SPORTS
Meet TEX REX-The Big Daddy of air rifles
By Luke Clayton
I remember like yesterday my introduction to PCP (Pre-charged Pneumatic) air rifles over a decade ago. My good friend Larry Weishuhn and I had a booth at the Predator and Wild Hog Expo in Waco and a fellow I had recently met wearing a big brimmed cowboy hat walked up to the booth and asked If I would like to shoot an air rifle that was pressured up to 3,000 psi. with a compressor or air tank.
The late Terry Tate walked me over to a room where the folks at Airforce AIrguns had an indoor range set up. Here I met John MCCaslin, the owner of Airforce Airguns and my education began.
John invited me to his factory where the rifles are built and I was given the opportunity to spend some time shooting the .25 caliber Condor. After the first shot, I knew that rifle had little in common with the “pump up” airguns I grew up shooting. This rifle shot more like a .22 rimfire and in .25 caliber packed a considerable whallop!
I instantly knew that I had to have one of these air rifles on steroids! In the ensuing few years, I used the rifle for small game and ran thousands of rounds through the precision Walther barrel. The rifle shoots as well today as when I first began shooting it, a testament to the quality the company builds into their rifles.
Then about seven years ago, the company allowed me to test one of the very first 45 caliber “Texans”. This was an airgun like no other I had experienced. It was billed as the most powerful production big bore airgun and that it was! About the time the Texas came on the market, Texas allowed the use of big bore air rifles for hunting deer. I had taken several wild hogs with my Texas and knew it had the power to cleanly take deer size game.
Through the years, I have taken a ‘whole bunch’ of with porkers with my PCP rifles and deer and exotics as well. I even used the Texan to take an aoudad several y years ago. The more I learned about the power of these ‘new’ PCP rifles, the more I enjoyed shooting and hunting with them. I became hunting editor for Airgun Hobbyist Magazine, the only magazine in the country devoted to air rifles. Through the years, I have had the opportunity to shoot and hunt with a lot of different rifles and I can honestly say that Airforce Airguns makes some of the best.
A couple of weeks ago, Kale Beyer with Airforce called and asked If I would like to try the company’s brand new Tex Rex, a 51 caliber air rifle that pressures to 4,500 psi and delivers over 1,100 foot pounds of energy when shooting…. Are you ready for this? A 620 grain slug. The new Tex Rex is the most powerful production air rifle every built in the USA. My plan is to use the big bore for hog hunting and hunt deer with it this fall.
I do a great deal of hog hunting and needed a scope that I can use for both day and night, one that records high resolution video. I decided the affordable and very effective XSight digital scope from ATN would fill the bill nicely. With the scope mounted atop the rifle, I headed the range and in short order was shooting tight groups at 75 yards. I am often asked , “How many shots can I expect from a big bore air rifle”? I usually joke with a reply something like, “Well, how many times to you plan to shoot at a deer”?
When heading out on a hunt, I have the rifle at maximum charge, 4,500 with the Tex Rex. This gives me 2 very powerful follow up shots if needed. As with all air rifles, the bullet drop increases with the loss of air pressure.
With this rifle, I feel totally confident with three very powerful shots on game. I have friends that shoot big bore air rifles out to 200 yards but I prefer to take shots inside 100 yards, preferably inside 75 yards with any big bore air rifle. I’ve tracked way too many deer through the years shot with high power center fire calibers that develop a very potent ‘whallop’.
My goal is to place that one shot accurately so the tracking and recovery of game is easy. I can usually accomplish this with shots inside 75 yards. Rather than hunt with the huge 610 grain slugs, I opted to shoot the ‘little’ 385 grains hollow points produced by a guy in the air gun world known as “Mr. Hollowpoint”. The lighter slugs are pushed faster and I expect them to perform well on game.
If you have been considering shooting and hunting with PCP air rifles, I highly suggest you do some homework and decide which style rifle is best for you. There are plenty of rifles around that I have used and know from experience will fill the bill for you. But to my knowledge, there is only one 51 caliber Tex Rex that, out of the box develops the power that is close to some center fire rifles.
As an outdoors writer the past 40 years, I am often asked why I hunt with a bow, muzzleloader, center fire, air rifle, etc. Why aren’t I strictly a bow hunter or muzzleloader shooter, etc?. I thoroughly enjoy the challenge of learning about a weapon –style of hunting-that is totally new to me.
NOTE Back when I first began shooting PCP air rifles, compressors were pretty costly and I would fill my air tanks at places such as scuba shops, paint ball ranges, etc. Today, small affordable compressors are widely available that run on both AC and DC power. I no longer own or use air tanks. I take my little Air Venturi Rov Air compressor and charge my rifle at the range or hunting camp.
When hunting deer, should I actually have to shoot three times, which hasn’t happened to date, I can always connect the compressor to the truck battery and go into the next hunt with a full 4,500 psi. charge. PCP airguns or supplies are currently not readily available at most box stores but I’ve found the Pyramyd Air www.pyramydair.com has everything for the air gun shooter.
Email Luke Clayton through this website www.catfishradio.org Listen to his weekly podcast “Catfish Radio with Luke Clayton and Friends” just about everywhere podcasts are found.
A solid day was had by Montague county high school tracksters at the State Track and Field Meet May 16 in Austin.
Bellevue’s Mattie Broussard had a pair of second place finishes in both the 800-meter run with a time of 2:21.41 and the 3,200-meter run with a time of 11:31.33. Broussard also was 4th in the 1,600-meters with a time of 5:22.18.
Her teammate Brylie Hager was 9th in the 110-meter hurdles in 19.93.
Forestburg’s Brenna Briles was 4th in the triple jump with a 35’9 1’2” leap. Her teammate Jocelyn Rich was 4th in the pole vault with a 9’ leap.
For further details, pick up a copy of Thursday’s Bowie News.
Bowie had a pair of top four finishes at the State Track and Field Meet May 14.
Sophomore Brayden Willett made it onto the medal stand, finishing 3rd in the 1,600-meter run with a time of 4:17.89. Bowie junior Tyler Richey finished 4th in the pole vault after a 14’6” effort.
The top two finishers from Holliday, also in Bowie’s district, celebrated with him after he crossed the finish line.
“It was kind of surprising,” Willett said about Ryder and Noah Stroman embracing him in a celebratory hug. “They’re good guys, so it was kind of cool.”
For further details, pick up a copy of Thursday’s Bowie News.
This past week found your outdoor scribe doing some rather mundane things such as yard work, vegetable gardening and repairs around the old cabin. Oh, I also wrapped up a couple of magazine articles. I always enjoy sharing my adventures with all of you in this column but to be perfectly honest, not nearly as much as my ‘field work’ hunting and fishing which is an iatrical part of any good outdoor column. If you’re like me, you much prefer reading about an adventure that you can also partake.
I am far more comfortable telling you about an outdoor experience I had firsthand knowledge of rather than the reporting part of my job as an outdoor communicator. So, this week, I’d do a bit of ‘reporting’ and share some planned adventures I have scheduled for the next couple weeks. By the time you’re reading this, I will have already been in the woods in quest of a fat ‘eater’ hog and probably have some freshly caught blue catfish fillets in the freezer, details will follow in the next couple of weeks.
I’ll kick things off early in the week heading down to my friend Jeff Rice’s Buck and Bass Ranch located on the upper end of Lake Fork. Jeff produces our weekly TV show “A Sportsman’s Life” which airs on Carbon TV and YouTube. Our plan is to film a segment of our show on stalking wild hogs. It will be a challenge to capture the shot with all the thick grown spring vegetation. It could happen fast and require a fast shot. We will be breaking in my CVA Cascade scout rifle in 308 caliber. This short barrel little rifle is light and easy to handle in thick cover, ideal for this type of hunting. Our plan is to hit the woods during the last couple hours of daylight and ease along the trails, watching and especially listening for hogs. Wild porkers are vocal critters and it’s common to hear them before seeing them. We will play the wind and attempt to get downwind and then close the distance for a shot but you can never guess how a hog hunt will unfold. Wild pork or not, Jeff and I always have a great time together and I plan to bring a side of wild pork ribs already slow smoked and covered in brown sugar and BBQ sauce with a side of camp baked beans!
After a tasty dinner we plan to get a good night’s sleep and head out the next morning for a planned fishing trip with guide David Hanson at Lake Tawakoni. Both channel and blue catfish are on a very good bite right but it’s hard to pass up those snow white blue catfish fillets when the bite is good. David is, to my knowledge, the most veteran catfish guide on the lake and became friends close to a quarter-century ago when we first began fishing
together. The plan is to use freshy cut shad in shallow water and target eater size blues weighing between 2 and about 10 pounds but as every catfish angler knows, it’s always possible to connect with a big trophy size blue when fishing Tawakoni.
Next week, I plan to join my long-time friend J.C. McCollough on the Red River below the Texoma dam. I’ve been fishing and hunting with J.C. for many years and look forward to getting with him again. I would describe this to catching big catfish in a barrel but in this case the deep holes in the river are comprised of several acres. The water level in the river below Texoma are dictated by the water release at the dam by the Corp of Engineers. When there is a current in the river, fish move upstream to feed on baitfish coming through the dam. When the water recedes, they fish move into the deeper holes where baitfish also seek refuge from the falling water. Catching will be fast paced with the chance to connect with some big fish as well as limits of “eater” size fish. We’ll be rigging with big live gizzard shad fished weightless on a free line, using medium spinning gear. The bigger fish will often nail the frisky live shad and the fresh cut bait is a sure way to connect with lots of smaller fish. There is something very exciting about fishing big live baits on a slack line. One minute your bait will be darting around and you will occasionally feel it taking up slack and the next when a big blue catfish grabs the bait, the rod will bow and the fight will be on. There is usually no ‘setting the hook’, by the time you feel the fish, it will already be hooked and making a strong run to the nearest submerged brush. Your job will be to keep the drag set just enough to keep pressure on the fish but not so much as to cause the line to break.
J.C. uses his airboat to access these deeper holes because of the very shallow water. While it’s not impossible to portage a kayak or small boat in the river, it often requires a few miles travel to get to these deep holes, this is best accomplished by experienced kayakers with plenty of endurance. There was a time when I was game for this type fishing but I much prefer to do my river fishing these days from a boat designed to negotiate the shallow waters.
Squirrel season is underway in many of the east Texas counties and there’s some pretty good fox squirrel hunting here close to home in Kaufman county and I’ve been thinking about how tasty a big skillet of smothered squirrel with rice, gravy and biscuits would be. Bream are on the beds now and my friend Edgar Cotton invited me to come do some ‘perch jerking’ with him and his son David-it’s in the plans! Well, hopefully next week I will have a ‘sure nuff’ adventure of two to relate you you-I’m ready to get some relief from all this work around the homeplace! LC
You can contact Tawakoni/Fork catfish guide David Hanson at 902-268-7391. Contact J.C. McCollough at 580-372-0320.
Listen to Luke’s podcast, “Catfish Radio” just about everywhere podcast are found.
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