.22 CB is a round even smaller than a .22 short.

Tom , while these air guns are not cheap, and probably not what you want in a BOB, you might find them interesting in terms of power 8^)


http://www.glbarnes.com/

If you really think noise from a .22 cb or other is going to be a problem, there are at least a dozen homemade supperssers available on the net. The one that uses a $6 lawnmower muffler works extremely well. A penny balloon over the end of the barrel will disperse the sound; Having said that, my Benj Pump makes a lot more noise than my .22 using the least powerful cb cap.

Unfortunately most airguns these days are very small caliber. You can take a .177 and increase the muzzle velocity as much as you can but it still won't do much damage even at 1.000+ fps. Also, the pellets are really light and become unstable at very high velocity. I just checked around and it seems even a powerful .22 air gun doesn't come anywhere close to .22LR.

Seriously, when you consider that a "magnum" air rifle is every bit as large and heavy as a .22LR carbine but far behind in terms of power you need to ask yourself if it's really a viable choice. Even in a situation where firearms are out of the question there are better alternatives IMHO. You could get a very good crossbow (something like a recurve Barnett) for under $200. It's just as quiet and low profile as an air gun but far more lethal.

I still think a large caliber air gun would be a great survival rifle. But they tend to be very expensive these days and all operate on the PCP principle, so you basically need a powered pump and scuba tank.

IMO, not worth the weight. I own several RWS break barrels (rifle, short rifle, pistol) and have taken small game with the long arms and once backpacked with a Crossman 22 pump pistol, taking many stupid rabbits for the pot. More powerful than your P-23, but it was marginal; the RWS rifles are far more capable. But they are big and heavy.

I have an old Sheridan 5mm - rebuilt once for me in the late 1960s. It is quite a small game taker, and there are a number of folks who backpack with tuned up versions of these (now owned by Benjamin). It's fairly noisy compared to the spring guns, but much more packable. I've easily taken game as large as woodchucks and raccoons with one shot using the Sheridan. Never mind all the charts and so forth - the Sheridan kills headshot dead-dead-dead using original style pellets - much better than my hopped-up 177. (Note: Woodchucks are good to eat; I don't care much for raccoon, although diet has a huge impact on how they taste - both theirs and mine)

If size matters, put a pistol in your BoB. I've taken a fair amount of small game with a Ruger 22 (my dad's) but like my Ruger stainless 22/45 better (and shoot it better). By far I've taken the most small game with a hot loaded 45 Colt Ruger Blackhawk, though - I mean, a lot!

Hard to beat a 22 long rifle in a pistol or carbine if you can shoot it well. Ammo is cheap and relatively compact and light weight.

My 2 cents.

Tom