Introduction and welcome!

   I’d like to welcome you here to the new airgun hunting blog being hosted by Airguns of Arizona. As you all know, there is already a great AoA blog that covers a wide range of Airgun related topics written by Jock Elliot. But as its name implies, this new blog will focus on all aspects of Airgun hunting; reviews of hunting techniques, quarry, locations, guns, projectiles, and ancillary gear used out in the field. We’ll cover it all.
   I hunt big and small game, predators, and varmint with airguns from just about every manufacturer on the market and am always trying new gear, we’ll be hunting in different locations around the country with some really great guys, and I believe there will be something of interest for everyone. It’s also worth a mention that even though this blog is hosted by Airguns of Arizona, they have given me the latitude to write about anything I’d like. This means we’ll be able to provide an unbiased look at the world of airgun hunting!

   A couple things about me up front; my name is Jim Chapman and I live in the Midwest, but grew up in California. I lived in Europe for many years, where I got serious about air powered shooting, and bounced around Asia and Australia a few years before coming home. My wife is South African, so we return to the Cape just about every year and do a lot of hunting there as well. I have a regular column and write feature articles for Predator Xtreme magazine, and write freelance articles for Fur-Fish-Game, Airgun Hobbyist, along with an occasional series in the UK based Airgun Shooters magazine as well. These give me a structured outlet for writing, but I want this blog to be more like a group of buddies sitting around shooting the breeze after a day in the field, more relaxed and interactive.
   Regarding hunting in general, I wingshoot, use firearms and bow hunt as well, but my passion is Airgun hunting! As mentioned, I use airguns on all types of game, but probably my favorite is the small stuff and predators because you get so much shooting in! I don’t think the size of the quarry has a linear relationship to the challenge or fun it provides.
   As far as gun preference; I believe every shooter has their individual criteria for what constututes a great gun, and believe every opinion is just as valid. For that reason I don’t make specific recommendations on what you should buy, but if I write about it I think it is worthy of the short list……. and I will give you my opinions. If I don’t like a gun or product and wouldn’t carry it on a hunt, I won’t write about it. I don’t love every gun I’ll write about, but if it’s in the blog I think it can get the job done. That goes for the other gear we’ll talk about as well. So that’s enough house keeping, now that we’ve had a brief introduction I’ll kick off with the first entry!