New to me Diana RWS 52 .177

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Ratzilla

Member
Dec 6, 2021
62
34
greenfield, Wisconsin, United States
Just recently decided to get into airguns. 

Bought this vintage 1990 Diana 52 this morning from the original owner. It's in immaculate condition except for a couple small dings on the cheek rest. Included the box, a tin of pellets and the original front sight. It came with a Tasco 2x7 AO air gun scope too. It was shot very little.

I got it all for $275, I think a decent price. It joins my 1973 Weihrauch HW35, a rifle I really enjoy shooting and recently rebuilt.



As soon as I got home I took it down to my basement and zeroed the scope @ 10m and tried a few different pellets just to get a idea as what I can expect.

This is by no means a extensive review or anything like that, Just my first impressions and I know it will shoot better groups, as I only tried a few brands of pellets and have 64 year old eyeballs ..

I also realize I may need to work on the scope mount if /when it starts shifting on me.

As far as speed goes, here are the average numbers I got with 3 different pellets

8.2g did 930 fps

7.0g did 1010 fps

Gamo alloy did 1175 fps

It appears to be a single stage trigger and broke real nice at about 13oz. I might bump the trigger pull up just a little a little..

As far as side lever cocking I found it no problem at all.

Here are the numbers from a 10 shot string. I think they are pretty good.

Meisterkugeln Pellets 7.0g

 RWS Diana 52

Digital Link



Temperature: 66

Pressure: 29.3 in Hg



Bullet Weight: 7



Power Factor Average: 7

Power Factor Low: 7

Power Factor High: 7



Number of Shots: 10



Minimum: 1003

Maximum: 1008



Spread: 5



Average: 1005



Standard Deviation: 2



# Velocity Ft/lbs Power Factor Date

10 1006 15.73 7 1/5/22, 12:23 PM

9 1005 15.70 7 1/5/22, 12:23 PM

8 1004 15.67 7 1/5/22, 12:22 PM

7 1008 15.79 7 1/5/22, 12:21 PM

6 1003 15.64 7 1/5/22, 12:21 PM

5 1005 15.70 7 1/5/22, 12:20 PM

4 1007 15.76 7 1/5/22, 12:19 PM

3 1003 15.64 7 1/5/22, 12:19 PM

2 1005 15.70 7 1/5/22, 12:18 PM

1 1008 15.79 7 1/5/22, 12:17 PM



10 shoot group



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My plan is to pick up some heavier pellets and see what it can do
 
I have the same rifle,it is one of my most powerful Springers,made in West Germany.I had to use a one piece mount with 10degree taper..think about getting that type of mount ,as many of those rifles need it.Also those rifles are known as scope busters so be careful there.I only shoot the heavier grain pellets in it....one other thing...mine is not pellet fussy.

Glad you posted,it is a rare to see anything posted about the 48-52 models...
 
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Mine killed a couple of scopes. My 45 killed more. I'm sure they were enjoying their killing spree but the Diana Bullseye scope mount stopped them dead in their tracks it did. No more scope killing for either gun since I installed them. Then I got a 54 so sold the evil 52 and the mount and scope went on the 54.

https://www.airgunsofarizona.com/scope-mounts/diana-bullseye-zero-recoil-mount-1-rings-dovetail/



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Click to expand...

I have a question. If the D52 is a recoiless design then why does it kill scopes? If it still is a scope killer then what purpose is the recoiless design for?
 
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I had one in .22, it was a good gun. THIS is how magnum springers should be. (side lever) After trying this, all those long-barreled magnum springers just seem ridiculous. Mine was shooting right around 20 FPE. It wasn't that bad of a scope-killer; nothing like what my 56TH was. The recoilless action on the 54 and 56TH actually makes them HARDER on scopes than the normal 48 and 52. If I were to do it again, I would get 

I think mine was older. The wood was lighter and its trigger was nowhere near 1 lb. It was probably 3-4 pounds. It wasn't that accurate, either. Nowhere near as accurate as my TX200 or even my humble old Stoeger X20.

I would try another one and maybe with the intent to get it tuned. I'd settle for something in the area of 15 FPE, even, if it was a great shooter.

As for yours, being in the 900s with wadcutters is not going to give you great accuracy. A good accurate springer should be shooting one ragged hole at 10 m. Go for some heavier pellets, something in the 10-11 gr. range. If you want to shoot wadcutters, try RWS Supermag. Otherwise, I think mine liked H&N Baracuda Match. You'll find the heavier pellets will smooth out the shot cycle too.
 
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These magnum springers normally do much better with heavy pellets!!! Light weight pellets have a tendency to allow the piston to slam home and shorten spring and seal life. Owned a couple 48's over the years and liked both very well. After using cheap scopes and watching them destroyed I moved to Leupold and never had another scope failure. If that gun has the old 3 ball trigger mechanism they can be made into a very nice two stage at about 1 plus lbs pull. I prefered mine in .22 cal however with heavy pelkets that .177 can be a real shooter. Never had an issue with the side lever until I tried prone, soon learned I didnt like prone !!
 
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