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H&N Sport

H&N Sport Pellets and Slugs in South Africa

H&N is the German end of the pellet market, and the reason serious airgunners keep a tin on the bench is consistency. Weight sorting and dimensional tolerance are tighter than budget brands, which shows up on paper at distance rather than across the garden. The range also spans plinking through to competition and slugs. NeonSales carries 76 H&N products, from R52 for a tin of Excite Plinking up to R369 for Hornet in 5.5mm.

What H&N products does NeonSales stock?

  • Excite range: Plinking, Econ II, Hammer, Spike, Coppa-Spitzkugel and Prometheus, the value end of the line
  • Baracuda family: Baracuda, Baracuda Match, Baracuda Power, Baracuda Hunter, Hunter Extreme, plus the lighter Baracuda 15 and 18
  • Match and field target: Field Target Trophy and Sport, built for scoring rather than hunting
  • Hunting: Hornet, a pointed design for penetration
  • Slugs: Slug HP in 21, 25, 27 and 30 grain, in .217 and .218 head sizes, plus a sampler pack of five vials

Which H&N line for which job?

Line Built for Best suited to
Excite Volume shooting at sensible cost Plinking and practice, where tin price matters more than last-millimetre accuracy
Field Target Trophy / Sport Consistency on paper Competition and zeroing, domed profile with tight weight tolerance
Baracuda Heavy for calibre, retains energy Longer range and hunting, particularly out of higher-power PCPs
Slug HP Ballistic-coefficient-driven design High-power PCPs shooting at extended distance

Slugs are not pellets

This is the section worth reading before ordering. Slugs are solid, longer than a diabolo pellet, and they carry no skirt, so they rely on the rifling to stabilise rather than on drag. That has two consequences. They need a barrel with a suitable twist rate, and they need enough power behind them, which in practice means a PCP rather than a springer. A slug fired from an unsuitable barrel will keyhole and group badly, and no amount of tuning fixes it.

Head size matters too. H&N stocks slugs in .217 and .218, and the difference of a thousandth of an inch genuinely changes how they fit your bore. The sampler pack of five vials exists precisely so you can test rather than guess, and it is the sensible first purchase.

Common questions

Why is H&N more expensive than Gamo? Tighter manufacturing tolerance and weight sorting. Whether that is worth paying for depends entirely on your distance. At 20 metres you will struggle to see the difference. At 50 and beyond it becomes obvious.

What does Baracuda 15 or 18 mean? The number refers to weight in grains. Lighter versions shoot flatter and suit lower-powered rifles, while the standard 21.14 grain versions carry better downrange out of a higher-power PCP.

Can I shoot slugs from my springer? Generally no. Springers rarely make enough power, and most factory springer barrels are not twisted for slugs. Stick to diabolo pellets.

What is Coppa-Spitzkugel? A copper-plated pointed pellet. The plating reduces lead fouling and the point aids penetration, which makes it a pest control choice rather than a target one.

Related: 4.5mm Pellets · 5.5mm Pellets · Airgun Ammunition · Air Rifles · Eley Tenex Air · Cleaning Equipment