TargetTalk

I am looking for an inexpensive air pistol for my dad and brother to shoot. There is a Tau7 match for sale for $450 which would be about what an Izzy would cost. Is the Tau a comparible pistol or would I be better off getting them an Izzy. I thought I heard somewhere that the Tau's were really loud. Any truth to this?

Scott

The MIT Collegiate team has plenty of both, and I don't recall that one is much louder than the other. IMHO:

Pros for Tau: CO2, so you don't have to cock it every time. Easier on the shooter, which allows you to concentrate more on your shooting. Weight & balance are adjustable. Lighter than the IZH.

Pros for IZH: Currently in production, so you can get parts.

We had Tau's for our Jr shooters, they seemed to be quite a bit more maintenance intensive than any of the IZH's that were floating around. Everything IZH I've know of is about as reliable as a sledge hammer, pretty rare for you to hear of one that's not functioning.

I like the complete independence of the IZH. It's the reason I kept mine after buying an LP10, and I'm still working on it to make it the AP I really want.

I'd look for a used IZH under $300, they come up frequently enough.

There are a couple of guys I shoot with that have IZH's and several other air pistols and I keep trying to talk them out of their IZH but so far with no luck. Maybe tomorrow i'll bring some crisp new $100 bills and see if that helps any. The Tau looks like a nice gun but the last thing I want to be doing is working on someone elses pistol during a match. Scott

SMBeyer wrote:... would I be better off getting them an Izzy....

The IZH is more of a handful than a Tau, but it's very capable of good scores. Compared to some other SSP's, the Izzy's leverage makes charging quite easy. Put a Rink grip on it and you'll have a very competitive pistol. IMO, you won't be disappointed.