Tag Archives: RWS Diana 45 air rifle

RWS Diana model 45 – Part 3

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by B.B. Pelletier

Photos and testing by Earl “Mac” McDonald

Part 1
Part 2


RWS Diana 45 is a magnum springer from the past.

Well, Mac has been testing this rifle for us, and a lot of you have commented that you like what you see. It does look nice in contrast to today’s magnum blasters. In its day, it was considered the most powerful of magnum springers, but those days are long past and now the rifle looks like a classic sweetie.

I do have to tell you, though, there are two sides to this rifle. For every smooth shooter like the one Mac is testing, there are other 45s that buck and buzz terribly. This seems to be independent of caliber or the year of manufacture. I just want you to be aware of that if you decide to get one for yourself.

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RWS Diana model 45 – Part 2

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by B.B. Pelletier

Photos and testing by Earl “Mac” McDonald

Part 1


Mac’s RWS Diana 45 is a real classic from the days of the great horsepower races. It was at one time one of four different models that could sometimes deliver velocities in excess of 800 f.p.s. in .177 caliber.

This vintage breakbarrel is well-known to many of you readers. Apparently, the most common find is a 45 that’s lost most of its finish but still shoots great. And, the loss of finish comes from handling most of the time, so it would appear that the RWS Diana 45 is a gun that people like to shoot.

The 45 was one of the very first Dianas with a modern scope rail attached to the top of the spring tube. Earlier guns, such as the model 27, had a ramp in the same place, but it was designed to accept only aperture sights. There would still be some more slight design changes to come, but the 45 scope rail was essentially the final product.

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RWS Diana model 45 – Part 1

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by B.B. Pelletier

Photos and testing by Earl “Mac” McDonald

This is a special report I asked Mac to make for you. The RWS Diana model 45 that was made until very recently is not the gun you are about to see here. This rifle comes from the decade of the 1980s, when the 45 was entirely different from the other Diana breakbarrel rifles. You’ll see some of those differences in this report as it unfolds.

In 1988, Diana dropped the older style model 45 we’re looking at here and used the model 34 action in a different stock to represent the model 45 that lasted up until 2004. That was the Diana model 45 TO1.

The rifle we’re about to see predates that one and is its own special design. Mac’s rifle has a date stamp of 07-83, which means it was produced in July 1983. But, the Diana 45 goes back much farther than that. In a moment, I’ll document the history, but first a word about the name RWS Diana.

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