Archive for December 2011

The Daystate Huntsman Classic XL in .177 – Part I

Monday, December 26, 2011

The Daystate Huntsman Classic XL

Some years ago, very early in my career as an airgun writer, I was taught an important and harsh lesson: when it comes to airgun performance, looks don’t matter. The gun in question was a Beeman Crow Magnum. It had been loaned to me, and when I pulled it from the box, I fell instantly in love. The exotic hardwood stock was a thing of beauty, and the bluing on the metal work looked like it was a foot deep. After just one look, I was already making plans to justify purchasing such an expensive springer.

As soon I shot the Crow Magnum, I rapidly changed my mind. I couldn’t adapt to the recoil of the powerful Theoben gas-ram powerplant, and I was unable to shoot better than 1.5 inch groups at 10 yards. Beautiful or not, I couldn’t wait to send that gun back to its owner. (Eventually I asked another airgunner who had mastered the Crow Magnum how he did it, and he said that the secret was to “apprentice yourself to the Crow Magnum and don’t shoot anything else. When you do that, the Crow Magnum shoots as good as it looks.”)

Having said all that, I would be less than forthright if I didn’t admit that I was taken with the looks of the Daystate Huntsman Classic XL in .177. It is a beautiful air rifle that stretches 38 inches from end to and weighs just a bit over six pounds.  The version that I tested was designated “XL,” which means that it has an extra-large air reservoir to extend the shot count per fill, although the folks at Airguns of Arizona tell me that the short air tube version actually out-sells the XL. Go figure.

The ventilated butt pad and other goodies.

At the extreme aft end of the XL is a ventilated rubber butt plate attached to a Walnut stock with a black spacer. The stock is right-handed and has a distinct cheek piece on the left hand side of the stock. Forward of the buttstock is the pistol grip, which is checkered on both sides and is fitted with the rosewood cap and a lighter colored spacer.

The trigger group, bolt, and magazine.

Ahead of the pistol grip is a metal trigger guard with a silver-colored metal trigger inside. The two-stage trigger is adjustable for second stage weight, trigger blade angle, and first stage travel. Above the trigger guard, on either side of the stock, the Daystate name and emblem are incised into the stock. Ahead of the trigger assembly is an allen screw for holding the action in the stock, and just ahead of that is an air gauge that reads in bar.

Moving toward the muzzle again, the forestock is checkered on either side. At the end of the forestock are a barrel band and a black metal cap, which when removed, reveals a foster fitting for filling the air reservoir. Above the air reservoir is the matte black finished barrel which is shrouded to reduce the report of the XL. At the end of the barrel is a cap that can be unscrewed for fitting a silencer where legal.

Traveling back along the barrel, you’ll find the receiver, which has dovetails for fitting a scope, the breech – where the ten-shot rotary magazine can be inserted – and the silver-finished bolt handle. Below the bolt handle on the left side of the receiver is the rotary safety. Flick the red anodized tab UP for fire and DOWN for safe.

Next time, we’ll see how the Daystate Huntsman Classic XL shoots.

Til then, aim true and shoot straight.

-          Jock Elliott

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Gifts we can give each other

Monday, December 19, 2011

Well, it’s that time of year again, when visions of shiny new airguns dance in airgunners’ heads. While I certainly hope that you get some gift that makes your heart swell with joy, I’ve been thinking lately about some gifts that we might give to bring others joy.

Give a part to a fellow airgunner. Scarcely a week goes by on one of the airgun forums but some airgunner sends out a plea that he needs some screw, nut, or other small bit for one of his airguns. If you happen to be in possession of the needed part, consider slipping it into an envelope and send it to him with your best wishes. An airgunner did this for me a few years ago. I smile every time I think of it, and the donor enjoys a warm spot in my heart forever.

Make nice with the neighbors. If you are on good terms with your neighbors and are taking up airgunning, you might let them know, in the nicest and friendliest way, that you are doing so. You might say something like: “Fred (or Bob or whoever), if you see me in the back yard with a rifle, it’s not a firearm. I’ve taken up shooting a quiet, low-powered airgun. It’s perfectly legal (check to make sure that it is where you live).  I am as concerned about safety as you are, so I’ll be shooting into a pellet trap that captures the pellets and prevents ricochets, and I’ll always shoot in a safe direction.” If your neighbor expresses an interest in your airgun, you might even invite him to shoot with you some time.

Teach someone to shoot. One of the nicest, most generous things you can do is to teach someone to shoot.  Those of us who have been shooting for a while may have forgotten that initial thrill of pulling the trigger and seeing a hole appear in the target. I had this forcefully brought home to me a couple of years ago when the nice folks at Airguns of Arizona brought me out to the NRA show in Phoenix. In one of the big rooms upstairs, there was an airgun shooting range with about 20 lanes for shooters. A couple of parents brought a ten year old girl into the room and asked her if she would like to try shooting an air rifle. “I don’t like guns,” she said. One of the fellows on the shooting line said, “Just try one shot, and if you don’t like it, you can quit, okay?” She said okay and started to settle in behind one of the guns, and I went off to check out some of the guns further on down the line. A little while later I wandered back up the line, and this time the girl was having a different problem – she didn’t want to get off the gun. “Just let me shoot a few more pellets!” A new shooter had been born, and now she has a lifetime of shooting fun to enjoy.

Donate an airgun to a youth shooting program. Checking around my area, I find that most youth shooting programs are low on equipment and funds. If you want to be extravagantly cool and generous, give an air rifle or air pistol to a youth shooting program in your area. They will thank you for it, and you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that you are helping to train the next generation of shooters.

Cut a forum poster some slack. Since this is the time of year for Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men, you might consider digging deeply into your reserves of courtesy and friendliness when dealing with on-line airgun forums. Most airgunners who post are polite, but occasionally you’ll run into someone who is either dreadfully misinformed or exceedingly grumpy. Either way, they come off as wrong-headed. Nevertheless, when that happens, give them an extra helping of courtesy and deal with them politely. We’ll all benefit from that.

If you have your own ideas for gifts we can give each other, I’d love to hear them.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

-          Jock Elliott

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The Weihrauch HW50S in .177 caliber

Monday, December 12, 2011

The layout of the HW50S is simplicity itself.

I think perhaps I have finally figured it out . . . what my favorite Weihrauch air rifle is – the HW50S in .177. Over the years, I have owned (and still own) a variety of Weihrauch air rifles, from the big, hairy HW80 to the tackdriving but heavy HW97 to the diminutive HW30S.

Each has its advantages and its charms, but as the years roll on (hey, maybe I’m getting old and creaky), I find that I turn increasingly to lighter air rifles for a day afield. The lovely HW30S measures just 38.78 inches end to end and weighs just 5.1 lbs, but there are times when I am shooting it that I wish it had just a wee bit more velocity and power.

Enter the HW50S. It’s just 40.5 inches long weighs only 6.8 lbs. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to test a couple of samples in .22 caliber (the standard and the Stainless versions), but I’ve never shot the HW50S in .177 until recently.

The is a slight swell of a cheek piece on the left side of the buttstock for righthanded shooters, but lefties should have no problem with the HW50S.

This is not an air rifle that is out to impress anyone with its glitz; there is no checkering or other adornment anywhere. At the extreme aft end, there is a brown rubber butt pad with a black spacer and a slight swell for a cheek piece on the left-hand side of the stock, but the buttstock is so nearly symmetrical that lefties should have no problem shooting this rifle. The forestock extends over the two-piece cocking linkage and breech block. The two-piece cocking linkage increases cocking effort (more about this later) but allows the action to be anchored by a single big screw in a steel seat underneath the forestock.

The Rekord trigger is crisp and adjustable.

The trigger guard is black metal. It fastens to the stock with two screws. Inside the trigger guard is a typical Rekord trigger setup: a silver metal trigger and a silver adjustment screw.

The front sight has interchangeable inserts.

The barrel is 15.5 inches long, and on top of it at the muzzle end you’ll find a globe sight with interchangeable inserts. The receiver has three holes for anti-recoil pins and a push-button safety at the rear. That’s it; the HW50S is a statement in simplicity.

With the two .22 versions of the HW50S that I tested in the past, I found the cocking effort to be pretty “stout,” between 30-35 lbs., but the .177 version I’m testing this time seemed easier. Maybe it is just unit-to-unit variation; I don’t know. In any event, you should realize, going in, that the HW50S is not going to be as easy to cock as an HW30S.

To ready the HW50S for shooting, grab the end of the barrel and crank it down and back until it latches, stuff a pellet in the breech, and return the barrel to its original position. Click off the safety, take aim, and squeeze the trigger. The Rekord trigger is crisp and clean and can be easily adjusted. With the factory adjustments, the first stage comes out between 1-2 lbs, and the second stage at 3-4 lbs.

The shot cycle is very subdued, kind of a muted “tunk,” and there is a just a hint of vibration that is heard more than felt. In all this is a very pleasant air rifle to shoot, and its subdued report ought to keep the neighbors happy. It is, in fact, to my ears one of the quietest springer air rifles that I have ever shot.

The HW50S launches 8.44 grain JSB Exact pellets at around 740 fps. I found it put five pellets into a group at 13 yards that you could cover with a pencil eraser. Overall, I have found the HW50S accurate enough to shoot in Hunter Class field target, and I actually took 2nd in a match with a .22 HW50S a few years ago.

I liked the .177 HW50S a whole lot, and I think it would put a huge grin on any airgunner’s face. Santa, are you listening?

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

- Jock Elliott

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Webley Alecto Ultra – Just like before, only better

Monday, December 5, 2011

The Webley Alecto Ultra in its nice case.

Those of you who have been reading this blog for a while will remember that back in May of this year I had the opportunity to review a really nice air pistol, the Webley Alecto. If you want to check out that blog, you can read it here: http://www.airgunsofarizona.com/blog/2011/05/a-happy-surprise-%e2%80%93-the-webley-alecto.html

I concluded in that review that the Alecto “delivers a whole lot to like an a handsome package: a virtually recoilless pistol suitable for high precision plinking, casual target competition, or pest control at close range,” and I stand by that conclusion.

Yet at the same time that I wrote that, a small part of my brain was mulling over whether the Webley Alecto would be a suitable highly-portable game-getter in survival situation. I thought at the time that probably one could get by with the Webley Alecto, but, gee, wouldn’t it be nice if it had just a wee bit more velocity and power . . .

So perhaps you can imagine my glee when I opened the vinyl case that the Webley Alecto Ultra comes in and discovered that “Ultra” means that the barrel has been extended by just a scootch over three inches. That has got to make a difference, right? We’ll get to that in just a little while.

The left side.

Available in .177 and .22, stretching just 13 1/8 inches long, and weighing 2.6 pounds, most of the Ultra is made of matte black engineering polymer. At the aft end of the pistol is a metal notch sight that is adjustable for elevation and windage. On either side of the upper cover of the Ultra just below the rear sight is a lever. Pulling both of these levers at the same time releases the upper cover for cocking and loading. On top of the receiver is a weaver-width dovetail that has one notch cut in it. At the far end of the upper receiver, is a blade front sight with a small red dot on it, so that the sight radius of the Webley Alecto standard and Webley Alecto Ultra is exactly the same. This sight can be rotated 90 degrees and another front blade of lower height pops up in its place. The barrel protrudes another 3 inches beyond the end of the receiver and is fitted with a series of circular grooves near the muzzle.

Underneath the forward end of the receiver, you’ll find another Weaver rail (this one with 7 notches) for mounting accessories such as a flashlight or laser. Moving aft, the trigger guard is molded of matte black polymer and encloses a silver metal trigger and push-pull automatic safety. The trigger is adjustable for left, right and downward movement; trigger position forward and aft; and trigger spring strength, from just under a pound to about 4 pounds. Moving to the rear again, you’ll find a match-style grip (available in left or right hand) with an adjustable palm shelf. It is, in all, a fancy looking air pistol.

The action, partly opened.

Getting the Ultra ready for shooting requires pulling the levers on either side of the upper cover upward and then swinging the aft end of the upper cover up and forward until the cover is completely open. Returning the upper cover to its original position charges the action, cocks the trigger, and activates the automatic safety. You can pump the Ultra up to three times (a fact the User’s Manual is strangely reluctant to mention), and the effort becomes stiffer with each successive stroke.  Before completing the last stroke, insert a pellet into the end of barrel prior to returning the upper cover to its original position.

The action fully opened for inserting a pellet.

Now you’re ready. Take aim at your target, flick the safety off (you can’t help but notice the automatic safety since it blocks the trigger), and squeeze the trigger. At 1 lb. 1.4 oz., the first stage comes out. At 1 lb. 12 oz., the shot goes off with a pop. (The pop gets louder as the Ultra is charged with more pumps). At one pump, the Ultra launches 7.9 grain Crosman .177 Premier pellets at around 379 fps; at 2 pumps, about 518 fps, and at 3 pumps, about 599 fps. By comparison, at one pump, the Alecto standard launches 7.9 grain Crosman .177 Premier pellets at around 365 fps; at 2 pumps, about 480 fps, and at 3 pumps, about 560 fps.

Do the math, and you’ll find that extra three inches of barrel delivers a 4 percent increase in velocity at one pump; an 8 percent increase in fps at 2 pumps, and a 7 percent increase at three pumps. This translates to an 8 percent increase in power at one pump; 16 percent increase in foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle at two pumps; and 14 percent increase to 6.29 fp at three pumps. That’s plenty good enough for taking small game at close range with proper shot placement.

I found I could shoot dime-sized groups at 13 yards with the Ultra. My only suggestion for improving this impressive pistol would be more notches in the rail on top of the receiver to make it easier to mount a red dot.

The Webley Alecto Ultra delivers all the goodies of the Alecto standard — a handsome package: a virtually recoilless pistol suitable for high-precision plinking, casual target competition, or pest control at close range – plus a wee bit more power, and I think a whole lot of airgunners just might find this is their favorite air pistol.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight,

-          Jock Elliott

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