Yet Another Air Rifle

[Jeff Higgins]

Oops, I did it again - bought another air rifle. I tell you, with the .22 rimfire ammo situation the way it is, and the lack of availability of powders for reloading, I would have used up my modest supply of both a long time ago if it were not for air rifles and pistols. As kind of a happy side benefit of having "rediscovered" the air powered arm, I can see myself continuing with them even after the current situation with "real" guns runs its course. They are an awful lot of fun, and I don't have to drive anywhere to shoot them.

Anyway, all of that aside, I bought another RWS Diana German made spring piston rifle. This one is the Model 48, in .22 caliber. It's a bit unusual in that the barrel is fixed, and it uses a side lever to cock it. This one is a real powerhouse, too, easily generating 22 to 23 foot pounds of energy with the right pellets. H&N Field Target Trophy round nose, 14.66 grain pellets seem to be its favorites. Ten shot groups across the back yard (about 30 yards) cut one ragged hole. These pellets leave the muzzle at about 840 fps, a huge increase over my RWS 34 break barrel that starts them at about 570 fps. The difference is very noticeable - I can't wait to try it out on some rats...

[Bill Douglas]

Jeff, you would enjoy a Monsoon FX FX Airguns » The Monsoon but they are overpriced.

[red-beard]

I picked up Umarex Octanes in both .177 and .22. With Standard pellets, 1050 FPS.

Umarex Octane .22 Cal

[onewhippedpuppy]

Jeff, you must have one hell of a toy cabinet. Very cool stuff.

[71scgc]

RWS 350 Magnum in .177 here.
Most powerful breakbarrel made. IIRC ~1300 FPS
On loan to a bud in Okla. for tree rat control.
Carter

[Henry Schmidt]

Hey Jeff, we're going to have to stop meeting like this.

Here's mine from the old days.

Feinwerkbau (FWB) 300 10 meter training rifle. German made and imported by Beeman and Daisey.

[Cajundaddy]

A very nice rat rifle Jeff. I have a Model 34 in .177 that has served me well for 15 yrs but the added stopping power of 22cal would be handy sometimes. I tend to aim for the throat and drop them where they stand but If I shoot center mass, they will sometimes scurry off into the bushes. Then I send the dog in to retrieve it.

[Evans, Marv]

I bought the same rifle in .177 about 5 years ago to get rid of the many ground squirrels around my place. Worked like a charm after I got it zeroed in. Not had many around for a few years now, although I spotted two in the last couple of days to eliminate. The thing has an amazingly flat trajectory. I haven't considered a scope since I don't seem to need one. I'm really glad I bought it.

[nota]

springs, single pump or multi-pump for pellet guns ?

I like multi pump to vary the power

[Jeff Higgins]

Very nice rifle, Henry. Much nicer than today's billet aluminum pre-charged pneumatic match rifles.

Nota, I love my pumpers - both a 1963 and a 1979 Sheridan Blue Streak, and a new Benjamin 392. All three are modified by Tim McMurray of MAC 1 Airguns into what he calls his "steroid" pneumatic. They will now take up to 14 pumps with no ill affects, and all generate over 20 foot pounds of energy when you want them to. For plinking in the basement/garage, four pumps tones them down nicely.

It is, however, a good deal of work to pump these things 14 times. The RWS 48 matches them for power with one relatively easy stroke of its cocking lever. It's a trade off, in that the RWS cannot be toned down for quiet indoor, close range work.

And speaking of airgun "power", there sure is an awful lot of advertising hype out there. "1000 fps" seems to be the holy grail of .177 air rifles. The vast majority that claim to achieve that magic number only do so through the use of unreasonably light pellets, with plastic skirts and such. Standard weight pellets typically fall several hundred feet per second below the advertised velocity. A good example is my RWS 34, which claims 800 fps in .22 caliber. My chronograph reveals it does more like 570 fps with the "standard" weight .22 pellet - 14.5-ish grains.

That's one of the pleasant surprises with the new model 48 - RWS claims 900 fps in .22 caliber, and it actually achieves 840 with standard pellet weights. That effectively doubles the muzzle energy of the model 34.

I do like the .22 caliber springers for hunting; I feel that the larger pellet, even at lower velocity, simply hits much harder. The best hunting pellet I've used so far, though, is the .20 caliber (5mm) 14.5 grain pellet used in the Sheridans. They are more of a cylindrical shape, with a solid front half, instead of the hollow pellets with the deep waists. They seem to penetrate much better because of those design features.

As far as scopes, I do much prefer my rifles (even centerfires and rimfires) without them. Alas, my rat blasting is done at night, with a green LED flashlight illuminating my bait station. I just can't see the little buggers well enough to hit them without a scope. When they are audacious enough to show their ugly little mugs in the daylight, I grab a peep sighted Sheridan, but spotlighting them demands a scope.

Oh, and what the hell - I've posted this before, but here's a pic of my favorite air gun, my 1963 Sheridan Blue Streak. Found underwater in a ditch when I was 12 years old. Check out the wood on this old girl - they don't even make centerfires with wood like this anymore, and this was no more than an air rifle:

[Henry Schmidt]

Here's a little contrast:
1930s ? bolt action 22 cal BENJAMIN FRANKLIN




Late 70s, truly accurate Model 65 FWB .177






Mid 80s, electric trigger Model 7238 FWB .177

[sketchers356]

Cool air rifles. I used to love shooting mine.

[rfuerst911sc]

In 1968 my family went to Germany as they thought it was good for me to meet my only living grandparent. I was 10 years old. We went many places that my mom/dad visited when they were younger including sporting stadiums, beer gardens etc. it was great. My great grandfather and grandfather were marksman in the German armies and my dad took me to the local gun shop that apparently had been around forever. We walked out of there with a Diana single shot .177 air rifle. It was the type you crack the barrel in front of the stock, slide in a pellet and close the barrel. I remember it being very accurate and a real quality piece. Had a very nice adjustable rear sight. And the woodwork was very nice for being " just a pellet gun ". I gave it to my oldest son years ago this thread has reminded me we need to get her out and shoot. Thanks for posting and nice score !

[dw1]

Jeff, congrats - a very nice piece.

Very impressive energy, and thanks for the pellet details.

I'm interested in your opinion of the side-cocking (vs. split barrel or under barrel) after you've used it a bit. Btw, are you right or left-handed? I ask because it looks like the lever can't be moved to the other side.

[weseeeee]

Those things are way cool. I have an old crossman air rifle that I use as a snake charmer but it's nothing like the pics ya all posted. P.S. it takes a steady trigger finger to hit a snake with a bb

[Jeff Higgins]

I'm already starting to form a few opinions on the side lever gun. First and foremost, while it certainly has the power, it's no hunting rifle in the sense of getting out and walking around with it. It is very heavy; next to my big black powder match rifles, it is the heaviest rifle in the house. I bet it goes in excess of ten pounds. That in itself wouldn't be so bad, but the side lever makes it ungainly as can be. There is just no comfortable way to get your hand around or under it to carry it. So, it's more of a "fixed position" rifle, like a varmint rifle used over a prairie dog town.

I do like the side lever for ease of cocking such a heavy spring. I put the butt in the front of my hip joint and pull down, offering far more leverage than I think I would ever get with a break barrel. I am right handed, so it's really convenient for me. Lefties would be fussing with it a bit more, changing hands to cock and shoot. The lever cannot be moved to the other side.

The other things that stand out are the accuracy and consistency regarding point of impact. Springers are notorious hold and rest sensitive, due to all of the "recoil" (caused by the moving spring and piston) happening before the pellet even starts to move. As a result, most string shots vertically, shooting higher from harder rests and lower from softer rests. Even how tightly it is gripped and pulled into the shoulder makes a difference. My Model 34 changes point of impact vertically over 2" at 30 yards from a benchrest to offhand.

The Model 48 does not seem to share this bad habit. Maybe it's the weight, maybe it's the fixed barrel - at any rate, it does not change point of impact with changing rests or holds. I like that a lot; it's one of the traits that endears the old pumpers to me - they don't "recoil", so they behave more like firearms, in that they are not very hold sensitive. It's nice to have found a springer with this same forgiving nature.

Speaking of the pumpers, the chronograph revealed some other interesting data the other day.
The Model 48 averages 840 fps with the 14.66 grain H&N Field Target Trophy for 22.97 foot pounds of energy, where the Steroid Benjamin 392 pumper averages 794 fps for about 20 foot pounds. The big springer handily beats the modified pumper. However, when shooting the 25.4 grain JSB pellet, the Model 48 only manages 580 fps (18.97 ft lbs) while the pumper gets it up to 650 fps (23.83 ft lbs). The springer clearly loses a bit of efficiency as pellet weight increases, where the pumper gains efficiency.

I have some 18 grain pellets on order; I am curious just where the "tip over" point is on the springer. Maybe the 14.66 grain pellet will prove to be its most efficient. Or, maybe even a lighter pellet, like 11 grains or so. I'm reluctant to drop pellet weight for velocity, though, since ballistic coefficient starts to really suffer and makes a big difference even at moderate airgun ranges. That, and as I stated above, too light can actually damage a powerful springer, which relies somewhat on the damping action inherent in a heavier pellet.

Anyway, fun stuff to play with. If only the rats knew just how much went into shooting their ugly little selves... maybe they'd be flattered...