N/A Diana Model 35

[Dashmen1]

Greetings. New member and first post. I am new to air guns as I recently acquired a Diana Model 35 from my father-in-law. I believe he purchased it in, what was then, West Germany around 1950. It has seen little use, and has been well stored. It probably has not been fired in 10-15 years until one recent test cock and pull with no ordinance. That may have been a dumb move on my part as I'm not sure what, if any, maintenance has been performed. I assume that good seals are key to a compressed air rifle.
I intend to keep it and explore the air gun world.

My biggest questions:
It was well stored. But it probably hasn't been fired in ten years. It's 1950s vintage. Does it need lubrication? How? Advice on the maintenance.

As a new guy, would it be wise to take this to my local vintage gunny for a once over? Or am I wasting money?

I'm also curious about the manufacture date. As mentioned, I believe it was purchased by my FIL in the early 50s. From what I have read so far, there have been several mods to the gun before it was discontinued/replaced in the 80s. It does not have a manufactured date anywhere on the metal body. I understand that the dating on the barrel where it meets the wood stock didn't start until the 60s. There is a lovely image of a woman (statue?) dropping her bow and arrow while her airgun overhead.

Any other advice for the novice would be appreciated. Thanks, Daniel

 

[Bear-of-Grayling]

Welcome Daniel. That’s a little gem you have there. Proceed with caution. You should probably send it out for a thorough going through.

 

[Dashmen1]

Welcome Daniel. That’s a little gem you have there. Proceed with caution. You should probably send it out for a thorough going through.

Grayling...as in Michigan? I'm in lower P. Thanks Bear. I'll run this over to my local vintage gunny (lucky for me, his shop is only a mile down the road).

 

[uglymike]

Don't dry fire it!

 

[MDriskill]

Probably late-50's, early-60's gun. The lovely aluminum trigger and slender finger-groove stock went out around 1964, give or take. Should be around 700 FPS with light .177 ammo if in good fettle.

Dianas of that era have VERY high-quality mainsprings and leather piston seals. It is always wise to take down and check out a gun so old - to make sure some kid hasn't tried to shoot nails out of it etc.! - but in the condition you describe it may need nothing more than a bit of lube down the transfer port (for which my choice would be Beeman Ultra Lube, or Abbey SM 50).

With all due respect to your "local gunny," this is a simple gun but totally different from any firearm. If you do dismantle it, the ball-sear trigger is unique and has some tricks - it's NOT as hard as its fearsome reputation suggests (!), but study up and DEFINITELY use a spring compressor.

How the vintage Diana ball-sear trigger works - Airguns & Guns Forum

How the vintage Diana ball-sear trigger works, Air guns, Airgun Forum

www.gatewaytoairguns.org

The breech seal may be leather too. Some oil may bring it up to snuff. If it needs replacing you can use a simple O-ring, though it may need some thin shims beneath.

Beware of the rear sight. Its light stamped construction, sitting on top of that nice heavy rifle, is easy to damage. If you store the gun with the sight's elevation slider in the rearmost position, the leaf is less susceptible to getting bent by an inadvertent bump.

I wanna say I've seen this very gun posted on another forum or Facebook? IIRC there is quite a bit of info in that thread.

 

[Compressorguy]

That is an excellent looking rifle! Congrats and enjoy!

 

[marflow 777]

Mike D is right and if parts were needed Knibbs has a modern Oring and new leather piston seals or you could update it to a modern piston seal

 

[Bear-of-Grayling]

I would not update to new modern seals unless it is absolutely necessary. Keep it original if possible. A good interior cleaning and proper oiling is most likely all that’s needed. But as stated, be certain the gunsmith has experience with this older type airgun.

 

[Ievgen721]

Just pour a few drops of any automotive oil into the barrel and sit the rifle in a corner for a couple of days. All my 1950s rifles still shoot great with the original leather seals.This rifle is built like a tank and will last forever.

 

[Dashmen1]

I would not update to new modern seals unless it is absolutely necessary. Keep it original if possible. A good interior cleaning and proper oiling is most likely all that’s needed. But as stated, be certain the gunsmith has experience with this older type airgun.

I did talk to my local vintage gunny. Sadly, they know nothing of air guns. Thanks again for the advice.

 

[cjtamu]

I would lube it as described above, get some pellets and test it. Shouldn’t do any damage to the gun and as stated above the leather seals are very tough. Mine sat from 1968 to 2022 and I put a couple drops of silicone oil down the compression chamber, let it sit overnight, and it fired great. These are wonderful guns, one of my favorites.

 

[MDriskill]

I would not update to new modern seals unless it is absolutely necessary. Keep it original if possible. A good interior cleaning and proper oiling is most likely all that’s needed. But as stated, be certain the gunsmith has experience with this older type airgun.

Definitely agree. Again, the leather seals in these are top-drawer quality, and the 35 isn't gonna be an elephant gun no matter what seal you put in it anyway.

AND NOTE, the screw holding the piston seal on is locked into place by a small pin driven across the front of the piston, with a "blind" end. So you cannot drive the pin out - you have to turn the screw hard enough to shear it. Doable, but a pain, and another reason to keep the leather seal if it's in good shape.