Can I shoot mini-marshmallows 50 feet with a BB gun? (train, shotgun, legal)

[kygman]

Get a good pellet gun. It's not enough to hurt or kill the cat, but enough of a punch that, after a couple nights of a couple hits, that cat will think twice about coming around. If you were a good enough shot to hit him with a marshmallow shooter, I agree with an earlier post, he'll die laughing!

[Panks]

I appreciate the comments..even the smart assed ones

So it sounds like most people think an Airsoft gun is the way to go. Any opinions on which one? Is there one that is accurate beyond 50 feet? I really need one that is small and will fit in my pocket or waistband. I can't walk around my neighborhood with a rifle! is it reasonably accurate if I aim correctly? I dont want to go thru all the hassle and miss by a mile! if I do miss, does it reload quickly so I can try again or will I only get one chance? can I attach a laser to it? and last question..is it loud? can I shoot it at night without waking all the neighbors or will someone call the police on me?

I'm so glad I didn't tell you guys the idea I had to use Gummi Bears if marshmallows were too light. Some human would have died laughing

[kygman]

My step daughter and SIL kept a BB gun over the door going to the deck. They live in the country and had problems with dogs coming up and trying to fight their dog and eat his food. When they saw the BB gun wasn't scaring them off they went to a pellet gun. 3 pumps, a good aim, and, after a couple days, they didn't see the dogs in their yard. It didn't kill them. They saw they down the road at the owner's. But they heard one of the dogs let out a little yelp with a pellet on the rear. As far as noise, it's just a little pop. The harder the "enforcement" the sooner they leave!

[robertjohnson]

When we were kids we'd shoot each other with bb guns. Not a problem. Any low powered gun will be harmless. The local pound will often loan you a trap. They work very well.

[GhostInTheShell]

If you raised the barrel 45 degrees from the plane, the marshmallows would need a muzzle velocity of at least 40 ft/sec to travel 50 ft assuming there was no wind, you were prone and the muzzle was roughly the same height above the ground as the cat's body. 40 ft/sec sounds pretty fast for something as light as a mini marshmallow, so I suspect they'd hook left or right. Some of the airsoft guns are reasonably accurate at that range, but they can get pricey. My suggestion would be to find out which models of supersoakers had the longest range and buy one used off ebay.

[jdavid93225]

I would also recommend either an airsoft gun or a water gun. Cheap airsoft guns can be found in the sporting goods department at Walmart, or at a number of online dealers. I have also seen them offered for sale at several gun shows I've attended. If you need accuracy up to about 100 feet, an airsoft gun should fit the bill, provided it offers enough velocity. I would suggest something in the neighborhood of 300 feet per second (fps) if you need accuracy to 100 feet or more. This is something of a tradeoff, because the higher velocity will do more damage and has a higher chance of being lethal, though it's not likely that it would be. The cheap spring powered airsoft guns and some of the "low power electric" airsoft guns may not be accurate to that distance, but are not likely to cause any serious harm. Most of those offer velocities under 250 fps, sometimes a lot less. Some of the higher priced "mid grade" or "high end" electric rifles and green gas powered pistols will be pretty accurate to that distance. Generally these guns offer velocities over 300 fps, and some even exceed 400 fps. Many airsoft guns are semi-automatic, meaning they can fire a pellet with each pull of the trigger without needing to be cocked before each shot. The spring guns are manually operated, and require recocking before they can be fired again.

As for squirt guns, I have yet to meet a cat that likes getting wet, so it should be a good deterrent. You might also want to consider one of the old class A water type fire extinguishers. They could shoot a stream of water pretty far, and could be aimed fairly easily. That would likely cause the cat to flee if you squirted the cat with it.

[Panks]

Thank you for the replies.

Believe me I would LOVE to hit the cat with a water hose but I only see him for a few seconds max. By the time I run outside when I hear a cat fight, my poor cat is already running away and the @#$* cat is either running up a hill that is full of trees or behind my neighbors house. I don't have any fences where he would get blocked. So the chances of getting to a water hose and turning it on and then turning it on him are zero! I'm hoping that if I keep the gun by the back door, I can just grab it and get one shot at him in the few seconds that I have.

Thanks robertjohnson for the info on getting a loaned trap from the pound. I had no idea they would do that.

I'll go to walmart tomorrow and look at their airsoft guns. Hopefully it doesn't look so real that one of the neighbors calls the police on me since I don't want to tell them what I'm doing!

I'll let everyone know if I'm successful.

[Travel'r]

Originally Posted by jdavid93225

I would also recommend either an airsoft gun or a water gun....

As for squirt guns, I have yet to meet a cat that likes getting wet, so it should be a good deterrent. You might also want to consider one of the old class A water type fire extinguishers. They could shoot a stream of water pretty far, and could be aimed fairly easily. That would likely cause the cat to flee if you squirted the cat with it.

And you can substitute Vinegar -- or lemon/citrus juice! Cats hate these.

PS Love this thread

[harry chickpea]

Pellet guns can be VERY lethal and much more accurate than you might think. I have a Winchester model 1000, a single shot pellet gun that has a 1000 fps velocity. With the mass of the pellet and the speed, it approaches a 22 long rifle in killing power at short to medium distances. I outfitted it with a telescopic sight and have used it for varmint control. One rabbit that was killed by that single shot was 60 YARDS away from me. Low powered pellet guns and BB guns are only suited for beginner target practice. They can injure and maim, especially if they hit an eye, and because of the low velocity are not particularly accurate.

As an attention getter, (which is unlikely to work, BTW) a slingshot with a hickory nut would give an impact that is less likely to injure the animal. Hickory nuts are a good size and shape, not too dense, and if the slingshot is not drawn too far back will give a good whump without injury. FWIW, you can kill small pests with a slingshot and marbles, which are much denser and faster. In urban settings those may be about the only choice. Seriously, a good (surgical rubber tubing powered) slingshot is about the only projectile tool that gives you options on force as you are shooting. It takes practice to become proficient, but once you are you can extend your range considerably to take care of a number of problems.

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by Panks

I'll go to walmart tomorrow and look at their airsoft guns. Hopefully it doesn't look so real that one of the neighbors calls the police on me since I don't want to tell them what I'm doing!

I'll let everyone know if I'm successful.

The airsoft guns that Walmart carries are made of clear plastic, and have an orange tip. They are patterned after real guns, so the size and shape is similar, but since they're made of clear plastic, they don't look real.

Some of the airsoft guns sold elsewhere are designed to look just like their real counterparts, except that by federal law, they are also required to have an orange tip at the muzzle end of the barrel. If it weren't for the tip, you would not be able to tell the difference from a short distance.
I know there are groups that play "airsoft war" which is similar to paintball. They go out and shoot their opponents in a simulated battle situation. Some of the competitors in this activity have been known to remove or cover the orange tip for better camoflage when playing. Although I haven't heard of it happening, I think it would be very possible for their guns to be mistaken for real guns, especially by uninformed passers-by.

For your purposes, a clear plastic airsoft gun would definitely be a better choice.