Tag Archives: Collecting

The Diana 27: Part 1

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by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Diana 27
My .22 caliber Diana 27 is actually a Hy Score 807.

A history of airguns

This report covers:

  • Not the pre-war 27
  • First time
  • Why a 27?
  • Great feeling!
  • Description
  • Sights
  • Seals
  • Breech seal
  • Trigger
  • Overall evaluation

What is a classic? One dictionary defines it as “…of the first or highest quality, class or rank. Serving as a standard, model or guide.” Although that definition is somewhat subjective, I believe it captures the essence of the word. The Diana model 27 air rifle is certainly a classic by that definition.

Not the pre-war 27

Before we dive in let’s understand that Diana also made a model 27 before World War II. That one had only a wooden buttstock with no forearm. It looks significantly different than the rifle we are examining today. It’s not the same air rifle.

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The Beeman R10/HW 85: Part 1

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by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

HW 85
Weihrauch HW 85.

A history of airguns

This report covers:

  • A word on straight razors
  • History
  • Weihrauch model numbers
  • Enter the R10/HW 85
  • Son of R1
  • Thin spring tube
  • Trigger
  • Description
  • Stock
  • Sights
  • Summary

A word on straight razors

Before we start I have a word on straight razor sharpening. I made a major discovery yesterday morning. It has to do with sharpness, the shape of the blade, how the blade is ground and its applicability to the task at hand. Very similar to airguns and power! It will be in my next report, which will be in a few weeks.

Now, let’s look at the Beeman R10/HW 85.

History

The FWB 124 started the velocity wars in the very early 1970s. But Dr. Beeman invented the rifle he called the R1, that was also produced as the Weihrauch HW 80. That air rifle really broke things open. It came out in 1981. Inside of 18 months Beeman had gotten the muzzle velocity of the .177 R1 from 940 f.p.s. to 1,000 f.p.s. and the race was on! Before we continue, let’s see how they did it.

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The Diana model 50 underlever: Part 4

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by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Diana 50
Diana model 50 underlever.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

A history of airguns

This report covers:

  • Low light
  • The test
  • RWS Superdomes
  • RWS Superpoints
  • Falcon pellets
  • Discussion of the results
  • Next

Today we are back with the Diana model 50 underlever spring rifle, shooting at 25 yards. I have a couple things to tell, so let’s get started.

Low light

First, my quartz light that I always us to illuminate the target was on the fritz, so for all of today’s shooting I illuminated the target with a powerful flashlight. It wasn’t ideal, but I believe it worked okay. I learned one thing for sure — I need a backup quartz light!

I remembered to switch the front sight post to the large square-topped one that’s best for target shooting. I wouldn’t have that as an excuse for poor marksmanship!

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The 2017 Texas airgun show: Part 3

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by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1
Part 2

This report covers:

  • Hatsan on the range
  • Raffles
  • Other goodies at the show
  • Dealer sales
  • The private dealers
  • Grand prizes
  • The end

I plan for this report to be the final one on the 2017 Texas airgun show.

Hatsan on the range

We have already seen AirForce Airguns, Crosman, Sig Sauer and Umarex USA. What I didn’t show you was the new Umarex Gauntlet being shot by the public. The rifle has not been released yet, but we expect it very soon. This was a rare chance for the public to test an airgun before release, just like I get to do at the SHOT Show sometimes. I also didn’t get any pictures of Crosman demonstrating their Pioneer airbow on the big bore range. But they were out there with it in the afternoon.

I did get to the Hatsan range, though, and saw the new Sortie pistol I’m now testing for you. I also got to shoot the Hercules big bore in .45 caliber.  Hatsan sent one for me to test for you and that will start soon, so I wanted to try it out with a Hatsan tech person at my side.

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How to sharpen a straight razor: Part 2

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by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1

A history of airguns

This report covers:

  • The goal
  • The proof
  • My mistakes
  • What had I learned?
  • Things to avoid
  • Sharpening a straight razor
  • Sharpening stone grits
  • After honing — the strop
  • What was wrong?
  • Research pays off
  • Summary

I started this series so I could experience coming into a hobby as a new guy. That would make me more sympathetic to the thousands of readers who are either new to airguns or new to shooting altogether. It certainly did that, as you will learn today!

The goal

When I started this project, I had what I thought was a simple and straightforward goal — learning to sharpen a straight razor. That’s not any different than the guy who buys an air rifle to eliminate pests. But I completely underestimated the scope of the project — again, not unlike many new airgunners. And that’s a good thing because today you get to watch me make all the new-guy mistakes.

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The 2017 Texas airgun show: Part 2

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by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1

This report covers:

  • Back to the show
  • C1
  • What did BB buy?
  • One more thing
  • Compressed air
  • Sun Optics
  • AirForce
  • iraqveteran8888
  • All American Targets
  • More to come

Back to the show

I stopped yesterday while talking about some of the dealers. Do you know that I forgot to show you the Gauntlet that was on the Umarex range. It wasn’t being shot when I was there, so I didn’t get a picture, but I was told they expect to start shipping in September. Now let’s go back inside the show hall and see some of the other things

C1

I know you are interested in vintage airguns, so how about a Beeman C1? I have written about the C1 over the years. You can read my report here. If you read it you will see that I didn’t have good luck with the one I reported in the blog. But the first one I owned was a different story. That was the airgun that taught me the artillery hold.

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The Diana model 50 underlever: Part 2

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by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Diana 50
Diana model 50 underlever.

Part 1

A history of airguns

This report covers:

  • Loading tap
  • Rear sight
  • Pre-test preparation
  • Fastest way
  • Velocity RWS Superpoints
  • JSB Exact RS
  • RWS Hobby
  • Cocking effort
  • Trigger pull
  • Evaluation so far

Today we will learn the velocity of my new/old .177 caliber Diana model 50. But there are several things I need to clear up before we get to that. Let’s start with the loading tap.

Loading tap

The Diana model 50 is an underlever spring-piston air rifle. That means the barrel doesn’t open like a breakbarrel, so there has to be another way to load a pellet. On some underlevers the entire compression chamber slides back, exposing the breech, but others like the model 50 use a loading tap. A tap sits behind the barrel and rotates open to load the pellet and closed to align the pellet with the breech.

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