Prostaffer John Klosenski, known as "John K" to those who seek his advice on all things shooting, is an avid airgunner and helps many farmers in his area with their pest control needs.

"In my business I frequently get approached by customers looking for an air gun to take care of a pest problem. Mostly it is "squirrels in the bird feeder, or crows in the garden". Sometimes there are  concerns as a lot of residential areas require little or no noise. This is where the Marauder comes in.

I like the Marauder for "backyard" applications due to the accuracy, power, and lack of noise.

Forget about 1600fps with a .177 alloy pellet. That is just a lot of hype. If you want to get the job done, get a .22 or .25 caliber Marauder and a good Centerpoint scope and go to the range.... which could be right out your back door. It is that quiet.

I like the .22 caliber for calm days and with the .22 caliber Crosman Premier pellets sighted 1" high at 20 yards, I can make hits out to 65 yards and drop crows in their track. Try that with an "alloy" pellet out of a competitor's gun. Sure, alloy pellets have their place, but Crosman Premier dome shaped pellets hold their velocity and buck the wind much better than lightweight pellets. 

I tell my customers to take some time and get to know the gun. I put a chart on the top of my scope showing where the gun is sighted and what the drop is out to say 85 yards. I do this on a calm day with a good rest. The mil dot reticle in the Centerpoint goes a long way in taking the guess work out of holdover. Shoot at a large target and note where the pellets strike at the longer distances. I use a laser rangefinder to get accurate distances so if I am at a farm with for example, a crow problem, I can apply my tables to the field. If you are shooting in your yard, you can make note of the various distances in relation to the mil dots. "Dead on to the bird feeder and one mil dot high to the back of the lawn", something like that.

Once you shoot the Marauder, you will be hooked. It is by far, one of the best small game rifles out there."

The Backyard Hunter Pack includes:

- Benjamin Marauder .22 air rifle

- Two boxes of the Benjamin "Ultimate Hunting Pellet Assortment" - 100 each of the highest quality Domed, Hollow Point, Super Point and Pointed Expanding pellets, all 14.3 grains

- Benjamin High Pressure Hand Pump

- CenterPoint Adventure Class 4-16x40mm scope with mounts