me to practice at my back yard without irritating my neighbors. Outside it sounds like someone firmly closed an aluminum sliding door. It is important to note that most of the noise from this gun comes from the gas piston, not the muzzle.

V. Sights & The Scope Mount Debacle

The fiber-optics on the front and rear sights are very good. The front is orange while the rear are "Luke Skywalker" green. My only problem is that I need to crank the rear sights as high as possible to shoot properly. 

The basic scope that came with the gun is a bit of a disappointment. I can only get a good focus at 4.5x even if its highest magnification is 9x. If you could get a scope with an adjustable objective, you'll be making the most out of this gun.

A big problem came after I shot about 80 pellets. The scope mount that came with the gun was made of soft cheap alloy. The screw that joins the scope mount to the gun was also of similar sub-standard material. 

Due to the recoil being generated for the whole length of the rifle because of its compressed gas piston, the scope stop slowly destroys the restraining screw and damages the cheapo scope mount. It gets pushed backward until the screw is deformed.

As of this writing, GAMO seems to be unaware of this problem. 
Probably because it is new in their lineup.

I had to visit Hahn's excellent gunsmith twice just so we could discover that using a scope mount of higher-quality steel and a screw made of harder material is needed to keep the thing from creeping backward after each shot. This was a frustrating problem before it was resolved. 

Out of the dozens of reviews I've read on this gun on the internet, I've only read just two user comments that identify this problem. Those professional reviews were good, but they did not mention this issue. 

All good now. No more problems.

VI. Shooting, Power, & Accuracy

The gun is both powerful and accurate!

I've blasted pellets through a lot of fruits, water jugs, and various hard objects. I've even killed a large rat with a center-mass shot that was unlucky enough to wander into my back yard.  

Mrs. Zombie Hunter was my excellent spotter that evening.

At 15 meters, the bullet hit its lower chest and then it went straight out its back. The impact was a "thump" as if I punched it with my fist. You know you hit good with that sound. It hobbled a few meters before expiring. I suppose a larger caliber would have dropped it cold with the same gut shot.

Tip: head shots for any target are the way to go. I've also seen a video of this taking down a fox with a well-placed head shot. This is not ideal with .177 caliber ammo because you cannot guarantee a humane kill. The video only shows that it can be done. 

The proper targets for .177 are smaller critters like rabbits, birds, chickens, rabies-carrying squirrels, etc.

When I got the scope problem licked, I could land shots in 2 inch groups at around 25 yards away from the standing position. From a bench I could tighten it to under two inches at nearly 30 yards, ideal for eyeball shots on the walking dead. With a better scope I'm sure I can take it further.

Good news: Unlike spring-powered air guns, this not as hold-sensitive as other springer type break-barrel rifles. You still need to master the "artillery hold". but this is much more forgiving. You just need to make sure to not grip it too tightly and use the same technique all the time. 


VII. Chronograph Test
I've measured the speed of these two pellet types:

• Gamo Magnum Pellets (designed to deliver more energy on impact) averages 975 feet per second 

• Gamo Pro Magnum (has an extra lining/reinforcement inside the pellet to improve penetration) averages 955 fps.

VIII. Ammo Variety!

What I dig about air rifles is the wide selection of pellets for all kinds of applications, and there are just as many brands.

There are steel tipped armor-piercing pellets which let them punch through light sheet metal, hollow-point ammo for hunting, precision ammo for competitions, heavy field ammo for long-range shots, and a lot more.  Gamo's pellets have good reviews.  Click this link to check out their video that describes each one.

IX. At the Range

This is what a target looks like at 25 meters. Below is a photo of 4.5 times magnification. Gamo says that this is the gun's hunting distance sweet spot for hunting because penetration power decreases further away.

I have shot up to 50 meters and they still perform pretty well with good bullets. Quality stuff means having no defects and good aerodynamic properties. Take note that strong wind will greatly affect those tiny but potent 7.66 grain pellets.


X. OVERALL RATING

Everything about this gun is great once you get a high quality scope and scope mount. Hours of fun and thousands of pellets await!

I score this 8/10 after solving those 2 problems (w/o fixing a 5/10). The score could have been a 9/10 if it was quieter.


XI. Six reasons why this will help you survive the Zombie Apocalypse

1. hunt small game with this gun and feed your family. 
2. quiet enough to do whatever you want without attracting zombies!
3. no need for gunpowder or CO2
4. ammunition is very cheap & lightweight
5. costs a lot less compared to those fantastic PCP "pump" air rifles.
6. affordable backyard training is priceless

And I've also done a few very interesting penetration tests. Stay tuned for those.


Stay vigilant!