CYCLONE you can not compair a 40 or 50 caliber air cannon to a bb gun. bb gun meaning a .177 caliber projectile. believe it or not a .177 bb is bigger than your .17 caliber. the .17 being .172 in diameter. we are talking caliber size here not what drives the projectile. as for the 200 yard shot you can do the same thing will a .22 long rifle shell. a few clicks on the scope and you are in bussiness. i will not tell you how far we have broken clay birds because you would not believe it anyway.