Weihrauch HW30 S.
This is a guest blog from reader Cpt Klotz, whose real name is Stephan. Today he tells us about his new HW 30S. Let’s see how Stephan likes his new rifle.
If you’d like to write a guest post for this blog, please email me at blogger@pyramydair.com.
Take it away, Stephan.
The Weihrauch HW 30
By Stephan
This report covers:
- History and perspective
- German spec gun/power
- Appearance, features and build quality
- Metal parts
- Stock
- Ergonomics
- Trigger
- Open sights
- Shot cycle
- Accuracy
- Conclusion
This is my review of the Weihrauch HW 30S in .177 caliber. U.S. readers may know a variant of this rifle as the Beeman R7.
I had been interested in the HW 30S for a while, but reviewing the Diana Twenty-One FBB was what finally made me pull the trigger on it. Like the Twenty-One, the HW 30S is a small and light breakbarrel rifle, but that’s where most of the similarities end.
At the time of writing, it sells for about € 270 in Germany (roughly US$ 290, but it’s a bit more expensive than that in the US). That puts it in the price bracket of the excellent Diana 34 series and Weihrauch’s own HW 50S. In this class, I expect to see high quality and serious accuracy.
History and perspective
It seems the HW 30 has been around almost as long as the ultra-classic HW 35. The earliest examples I could find in the Weihrauch Database are from 1956. It’s possible they didn’t start putting Rekord triggers on HW 30s until 1970 or so. In a world obsessed with the latest buzzwords and gadgets, it is interesting to see a product remaining mostly unchanged for almost 70 years.
German spec gun/power
Again, as I live in Germany and do not have a permit for a more powerful air rifle, I am reviewing a 7.5 joule / 5.5 ft-lb gun. Even the full-power version of the HW 30 is not exactly a powerhouse. It does 190 meters (623 feet) per second at full power and maybe 170 m/s (557 f.p.s.) in the German freimark-ed version.
These are entirely unimpressive specs if you judge them by the power/price ratio. You can buy air rifles that are a lot cheaper and much more powerful. But maybe power isn’t everything…
Appearance, features and build quality
The HW 30S is tiny. It is dwarfed in size and weight by full sized air rifles like the Diana 35 I recently reviewed.
The Diana 35 dwarfs the HW 30S.
Weihrauch calls it an “air rifle … for the whole family” and I’ve also seen people refer to it as a “youth gun”. Nevertheless, it has quite a following among adult men including the late Robert Beeman. I think we’re going to see why.
Metal parts
The fit and finish of the metal parts is excellent. The barrel is connected to the piston via an articulated cocking linkage and held shut by a spring-loaded ball detent. Opening and closing the barrel and cocking the gun was smooth and easy from the beginning.
Stock
I am reviewing the 2020 model which has the modern looking, ambidextrous beech stock. Weihrauch stocks used to be made by Minelli and this may or may not be the case any longer. There is a logo on the right side of the pistol grip that you could read as “AR”, “DR” or “NR”, but nobody seems to know for sure what that stands for.
I don’t know what the initials on the pistol grip mean, or even exactly what letters they are.
Whoever made the stock has done a great job. The wood has a matte finish with a subtle grain structure, but it is not as eye-catching as some walnut stocks can be. They did spice it up a little bit, though — it has two patterns of checkering/stippling on both the forearm and pistol grip in fields that are divided by intersecting curved lines. The forearm also has a Weihrauch logo on each side. The finish of these ornaments is detailed and precise.
Ergonomics
Of course, little of this matters if the stock or the entire gun just doesn’t fit you. I am 1.81 meters / 5.9 ft tall, fairly heavy and fairly strong. I don’t have any issue handling an HW 35 which would probably be considered the right size for me.
So, how does the HW 30S feel when I shoulder it? Excellent, actually. The rifle feels well-balanced and makes it easy for me to find an offhand hold that allows me to be on target mostly by using bone support.
Trigger
The HW 30S comes with the Rekord trigger which I won’t need to describe in detail. Enough has been said about it over the decades. It was great out of the box, but I did lighten the trigger weight a little bit which is more to my liking.
Open sights
This model HW 30S comes with open sights and they are definitely not an afterthought for people to use until they buy a scope. Thankfully, there are no fiber optics (or indeed any other fragile plastic parts) to be found on this rifle (other versions do exist).
On the front, there is a metal globe sight that accepts different inserts. It is sturdy enough to be used as a grip for cocking the barrel.
The front sight comes with inserts.
The rear sight is a quality adjustable open sight with clicky detents and also offers four different notches that you can choose from by rotating a metal blade.
But that’s not all. When you take the rifle out of the box, there is a piece of cardboard tied to the trigger guard that at first glance looks like it is just there to display a Weihrauch logo and some safety recommendations. It also doubles as an envelope that contains five additional front sight inserts, including two with an aperture for use with a diopter.
Shot cycle
There is little recoil due to the small piston and short stroke. Out of the box, there was a slight mainspring twang. After applying some moly grease, it is hardly noticeable. In the beginning, the rifle dieseled very lightly (just a faint smell), but that seems to have stopped by now. Maybe some day I’ll put a tuning kit and improved Rekord trigger in there, but I’m not in a hurry.
On a side note, it’s very interesting to shoot the HW 30S and HW 35E (both freimark-ed versions) one after the other. The HW 35E has a really pleasant shot cycle for so much piston with so little spring and no twang at all. In comparison, the HW 30S goes bang and the HW 35E goes ka-chunk.
Accuracy
I ordered a Hawke Vantage 2-7×32 AO scope with the rifle. I have limited experience with scopes, but this one seems to be a good little scope that doesn’t feel out of place on the HW 30 S. It is what I used for the accuracy testing.
All groups are 10 shot groups shot from a bag rest at 10 meters.
When it comes to benchrest shooting, a short and lightweight rifle is a little harder to hold perfectly still. It took a lot of concentration but I am very happy with the results:
H&N Sport are my go-to pellets for rifles. They are easily more accurate than I am when shooting offhand.
JSB S100 Match Heavy worked well.
The Qiang Yuan Olympic pellets are great in some guns. In this rifle they are just good.
RWS R10 4.50 did pretty good as well.
RWS Meisterkugeln 4.48mm were not bad either.
AirGhandi’s Finest (H&N Field Target Trophy 4.50).
New H&N Finale Match Heavy 4.50. This is getting serious.
Old H&N Finale Match Heavy 4.50 that came with my FWB LP80 pistol – WOW!
Let’s err on the side of caution and say the outer diameter is 7.5mm. Subtract the pellet diameter of 4.5 mm and we get a C-T-C size of 3mm or 0.11 inches.
This might be one of the best 10-shot groups I have shot with a recoiling springer.
Actually, the new H&N Finale Match seem to be just as good and the R10 were pretty close behind. But I’m not a machine and one or two “not so great” shots are enough to enlarge the group.
I think I can say this rifle is very accurate.
Conclusion
I said the HW 30 S would have to deliver. It did so — and then some.
Little details like the stock, the open sights and the articulated cocking link show that Weihrauch is willing to go the extra mile to make a gun a little nicer than it would strictly need to be.
The combination of low power and high quality probably makes the HW 30 S something of an airgunner’s airgun.
It is lightweight and quiet enough that you can plink with it all day. If that gets old and you really want to see what you can do, it has the accuracy to make it a serious target gun.
All things considered, the HW 30 S is not cheap, but it’s also far from being the most expensive airgun. Given the features and performance, I think it is worth the price.
It is also a lot of fun to shoot, so I have to give it a big thumbs up.
“The combination of low power and high quality probably makes the HW 30 S something of an airgunner’s airgun.”
Stephan,
I think that’s a perfect description of this lovely little rifle! I’ve got the “full power” version of it, yet it still has only a 2 ft-lb gain over your model; it is still a “low power” air rifle compared to the usual guns in the USA…but I couldn’t care less. As you pointed out, the high quality, excellent accuracy, and light weight make it an excellent all day plinker. Thank you for an excellent report. 🙂
Blessings to you,
dave
Stephan,
Thanks for letting us look over your shoulder while you shoot this classic air rifle that is fortunately still in production.
Siraniko
Well done Capt.
That’s very good shooting with a springer..
Until you sit down with a springer, and shoot for score, you never realize how difficult it is so shoot a great group ..
And the prayers you say every time the trigger breaks, hoping the hole in the target don’t get any bigger.
Again, thank you!
Ian
Nice report!
Thanks for posting.
-Y
Hi everybody,
glad you like the report.
Here are some targets I shot offhand with open sights at 10 meters with the HW30S.
No preparation, no practice, I just grabbed the gun and shot.
I’m generally happy if I can get most or even all shots to at least touch the 10 ring.
Stephan
Stephan,
Schöne Grüße aus Essen!
Wonderful review. It is just all true about this rifle.
Guys, how many airguns are produced same way for so long time? When you get something almost perfect, you don’t change the running system completely. What they did with the stock is just the right thing. I have HW50 with the old, boring stock and the difference is like night and day now.
I tuned my HW30s, I used tighter spring guide and change the seal to ZEPTO. It is amazing now. No buzzling at all, short cycle with very decent noise level. It is a bit above German spec. as I have now something like 185m/s, just like my FWB300s (results with approx. 8,2J). At the beginning I applied the whole tune kit with Oteva spring. Wow it was too powerful, I reached almost 200m/s! And the recoil has spoiled everything which this device offers – it was not accurate and too kicky. I came back to original Weihrauch spring with this tight guide and zepto seal. Just perfect!
The Record trigger is not much loaded with this system so it might be set up very light. I did it too. It is not the FWB trigger but compared to any other springer I have – mmmmmmmm.
I was considering to buy it for a looong time. I couldn’t belive it might be so fun to shoot. But it is.
The price – not cheap but for this performance and sweetness?
tomek,
interesting… We’re practically neighbours. I was born in Gelsenkirchen and live in Dorsten now.
You don’t happen to have a place where you can shoot at more than 10 meters, do you? 🙂
Maybe I’ll put the AirJoe tuning kit + trigger in the HW30, but at the moment I think it’s fine the way it is…
Stephan
Stephan,
What a small world 🙂
Unfortunatelly the Schiessverein didn’t want to let my older son shoot (he is 9, first at 10yo) so I did not attempt it so far. I have basement with almost 10m which is fine for match. For longer distance I visit sometimes family in Dortmung (big garden). It is not easy to shoot long distance in NRW anyway.
To be honest I like to shoot outside, not in some boring shooting club :/
I always shoot myself to death while I’m visiting family in Poland, where I have unlimited possibilites (ranch, big garden, field, forest…). This year we planed 4 weaks (I SAY IT LOUD: FOUR WEEKS) vacation in PL so I will really enjoy the long distance shooting.
What is a ZEPTO seal? On this side of the pond it is unheard of. At least I have never heard of it/them.
-Yogi
Yogi,
It is custom made seal, special material. Low friction, high durability.
I hope the link will work:
https://superwiatrowki.pl/uszczelka-tloka-hw30-p-85.html
Just google “uszczelka zepto hw30”.
Stephan,
Nice review!
The HW30s may be shorter and lighter than full sized air rifles, but it is not for all the family.
Children, and maybe even shorter women, will struggle to shoot it, as its length of pull is for full sized adults. In fact its LOP looks identical to that of the Diana 35 in the comparison photo.
If buying this air rifle for a young shooter, bear in mind that they may have to grow into it, but rest assured that this is a gun for life.
It is certainly an airgunner’s airgun and what’s more, it’s the antidote for magnumitis.
Bob,
I think you’re right. I did the “put the butt of the rifle in your elbow and try to reach the trigger” test with both rifles and there isn’t much difference.
However, I have some distance to spare and my height is average or slightly above. So slightly shorter people could probably shoot them both and might appreciate the lower weight.
Younger kids or very short folks might have trouble. Maybe you’d have to shorten the stock (which would be a shame…).
Stephan
Stephan,
It would be great if someone would produce an aftermarket adjustable stock for the HW30s, along the lines of the one on the Ruger Precision Rimfire, so that it could be quickly adapted to shooters of any age, size or shape.
Grüsse aus Wuppertal.
Bob Ryan, I think that your idea has merit, especially if an adjustable stock were designed to maintain as much as possible, the classic airgun’s looks.
I wish I knew how to disguise the pictured stock with it’s multi-adjustability to give the impression of a traditionally shaped piece of wood. Maybe interchangeable sections of different dimensions in a laminar stock? 🙂
hihihi,
Weihrauch did a nice job with the adjustable stock on the HW98, seen here in grey laminate. It adjusts for comb height and buttpad elevation, but alas not length of pull.
The beauty of the Ruger stock is that all the adjustments can be made by loosening just one cam lever. It’s quick, easy and there’s no faffing about with screwdrivers.
Or get a set-back trigger from Rowan engineering in the UK!!!
Best mod ever for most Rekords.
-Yogi
Yogi,
How much does one of those set-back triggers reduce the length of pull?
Stephan,
I bought an used HW30S a few years ago for my grandson. It is indeed an airgunner’s airgun. He had to grow into it, but it fits him, and me, fine now. It will likely stay here at RRHFWA as he is now more interested in shooting his father’s Diana 46. I myself have put a Trueglo front aperture sight and a Williams peep sight on it. Feral soda cans around here do not stand a chance.
Awesome write up on a little jewel.
Stephan,
An excellent review! Congratulations.
I agree with you that the HW 30s is a great air rifle. I consider it to be a superb plinker and casual target air rifle. It has been “mostly unchanged for almost 70 years” by Weihrauch because it was nearly perfect from the start, a true classic.
The photograph you included of the 30s under the 35e is quite instructive. It shows that the proportions of the wood “furniture” of the two are nearly the same. The light cocking effort and low weight of the HW 30s make it youth friendly, but it is a lifetime air rifle, comfortable for adults to shoot.
Additionally, your review demonstrates that the HW 30s is delightfully accurate with a variety of pellets,. When an air gun is not fussy about pellets, it is a jewel, as RidgeRunner wrote above.
As you admit, the Weihrauch HW 30s is not inexpensive. However, if one considers that with proper care it should outlast its first owner and can be passed down from generation to generation, is entirely wood and metal, and is made in Germany, the HW 30s is a remarkable value. (American manufacturers should take note.)
Again, very well done, Stephan.
Michael
Michael,
thank you 🙂
Actually, I think something like the HW30S or the Diana 35 Commemorative is pretty much the “sweet spot” for value (the Diana is a bit cheaper but comes with only one front sight insert).
I consider them a better value than most cheaper guns.
As you say, they are guns for one or several lifetimes that will probably get longtime support and don’t have substandard parts on them that will probably annoy you after a while.
Also, especially as a beginner, if you miss with one of these, it’s probably your technique. With a cheap gun it could be the gun, the cheap scope that often comes with them or a million other things. Not great for progress…
So yeah, these are guns that I can recommend. If you want to try the hobby, give yourself a chance of succeeding. They are not actually *that* expensive and if you decide you don’t like shooting, you won’t have too much trouble selling them.
I didn’t want to go overboard with the praise however, because the review already reads like a fanboy rant 🙂
Stephan
Thanks for your report Stephen!
Excellent airgun, excellent shooting!
As a favorite, my R1 sees good use all year long. Currently it’s the Canadian winter 10 meter indoor shooting season. The R1 is lying on the table beside my FWB 603 so I can alternate between casual and formal target shooting. 🙂
Cheers!
Hank
Wow CptKlotz, I can not match the size of those perforations with mine. So I say: well done you! 🙂
Despite the oddly shaped stock – looks to me like the lower butt edge has been scooped off – I bought a couple of those little Weihrauch springers, ie a HW30S and 50S. 🙂
Originally I had planned to scope the 50 and shoot the 30 with open sights, but that will have to change…
My HW30S feels like it was designed for a scope, because my sight line is much too high for it’s open sights.
hihihi,
Interesting as the R7 and HW50S (synthetic stock) both point extremely well for me using iron sights and a cheek-bone weld.
I’m average height (1.8 m) and weight (79.5 kg) with a fairly long reach (36.8 lop) so most stocks fit me quite well.
Hank
When I shoulder my HW50S and then open my eyes, I get a sight picture so good (rare for me), it would be a shame to scope it. 🙂
hihihi,
Here is the sig ASP20 with a pronounced “hook.”
Michael
Ah yes, and thanks Michael. I bought mine not so much for looks as for it’s other qualities… 🙂
——————–
for those who enjoy comparison pictures (I do, thanks FawltyManuel, Roamin Greco), here are my bench- and shoulder accommodating (butt stock scooped out), wooden stocked air rifles… 🙂
hihihi,
That scoop on the bottom of the shoulder stock is a relatively new thing. My Hw 50s and 30s don’t have them, and I bought them new 6 or so years ago. I think it is a contour found on bench rest rifles (although on a dedicated bench rester it might be more pronounced) so the stock can hang slightly off the table. The Sig ASP had that.
Also, if you go back a decade or so, the HW 30s had a forearm that did not extend over all of the pivot joint, a distinction between it and the Beeman equivalent, which did do that.
Michael
I almost forgot. While my HW 50s has stippling, my HW 30s does not, even though they are, I believe, for the same year.
That looks like the stock they used until 2020.
Thanks Michael. How interesting that the new shape is for both the shoulder and the bench. Makes it more palatable for me… 🙂
I can confirm that Weihrauch’s older HW50 also had a shorter forearm (see comparison picture below). I prefer the modern longer length! 🙂
hihihi,
My HW 50 and 30s are a style in between those two. There is no grip groove in the forearm, and the forearm extends past the barrel block. No stippling on my 30.
Michael
Michael,
“I think it is a contour found on bench rest rifles (although on a dedicated bench rester it might be more pronounced) so the stock can hang slightly off the table. The Sig ASP had that.”
The hook on the bottom of the buttstock as on the SIG SSG 3000 or the close copy SIG ASP20 is to allow the shooter good purchase on a spot to manipulate the rifle with the non trigger hand while shooting off a rest/bag(s) and nothing to do with hanging off a shooting bench (table) top.
Most benchrest stocks these days look like a slab of 3-5″ wide wood both on the bottom forend and the bottom of the buttstock for better side to side stability and to counteract torque at the shot as well as slide on the rest bag(s) in recoil.
shootski
Stephan,
Thank you for the excellent write upon the HW30S. I also agree that this is a gun that seasoned airgunners will appreciate very much for its ease of use, great accuracy and fine materials. It’s what everybody who owns one says, and I’m another voice in the choir. Also Stephan, excellent shooting! My perfs don’t stay that small for ten shots, but I can dream. Mine likes the H&N Sports, too.
I bought one a few months ago and shot it with the open sights and was very pleased. Then I put a decent scope on it and the groups tightened up a lot at ten meters (aging eyes). These days, I shoot it and the HW35E more than my other springers because they tend to hit right where I’m aiming, plus or minus a wee bit due to the shooter, which is very satisfying.
I haven’t opened it up to do anything inside and I didn’t even season the barrel other than with pellets, because it works fine just as received.
A common evolution of an air gunner is to buy inexpensive, fairly crappy guns initially, and then gravitate towards better ones for greater accuracy and ease of use.
It takes a lot of brain power to try to shoot a jumpy springer with an “icky” trigger. I do like the challenge of working with an airgun to figure out how to get the best accuracy from it. But most times, when I step up to the tripod rest, and want to hit that little target “right there,” the two HW air rifles above give me a good expectation that it will happen if I’m calm enough. Sometimes, I really like “nice and easy.”
You get what you want and a little more after summing up all the parts with a beautiful air rifle like this. And we forget how much our fun gadgets cost after a while, right?
Best regards,
Will
*** And we forget how much our fun gadgets cost after a while, right? ***
Absolutely Will!
I always say that the cost of the gun is insignificant relative to the cost of the ammunition shot through it.
I paid $200 (about the price of a deer rifle) for my FWB 124 way back then and my friends told me I was nuts. At today’s prices, that’s about 10 cans of pellets… 5,000 shots which is about 2 months shooting. I’ve had the 124 for over 40 years, nuts or not, I’d say that it’s paid off. 🙂
Each to their own, just my perspective.
Cheers!
Hank
Stephan,
Thanks for that review. Very nice shooting rifle. Comparing it to your HW50, which would you say is more accurate?
Doc.
Doc,
I don’t have an HW50, but an HW35E that is probably around the same age as I am (42).
It is as accurate as this new HW30S, but easier to shoot from a rest. It even seems to like the same pellets.
Then I also have a Diana 31 which probably has the same level of accuracy (maybe all three rifles are just more accurate than I am…)
CptKlotz
Thanks, that is nice to know. I have often wondered at the 35 also.
Doc
After several years of shooting targets with an Anschutz .22 field rifle, bolt action, scoped with an entry-level Zeiss, it was time to try an air rifle. Driving to a range and shooting an easy .22 was often complicated by the range policy to let high-power pistols, like .357 magnums, on the same field next to .22’s. Maybe they are small bore firearms but it rattled me to stand beside them.
I wanted an air rifle with accuracy and easy handling, and after the superb Anschutz, German workmanship was important.
I saw the 30S at a small airgun shop in rural Ohio, test fired it in the field outside, along with a 50S.
It took two minutes to make up my mind. The 30S with a black pepper Minelli laminate stock for a little over $400 was my baby! After a few weeks a light Hawke airgun scope arrived, and the total experience was for me the equal of the .22, but at one-third the cost and no need to travel to a range.
Every friend who picks up this 5-pound light rifle feels the same way after 10 shots: they want one.
Most springers need 28-40 pounds of effort to cock. Some of us find that too much for a quick fun target shoot. The 30S, even compared to the 50S, was a dream in that regard.
Quiet, unnoticeable felt recoil, accuracy at 15 yards, only about 18 pounds of effort to cock, and a trigger that makes it easy to hit what you aim at, make this rifle more than the sum of its parts.
It just feels right!
Cpt Klotz,
Stephan you certainly proved you are not a BLOCK (millstone, of wood, or concrete) writing such a great report on an airgun you obviously cherish!
Really nice shooting as well.
Gute gemacht!
shootski
Erstklassiger Bericht, Kapitän!
Acquiring the HW30S to keep the HW95 company was a never-to-be-regretted decision. FM enjoys shooting both, each within its performance envelope and the shooter’s capabilities. Shooting accuracy is better with the 30, for reasons you and others have explained previously. Indeed, power is not everything. Pretty happy with the groups at 25 yards – not only with the standard paper targets but also using steel cans which give FM feedback, letting him know he’s hitting something. 🙂
Leaving both alone in terms of attempting improvements because everything is more than satisfactory and FM believes there is a Hippocratic Oath for airguns, starting with “first, do no harm, more so if you don’t know what you are doing.” When a Tru-Glo front sight was installed on the 95, Dummkopf FM could never get the rifle sighted right, so off it came and back to the factory globe sight. Maybe things would work correctly with a peep sight, as Ridgerunner commented. A scope would probably make an even better solution for the wacked-out eyeballs.
FM has become hooked on HWs and is gunning for an HW90, hopefully that goal will be in sight soon.
Here is my R7 that has the peep rear and TruGlo front sights.
Here is my prior post where I described the stop pin inside the peep sight. /blog/2021/12/tx200-mark-iii-part-1-2/#comment-484072
And here are some comments I made about the TruGlo front sight.
/blog/2021/10/beeman-p1-air-pistol-part-3/#comment-481511
Excellent report, Stephan.
Sorry for my late response. When I was getting back into airguns, I bought a Umarex Embark to teach the kids, but for me, I bought a gently used Beeman R7 from a classified ad on American Airguns. My R7 has a super-light trigger pull, which I never adjusted, and it loves Meisterkugelns, but my go to pellet is the H&N Econ II. I added a $40 refurbished Air Venturi peep sight to which my gunsmith added a special, hidden scope stop pin, and I also added a TruGlo fiber optic front sight that has a shade you can turn to darken the sight for target shooting. It is a sweet setup (eh, Ridgerunner?). Is the air rifle by which I judge all others. Not hard to sound like fanboy. I don’t know of any other airgun that is more universally appreciated, even loved, than the HW 30S / Beeman R7.
Recently, I won an older R7 at an auction with 2 other airguns. Even though the cocking linkage is a bit loose and rattles a bit, it is still a very good shooter even with just an initial test fire. After I shoot her for a while, I will sell her off to a new home.
Here is some info on the peep sight O had modified to insert a stop screw:
/blog/2021/12/tx200-mark-iii-part-1-2/#comment-484072
And here are some comments about the TruGlo front sight that RidgeRunner and I mentioned:
/blog/2021/10/beeman-p1-air-pistol-part-3/#comment-481511
RG
Funny thing that you, along with RR, use these glowing (Truglo) front sight. I thought that it would be heretic to mention that I have put one of these on my HW 90. I did that because it leaves enough bare barrel in front of it for the, necessary 1/2unf adapter. This rifle is now an accurate H&N 21gr slug launcher.
I hope that Shootski will read my comment.
On the size of the HW30S, I don’t think I’d call it particularly small, but I think it is well-proportioned and comparable in length and weight to a rimfire rifle.
For me, that makes it a much easier transition than many of the larger springers which balance and hold differently with their larger and heavier spring tubes.
Nathan