by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier
Hakim is Egypt’s air rifle trainer for their 8mm battle rifle.
This report covers:
- Shoot directly off the bag
- Eley Wasps
- RWS Superpoints
- JSB Exact Jumbo RS
- Summary
We will shoot the .22 caliber Hakim trainer today and see what the old classic is capable of. I think you will be surprised.
Shoot directly off the bag
Because the Hakim is so mild-mannered and also because it weighs 10 lbs. 7 oz., which is heavier than an M1 Garand, I rested it directly on the bag rather than use the artillery hold. I shot at 10 meters and put 10 shots into each group. The first group landed in the bull but a little to the left, and I just went with that sight setting for the rest of the test.
Eley Wasps
First up were vintage Eley Wasp pellets that can’t be purchased anymore. I bought many tins of them years ago when the price was right. This pellet is larger than a conventional .22 pellet (5.6mm, as opposed to 5.5mm) and it works well in those British airguns that have oversized bores.
At 10 meters 10 pellets went into a group that measures 0.78-inches between centers. That’s good, but not spectacular. If other pellets can beat it I won’t use this pellet in the Hakim because I want to save them for my Webley pistols and any other old airguns I may acquire that really need them.
The old 5.6mm Eley Wasp pellets that are no longer available shoot well, but perhaps not the best. Ten are in 0.78-inches between centers.
RWS Superpoints
The next pellets I tried were the RWS Superpoints that I have always said were the best in this rifle. Ten of these went into 0.673-inches at 10 meters. I think that’s pretty good for this old rifle. As you can see in the picture, all the pellets landed in one ragged hole.
Now we are talking! Ten RWS Superpoints went into 0.673-inches at 10 meters
I have always said the reason Superpoints do so well in the Hakim is their thin skirt. It blows out and seals the bore when you shoot. Because the Hakim is a taploader, the pellet has to fit into a chamber in the tap that is larger than the bore. This expansion of the skirt is an important thing if you want to keep all the air behind the pellet. People have misinterpreted my remarks in the past and used the RWS Superdome instead of the Superpoint. Superdomes have thicker skirts and do not perform well in this rifle, in my experience.
JSB Exact Jumbo RS
There is, however, another pellet with a thin skirt. The JSB Exact Jumbo RS has a very thin skirt. And it is known to perform quite well in lower-powered spring rifles, which the Hakim certainly is. Reader Pete in the Caribbean suggested that I try them and I agreed. So the last pellet I tried was the RS. And, boy, am I glad that I did!
At 10 meters 10 JSB Exact Jumbo RS pellets went into a group that measures 0.348-inches between centers. This is significantly smaller than the RWS Superpoint group, and it was shot with 10 pellets. The odds of getting a group this small by accident are incredibly small!
Now that’s a group! Ten JSB Exact Jumbo RS pellets went into just 0.348-inches at 10 meters.
Summary
The Hakim trainer is one great vintage air rifle! It’s large, bold, heavy and shoots like a dream. In .22 caliber only, it’s lower-powered yet surprisingly accurate and of course very smooth shooting.
The Hakim is easy to overhaul and rebuild with parts that can still be purchased today. The trigger is very adjustable and safe, as long as you don’t try to set it too light.
The rifle is quirky-looking but it’s also a very solid underlever spring-piston airgun. Prices keep rising, so get one now while they are still available.
And thanks to Pete in the Caribbean for the suggestion of the JSB Exact Jumbo RS pellet. It’s now my number one choice for the Hakim.
A very interesting test. Looks like that old rifle is a keeper. You mentioned the Eley Wasp pellets that you want to save for your Webley pistols. I have a modern vintage Webley Tempest. Does the modern Tempest also have the oversize bore and should I look for larger 22 pellets then are easily obtainable. The Tempest I have was made in Turkey.
Thank you for the test
Harvey
K7uqshooter,
I do not think that you will have a problem with your Tempest. I used to have a UK Tempest in .177 and I do not recall any of the pellets I tried in it seeming to fit loosely.
When you load a pellet, if it seems to just about drop in, you might try a larger head size pellet. PA sells some H&N that are up to 5.55mm and some JSB that are up to 5.52mm.
Harvey,
I would be very surprised if the modern Tempest has an oversized bore. I think the tooling used to make them is all new. Also, the problem was only in the .22 caliber, as I recall.
B.B.
BB,
Now that is how an air rifle should shoot. I would have to see if my old, tired eyes could stretch that out to 25 yards. I enjoy shooting spinners and feral soda cans at that range with my old BSA.
Ridgerunner,
A Hakim might be able to do 25 yards, but I think you would have to do an awful lot of compensating for drop. They are not powerhouses.
Michael
Michael,
Neither is my BSA. It was designed for 10 yard competition. That’s what makes it fun.
RR
With you on the 25 yards. I bet it would be a fun can killer.
Don’t you know it.
It shouldn’t really come as a surprise that the Hakim can shoot, it’s made by Anschutz, probably the only company I can think of that make a barrel better than Walther
Secondly, and this will sound a little like pedantry, the older British guns do not have oversized bores. They are .22 so, rather than the European standard of 5.5mm they are 5.59 mm, the modern “22” moniker on 5.5mm guns is really a shorthand
It would surprise me greatly if the barrel proper, rather than the tap, which will be looser, on the Hakim isn’t 5.5mm, though the rifle may be nominally an Anschutz made Airsporter I strongly doubt they would have followed the design so minutely that they produced, a “proper” .22
Either way, there is quite possibly an advantage to a thin skirt all round and especially with a tap of that design (though I can imagine it blowing out then being shaved to size as it enters the breech proper
B.B.,
I recall that you went through your Hakim as it was buzzy/twangy. Mine, too has some vibration, but taking it apart and following what you did is far beyond my limitations. Can you recommend a good Hakim tuner?
Thanks very much,
Michael
Michael,
The Hakim is one of the easiest spring guns to work on. No one I know specializes in tuning them but anyone who can tune a spring gun should be able to do it for you.
B.B.
B.B.,
Your report on 10/6/14 makes the actual tuning look simple, but your 9/22/14 report on the disassembly is what makes me nervous.
Michael
Michael,
That was a one-in-a-hundred special problem that I have never seen before. I have tuned a great many Hakims and only encountered that one time.
B.BN.
Oops. I meant my post below to follow your response. Not enough coffee in the old guy’s brain yet, I guess.
Michael
You tuned my Hakim and it is a sweetheart to cock and shoot. With my less than good eyes, I decided to add a rail and 3X9 scope and it is very accurate at 10 yards. The only real drawback to this airgun is that it is one heavy sucker. But then it is supposed to replicate a military rifle used by the Egyptian military.
Bob,
Yeah, I remember making yours real smooth. I wanted to impress you.
B.B.
B.B.,
Yes, I reread Part 6 just now, and while there are many steps to disassembly and assembly, each step is simple. It was that stubborn bushing that gave you trouble.
Thanks again,
Michael
Nice shooting, especially with iron sights. I think I missed the explanation of how such a fine air rifle trainer was produced when the firearm was so poor.
News in the shooting world. I read that two-foot rats have been discovered somewhere. Get out your air rifles and they had better not be Hakims.
Also, in the wake of the terrible tragedy at the University of Texas, Austin, I was reading up on the famous incident of the sniper who fired from the tower of that campus many years ago. One account states that when the police made it up to the tower, one of the officers leaped from cover 15 yards away from the shooter and emptied his .38 revolver, missing completely. Then, he grabbed a 12 gauge shotgun from his partner, ran up and fired at point-blank range. Then, he threw down the shotgun and ran down the stairs of the tower telling other responders, “I got him!” Sounds like police tactics have advanced since then.
Matt61
B.B.,
Glad the JSB RS worked for you. The RS and H & N FTT are my 2 go to pellets for Bucking Betsy.
Noticed that PA is advertising their shooting Competition in September. Can you or anyone else tell me whether they rent airguns to participants??
I am hoping to be in Canada around that time and was thinking of driving over the border to join the fun but I don’t own any airguns there and it would not be practical ( anything over 600 fps is considered a firearm and requires a licence ), not to mention all the trigger happy police waiting to practice their skills on some hapless airgunner that happened to be driving around with a gun in his vehicle.
Pete
Pete,
I think they might make an arrangement, or you could shoot one of the competitor’s rifles.
B.B.
BB
On the subject of older German underlevers, have you ever tested a Diana Model 50?
Geezer,
Not for this blog, but I have owned one. It’s a fine old rifle, as is a Webley Mark III.
B.B.