Which airgun should I buy?

[dev]

any idea if they have a V mach or similar tuning kit for gasrams - specifically for the HW90 ?

my other earlier question - any idea why airgunbbs have stopped registrations ?

If I'm not widely off the mark the hw 90 is a gas ram. I tried one for a while but the cocking effort and noisy discharge didn't make me a convert.

Regards,

Dev

[Mack The Knife]

Just read that Theoben has Gas Rams which can be installed on HW80's / Beeman R1s Anyone have any experience with this ? I really hope this has not been posted before !!!

It is a very simple operation but these are pre-set gas struts whose pressure cannot be increased nor decreased. They are available in sub-12 ft.lbs. and FAC levels for HW80/K/R1 in .177" and .22" cal.

Yes, the HW90/K use a gasram power plant. If you look on the right side of the breech block you will see Theoben mentioned.

[hotshot]

How are Theoben Air rifles ? Has any body used or owned one ? Are they reliable and sturdy like say a Weihrauch ? What about spares, repairs etc. Easy, difficult, expensive ? In my search for a Air rifle i have even given the Eliminator a thought. Could anyone comment about this model ? Say how does it compare to a HW90 ... Sorry too many questions. Thanks

[Shamsher]

Hotshot,
Like you said before, you would be in the UK to buy your air rifle.
You could visit one of the shooting clubs there. Try the rifles out at the range & decide for yourself.

If you still feel the Thobean / HW / RWS, to be below par.
The folks at Holland's & Purdey's would be rather delighted to have you as a customer for a tailor make a double barrel air rifle for you. You could have the left barrel .177 & the right one .22

TenX could provide you more details about the power plant, be it a CO2, Pneumatic, or a springer
(I understand you would prefer to put your old cycle pump to use here. Maybe you should carry that with you to London)

Wishing you luck.

SS

[Mack The Knife]

How are Theoben Air rifles ? Has any body used or owned one ? Are they reliable and sturdy like say a Weihrauch ? What about spares, repairs etc. Easy, difficult, expensive ? In my search for a Air rifle i have even given the Eliminator a thought. Could anyone comment about this model ? Say how does it compare to a HW90 ... Sorry too many questions. Thanks

Theoben make good rifles but their prices are way up north. The Eliminator is a FAC only rifle and it will not be handed over to you in the U.K. unless you have the required paper-work. At 28 ft.lbs. (in .22" cal.) it will fail the Deal wood test and will be confiscated or detained unless you can get an Indian Arms Licence for it.

[ai]

At 28 ft.lbs. (in .22" cal.) it will fail the Deal wood test

Do we have test data for this? I ask because I will try this out in January during my vacation, but from the wood I could manage in Mumbai, through and through penetration seems unlikely with any airgun and pellet combination.

[tirths]

hotshot, why don't you think of BAM series. They are not costly accurate and powerful enough. Once you get used to with it you can think to have another one.

If you have bigger budget, go for few different variety.

-Tirtha

[tirths]

At 28 ft.lbs. (in .22" cal.) it will fail the Deal wood test

Do we have test data for this? I ask because I will try this out in January during my vacation, but from the wood I could manage in Mumbai, through and through penetration seems unlikely with any airgun and pellet combination.

IF you are not caught, you can keep firearm as well . Some reason, if you are caught, 28ft lb can give you lot more trouble than you can think of. Think twice buddy.

[ai]

I agree, but is it certain that 28FtLbs or any other energy level will fail the test? I have my doubts that ANY airgun will fail the test with the energy level I have tried out with the wood available to me now. I can try with Deal wood later, but am asking if anyone has any data. For all we know, we are worried over nothing!

Does any of us have experience of our airgun being tested? How exactly is it done? What was the outcome?

For anyone having data, or attempting to obtain it through trials, I would suggest that we do the test as scientifically as possible. The pellet type (hard/soft/pointed/etc); wood's moisture content (easily measured through any upmarket wood supplier/plywood manufacturer/wood seasoning plant/furniture factory), support behind the wood allowing it to move/not move etc will matter. The softest Indian wood I know of is 'Partal' (don't know English name but it is the whitest available, tree grows in marshy soil), and I'd like to hear of an airgun capable of sending a pellet through an inch of it!

[ai]

How are Theoben Air rifles ? Has any body used or owned one ? Are they reliable and sturdy like say a Weihrauch ? What about spares, repairs etc. Easy, difficult, expensive ? In my search for a Air rifle i have even given the Eliminator a thought. Could anyone comment about this model ? Say how does it compare to a HW90 ... Sorry too many questions. Thanks

Theoben are amongst the best, if not the best, in Spring and PCPs. I have not owned one, but tried the Rapid Mk1, and seen/held most of them. In spring, I have shot the SLR owned by a cousin. Very good and well crafted, but as Mr. Mack the knife said- expensive. In PCP (where a point missed out in other posts is the Bottle for air- as opposed to a Tube, gives more shots per fill due to higher capacities and presure, and IMO look better), BSA Superten is better value for money as per retailers and IMO (I could have easily taken Theoben Rapid Mark3 or the new TTR1, but took Superten in .22). Very reliable and sturdy. Spares are as easy/difficult as any other. Repairs- if nobody in India can manage, PM me. Eliminater v/s HW90- Eliminator has High Efficiency (HE) Gas Ram- it is more powerful and easy to cock.

Check out FX airguns- that'll be my next!

Sorry, too many answers!

[hotshot]

Thank you ai ... thats was informative and covers most of what i wnated to know.

[hotshot]

Mack The Knife and our other experienced members -
Between a Tuned HW80 (V-Mach for example) and a stock HW90 (As i understand from your earlier write ups that HW90 cannot be tuned) what would be the performance comparison / Difference in Muzzle velocity and Energy. I understand that a HW90 at 24 bars ram pressure has roughly 19 foot/pounds muzzle energy with Barracuda Diablo pellets. I know that in all other aspects the tuned HW80 will be definitely better.
Thanks in advance

[tirths]

Finally which one you are deciding??

[Mack The Knife]

If you get a Maglaza tune (FAC equivalent of a Lazaglide tune) done on your HW80K, Steve will set the rifle at 20 ft.lbs. with pellets weighing in the H&N FTT range. The '80 can go higher by a couple of ft.lbs. but it is a foolish person who would sacrifice accuracy and a beautiful firing cycle for an extra couple of ft.lbs..

All my friends have derated the power on their HW90s (five to be exact) to approximately 18.5 ft.lbs. for the simple reason that they just could not shoot the rifle accurately with a relatively largish selection of pellets. At 18.5 ft.lbs. the accuracy is good but not in the league of a full blown Venom tuned '80k.

I repeat, do not buy either model if it has the standard length barrel. You can shorten the barrel but you will loose the choke and the front sight grooves in both cases.

[mundaire]

At 28 ft.lbs. (in .22" cal.) it will fail the Deal wood test

Do we have test data for this? I ask because I will try this out in January during my vacation, but from the wood I could manage in Mumbai, through and through penetration seems unlikely with any airgun and pellet combination.

The test is detailed here - http://indiansforguns.com/viewtopic.php?t=2335

The relevant portion is pasted below:

(3) Air guns, air rifles and air pistols which satisfy the following test, namely that - the projectiles discharged from such guns or pistols do not perforate a target 12 inches square formed by deal-wood boards of even grain, free from knots, planed on both sides and of thickness of 1/2" and 1" for air pistols and air guns/ rifles respectively:
Provided that in making and estimating the test the following conditions shall be observed, namely:-

(a) the weapon shall be held horizontally with the muzzle at a distance of five feet from the target,

(b) the test shall be repeated twenty times for each class of projectiles which can be discharged from the weapon; and

(c) perforation shall be deemed to be effected-
(i) in a case where the projectile is a dart, if the point of the dart pierces the back of the target, and
(ii) in any other case if the projectile passes completely through the back of the target.

Provisions of the Act (which the above are exempted from)

All; provided that the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, retain all or any of the provisions of the Act in respect of air pistols or of any class thereof in the case of any class of persons or of any specified area.

HTH

Cheers!
Abhijeet