New Airgun

[Talon]

I thought I might as well tack onto this thread . I was browsing the gun sites and came across one of my grail rifles . A very early 1984 Mk1 HW77 in .22 . I always shoot .177 these days but when I was very young I lusted after that model in .22 but it was always out of my reach . This one is in pretty good condition for a 37 year old rifle . Some slight surface rust near the end of the cocking lever and the stock needs refinishing . It’s very smooth though and doing 11.9 with Superdomes so I may take a coil off to keep it down a bit . Despite my failing eyesight at distance I’m keeping this rifle stock with open sights . I think I may be at that dangerous time in life where I’m trying to recapture my lost childhood but I’m very pleased to have gotten a rifle I pined for in my past . And at a great price too . I’ll look forward to working on it .

[Mortblanc]

It may be the dream of your youth but you do not have the eyes of your youth Talon!

I advise that you zero the factory sights so you know they are dead on, then install a good scope. Air gun scopes on a springer do fail at a rate higher than those on a 600 Nitro Express rifle and they demand a good quality glass.

My present experience is that HW rifles can shoot better than your eyes can see, even young eyes. You can not get the best from them without a scope.

If hunting small game/plinking is the main intent of the rifle you might even think about a red dot sight. They are less affected by the "reverse recoil" and are precise enough at ranges under 50M to give very good results, especially in low light situations such as a forager would face at dusk or dawn when the iron sights would be completely useless even to a 15 year old with perfect vision.

The modern red dot scopes have an amazingly long battery life too. Most have auto shutoff as well as use life measured in the thousands of hour range. That is one of the reasons the military has gone to full use of them on combat rifles. Over here our recruits now shoot qualification with the issue scopes and red dots. They are trained on scopes from day one, and your boys have had built in scopes on their Enfields for near 30 years.

When I bought my HW30 they sent me the wrong caliber. I had ordered a .177 and they sent a .22. I did not shoot the rifle, just sent it back after giving it a good inspection. I think that it was actually smoother in mechanical properties than the .177 they sent me.

My little 30 is so accurate that I do wish I had a .22 to compare it too. My range in the back garden is at 25m from the back porch, where I have a sandbagged shooting platform. My targets range from 50mm down to 20mm spinners and the HW30 is good for the spinners and smaller on a quiet day with no wind.

My PCP rifles will shoot almost that well but none of my .22 springers or the Benjamin Pump I just bought will come anywhere near matching it.

[Talon]

Hi Mort . Yes the .22 will always shoot more smoother than the .177 . As you know airguns are more efficient as the calibre goes up and .177 always tends to be snappier than the larger calibres in spring guns . That’s an excellent suggestion regarding using a red dot . I’d never even considered it . The rifle will be used as a 30 yard maximum tin can basher so I don’t need a scope on it . I’m currently shooting a new Feinwerkbau Sport scoped with a 4x32 and too be honest , I could do with a better optic with more magnification as you’re right, my eyesight really isn’t what it was Yes spring guns are notorious for damaging scopes . The push/pull recoil can really play havoc . I was contemplating putting a Williams diopter on the Weirauch as I have one kicking around somewhere but the red Could well be better for it’s intended use . I’ll look into that . Much appreciated .

[Mortblanc]

The red dot will also be cheaper if you desire. I have red dots on three air pistols, a single stroke, a springer and a multi pump. They are my indoor plinkers that get brought out about this time of year. We were at 4C with a brisk wet wind today. The back porch was not a hospitable environment.

At any rate, the lower priced compact red dots seem to hold up well and keep their zero. No need for the high end sights as long as you get one with the reticule pattern you desire. I have a couple that offer cross hairs, dots, chevrons or concentric circles and they only cost me around $50 US.

I like the dot and the chevrons but the concentric circles gives me dazzle shock and I lock on the dazzle and not the target!

The recoil lash does not affect them as it does a scope, where the cross hairs are usually the first to give way, as well as the tiny springs that offer force against the adjustment wheels.

I have a 6-24x50 on the HW30, which I know is overkill. It also deceives me on group size, since it makes a 6mm group look like it is covering a football pitch. I have to remind myself that they are all touching each other so the group is actually not filling the scope as appears.

I have another 6-24 on my Gauntlet, since it is more of a bench gun, heavy as it is. That is another "one hole" rifle in .22. I have a 3-9 on my Stormrider .22 and that is what I put on the Benjamin also. I use them primarily as hunting rifles. I am rural here with a lot of territory I can hunt around the house.

I find the PCP rifles almost as loud as my .22 rimfire, which is why I bought the Benjamin. Pumping the thing is louder than shooting it. I need to play around with some adhesive cushioning on the pump arm.

[Mortblanc]

I have had the Benjaman rifle leaning against the wall by the back door for two months now. It has been through three scopes in that time and now has on a red dot. These scopes were all good on other rifles in the fleet, so the problem is not the hardware.

I have a 12 gauge with a sawed off 20" barrel that shoots tighter groups!

The problem is not with aiming, it is with the trigger!

I am not happy with it!

Yesterday I found my trigger pull gauge and discovered why.

The trigger is so bad that it is difficult to describe the exact problem but I will try.

1. the trigger pull is long, like a mile long. Officially known as "excess creep", only it goes past that. It is excess mileage. From sear contact to let off is a full 9mm of trigger travel.

2. the trigger pull is gritty. You drag that trigger for a mile through not sand or mushy mud, but through a field of bounders.

3. the trigger pull is heavy. The pull is often 4 pounds. I could live with a 4 pound pull, but next shot it is 7 pounds, then 5, then 8 1/2 pounds. I say 8 1/2 pounds but my gauge only goes to 8, so it sometimes fires when you bottom out the gauge. It is completely inconsistent from shot to shot.

I am not afraid to take a gun apart, and I took this one down to inspect the problem. There are only three parts; trigger, sear and disconnector, but each part is massive and has its' own leverage points. It also has two separate springs for sear engagement and trigger return, both are massave! The sear bears directly on the moving bolt, engaging a ledge. I stoned those contact parts, no help. In fact, I stoned every contact part in the system and had no improvement.

I am about to do something radical. I will order a set of new trigger parts and springs and set to work with replacements in hand. If I break it the performance might improve!

The POS is unusable as a foraging tool as it is, and that was what I bought it to do.

[HERNE]

Can't beat an air rifle for cost effective shooting.

Most UK shooters cut their teeth on 12ft/lbs air rifles. This really sharpens your field craft as you have to get within 35yards to effectively shoot small game.

It's a good apprenticeship for hunting technique.

i do enjoy playing with air rifles

[bigpaul]

I grew up with Air Rifles.