It does not look like I will get any new airgun for a while. I explored CO2, single pump pneumatic, multi-pump pneumatic, and spring piston technology, so now I only plan to acquire airguns whose design is special in one way or another. I do not intend to try any pre-compressed pneumatic (PCP) guns because I am not particularly attracted by their operation mode.
For target shooting, I found the pneumatic guns to be the best. These guns tend to be longer, so their sights will be more precise as well. The Webley Alecto is the gun I would pick if I only wanted to keep one airgun, but there are other less expensive options that are also very good: Beeman P17 if you can get one that does not break, Beeman P3 if you want to pay more so it does not break, and the inexpensive but very versatile Crosman 1377C.
Spring piston technology is great in rifles and I like my IZH-60 very much, despite a few manufacturing issues, but in pistols it is usually implemented via a break-barrel mechanism, resulting in very large guns. My experience with the IZH-53M left me uninterested in trying another such design. I find more promise in the design of the Beeman P1 (top-lever, with the piston moving backward rather than forward), but then its high price makes me wonder whether the money would not be better spent on a P2 (single pump pneumatic) and then I wonder what the P2 could offer me over the Alecto/P3 other than a more compact metal and wood build.
The Crosman 3576W and the S&W 686 are the best suited CO2 guns for target shooting and the Crosman happens to also be very affordable. Other guns (Colt 1911, Beretta 92FS, Walther PPQ) are fun to use, but I found it harder to obtain repeatable tight groups with them - the reason for this is probably a mix of CO2 control, sights precision, trigger performance, and gun weight.
In terms of pellets, I prefer Umarex/RWS Hobby - in accurate guns like the Alecto, they seem to perform better than the Diabolo Basic and I did not see any improvement from using Meisterkugeln. Crosman pellets are also very good and inexpensive, so they tend to be my choice for CO2 pistols.
Airguns do not need maintenance like firearms do. But occasionally, you may want to lubricate a part or apply some coating for protection when storing the airgun for a longer period of time. Before using any material, make sure to check your airgun's manual for recommendations of products to use. For example the Beeman P17 recommends the use of white lithium grease for lubricating the piston. For general purpose lubrication, I use Slip 2000 Gun Lube. For wood parts, I use mineral oil to prevent the wood from drying up and cracking. And to protect the metal from rusting over long periods of storage, I use Hoppe's 9 Gun Grease.
For target shooting accessories, I found the Gamo pellet trap and the Gamo paper targets to work great, but keep in mind that most of the guns I used shoot up to around 500fps. The Alecto and the 1377C can shoot faster, but I do not pump them for such result. If you use rifles that shoot above 700fps, you will probably find the Gamo trap to last very few shots. If you look around you may also find other types of paper targets that fit in the Gamo trap. I particularly like one model that has 5 smaller targets printed on it - one in the center and four in the corners - it provides a nice challenge for the more accurate pistols - I would provide a link for it, but it no longer seems to be available.
