HW/Weihrauch Weihrauch 125 Years 1899 Limited Editions

[keesbo]

Here in The Netherlands, the HW97KT 125Y cost €1199,-
It is totally absurd expensive.
Germany is our neighbour, so transport would not cost a lot.

And I do not think it looks great. The old Centenary HW97k is more beautifull.

Mine HW77k Special edition is more special to me.

 

[jkingrph]

I will leave these to the collectors, if i bought one i would order a custom walnut stock for it .

Likewise, those stocks do NOTHING for me.

A couple of years back I bought one of the AV 46m single stroke pneumatic target pistols. It came with a red black laminate stock. I had it break in two places. The little piece on the end of the cocking handle split into two pieces, and a hidden split occured where the bolts holding the palm shelf on occured. I ended up ordering a nice of walnut grips from Rink.

I honestly have never seen a laminated stock that I find attractive, just plywood.

 

[Toxylon]

They are very practical and outperform traditional hardwood stocks

How do they outperform traditional hardwood stocks? By being heavier? You have said that you don't want / like heavy springers, which is kind of the essence of laminated underlever HW's

 

[Mycapt65]

How do they outperform traditional hardwood stocks? By being heavier? You have said that you don't want / like heavy springers, which is kind of the essence of laminated underlever HW's

Look Duke, I'm not looking for a fight. You're right I don't like heavy guns but you forgot the other parts to that. I don't like carrying a heavy gun in the woods. I'm not terribly fond of them on the bench either but a laminate stock isn't that much heavier than a traditional hardwood stock. Please don't try to make me out a hypocrite.

Laminate stocks outperform traditional hard wood stocks (albeit marginally) by being less suseptible to moisture and temperature shifts.

What I also like about laminate stocks is they are harder to dent and dents and scratches aren't as obvious because of the busy color and grain patterns. Refinishing one is pretty easy too. Just a clear coat will do. No need to match stains.

For hunting rifles I actually prefer good synthetic stocks first, laminate second and hardwood last. My preference for beauty reverses that order. Hunting rifles are a tool. Tools get banged around. The last thing i want to do is take a beautiful piece of furniture into a rough environment.

Be well
Ron

 

[coastal drifter]

Here in The Netherlands, the HW97KT 125Y cost €1199,-
It is totally absurd expensive.
Germany is our neighbour, so transport would not cost a lot.

And I do not think it looks great. The old Centenary HW97k is more beautifull.

Mine HW77k Special edition is more special to me.
View attachment 475193View attachment 475192

very nice

 

[coastal drifter]

With you. For a 125th anniversary, would also have preferred a more vintage aesthetic that truly harkens back to the earliest versions of the '50 and '97 models, slightly updated for today's shooter, with modern internals. Not saying the '50 should be a smooth bore or lack a Rekord trigger . A collaboration with a tuning company like V-Mach would have been exciting too, really diving into that heritage vibe and paying homage to the fans who tried to make the rifles even better. Some Don Blocksidge/Venom-style engraving would have been a nice touch. And yes, a beautifully finished walnut version with a striking grain.

There's nothing here that embodies 125 years of making some of the greatest air rifles.

The red and black color scheme, on the other hand, reminds me of a less popular period in German history.

I agree a nice (real) wood stalk with a low shine maybe satin would be nice and a lower price.

 

[Paul Be Careful]

I don't recall all the details, but I believe Webley owned the V-Mach brand but as far as i know left it defunct, think they sold some tuning kit rights to Air Joe in Germany, they do replicas of the original kits. Midcounties Blacking, a UK gun store, took over the name and trademark. They now operate as Venom Customs, offering tuning and customization services in the spirit of the original Venom team. They occasionally showcase their work on their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/profile/100046466026052/search/?q=venom

Thanks for the background on the V Mach stuff. I wasn't aware of any of transitions.

Webley never owned the V-Mach branding. They did, however, acquire the rights to the Venom name when they established the Webley-Venom Custom Shop in 1998. After Webley went out of business in 2005, AGS purchased the company, including the Venom trademark. Following this, Steve Pope founded V-Mach, which he operated until his untimely passing in 2020. The Airgun Joe team collaborated with airgunsmith Lyndon Lewington of ARC Tuning, a close friend of Steve Pope, to develop a version of the V-Mach kits. MCB have silent permission from the current Webley owners to use the Venom trade-name.

If you fancy a deeper dive into Venom/V-Mach i wrote about it here.