Recent content by MDriskill

Chuck is correct! In those days most 35's had a 19" barrel, but the 35E "Export" model had a 22" tube. Beeman apparently didn't like it, so kept the standard 19" barrel on his deluxe-stock version. This shot is a late-60's 22" 35E below, and early-70's 19" 35L above. I have to say...the extra...

Excellent thread, and some great work above! As an aside...remember that not all walnut is dark. European walnut (juglans regia) is a different species than North Americah black walnut (juglans nigra) and usually has a paler, warmer tone. Anyone with a "sissy" gun like this they need to get...

For the record: new or old HW 35's can of course shoot much harder than 7.5 joule (= 5.53 foot-pounds). That limit - and accompanying "F in pentagon" symbol - was mandated for Germany by legislation that went into effect in January 1970. It does not apply to airguns sold before that, or those...

Just for comparison purposes: 1973 HW 35L above, 1966 HW 35E below.

Very interesting! That's a new one on me. I've seen HW 35's made in '66 and '67; HW 50's from '58 and '67; and HW 55's from '63, '65, and 67. None of them had the "Prazision" mark. I sent this photo and question to the biggest vintage airgun expert I know: Danny Garvin, creator of the fabulous...

I buy mostly older guns. Occasionally I find the previous owner has left 'em in great shape, but otherwise typically strip them just to make sure there's nothing crazy going on inside. Have installed many a Maccari kit and without exception the results are amazingly good (especially considering...

Well said! That pivoting action works in two directions: a) when the piston is first released rearward, the equal-and-opposite reaction pushes the gun forward, moving the muzzle down; b) when the piston stops, it shoves the gun rearward, moving the muzzle up. This all happens so quickly, we just...

There's a PDF English model 220 user's manual on this page, but I'm having a hard time getting it to download to my iPad: https://www.anschuetz-sport.com/en/downloads/bedienungsanleitungen/ On the screw, I'd be willing to bet it's something more or less standard-ish. It'll be metric of...

The Tempest does have a long tapered breech leade, and tends to like ammo with larger-diameter skirts. Note that pellet head size - 4.50mm, 4.52mm, whatever - has little to do with breech fit. The head's job is to lightly ride the rifling lands so the pellet doesn't tip in the bore; it's the...

The standard distance for NRA and ISSF-sanctioned air pistol (and rifle) competition is 10 meters, and the ISSF has official targets for those. The 10M pistol target (NRA designation B-40) has an 11.5mm 10-ring, the other rings are 8mm and the center area through the 7 ring is printed black. As...

My model 25 has a very similar story...my grandmother bought it in 1947 to chase squirrels off her bird feeder! Blued steel, "gumwood" stock, and roll-stamped "engraving." Whenever my kid brother and I visited her house years later, we couldn't wait to grab it and start shooting away in her...

Not so much with pistols as rifles! But yes some duplicates have slipped in. Webley Tempest and Hurricane...in spite of different sights (and aftermarket grips on the Hurricane), same gun internally: German Walther LP 53 and Polish Predom Lucznik...actually quite different but you wouldn't...

I'm NOT an expert on newer Diana designs like the 34 but it looks like a T01 to me? The gun should have a "T" number stamped or etched near the logo on top of the receiver (hidden by the scope?). As noted above the four small digits on the left rear receiver are month/year of construction...

Yikes! I see what you mean 😜...pretty far from a candidate for a slip-on pad! Still, I wonder if something like a yoga mat laid in the floor - i.e., combining a friction-y surface with a bit of squishiness - might be worth a try.

Might a slip-on rubber buttpad, or simple piece of rubber padding laid in the floor, be a simpler - and more portable - means to the same end?