Recommend me pistol options for a vintage collection

ctshooter · Nov 10, 2022

Aside from my modern PCPs which I really enjoy shooting, I have a bug for really nice vintage pistols. Not really interested in 1800s or turn of the 19th century stuff as those are generally in pretty poor condition and are generally function over form. I guess my niche would be the 1940s through 1970/80s era. When design and form were still a part of the equation and all the gaudy warnings and legal junk weren't silk screened all over an otherwise nice pistol. I'm also more interested in spingers, SSP and CO2 than pumpers.

Here's a list of some I've acquired. Not all fit the exact "vintage" description above, but have qualities that make them aesthetically pleasing to the eye and a joy to hold and shoot.

Beeman P11
Brocock Model 1851 Navy .22 BACS
Crosman 150 w/ White Grips
Crosman Mark 1 .22
Crosman Mac1 LD .20 10” w/shroud
Daisy 777
Edgun Veles .177
Edgun Veles .22
FWB 90 w/ Electronic Trigger
HYHunter American Luger
Hy-Score 700 .177
Hy-Score 802 .22
Hy-Score 802b Repeater .22
Hy-Score 803 .177/.22
Rohm Twinmaster Match CO2 .177
Smith & Wesson 79G
Walther LP Model 3 .177 Wood Target Grip
Weihrauch HW70 Vintage Model
Weihrauch HW75

I'm still looking to add a Crosman 600, Walther LP53, S&W 78G and UK made Webley but some are hard to find while others are asking ridiculous prices.

I'm curious to hear from others which models and variants are essential to a nice pistol collection.

Septicdeath · Nov 10, 2022

Crosman 38T or 38C .22
Heck add them both to your collection. Fine revolvers

Diana 5
Crosman 357 8 silver frame.
SA6
Daisy powerline 717 or other variant

WorriedMan · Nov 10, 2022

CT,
Nice collection, sir. Head to YouTube and watch Gold Touch's (SepticDeath) vintage airgun videos, might give you some ideas. He's great about operational explanations and close-ups, I think videos belong in the Smithsonian Institute archives. WM

beerthief · Nov 10, 2022

I have only been to 3 Air Gun shows but all have what i would term a fair amount of Webley's some reasonable and some not so . lot of Luger type C02 .

Miami Airgunner · Nov 10, 2022

ctshooter said:
Here's a list of some I've acquired...

Beeman P11

Brocock Model 1851 Navy .22 BACS

Crosman 150 w/ White Grips

Crosman Mark 1 .22

Crosman Mac1 LD .20 10” w/shroud

Daisy 777

Edgun Veles .177

Edgun Veles .22

FWB 90 w/ Electronic Trigger

HYHunter American Luger

Hy-Score 700 .177

Hy-Score 802 .22

Hy-Score 802b Repeater .22

Hy-Score 803 .177/.22

Rohm Twinmaster Match CO2 .177

Smith & Wesson 79G

Walther LP Model 3 .177 Wood Target Grip

Weihrauch HW70 Vintage Model

Weihrauch HW75

I want to know what your top three favorites are from that collection..

beerthief · Nov 10, 2022

https://www.flagcitytoysthatshoot.com/ Midwest near Columbus OH and Kalamazoo MI

i have been to 3 air gun shows ,all had lot of pistols , a fair amount of Webley's and luger type C02 some revolvers , i remember a crossman150 /white grips
looks like maybe you have been to shows .

ctshooter · Nov 10, 2022

Miami Airgunner said:
I want to know what your top three favorites are from that collection..

Wow - I don't think I could pick a top 3. I am enthralled with so many of them. Going to exclude some of the newer ones and the PCPs.

1 - HY Hunter American Luger - just wow. what a freaking awesome pistol. This thing hits hard. Accuracy isn't awesome at distance as it's shooting round balls, but I've cranked up the power and hit close to 7fpe. 8 shot repeater. The trigger is really nice.
2 - Crosman Mark 1 .22 - such a pleasure to shoot, very accurate - I've come close to shooting 1/2" 5 shot groups off hand but always seem to blow it with one of the shots.
3 - Hy-Score 700 .177 - Easy to cock. This particular model is super quiet too. Accurate enough at 10-20 yards. These Hy Scores have very light triggers. Something about their unique design just puts them spot on.

Runner ups - Walther LP3, FWB 90 and the 79G

@beerthief - I wish there were airguns shows up here in the northeast. This is mostly stuff from estate sales, AoA used, ebay and few from AGN classifieds.

MikeVV · Nov 10, 2022

Only older gun that I have is the Beeman/Webley, Tempest, in 177. A single pump gun. The lever at the back (left side) that looks like a safety, is the barrel release. Lift the barrel one time, secure it in the latch, aim and pull the trigger. The rear sight is highly adjustable. The safety is the big lever above the trigger.
About as simple as it gets.

It worked extremely well for me, for all of these years. Tells me that it's got a very good design.

I have no idea what it's age is...but I bought it back in the late 80's. A little oil here and there, it still...shoots just fine.
This isn't mine, but visually it looks the same. Mine even has the same grip panels !

Mike

aneijko · Nov 10, 2022

Webley Senior/ Mk1/Premier (first gen blued steel). They're built like tanks and require very little maintenance. The Tempest is the next generation of these Webley air pistols I listed. They're all-steel and are hefty. One note about the .22 version: they do need wider skirted pellets which could take some locating. The .177 doesn't have this issue and most pellets seem to fit. The Mk1 and Premier had an adjustable trigger, which the Senior did not have.

Premier with original box:

Premier with aftermarket grips:

ctshooter · Nov 10, 2022

MikeVV said:
Only older gun that I have is the Beeman/Webley, Tempest, in 177. A single pump gun. The lever at the back (left side) that looks like a safety, is the barrel release. Lift the barrel one time, secure it in the latch, aim and pull the trigger. The rear sight is highly adjustable. The safety is the big lever above the trigger.
About as simple as it gets.

It worked extremely well for me, for all of these years. Tells my that it's got a very good design.

I have no idea what it's age is...but I bought it back in the late 80's. A little oil here and there, it still...shoots just fine.
This isn't mine, but visually it looks the same. Mine even has the same grip panels !

View attachment 304497

Mike

Mike - those grips are really nice. Is that wood or plastic?

Septicdeath · Nov 10, 2022

I would love to get my hands on one of these. Swiss made Excellent pistol.

MikeVV · Nov 10, 2022

ctshooter said:
Mike - those grips are really nice. Is that wood or plastic?

They are wood.
Mine while are of the same wood, the one's above are nicer looking. Mine don't have quite the difference in colors as the ones above do, but you can still see the differences.

Mike

AirNGasman · Nov 11, 2022

Benjamin's first Co2 pistols were the Models 250 BB, 252 (.22) and 257 (.177). Phenomenal vintage Co2 pistols, but hard to find in better than hammered-s*** condition. This one was like new condition-

Virtually any European ten-meter pistol is fantastic, including the Walther LP2 & LP3, Pardinis, Hammerli, and FAS 604.

My Crosman 600 custom-

The Sears & Roebuck Ted Williams Match Pistol is the sexiest Crosman 150 variant-

Happy Collecting,
Ron

Helmet · Nov 11, 2022

A lot of good candidates here.

I would like to recommend the FWB C55. I have collected quite a few FWB pistols over the years and that includes all FWBs 5-shot pistols. And the coolest of them all is the C55. It blends old fashion German engineering, high precision machining and rapid fire competition shooting into a perfect blend. It's a not really vintage yet, but it's a genuine retro futuristic device.

And it was used as a prop in Star Wars...

MDriskill · Nov 14, 2022

Fun thread...lots of great selections above!

If you don't mind "future classics," motor over to your local Walmart or whatever, and pick up a Beeman P17, and Crosman 1322 or 1377. Truly, the two greatest pocket-change air pistols in the history of the world.

I agree an early "steel" Webley is a must for any collection.

The Tempest is the classic modern Webley, but its stablemate the Hurricane is also excellent. The two are internally identical, but the Hurricane is longer, with click-adjusting rear sight, and a bit more weight - lots of fun to shoot. This one is missing its front sight hood and has aftermarket grips:

Another I'd recommend is a classic Diana barrel cocker (either the model 5, or the amazing recoilless models 6 or 10). This is an early 5 with wood grip/frame:

One more personal fave is the BSF S20. Hard-shooting, well-made, nice-looking, and usually not too hard to find or terribly pricey. The action is actually a cut-down junior-sized rifle with a unique "bull pupped" trigger mechanism:

Mintie · Nov 14, 2022

I collect air pistols from that same sort of era, A time when things were made properly!

A couple I would definitely recommend below

Haenel 28 or 28R (if you can find one)
Record Jumbo or Champion
BSF S20 as mentioned above
Falke 33
Diana Mk4

None of the above are particularly powerful or match grade accurate but they are well made, quite collectable and great fun to shoot!

I have a video that some of the above feature in as I explain how they are cocked and show them shooting

MJS · Nov 14, 2022

Benjamin Rocket .22.

Nico5999 · Nov 14, 2022

I have BOTH a Crosman 600 and a Crosman 38T I'd be willing to part with for not-so-ridiculous prices. They would need to be resealed since they haven't been shot in a while.

I inherited them after my good friend and mentor passed so I'd love to see them go to a really nice collection like yours. The CO2 pistols were never my schtick. If you're interested send me a PM.