THE RATIONAL GUNSMITH ARSENAL - AIR GUNS
Air guns are an effective and fun way to train and develop shooting skills. They replicate a lot of the handling and shooting processes associated with firearms without using real ammunition. Since the energy levels associated with sending a bullet down the barrel of an air gun are substantially lower than those of a firearm, the noise and recoil when firing is far less. This makes training with air guns convenient and less costly but the lower energy has to be accounted for when moving back to training and using firearms.
Air guns come in two forms: air pistols and air rifles. The system that pushes air against the pellet and moves it down the barrel at high speeds (350 to 600 fps) is called the powerplant of which there are two main types: (1) Pneumatic (also called a "pump" gun) where air is manually compressed by the gun operator via a pump within the air gun itself and (2) Compressed Gas (CG) where compressed gas (usually CO2) is contained within a pressurized removable tank contained within the air gun.
The Rational Gunsmith arsenal sports two air pistols - one pump and one CG. It also features an air rifle that uses CG.
The two air pistols cover both extremes in the air gun world:
A pump gun pistol using a manual air pump system which is only sufficient for a single shot. It features a 10" long rifled steel 0.22" diameter barrel delivering a muzzle velocity of 450 fps for high accuracy at long distances (75-100ft).
A full size handgun using a CO2 Compressed Gas cartridge system with 20 to 30 round magazines feeding a 4.7" long steel rifled .177" diameter barrel delivering pellets at 380 fps.
The air rifle is an AR-15 replica using a CO2 Compressed Gas cartridge system with a 30 round magazine feeding an 18" long steel rifled .177" diameter barrel delivering pellets at a remarkable 545 fps.