Posts Tagged ‘Airguns’

HW30S De Luxe

Monday, September 13, 2010

It wouldn’t surprise me if one of these days, my friends and family pull an “intervention” on me. You know what an intervention is: one of those deals where they all gather in a room and tell you how concerned they are about you and how maybe you ought to be thinking about what you’ve been up to and perhaps you ought to Get Some Help. Interventions often revolve around drug abuse or alcoholism. But that’s not my difficulty. We’ll get to what my problem is in just a little bit, but I’ll give you a hint: I started thinking about it when I began testing the Weihrauch HW30S De Luxe.

The HW30S is one neat little air rifle. It measures just 38 and three-quarters inches end to end and tips the scales at just five-and-one-half pounds. At the extreme aft end of HW30S is a soft brown rubber butt pad that is attached to the hardwood stock with a black spacer. The butt stock has a slight swell for a cheek piece on the left hand side, but in all truth the stock for the HW30S is virtually ambidextrous and lefties should have no difficulty shooting it whatsoever.

Moving forward just a bit, there is checkering on either side of the pistol grip, and it is this checkering – and the checkering you’ll find on the forestock – that separates the HW30S De Luxe from the plain old HW30S. Forward of the pistol grip is a black metal trigger guard inside of which is a silver metal Rekord adjustable trigger. Forward of that, underneath the forestock, is a large screw that secures the action into the stock, and a bit further on is a slot in the forestock to provide clearance for the cocking mechanism.

Beyond the end of the forestock is the breech block and the cocking linkage, followed by the barrel. On top of the barrel, near the muzzle is a globe sight (like you would find on a a Beeman R1) that has interchangeable inserts. Moving back along the barrel, you find a micro-adjustable rear sight mounted on top of the breech block. Moving aft again, there is a dovetail for mounting a scope and a couple of holes for anti-recoil pins. At the extreme aft end of the receiver, you’ll find a push-button automatic safety that is non-resettable.

To get the HW30S ready for shooting, grab the barrel on or near the front sight and pull it down and back until it latches. This opens the breech for loading. Stuff a pellet into the breech and return the barrel to its original position. I tested the .177 version of the HW30S (it’s also available in .22), and it launches Crosman Premier 7.9 gr. pellets at average of 620 fps, generating about 6.7 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle.

The HW30S shares the same powerplant as the Beeman R7, which is one of the most beloved breakbarrel air rifles in the world. What makes it so much fun to shoot, I think, is that the power it generates is well matched to the weight of the gun, which makes it easy to shoot well, very accurate, and just plain a lot of fun to put shot after shot down range.

The Rekord trigger acquitted itself well (as they always do). The first stage required only 1 lb 2.3 oz, and the second stage just 2 lb 11.8 oz.

Now we come to the part where I need an intervention. After shooting the HW30S De Luxe for a while, a thought (powered by my obsession with the movie Quigley Down Under) crept into my brain: How would this neat little air rifle work with a peep rear sight?

In seconds, I was in the basement, dismounting the scope and the rear sight and mounting a Gamo Super Match rear sight that had been fitted with an anti-recoil pin and a variable aperture.

Okay, I pulled one to the right . . .

A few minutes after that, I shot a neat little group at 13 yards from a sitting position using the globe front sight and peep rear sight. With its light weight and ease of cocking, the HW30S De Luxe is simply great fun to shoot, and I heartily recommend this setup to anyone who wants to shoot as simply as possible.

And that’s why I fully expect friends and family to stage an intervention on me. “Jock, you’ve simply got to stop pretending you’re Matthew Quigley and quit mounting peep sights on every airgun that comes in the door!”

But I won’t stop. No so long as there are delightful air rifles like the HW30S De Luxe that can be fitted with peep sights and shot with immense pleasure.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 16 Comments »

One man’s tale of survival with the Crosman 2100

Monday, September 6, 2010

Ever since I was a kid reading Boy’s Life magazine, I have been fascinated by stories of people who got themselves in a tough spot and how they survived the ordeal. As a result, it is my habit to check out www.survivalblog.com almost every day. It is a fascinating website with lots of information about survival and preparedness.

On August 6, 2010, I was checking out survivalblog when I ran across a post by “D.M.” on “Pellet Rifle Hunting.”  In it, D.M. claims that, due to economic circumstances, he found himself living out of his pickup truck on public lands in the Southwest. During that period, he hunted extensively with a pellet rifle, and it “put at least 70% of the meat on the spit over my fire throughout that summer.”

Further, he adds that “Living in the field for a while really proved out my gear. Sadly and expensively, most fell to the way side, but the [pellet rifle] turned out to be an unlikely sleeper candidate for one of my personal top 10 gear awards!”

So what was his pellet rifle . . . a Weihrauch, an RWS, perhaps a PCP with a pump or maybe a Sheridan? Wrong! – none of the above. The air rifle that sustained D.M. in putting game on the spit was the humble Crosman 2100. The 2100 is a multi-stroke pneumatic (MSP) air rifle that shoots both BBs and .177 pellets and that can be purchased for well under $70.

D.M. has a number of reasons why he favors the 2100:

  • Reliability. He figures he put 3,000 BBs through it at an average of 6 pumps per shot with no failures.
  • Accuracy. He was easily able connect with game within 25 yards.
  • Handling. Just a bit over 5 lbs fully loaded and scaled to be handled by adults.
  • Critter “bagability.” Birds at 50 yards, rabbits at 30 yards, turkeys at 25 yards, raccoons at 10 yards.
  • Variable power. Birds at 5-6 pumps; 10 pumps on bigger game.
  • Stealth. A modest report means greater opportunity for a second shot if needed.

I was fascinated by what D.M. had to say. (You can read his entire report on the survivalblog here: http://www.survivalblog.com/2010/08/pellet_rifle_hunting_by_dm.html). So I called up the folks at Crosman and asked them to send me a 2100 for testing, which they did.

The 2100 stretches 39.75 inches long and weighs 4 lbs, 13 oz. The buttstock is made of brown plastic with a wood grain finish. At the extreme aft end is a hard black plastic butt plate, attached to the stock with a white spacer. There is a black cap on the pistol grip with a white space. If you slide the black plastic cap toward the buttstock, a hole is revealed into which you can pour BBS. More about this in just a bit.

Moving forward, you’ll find a black metal receiver, metal trigger guard, and metal trigger with pushbutton safety. Moving forward again, there is the brown plastic forearm which serves as a pumping arm for pumping up the MSP action. Ahead of that is the black plastic pivot housing and barrel clamp. Above that is the barrel which has a fiber optic sight on the muzzle end. Moving back along the barrel, you’ll find the rear sight mounted on the barrel just forward of the receiver.

Slide the grip cap at the end of the pistol grip toward the rear of the air rifle to load BBs through this hole into the BB reservoir.

This shows the "visual magazine" with the BB follower stem in the forward position.

The BB follower stem in the rear position for loading BBs into the visual magazine.

To load BBs into the 2100, slide the black plastic cap at the end of the pistol grip back and pour up to 200 BBs into the hole. Next, slide the “BB follower stem” on the left side of the receiver toward the buttstock and hook it in the slot. Next, point the barrel at the ground and twist and shake the air rifle to fill the “visual magazine” on the left side of the receiver. Now unhook the BB stem follower and allow it to move forward to hold the BBs in place. Next, pump the 2100 up to ten times, pull the bolt back (it will pick up a BB from the visual magazine on the magnetic tip of the bolt. Slide the bolt forward to its original position.

Now, you’re good to go. Squeeze the trigger. The first stage comes out at 1 lb. 5.7 oz. At about 4 lb. 14 oz., the shot goes down range. At ten pumps, the 2100 launches steel BBs at an average of about 650 fps. But the speed is highly variable. The high was 670 fps, and the low was 637 fps.

The breech closed.

The breech open, ready for loading a pellet.

Loading pellets is much simpler. Pump the 2100 up to ten times, pull the bolt back, roll a pellet laterally into the breech, and close the breech again. Note well: if you plan to shoot pellets, you can’t have any BBs in the visual magazine. Otherwise, the 2100 may try to load both a pellet and a BB. You can, however, have BBs in the buttstock reservoir and shoot pellets at the same time. I found that, at 10 pumps, the 2100 launches Crosman Premier 7.9 gr pellets at an average of 620 fps (high 627, low 616).

So how does the 2100 stack up as a survival tool? I found I could shoot half-inch groups (edge to edge) at 13 yards with Crosman Premier 7.9 pellets, and they would penetrate one and sometimes both sides of a baked beans can at that distance. Groups with BBs were problematic, possibly because of the variation in speed, but the BBs always penetrated both sides of the can at 13 yards. Still, I think the BBs could be effective for ambushing game at close range at places where they come to feed or drink.

The clack-clack-clack sound the gun makes while pumping is non-stealthy and could frighten off game, but gluing a piece of felt inside the pump arm might solve that problem. Nevertheless, the pumping effort was easy.

The iron sights that come with the 2100 work well enough, particularly with the fiber-optic front sight, but older folks (like me) will want some sort of scope. Still, I liked the light weight of the “naked” 2100, and in that form, it makes a dandy plinking rifle.

So, could the Crosman 2100 be used as a small game getter in hard times? I certainly think so. If D.M.’s comments about the reliability of the 2100 are correct, and when you factor in its very modest cost, it makes sense to have a 2100 tucked away, just in case.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 11 Comments »

The Gehmann GP-1 Match Air Pistol

Monday, August 30, 2010

Some years ago a friend who had been the track announcer at Watkins Glen when they still hosted the US Grand Prix told me the following story.

Team Lotus was getting ready for practice. Jim Clark slid into the cockpit of his car, wiggled the steering wheel a fraction of an inch, noticed that the front wheels had not correspondingly moved, and said, “Fix that.” The crew chief nodded and scurried off to fetch the necessary tools. It was clear that everyone involved had “been there, done that” and were professionals committed to getting the job done.

The Gehmann GP-1 pistol

I have a similar feeling about the folks from Gehmann Gmbh & Co. When I cracked open the manual for the GP-1 match air pistol, I was pleased and surprised to see the following:

“An airgun is capable of causing severe injury. Used properly it is a precision instrument designed to function properly. Handle the pistol as if it were loaded at all times. Pull trigger only with the intention of firing. Aim at targets only, never at persons or animals. Keep pistol in a safe place out of reach of children and other unauthorised persons.”

The manual is equally direct when it comes to maintenance. It says, in part:

“We recommend a change of seals every 3 years. Use shoot-through felts to clean the barrel, following manufacturer’s instructions . . . “

It’s clear the crew from Gehmann has been there, done that, and they are committed to getting the job done with professionalism, starting with an excellent manual.

The Gehmann GP-1 is a single-shot, precharged pneumatic air pistol designed for international/Olympic 10-meter competition. It measures 17 inches from end to end and weighs 2.2 lbs. It has a heavily stippled anatomical grip that is fully adjustable for grip angle, muzzle offset, and palm rest position, so no matter what your preference, you can get the GP-1 adjusted to the set-up that suits you best.

Moving forward, the black metal trigger is adjustable for first-stage travel, sear adjustment, trigger weight, overtravel, and fore-and-aft position. Forward of that, the black metal receiver wraps around the trigger slightly to form a trigger guard. Forward of that is the air cylinder. It has a gauge on the end, and the entire cylinder unscrews for charging.

Above the cylinder is the black metal barrel. Gehmann doesn’t specify who makes the barrel, but they furnish a test target shot at 10 meters to demonstrate that it will shoot one-hole groups at that distance. At the end of the barrel is a compensator that helps to eliminate flip and recoil and also serves as a mount for interchangeable front sight blades.

The GP-1 seen from the right with the breech open.

Moving back to the receiver, there is a load lever on top that is easily activated by left or right handed shooters. Just pull the lever up and back, and the breech opens for loading. Drop in a pellet, and return the lever back to its original position, and you’re good to go.

The GP-1 from the left with the breech open. The dry-fire activation lever is visible just below the breech.

On the left hand side of the receiver, there is a lever that activates the dry-fire mode. Finally, at the back end of the receiver, the rear sight can be adjusted for not just windage and elevation, but also for the width and depth of the rear notch. Another screw, hidden under the pistol grip, allows the pellet speed to be adjusted up to 170 meters per second (around 550 fps).

Ultimately, I liked the Gehmann GP-1 a whole lot. It is well documented and offers a wealth of adjustability and accuracy for just a bit more than entry-level precharged match pistols.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 9 Comments »

FAS 609 Match Pistol

Monday, August 23, 2010

There is something about full-out competition equipment that gets my blood moving faster and my heart pumping quicker.

I once got to drive an SCCA national class winning MGB sports car (complete with roll cage, teensy front windshield, five-point harness, and an engine that didn’t even start to breathe deeply until it revved over four grand) and by the time the ride was over, a little voice in my head had begun whispering, “Hey, maybe you need one of these.”

The FAS 609

And so it is with the FAS 609 precharged pneumatic match air pistol. This is a pistol designed for 10-meter international/Olympic style competition. It stretches 16.54 inches from end to end and weighs 2.09 lbs. It is a single shot competition pistol, designed to launch match-grade .177 pellets at about 500 fps.

At the extreme aft end of the 609, the most prominent feature is the highly ergonomic righthand walnut grip. Available in three different sizes (and lefthand version as well) the grip, which has an adjustable palm shelf is designed so that it exactly fits the shooter’s palm and fingers. The finger slide around the grip and seem to just naturally fall into place. The result is that it feels not so much that you are gripping this pistol, but that you are wearing it.

Forward of the grip is the silver-colored metal trigger, which is adjustable for fore-and-aft position, trigger stop, something called trigger “trim,” first stage weight, first stage length, second stage weight, and second stage length. Forward of that is the black metal receiver, which wraps around the trigger slightly to form a trigger guard.

Moving forward again is the silver air cylinder, which has a gauge at the end and which unscrews for charging. Above the air cylinder is the match grade Lothar-Walther barrel which has a compensator at the muzzle that also serves as a mount for the blade-type front sight which can be interchanged with other optional blades to suit the shooter’s preference.. Moving back along the barrel, on the left side of the receiver is a black lever with a silver tab at the end. Lift the tab, and the breech opens for loading.

The FAS 609 with the breech open. The dry-fire activator is that tiny lever visible just below the breech.

On the right side of the receiver is a tiny black metal lever. When the breech is open for loading, this lever can be pulled to the right, and the FAS 609 will be put in dry-fire mode. At the aft end of the receiver is the notch-type rear sight which is, of course, adjustable for elevation and windage. Like the front blade, the rear notch can be changed with optional inserts that the shooter prefers.

The FAS 609 from the left side showing the breech activation lever in the closed position.

To ready the 609 for shooting, unscrew the air cylinder and attach it, using the special fitting, to your pump or SCUBA tank and charge the cylinder to 200 bar. Re-attach the cylinder to the pistol. Pull up the loading lever, place a pellet in the breech, and return the lever to its original position. Take aim at the target, ease the first stage out of the trigger, squeeze a bit more, and the shot goes downrange. Ten meter pistols are usually set up to break the shot at .5 kilograms or about 1.1 lbs.

The accuracy of these 10-meter match pistols is usually staggeringly great. With its Lothar-Walther barrel, I suspect you could clamp the FAS 609 in a vice and put shot after shot through the same hole at 10 meters. I would expect nothing less.

I do, however, have one complaint with the 609: the manual. When you spend 1.3 kilobucks on an air pistol, you ought to get more than four pages (half of which is in Italian) of explanation of how to use and adjust the thing properly. Come on, FAS, an excellent pistol deserves an excellent manual!

Having whined about the manual, I find the actual FAS 609 an entirely worthy air pistol that any 10-meter competitor or casual shooter ought to enjoy for a long, long time.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 2 Comments »

.25 Caliber Marauder

Monday, August 9, 2010

Back in 2004, I had an assignment from SHOT Business magazine to do a profile on Crosman Corporation. As part of putting that together, I had the opportunity to speak at length with Ken D’Arcy, CEO of Crosman.

When D’Arcy arrived at Crosman, the company had been coasting for eight years. Management had not brought a serious new product to market in years, and it was not looking for ways to reduce costs to remain competitive.

“The company was dead,” D’Arcy said. “It just didn’t know it yet. Like many companies that have been around for a long time, it had forgotten what drives the business. Consumer products companies are about just that–consumer products.”

“Clearly the answer is to bring new offerings to market that consumers will want to buy,” D’Arcy said. We’re a consumer products company. Our responsibility is to introduce new products. You become stale if you are only changing the cosmetic appearance of existing products.”

In some four decades of writing for a living, I’ve found that CEOs love saying stuff like “We’re taking the company in a bold new direction,” but it’s not so common for them to actually get it done.

But D’Arcy certainly appears to be making good on his promise. During his tenure at the top, Crosman has introduced dozens of new products including the Discovery rifle, which shattered the price floor for PCP rifles, and, last year, the Marauder PCP rifle which had all the goodies on most airgunners’ Christmas list: quiet, wickedly accurate, excellent trigger, repeater all for about $500.

Among the new products being introduced this year by Crosman is the .25 caliber Marauder. Outwardly the .25 cal Marauder is nearly identical to the .177 and .22 versions. It stretches 43 inches end to end and weighs 7.5 lbs. What’s really interesting is that this is, apparently, Crosman’s first venture into .25 caliber.

The new Marauder is equipped with a .25 barrel manufactured by Green Mountain. The slot in the breech for the magazine is deeper to accommodate the new 8-shot .25 cal rotary magazine, which in turn is deeper to make room for larger .25 pellets. Those are the major differences from the .177 and .22 Marauders. To accompany the new Marauder (and a new .25 cal gas ram rifle to be introduced later this year), Crosman is also introducing Benjamin .25 cal domed and pointed pellets.

I had the opportunity to shoot one of the very first production .25 caliber Marauders. It was my first experience shooting .25 caliber, and I didn’t know what to expect, but I was very quickly delighted. At 35 yards, shooting Benjamin .25 domed pellets, I was easily able to put five shots into a tiny group that you could cover with a dime. Even better, the report was remarkably quiet, and the trigger was well behaved (1 lb 10 oz first stage, 3 lb second stage).

Cliff Tharpe, producer of Airgun Hunting the California Ground Squirrel, has shot similarly tiny groups at 50 and 65 yards with his .25 Marauder, and he routinely hunts prairie dogs at 50-100 yards with it. He finds he can get 16 shots (two magazines) before he has to recharge the air reservoir. Shooting Kodiak pellets, his Marauder generates about 46 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle. He says of his Marauder: “I’ve got a lot of expensive shiny rifles, and when it comes to accuracy, this one shines with the best of them.”

In the end, the Marauder has a whole lot going for it for hunting and pest control: outstanding accuracy, enough power to deal with anything you might reasonably want to hunt with an air rifle, and a very neighbor-friendly report.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 33 Comments »

BSA R10

Monday, August 2, 2010

A couple of years ago, I had a BSA SuperTEN with a bull barrel. It was a really neat air rifle and accurate as the dickens, but there were a couple of things about it that really drove me to distraction: you had to remove the “bottle” (the air reservoir) to recharge the gun, and there was no way to tell how much air pressure was left in the reservoir.

The new BSA R10, available in .177 and .22, is an evolutionary step forward in the SuperTEN concept. The R10 is a so-called “bottle” gun because it has a removable 200cc air bottle at the end of the forestock. It is a multi-shot repeater with a fully shrouded barrel and an excellent trigger.

The R10 is 43 inches long and weighs 7.3 lbs before a scope is mounted. Length of pull from the trigger to the end of the butt pad about 13.75 inches. At the extreme aft end of the R10 is a soft rubber butt pad that is adjustable vertically. Just loosen a screw and slide it up or down as needed. On either side of the stock, near the butt pad, the stock is laser engraved with the BSA logo. On the underside of the butt stock, about two inches from the butt pad, the stock has a fitting for attaching a sling. Forward of that the walnut stock is distinctly right-handed with a pronounced cheek piece and comb on the left hand side of the stock.

The pistol grip has sharply cut checkering on both sides and a nice dark wood cap with a lighter colored spacer. Just above the pistol grip is an indentation is an indentation that the shooter can use as a thumb rest. Forward of the pistol grip is a black metal trigger guard which houses the two-stage adjustable match trigger. The forestock has checkering on both sides and underneath.

Ahead of the trigger guard is a screw that secures the action in the stock. Forward of that is a white-on-black pressure gauge, next to which is a quick-fill port. Beyond that you’ll find another attachment for a sling, followed by dark wood at the end of the forestock with a lighter colored spacer. Beyond that is the air reservoir.

Above the air reservoir is the fully shrouded bull barrel with a ported thread protector at the end. Moving back along the barrel, you’ll find a magazine retaining catch on the left side at the front end of the receiver. The full length of the top of the receiver has a 10.8 mm dovetailed scope rail. About halfway back along the length of the receiver on the left side there is a slot for inserting the 10-shot magazine.

At the rear of the receiver on the left side is a lever-type safety. Push it forward to ready the gun for firing, and pull it back to “safe” the action. At the extreme aft end of the receiver is a large chrome bolt. In all, I find the R10 a handsome air rifle, but I think the finish on the receiver is not quite as nice as I remember on the SuperTEN.

To ready the R10 for shooting, you first have to charge the reservoir, which can be done in two ways. (1) Remove the bottle, and using an optional filling adaptor, charge it to 232 bar with a SCUBA tank or high pressure pump. (2) Insert the filling adaptor supplied with every R10 into the quick-fill port and charge it using a SCUBA tank or high pressure pump. The quick-fill port has a restrictor screw that should be screwed down tightly if you are using a SCUBA tank. BY ALL MEANS, READ THE MANUAL!

There are detailed instructions in the manual for loading the magazine, and it is a pretty straightforward process. Once you have accomplished this, slide the magazine into place and push the bolt forward to slide the first pellet into the barrel.  Take aim at a target, flip the safety off, and squeeze the trigger. At 10.3 oz, the first stage comes out of the trigger. At 1 lb, 14.2 oz, the shot goes off. The trigger is extremely crisp and clean with no creep, very much like the trigger you would find on a 10-meter match rifle.

The .22 caliber R10 sample launched 18.2 grain JSB Exact Heavy pellets at 832 fps (27.98 foot-pounds), and when the shot goes off, you quickly discover where BSA has dropped the ball in the design of the R10: the fully shrouded bull barrel offers no acoustical advantage. There are no baffles in the bull barrel, and, as a result, this gun is loud.

On the other hand, the accuracy was outstanding. At 35 yards shooting from a casual rest, I was able to put 5 shots into a ragged one-hole group that you could easily cover with a dime.

In the end, I can happily recommend the BSA R10 on all fronts – it operates smoothly and efficiently, is commendably accurate, and has a superb trigger. The only exception to that is if your shooting requirements demand a neighbor-friendly report.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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HW50S Stainless

Monday, July 26, 2010

The HW50S Stainless is handsome and weather resistant.

Some years ago, I got caught in a rain storm with a finely made German air rifle. I dashed back to the car as quickly as I could, swabbed off the water with my bandanna, and stashed the rifle in a gun case. When I opened the case that evening, I could see that a tiny bit of rust was already beginning to form in a couple of places on the metal. Frankly, it annoyed me, and it put me on the lookout for an air rifle that could withstand wet weather.

Fast forward a few years, and I managed to obtain a Beeman R1-AW. This was a special version of the legendary Beeman R1 with electroless nickel plating on the metal parts and a black composite stock. Available only as a .20 caliber carbine, it was a beautiful gun, designed to withstand the elements, but jeez-Louise, it was heavy – fully 9.7 pounds just as it came out of the box. The one I bought had a muzzle break on it, which meant a scope was mandatory, raising the ready-to-go weight even more. Eventually I sold the R1-AW because I didn’t want to tote around all that weight.

In 2007, I tested the Weihrauch HW50S in .22 caliber and found it to be a lovely spring-piston air rifle. So imagine my delight when the good folks at Airguns of Arizona surprised me the other day with an “extra” rifle packed in a shipment. It was a Weihrauch HW50S Stainless.

The “Stainless” looks a whole lot like a scaled down version of the R1-AW. It has a stainless metal finish on the action (I suspect it might be the same nickel finish used on the AW) and a black synthetic finish on the wooden stock. The end result is an air rifle, available in .177 or .22, that ought to withstand inclement conditions pretty darned well.

What makes the HW50S Stainless particularly nice is its very manageable size and weight. It’s only 40.5 inches long (the same size as a Beeman R7) and weighs only 6.8 pounds (less than an HW35E or HW85 and nearly 3 pounds lighter than the R1-AW.)

In terms of looks, the Stainless is a study in functionality. You won’t find checkering or other decoration anywhere. At the extreme aft end, there is a brown rubber butt pad with a black spacer and a slight swell for a cheekpiece on the left-hand side of the stock. The forestock extends over the two-piece cocking linkage and breech block, giving the HW50S a more finished appearance rather like a Beeman R1. The two-piece cocking linkage allows the action to be anchored by a single big screw in a steel seat underneath the forestock.

The trigger guard is black metal and fastens to the stock with two screws. Inside is a silver metal Rekord trigger and a silver adjustment screw. . (With the factory settings on the Rekord trigger, the first stage will come out between one and two pounds, and the second stage will go off between three and four pounds, but the Rekord trigger can be adjusted much lighter than that.) The barrel and receiver look like stainless steel. The barrel is 15.5 inches long, and on top of it at the muzzle end you’ll find a black metal globe sight with interchangeable inserts, just like on the R1. The receiver has three holes for anti-recoil pins, and you’ll find a bright red push-button safety at the rear, which looks really snazzy against the silver and black of the rest of the gun.

To get the Stainless ready for shooting, grab the barrel near the front sight, pull it down and back until it latches (I estimate this requires about 32-34 lbs of effort), slide a pellet into the breech, and return the barrel to its original position. Take aim at your target, click the automatic safety off, and ease the first stage out of the trigger, squeeze a bit more, and the shot goes down range. The shot cycle is pretty smooth, with a bit of vibration, but the vibration is more heard than felt. The HW50S Stainless launches JSB Jumbo Exact .22 pellets (15.9 grain) at around 560 fps, which works out to about 11 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle. I wouldn’t want to take on a charging cape buffalo with this air rifle, but it is plenty potent enough for defending the garden.

To my way of thinking, this is an air rifle that just begs for a peep sight.

For accuracy testing, I mounted a scope on the Stainless and found I could easily shoot ragged one-hole groups at 13 yards with the JSB Jumbo Exact pellets. The HW50S is no slouch when it comes to accuracy. Shooting the non-stainless version couple of years ago, I entered a Hunter Class Field Target Match and placed second. Another approach to a sighting system for this gun would be to keep it as lean, mean, and utilitarian as possible and mount a peep sight instead of a scope. I understand Airguns of Arizona is now carrying the full line of Williams sights and can fit the Stainless with a peep sight that will meet your needs.

The bottom line is that the HW50S does a number of things well, and I think many airgunners will really enjoy this versatile and weather resistant air rifle. I know I did.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 8 Comments »

Some thoughts on airgun testing

Monday, July 19, 2010

In many ways I have one of the best jobs in the world. I am a fulltime freelance writer. Most of my time is spent working with high technology and medical organizations, but a sizeable fraction of my time is spent testing airguns for this blog and also for some other venues.

What’s the greatest thing about testing airguns? The opportunity to experiment with lots of different airguns models from many different manufacturers. When a new gun comes gun, very often I will quickly unpack it, mount a scope (if one is necessary), and go outside and shoot it, just to get a quick first impression of what the gun is all about. These first impressions are often quite useful, but they aren’t always correct. Sometimes I make notes of anything unusual or surprising that I discover.

After the first impression, there is the detailed examination of the gun from buttplate to barrel crown, followed by the gathering of data: chronograph information, trigger pull, weight, length, and so forth. Finally, I shoot the gun for accuracy, sometimes out to distances of 50 yards (which requires going to the range), but sometimes at 13 yards or 35 yards, which are distances I can manage without leaving home.

Over the decade or so that I have been writing about airguns, I’ve developed some rules for testing airguns that might prove useful to you in your own testing:

  1. Ignore the looks of the gun. A gorgeous gun can shoot well, but so can an ugly gun. Of course, it’s doubly nice if you find a great-looking gun that’s a real tack-driver.
  2. Let the gun speak for itself. Don’t pre-judge based on anything. If there is one thing that drives me nuts, it’s people who decide that a particular gun can’t possibly be any good, based on absolutely no first-hand experience. Good manufacturers have occasionally produced less than admirable guns, and manufacturers who have a reputation for producing inexpensive airguns have sometimes fashioned some real winners.
  3. Let the gun chose the ammo. Sometimes you’ll have to try lots of different ammo to get something that works well in a particular gun; sometimes you’ll get it on the first try.
  4. Remember the price/performance curve. All airguns are built to be brought to the market at a particular price. Sometimes you can get really excellent performance for not a lot of money. For more money, you’ll usually get more: superb performance, outstanding fit and finish, and often more or advanced features.
  5. Keep in mind there is no such thing as a “perfect” airgun. Perfection depends on the characteristics that are most important to the shooter and what the intended application is.

What’s the thing I have the most concern about? Accuracy testing. Just because I got a particular accuracy result with a certain gun and pellet combination, that doesn’t necessarily mean that if you buy the same model gun and use the same pellets, you will get the same results. Similarly, I’ve seen guys reporting results that I have been unable to duplicate. It bothers me a little, but I don’t know what to do about it, so I shoot the best I can and report the results.

Finally, what’s the worst thing about testing airguns? Packing and unpacking them. It’s a fussy business, and I swear those Styrofoam peanuts have a mind of their own.

Still, airgun testing is a lot of fun, and I really enjoy hearing from the people who read this blog.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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The Brocock Concept

Monday, July 12, 2010

The Brocock Concept has a whole lot going for it.

Not long ago, on the “Yellow” airgun forum, someone posted a question: “What was the PCP equivalent of the beloved Beeman R7?” The R7 is highly praised by many airgunners because it is relatively light, simple, accurate, and just plain fun.

I think I have found the answer, for me anyway: the Brocock Concept. We’ll get to the particulars in just a moment, but first some background.

Now, if you recall from previous blogs on Brocock, the company was nearly driven out of business by changes in British law. But the folks at Brocock didn’t quit, and they took what could have been a deathblow as an opportunity to get stronger and better. One of the truly smart things they did was to hire the designer from Falcon Pneumatics (now defunct), who promptly designed a new line of precharged pneumatic air rifles and pistols for Brocock. These airguns are all based on a common action and trigger, to which reservoirs, barrels, and so forth are added to produce the desired airgun.

The Brocock Concept is one of those airguns. I tested the .22 version with a walnut stock, and it’s a beauty. It stretches just a yard overall and weighs only 6 pounds without a scope. Starting at the rear of the Concept is a soft rubber butt pad that is adjustable vertically; just loosen a screw and slide it up or down.

The butt pad can be adjusted vertically.

Moving forward, the buttstock is fully ambidextrous, with a raised cheek piece on either side. The pistol grip is checkered with a slight palm swell on either side. At the top of the pistol grip is a depression for resting your thumb while shooting. Forward of the pistol grip is a black metal trigger guard, inside of which is a black metal trigger that can be adjusted for first stage travel and weight. The length of pull from trigger to butt pad is about 14.25 inches.

Just ahead of the trigger guard is a bolt that secures the action in the stock. The forestock is slender and tapered with checkering on either side. At the far end of the forestock is the air reservoir, which has a screw-off cap that protects a male Foster fitting for filling the air rifle. Above that is the barrel, which also has a screw-off fitting that can be removed for fitting a sound moderator where legal.

Just back of the muzzle is a barrel band that secures the barrel to the air reservoir. Moving all the way back along the barrel, you’ll find the receiver, which has dovetails for fitting a scope both fore and aft of the breech. On the right rear side of the receiver is a small lever, and at the very tail end of the receiver you’ll find a small contoured knob that serves as the end of the bolt.

A small lever at the rear of the receiver on the right side releases the bolt.

That’s it: the Concept is about a simple as a PCP rifle can be.

To ready the Concept for shooting, unscrew the end cap on the air reservoir, attach a SCUBA tank or high pressure pump, and charge it to 2900 psi. Depress the small lever on the right side of the receiver, and the bolt springs backward, opening the breech. At this point, you can load a pellet into the breech and push the knob at the end of the bolt to close the breech, but the rifle will not be cocked. (From a practical standpoint for hunters, this means that you can load the Concept without cocking it and walk around all day without worrying that an errant twig might discharge a shot. Then, when you’re ready to shoot, just press the breech lever, pull the bolt all the way back and close the breech, and you’re good to go.)

To cock the action for shooting, from the breech-open position, you have to grab the knob at the end of the bolt and pull it backwards until it clicks. Load a pellet, close the breech by pushing the bolt knob fully forward, and you are ready to launch a pellet. Note well: this rifle has no safety of any kind. When it is loaded, keep your finger out of the trigger guard until you are ready to shoot.

Now, take aim, ease the first stage out of the trigger (this takes only 7 ounces of pressure) and at 1 lb. 3.4 oz, the shot goes down range. The Concept launches JSB .22 Jumbo Express pellets at about 667 fps average, and will deliver about 40 shots per fill (see the chart below). Since this rifle has no gauge for letting you know how much pressure is left in the reservoir, I suggest counting out 40 pellets, putting them in a small container like a pill bottle, and when the container is empty, you know it is time to refill the reservoir.

Fooling around from a very casual rest in my yard, I found that, at 13 yards, I could put shot after shot through the same hole. Not just “sorta” the same hole, I mean the exact same hole. I would be astonished if this rifle can’t shoot dime sized groups at 35 yards and well under an inch groups at 50 yards.

In all, I found the Concept is light, simple, handy, and delightfully accurate. I think a  lot of airgunners will enjoy owning and shooting this air rifle.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 4 Comments »

Further Quigley Experimentation

Monday, July 5, 2010

My wife never wanted to turn me into an obsessed maniac, but that was the unintended consequence of a kind act. In late 2001, she came home with a gift for me: a copy of the movie Quigley Down Under.

This is where the trouble began.

In brief, it’s the story of a Wyoming rifleman and cowboy who answers a newspaper ad from an Australian rancher for “The World’s Best Long Distance Marksman.” Quigley shows up down under with a Sharps 45-70 (modified to take a special 110-grain cartridge) with an extra-long barrel, a globe front sight, and a tang vernier rear peep sight. In his first interview with his would-be employer, Quigley hits a bucket repeatedly at a distance of several hundred yards, shooting offhand with open sights.

At the heart of it, that scene embodies what all riflemen wish they could be: thoroughly familiar with their weapon, fully aware of the effect of environmental conditions, and ready to make a few adjustments and pull off an incredibly long shot with precision.

I began to wonder if I might not be able to replicate Matthew Quigley’s spectacular bucket shot — in a scaled-down version — with an airgun. Ted Osborn and I came to the conclusion that the standard of performance for an airgun should be: three shots into a 1.75 inch high bucket target at a distance of 55 yards with non-magnified sights. A few days after our conversation, the mailman showed up with an envelope. In it was a drawing of a bucket, perfectly scaled for 55-yards, with an invitation from Ted to photocopy to my heart’s content and “have at it.”

The bucket target. Feel free to copy and print it. The total height from top to bottom should be 1.75 inches.

After various failed attempts, I finally succeeded with a .22 Career PCP rifle outfitted with a special front sight. That was in 2002. Eight years later, in 2010, there is still something bugging me about this whole Quigley thing; I’d like to be able to hit the bucket with a self-contained air rifle like a multi-stroke pneumatic or a springer.

The Career was the first gun I succeeded with.

Larry Durham (also known as LD), an engineer and airgun enthusiast of deep experience, suggests that perhaps that the only self-contained air rifle that could get the job done would be an RWS 54, a recoilless sidelever springer. I also ask LD if he knows anyone who could mount a globe front sight and a tang vernier rear sight on a Sheridan. He says, “Send me the gun and the sights, and I’ll see what I can do.”

At this point in the Quigley Project, three parallel threads are underway at the same time. 1) I’m experimenting with mounting a globe front sight and peep rear sight on a .177 RWS 54. 2) Larry Durham is mounting a globe front sight and rear tang sight on the Silver Streak Sheridan that I sent him. 3) I obtain a Feinwerkbau 150 match rifle in an FWB 300 stock.

Fast forward a few months, and here’s the situation. 1) I have mounted the sights on the RWS 54, and I think it will work. 2) Larry Durham has mounted the sights, done what he can to accurize the Sheridan I sent, and has offered the opinion that he doesn’t think this particular rifle is a particularly accurate Sheridan. He thinks maybe it will hold 1.5 inches at 55 yards. 3) I’ve been fooling around with the FWB 150 and find that it shoots pretty darn well out to about 35 yards with domed pellets and the factory match sights.

Finally, in early May, 2010, Dick Johnson (a centerfire benchrest competitor) and I load up the gear and trundle out to the Brunswick Sportsman’s Club to see what we can do. Dick’s job is to act as my spotter; with the non-magnifying sights I am using, I have no idea where my shots are landing. Today, I am shooting off a rest because my goal is to see if the rifles have the necessary accuracy to hit the target.

This the the view from my shooting station at 55 yards. That white square in the distance is comprised of 9 bucket targets.

The first rifle I try is the Quigley Sheridan (QS) that Larry Durham assembled for me. It truly is a wonder: LD had epoxied a globe front sight with level onto the Sheridan’s original blade sight. At the rear, he had routered the stock to create slot where the tang vernier sight could be mounted. I flip the rear sight into position, and the sight picture is perfect. As I look through the pinhole in the disk of the rear sight, I can see the front globe perfectly framed. Inside that, there is an aperture sight disk like the Olympic shooters use.

The Quigley Sheridan is one of a kind.

It takes a few shots to get the Quigley Sheridan zeroed at 55 yards, and the process is made more difficult by the slight bend that was imparted to the rear sight during shipping. I give the QS six pumps, feed a .20 cal JSB domed pellet into the breech, and cut loose. The trigger is simply the best I’ve ever shot in a pump gun – a single stage trigger that goes off reliably at about 1.25 lbs. With the first four shots (after zeroing) I tag the bucket twice. With the next three shots at another target, I hit the bucket once. I try again, but find I can’t hit the bucket three times in succession.

The rear sight was slightly bent in transit, but still works. I was later able to straighten it.

The big problem with this shot, I find, is the optical challenge that vexed me from the start: at 55 yards, a 1.75 inch bucket is just plain hard to see. It looks like a spec floating in front aperture. By comparison, the black part of the international 50-meter smallbore target is roughly 3.5 inches in diameter, and the standing target that Olympic biathletes shoot at 50 meters is 4.5 inches in diameter.

Further, I have a personal problem: the 8 years that have elapsed since I first shot the bucket with the Career air rifle have not been kind to my eyes. The eye doctor tells me that where I once had vision in my right eye that corrects to 20/15, it now is a shaky 20/20. Nevertheless, I am determined to see what I can accomplish.

Up next is the FWB 150. It is a transitional model with the action mounted in an FWB 300 stock. It has a globe front sight in which I mount a Matthew Quigley style post-and-bead insert and a peep rear sight. The FWB 150 is a recoilless spring piston match air rifle from the early days of 10-meter air rifle competition.

The FWB 150 acquitted itself well for an old match rifle.

After cranking up the rear sight so that the pellet will hit the target at 55 yards, on two different targets I find that I can hit the bucket with a .177 JSB pellet once out of every five shots. The optical problem has struck again: at this distance, the tiny bead on top of the post in the front sight is larger than the bucket. I have to approximate center the bead on the bucket by raising the sight up from below or by sliding it over the bucket from the side.

Finally, the recoilless RWS 54 gets its turn at bat. I have fitted the front globe sight with a very slender Lee Shaver black powder silhouette post and bead insert and a Gamo match rear sight that has been drilled to fit an anti-recoil pin. Unfortunately, I am not able to hit the bucket at all with this setup. I got close – really close – but then suddenly the shots would wander off. This air rifle is wickedly accurate at 50 yards with a scope mounted, so I think the recoil of this powerful air rifle is causing the rear sight to work loose.

The mightly RWS 54 was apparently rattling the rear sight, but this same gun has demonstrated all the necessary accuracy with a scope mounted.

In the end, I succeeded a little bit – I was able to hit the bucket a few times with self-contained air rifles, but not three times in a row.

What did I learn from this adventure? That attempting the Quigley bucket shot is a lot of fun, that the 1.75 inch bucket looks really tiny at 55 yards, and that trying to do the Hard Thing is enjoyable even if you don’t completely succeed. But maybe I can teach myself to shoot lefthanded so I can use my better eye; maybe I can do something to improve the contrast and visibility of the bucket; maybe I can improve the rear sight on the RWS 54, or maybe a 1X scope would work . . .  Once I am convinced that I have a gun and sighting system that works, I’ll take it to the next level: trying it standing, like Quigley does in the movie.

The Spirit of Quigley lives on, and you’re invited to join in the fun. Feel free to copy the bucket target poster here and try it yourself!

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Posted in Airguns | 12 Comments »

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