Sizing air pistol pellets

[pcctex]

Please excuse if this is an oft answered question....

New shooter. Baikal 46M. Is there a way to determine the correct pellet diameter for a given pistol without having to purchase tins of various sized pellets? Where is the diameter measured....the "head" or the "tail" of the pellet?

There is quite an array of pellet diameters available; I'm not sure where to begin.

Thank you to all,
Pearre Chase

[Oz]

The difference in pattern size changes due to pellet differences in relation to the relatively large pistol 10 ring is insignificant.

Once your scoring is maxed due to your physical capabilities (maybe 550's - 580's) and you've done everything else possible through practice and training and the only thing that's left is a point or two *maybe* (in a 60 shot series) from pellet sizing, then do it.

But I'm thinking that you have a lot of other things you could work on to better your score first, before putting in efforts on something with such a small ROI (if any at all).

As a new shooter, buy some mid-grade 4.5mm pellets and work on your technique. You'll have a great time and your scores improve!

Oz

[pcctex]

OZ....

Thanks for the vote of confidence, but as a 59 year old guy; I'll be happy to get into the 450 range.

Pearre Chase

[Oz]

:-)

You can do it. Just give it some time and be consistent with practice. A couple hours per week and you'll break 500 (barring any physical limitations you might have). Although I do remember what a lofty goal and odd barrier the 500 mark was for me for a while. But I managed to shoot some _great_ scores with my IZH46 (older non-M version).

BTW - I use 4.5mm RWS Hobby pellets both in my Izzy and my LP10. They are the most consistent budget pellets I have used or seen. They work very well in a shaker box. In bulk you can get them shipped to you for ~$5/tin (of 500). Rumor has it that the Hobby pellets are the same as the more expensive RWS pellets, they just aren't put through the optical scanner for that final quality check.

Shoot well!

[Oz]

... but as a 59 year old guy; I'll be happy to get into the 450 range.

BTW - In another recent post here on Target Talk: Ragnar Skanaker (Swedish) - 73 years of age just shot a ~580 at a match a week or so ago. Yes, probably the exception, not the rule ;-)

Oz

[pcctex]

OZ:

Thanks for the advice. I ordered a batch of RWS Hobby pellets and a shaker box. I am able to shoot a full 10 meters in my family room. Nice when you look at the normal winds here in the Texas Panhandle.

Thanks again,
Pearre Chase

[LeLongCarabine]

ok this has been on before if i remember but heres my 5 pence worth (2cent to most of you) i size all my pellets i use rws r10 pistol pellets and if you havent seen them in a sizer then you will not have the worry i had when i first saw them
my sizer was quite expensive because you cannot guarantee the bore size on cheaper ones, they are supposed to be the top pellets but in a sizer they either drop half way down or go all the hole or stand proud, the ones i use are 4.50 my sizer is 4.52 so you try working that out, after sizing they all fall to the bottom of the holes i think with them all being consistant in size it takes out another varable that you dont have to worry about then you can concentrate on your shooting
any one disagree i would be interested if they did

[Oz]

http://www.targettalk.org/viewtopic.php?t=20196

Here are a few excerpts from that post. Most are snippets, so please read the post to hear their complete comment.

From our host Scott and the proprietor of Pilkguns:

if you are using good quality match pellets like H&N, RWS or Vogel, then a pellet sizer is not only a waste of time, but in most cases it will worsen your group. Like the earlier poster said, Mr. Nygord sold some stuff cause people wanted to buy it not because it was useful or necessary

And since we are on the air pistol forum and not the air rifle forum, I will say it again. PELLET TESTING FOR AIR PISTOLS IS A WASTE OF TIME. Modern air pistols and pellets are so good, and the 10 ring is so big, that pellet testing even for the world’s best shooters is really unnecessary. The ISSF dimensions for the 10 ring is a whopping 11.5 mm in diameter. Add the potential of the pellet diameter on either side of that 11.5, and you have a group capable of shooting nothing but 10s that is 20.5 mm in diameter.

Same thread from Fred:

Just to clarify this point: Don Nygord developed his pellet sizer to fill a need that he had. At the time he developed it, pellet alloy oxidized fairly rapidly, and oxidized pellets did not shoot accurately. The sizer was developed to clean the oxidation off the parts of the pellet that contacted the barrel. It was to be used on the pellets just before shooting them.

Within a few years, the pellet makers changed the alloy composition, and now pellets no longer oxidize rapidly - in fact they remain good for a very long time. Don wrote that his sizer was no longer needed, but people wanted it anyway. In fact, if you tried to buy one directly from Don, he would tell you the whole story, and tell you the sizer was not needed. But they kept selling - what was he supposed to do?

I just wanted to make it clear that Don was completely above board in selling this item.

Same thread, from Julian:

I viseted the steyr dealer in holland and batch tested my poistol, by the end every shot went wthrough the same hole. That said the worst tin, was less than a 6mm group (10 shots)

Same thread, from Steve (one of my favorites-your pistol is a self-contained pellet sizer already):

1. The bore of your gun is the best pellet sizer you could ever buy. Try this experiment: deform a pellet skirt (pinching it into an oval with your finger is a good way). Seat the pellet in your gun fully. Open the action and poke the pellet out carefully with a wooden dowel. What does the pellet look like?

Custom sized, exact fit for your pistol. (sort of)

2. Try the experiment this way: deform oh let's say 33 pellets. Then, carefully select (with a micrometer even) the absolutely mostest perfectest 33 pellets you can find. Then, vice/ransom test (sandbag test better) both groups of pellets (alternating 5-5-5-5-5-5-3 shot groups). Then, compare the average distance from centroid of the Ugly vs. Pretty groups. I've donje this experiment a couple of times (yeah, I know, but it's "Intersting" and "Enjoyable") and have yet to find a *statistically* significant difference between the deformed and perfect pellets.

[Rover]

I think the question was how to determine what size pellets to buy to fit the (unknown) bore of his pistol.

I don't think it matters, but undersize is never good. So, without testing, just buy fat (4.52) pellets.

Cast bullet shooters have long known that larger than bore diameter is best and many shoot straight from the mold without sizing down.

PS I've owned two guns in which "Hobby" were the pellet of choice after testing. I especially like them in low powered guns because of their light weight. I'm sure they're "fat" enough, too.