HW/Weihrauch HW55 Standard date-of-manufacturing
- Thread starter Bear-of-Grayling
- Start date
Definitely a bargain!
I really don't understand gunshop people. Listing a gun like that as a parts donor makes no sense: no wonder it remained unsold for so long. And if they'd spent 10 minutes to clean up the exterior, they could have doubled or tripled the asking price.
Can't say I felt like a thief, but considering the deal I was getting, I didn't bother to check the gun over in the shop: money on the counter, sign the receipt, gun in a slip, and have a nice afternoon!
Can't wait to shoot it, so hopefully I can strip it today to check and clean the internals - see if it has a synthetic seal.
So far I have cleaned the exterior and it already looks good on the outside. Rubbed the stock down with 000 wire wool and my own "Tru-oil" concoction.
One of the diopter knobs still needs a bath in rust remover though. I stripped and removed the old dried-up grease from the diopter and that's turning smoothly now. Whoever owned it liked to "soot" the sights too.
No idea what the glue on the foresight was for as the bolt does its job of holding it on the dovetail just fine. Peace of mind knowing that the end of your gun looks
with glue spread over it, perhaps.
I really don't understand gunshop people. Listing a gun like that as a parts donor makes no sense: no wonder it remained unsold for so long. And if they'd spent 10 minutes to clean up the exterior, they could have doubled or tripled the asking price.
Can't say I felt like a thief, but considering the deal I was getting, I didn't bother to check the gun over in the shop: money on the counter, sign the receipt, gun in a slip, and have a nice afternoon!
Can't wait to shoot it, so hopefully I can strip it today to check and clean the internals - see if it has a synthetic seal.
So far I have cleaned the exterior and it already looks good on the outside. Rubbed the stock down with 000 wire wool and my own "Tru-oil" concoction.
One of the diopter knobs still needs a bath in rust remover though. I stripped and removed the old dried-up grease from the diopter and that's turning smoothly now. Whoever owned it liked to "soot" the sights too.
No idea what the glue on the foresight was for as the bolt does its job of holding it on the dovetail just fine. Peace of mind knowing that the end of your gun looks
with glue spread over it, perhaps.Upvote 0
The general contempt that "real gun" guys have for our "BB guns" works in our favor sometimes!
One of the best deals I ever got was from a firearms dealer who didn't know the "Peerless" gun that ended up in his shop was in fact a super rare, first-variant Diana model 50M match rifle. I got it for the opening bid number on the infamous auction site...about 1/3 what it's worth. Fine shooter in 98% condition, too!
One of the best deals I ever got was from a firearms dealer who didn't know the "Peerless" gun that ended up in his shop was in fact a super rare, first-variant Diana model 50M match rifle. I got it for the opening bid number on the infamous auction site...about 1/3 what it's worth. Fine shooter in 98% condition, too!
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Yesterday I stripped the action down on the HW55 Custom. MikeD's comment about it potentially having a plastic piston seal, but me thinking "I hope it actually has a piston seal!". It did: plastic.
The piston and seal were caked in grease, whilst the spring was just lightly greased. I removed all the grease from the piston, spring and cylinder, gave the piston a polish, then reassembled with just a smear of moly on the piston high points and the spring.
Fired 4-5 shots to settle it down, then recorded 20 on the chrono. Average of 610fps with a high of 617 and low of 601 using Umarex Match wadcutters. Seems reasonably consistent considering the possible variability of the pellets. Trigger release is very nice and the shot cycle is smooth.
Pictures after the successful clean-up speak for themselves. Lovely gun!
The piston and seal were caked in grease, whilst the spring was just lightly greased. I removed all the grease from the piston, spring and cylinder, gave the piston a polish, then reassembled with just a smear of moly on the piston high points and the spring.
Fired 4-5 shots to settle it down, then recorded 20 on the chrono. Average of 610fps with a high of 617 and low of 601 using Umarex Match wadcutters. Seems reasonably consistent considering the possible variability of the pellets. Trigger release is very nice and the shot cycle is smooth.
Pictures after the successful clean-up speak for themselves. Lovely gun!
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Well, shoot...now I'm just jealous! What a beautiful rifle - I amazed the dealer was able to make it look so bad before.
I was wrong on the piston seal. That one is not plastic, it's a leather cup seal with a plastic filler in the center. It's done a bit differently than other HW 55's I have seen, very interesting.
The velocity is right on the money, that's exactly the speed the 55 was designed for. The receiver is shared with the old HW 50 of course, it can be stepped up closer to 700 FPS and still be quite pleasant to shoot.
I was wrong on the piston seal. That one is not plastic, it's a leather cup seal with a plastic filler in the center. It's done a bit differently than other HW 55's I have seen, very interesting.
The velocity is right on the money, that's exactly the speed the 55 was designed for. The receiver is shared with the old HW 50 of course, it can be stepped up closer to 700 FPS and still be quite pleasant to shoot.
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Aha, leather piston seal: I will remember to oil it occasionally.
I've now given the trigger blade and locking nut a polish too!
Maybe the guys in the gunshop were thinking I was the sucker buying this mucky old airgun?
I think that in a country like Switzerland where you can own almost any gun you want, it's inevitable that airguns are not taken that seriously, and probably the profit margin on secondhand guns is minimal for a business, so why waste time making them look presentable. A guy was in the gunshop when I was there to ask about giving them his grandfather's guns. A lot of people here inherit guns and want to be rid of them ASAP so they dispose of them at a gun shops. I once asked at a gunshop if they get old airguns like that, and the reply was that they just send them to be destroyed. Gunshop people generally seem to have very little interest in guns, and also little knowledge of the significance or rarity of an old gun: their only interest is money. Sometime we win, but I figure that most times the guns lose.
This time it was a win for the HW55 and a win too for me....and the gunshop put 80 notes in the till!
I've now given the trigger blade and locking nut a polish too!
Maybe the guys in the gunshop were thinking I was the sucker buying this mucky old airgun?
I think that in a country like Switzerland where you can own almost any gun you want, it's inevitable that airguns are not taken that seriously, and probably the profit margin on secondhand guns is minimal for a business, so why waste time making them look presentable. A guy was in the gunshop when I was there to ask about giving them his grandfather's guns. A lot of people here inherit guns and want to be rid of them ASAP so they dispose of them at a gun shops. I once asked at a gunshop if they get old airguns like that, and the reply was that they just send them to be destroyed. Gunshop people generally seem to have very little interest in guns, and also little knowledge of the significance or rarity of an old gun: their only interest is money. Sometime we win, but I figure that most times the guns lose.
This time it was a win for the HW55 and a win too for me....and the gunshop put 80 notes in the till!
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What a terrific find - that looks like a very sweet old girl! I would imagine that owning that one is made even better by the fact that it was an absolute steal and looked like like a piece of junk. I mean, really, that cleaned up VERY nicely.
Congratulations on getting a great gun with a great story!
Congratulations on getting a great gun with a great story!
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I love cleaning, restoring and even upcycling old things, not just old airguns, and it's so rewarding to see the results. Very few things cannot be rescued if you are willing to make the effort. This HW55 was easy pickings!
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Swissair,
earlier you mentioned using a bunch of trains to get to the gun shop. From the snipped quote, I wonder how did the trip back home go, since anyone with any gun exposure can tell what a gun slip is. Is this a non-issue in urban Switzerland? (I know you guys have lots and lots of firearms).
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I had 3 trains to get there and 2 back as it was a different route. I had 20-odd minutes between connections on the way back so I went for a walk around the town centre with our dog, with the rifle in a soft carry case over my shoulder. Didn't feel like I stood out and I wasn't worrying that I might have an issue.
I've done a few cross-country train and bus trips to collect rifles and never had anyone say anything. Whilst travelling by train and making stops at railway stations, I've also made a pre-arranged pick-up of a rifle on the platform, and I've handed over one I've sold.
Always discrete of course, but I never felt like anyone was even looking at what I was carrying.
When I was in the gun shop there was a guy whose grandfather had evidently passed away and left some guns behind which the guy wanted to dispose of. The guy didn't have a car though, so the gun shop guys said they would drive over and collect the guns. If you inherit guns here, you have 6 months to sort out a license (if needed*) or to dispose of them.
* You don't need a license to buy/own ex Swiss military rifles, including repeaters like the K11 or K31 or semi-autos like the Stgw57. I hope I can find a Hämmerli Trainer system at an affordable price one day, and then I'll buy a K31 to use it!
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