Since it was first introduced in 2011,
The M4-177 (M417) quickly became one of the most popular and sought-after air rifles on the market.
Crosman designed this gun to be a replica of the M4-assault rifle based on its pumping action, gun style, and some additional features.
The M4-177 reflects the tactical style that shooters are looking for with the ease of the air rifle.
Gun Type
The Crosman M4-177 is a multi-pump pneumatic air rifle.
A multi-stroke air gun has a piston and a pressure cylinder inside the chamber.
So when you cock the gun, the air between the piston and the cylinder is compressed.
The cylinder’s lock valve keeps the air securely in the cylinder until you release it by pressing the trigger.
Since the cylinder is pressurized, releasing this gas propels the bullet through the barrel, all within a fraction of a second.
(For more on the 5 types of air rifles you need to know before buying, see this post.)
One of the biggest benefits of a multi-pump air rifle is that it gives you more control over the power of your shot.
The more you pump, the higher the velocity and power.
The less you pump, the lower the power and feet per second (FPS).
Therefore, the M4-177 can adapt to short and long-range shooting and indoor and outdoor shooting.
In general, a multi-pump air gun will be lightweight, compact, and recoilless, and this model is no exception.
Additionally, they are self-contained so there is no need for expensive CO2 cartridges
Or scuba tanks that some of the other pneumatic require.
The only downside of a pump air gun is the considerable amount of time and effort required for cocking before each shot.
When hunting, this timing can be detrimental and your target might scurry off while you are still trying to cock the rifle.
This gun has an internal diameter of 0.177 (or 4.5 millimeters).
As the name suggests, it uses 0.177 pellets which are known for having a very high velocity, good knockdown power, and flat trajectory (higher accuracy).
The 0.177 pellet is also very cheap so it’s awesome for shooters who shoot a lot for practice or in hunting.
(For more on how to choose the right air gun caliber for your game, see this post.)
Unlike some automatic air rifles, the Crosman M4-177 is a single-shot air rifle, which means that the gun must be cocked before each firing .
In this way, a single-shot air gun forces shooters to slow down and be better marksmen.
With a single shot, there is a greater chance that your shooting skill and precision will increase.
What makes the Crosman M4-177 stand apart from other airguns is its feel: this gun looks and feels like a real M4- assault rifle.
To start, the barrel is rifled, which means that it has spiral grooves inside to make the bullet spin around its long axis.
Spinning the bullet stabilizes it in its trajectory, improves accuracy, and enhances the shooting range.
Not only is the gun styled to look like an M4, but Crosman also incorporated non-functional features
That reflects features on a real carbine, such as a flat suppressor, hammer pin, trigger pin, magazine release button, takedown pin, and charging handle.
Since it looks just like an M4, you may want to apply some high-visibility tape on the end of the barrel
So that it can be distinguished from a real firearm.
Stock
The Crosman M4-177 features a black synthetic and elongated textured polymer forearm.
The synthetic stock of Crosman M4-177 is made of ABS plastic,
Which stands for acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, and the chemical formula is (C8H8)x(C4H6)y(C3H3N)z.
It is a common material used to make air rifles and is lightweight, rigid, temperature-resistant, and impact resistant.
The black synthetic stock is lighter than wood and is more resilient to atmospheric changes.
For example, if you live in a hot, humid place, a wood stock might expand and contract due to the changes in weather conditions.
These types of minor fluctuations might affect your shot accuracy, which can be crucial when hunting small games.
The M4-177 would therefore be ideal for those who shoot in various weather conditions such as extreme heat, humidity, snow, and rain.
The stock length can be adjusted to five different positions so as to fit your arm’s length.
For ease of carrying, there are two loop slots to hold the sling.
The stock is also ambidextrous so you can train both shooting arms or switch off with an opposite-arm shooter in practice.
A thin plastic pad at the bottom end can allow the gun to be stood up for added convenience.
There is also a fake magazine included in this rifle, which can be easily removed or used to store BBs, pellet clips, and sight adjustment tools.
Ammo
The Crosman M4-177 uses both BBs and 0.177 pellets as its ammo so you can shoot whatever ammo you’ve got lying around.
(For more on the differences between .177 & .22 and which jobs they do best, see this post.)
It also includes a five-shot pellet clip, and the BB reservoir can hold up to 350 BBs at a time.
Therefore, you can practice target shooting for long hours without worrying about running out of ammo.
Cocking and Loading
Before cocking, be sure to first push the cross-bolt safety in the trigger guard to the “ON SAFE” mode.
Then you will hold the stock with one arm, fully grasping the foregrip with your other arm, and extend the stock all the way until it stops.
After that, swing it back into its original position.
This gun will require at least three pumps to prevent pellet jamming, but don’t pump more than 10 pumps since that can damage the gun.
You can easily load both pellets and BBs, so you have a lot of options when shooting.
Remember that you cannot shoot both BBs and pellets at the same time.
To avoid loading ammo into the wrong port, BBs are loaded on one side and pellets on the other.
The loading action of BBs and pellets may seem complicated at first but when you get used to it, it will become second nature.
To load BBs, locate the BB loading port by moving the loading port cover toward the rear of the gun.
You can pour up to 350 BBs into it.
Close the port cover, push the BB retainer button forward, tilt the rifle down, shake the gun, and then let gravity feed BBs into the magazine.
After that, you pull the retainer button back to lock them in.
Now, you position the pellet clip so the BBs can be fed through one of the pellet’s chambers.
With the barrel tilted downward, the magnetic bolt will pick up the BBs when you cock the bolt (pull it back and push it all the way forward).
And voila, you are ready to shoot with BB ammo.
If you’d like to load pellets, first load pellets into the pellet clip with the pellet’s nose lying forward.
Next, pull the bolt back, put the pellet clip into the gun, and make sure that the pellet’s chamber is aligned with the barrel.
Push the bolt all the way forward and you are ready to fire with pellets.
Velocity and accuracy
We can see that the velocity is consistent between different pellets. Each provides a medium shooting speed.
The Crosman M4-177 has a maximum velocity of 660 FPS with steel BB and 625 FPS with a pellet.
With 5.23 grains Crosman Copperhead BBs, Daisy zinc-plated BBs, and steel BBs, its velocity is 576 FPS, 579 FPS, and 650 FPS, respectively.
With Crosman premier super match pellets, 8.18 grains pellets, and 7.9 grains Crosman Premier pellet,
Its velocity is 529 FPS, 559 FPS, and 625 FPS, respectively.
| Ammo | Velocity (FPS) |
|---|---|
| Steel BB (manufacturer) | 660 |
| Pellett | 625 |
| 5.23 grain Crosman Copperhead BB | 576 |
| Daisy zinc-plated BBs | 579 |
| Steel BB (tested) | 650 |
Different shooters have performed accuracy tests.
The shot distance is good, with some shooters being able to shoot a metal drum at 100 yards.
However, this gun is very accurate for 40 yards or less.
The common shooting groups are:
- 0.25 inches at 25 yards,
- 5/8 inches at 12.5 yards,
- 1 inches at 15 yards,
- 2 inches at 40 yards,
- 0.25 inches at 25 feet,
- quarter size at 40 yards,
- 2 inches at 35 feet,
- 4 inches at 100 feet,
- 0.25 inches at 30 yards,
- 1.4 inches at 20 yards.
| Distance in yards: | < 12.5 | 15 | 20 | 25 | 30 | 40 | 100 |
| ¼ | ? | ? | ? | ||||
| ⅝ | ? | ||||||
| 1 | ? | ||||||
| 2 | ? | ? | |||||
| 1 ½ | ? | ||||||
| 4 | ? | ||||||
| Metal Drum | ? | ||||||
| Most accurate | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Rick Eutsler from AirgunWeb tested intensively the M4-177 in the video below
Sight
The Crosman M4-177 comes with an open sight, which consists of a post front sight and dual aperture rear sight.
If you’re not familiar with these types of sights, then you might be in for a treat!
The use of these two sight types allows for better clarity in focusing as well as more adjustments based on terrain.
Additionally, both the front sight and rear sight are removable and can be replaced with a scope if you like.
Aperture sights, also known as peep sights, are similar to standard open sights except it has a cut in the middle of the rear sight for target alignment.
With aperture sights, the “ghost ring” of the aperture blurs the surrounding areas,
So your eyes are only drawn to two points (the front sight and the target) as opposed to the three points in traditional open sights (the target, the front sight, and the rear sight).
This type of sight can easily improve accuracy and is far superior to traditional open sight.
The aperture rear sight of the Crosman M4-177 is also a dual sight, which means that it has two rings with different purposes.
The ring with the bigger aperture permits you to zero in on the target more quickly
While the ring with the smaller hole provides you with more precision for aiming.
Moreover, the rear sight can be adjusted from left to right to account for windage,
While the front sight can be adjusted up and down for elevation.
The accessory rail is a Picatinny style rail, which is almost identical to the weaver rail, except it has a series of ridges located at precise intervals along the rail.
The Picatinny rail provides more mounting options so you can easily swap scopes and mount the scope rings at any distance along the shaft.
This gun comes with four optic rails (two in the barrel, one in the upper receiver, and one in the handguard),
But I recommend that you only use the rail on top of the receiver and on top of the muzzle to mount your accessories.
If you install accessories along the other two rails, then they may get in the way of the pumping.
This video below will explain in detail how to install and adjust the sight for this air rifle:
Noise
This gun is very quiet. None of the customer reviews on Amazon, Walmart, Pyramid Air, and Cabelas complain about the noise.
Shooting range and intended use
The effective shooting range of this air fun is less than 40 yards.
The maximum shooting range can be up to 100 yards.
This gun can be used for both indoor and outdoor shooting.
The manufacturer recommends it for plinking and target shooting
Accessories
This gun only has the front sight and rear sight as included accessories.
If you want to utilize the built-in features, you can buy other gear such as a sling, scope, red dot, laser, flashlight, and more.
Maintenance
This air gun requires little to no maintenance.
It only requires a few drops of Crosman 0241 Pellgunoil in the barrel and the pivot pin after 250 shots.
With this simple maintenance, this gun will last for a long time.
Specification
- Caliber: 0.177
- Power plant: multi-pump pneumatic
- Cocking effort: 3-10 pumps
- Maximum Velocity: 660 FPS with steel BB, 625 FPS with pellet
- Ammo: BBs and pellets
- Weight: 3.75 pounds
- Barrel Length: 17.25 inches
- Overall Length: 33.75 inches
- Capacity: single shot
- Barrel: steel rifled
- Front sight: removable, adjustable for elevation
- Rear sight: removable, dual aperture, adjustable for windage
- Trigger safety: manual
- Accessory rail: Picatinny Style
- Buttpad: plastic
- Material: metal / ABS plastic
Warranty
At the moment, Crosman offers a one-year limited warranty from the date of purchase.
Customer Reviews
The many customer reviews online are very positive.
Most people love its cool style and find it very fun to shoot with.
They also like its quietness, easy-to-use open sight, adequate velocity, sufficient power and modern design.
Nothing arises as a serious issue.
Pros
- Look and feel like real M4-AR
- Lightweight
- Medium velocity and decent power
- Quiet
- Very accurate
- Useful synthetic and adjustable stock
- Control over power of the gun with pumping action
- Can shoot both BBs and pellets
- Picatinny optic rail
- Effective dual aperture sight
Cons
- Pumping action takes time to learn and can be tedious
- Not great for hunting
- Doesn’t have a scope
Price
The Crosman M4-177 is only about $60 USD, which is very affordable for a gun of this caliber.
Conclusion
The Crosman M4-177 is an impressive multi-pump pneumatic air gun that comes with a lot of great features.
While you may have to get used to the pump-action, I would still highly recommend this gun for more playful settings and to shoot with your kids, family, and friends.
