Bull Whisper Airgun Review

Although I do not have one, I've often thought that a decent quality air rifle would be a good tool not only for pest control or small game (e.g., squirrel or rabbit) hunting, but also basic target practice. The problem, in my view, is the noise. An air rifle can still produce quite a bit of noise when discharged. The gas (CO2) cartridge can be almost as loud as an actual firearm, and even the spring piston designs seem unacceptably loud to me.

When Gamo first introduced their Whisper air rifle, I thought it might be an opportunity to get one that would be quiet enough for my purposes. However, the reviews I had read indicated that, because of the spring piston system, it still could be fairly loud. The solution appeared to be to replace the spring piston system with a gas piston (similar to the lifts used for the rear door of an SUV or mini-van) system.

This is apparently what has been done with the Bone Collector Whisper Airgun, reviewed here at the Firearms Blog.

The Bone Collector Bull Whisper is a gas piston (IGT, Inert Gas Technology) break barrel gun. Thanks to the IGT the air gun has more velocity and does not have the vibration that other spring rifles make. The fluted polymer jacketed steel barrel Bull Whisper reduces the noise characteristic of most air rifles by more than 50%. This is a very positive feature for folks living in communities which have an aversion to loud noises, not to mention the advantage when hunting squirrels. The Bone Collector comes in 0.177 and 0.22 caliber.

... The Gamo PBA Platinum pellets at 5.2 grains shot very well at 25 yards and easily penetrated the 3/8" wafer board backing our target. Hence, switched to 1/2" board to prevent any more holes in the barn. The 6.8 grain Gamo PBA copper-plated pellets were all over the paper. They simply would not group. ...

We picked up a tin of Gamo 7.9 grain Red Fire hunting pellets at our local sporting goods store and began shooting them. Now these were just what the doctor ordered. Not only did they group well at 25 yards, but penetration into the wafer board backstop was excellent. There is no question that these pellets, and the PBA Platinum are more than adequate for squirrel, rabbits and small varmints. ...

 The review indicates an MSRP of $289.95.