As with many (most) awesome airguns I've parted with because someone paid an asking price I felt high enough to discourage the likelihood of them leaving my guardianship, I started missing my first Smith & Wesson 78G vintage .22 Co2 pistol even before it was gone. Another justification for parting with such gems used to be the false notion "I can always find another like it". But with the benefit of experience and hindsight, I now know that's not always the case.
That first, long-gone and sorely-missed 78G was great in several ways. Not just excellent power, but one of the most powerful of dozens Co2 pistols I've tested in the ensuing thirty-five years. Great accuracy; enough to justify scoping by attaching a 3/8" dovetail rail atop the rib by drilling and tapping said rib. And after effecting some basic trigger tricks, THE crispest trigger action I've ever felt... bar none! At least it went to a good home; a buddy who appreciated it enough to pay the price.
Since aforementioned false notion "I can always find another like it" has been wearing on my psyche evermore tellingly in the last few years, finding a nice 78G was at the top of my want-list for the recent Texas Airgun Show, though I little expected to find the right specimen; that being (hopefully) healthy and holding pressure well, clean enough that I wouldn't feel a need to refinish it, but not a primo-condition boxed example... and an early, adjustable-trigger version would be an extremely tasty bonus!
LO AND BEHOLD if I didn't find exactly the perfect specimen within the fist half-row at the show (including the factory adjustable trigger). Better yet, at a fair price. Nevertheless, by the time I talked the seller down to $120 I started feeling guilty and paid him $125. MAN, did I feel lucky!
But besides other apparent good deals I came home with that I've since found weren't as good as I thought, on cleaning the bore of my new (to me) 78G I was shattered to discover a complete lack of rifling. DOH!!!
Luckily the barrel measured .375 outside diameter. "Luckily" because I still had plenty remaining length of a bronze Philippine rifle barrel blank that I'd chopped enough off of to machine a long replacement for my Crosman 600 that wasn't accurate enough to suit me with its factory barrel. A (real) carbon sleeve hides the otherwise glaring bronze barrel.
That project having been an excellent success, I hoped to repeat such success on the 78G, that is perfect in every way other than no rifling. The barrel work went well, and I made the replacement barrel a bit longer than the original (9" rather than 8.35") for the sake of a bit extra velocity.
While at it, I also installed a shorter but stiffer hammer-spring, moly-lubed the hammer and spring, replaced the original steel transfer-port with a piece of poly tubing, and installed a set-screw behind the front sight to anchor the barrel in the upper. Decided to not drill and tap the top-rib for a scope base until iron-sight testing indicates her accurate enough to do so. So, "How do she shoot" you ask?
Chrongraphing a new cartridge in 92 degree shade, 25 full-power shots with 14.3 grain JSBs went- Low= 458, High= 470, ES= 12, SD= 3, Average= 462 FPS/6.8 FP. Suffice to say I'm very happy with those numbers!
The long first stage of the two-stage trigger requires 16 ounces of take-up, and the second stage breaks very crisply with just an additional 8-9 ounces. AWESOME!
Though the factory adjustable sights don't give a real precise or 'crisp' sight-picture, ten consecutive three-shot groups at 25 yards averaged 1.47" center-to-center yesterday; and today five consecutive five-shot groups averaged 1.80" c-t-c. Yes, that was from a sand-bagged bench-rest; no, I'm not good enough to do that offhand!
Given the less-than-precise iron-sight picture, my aging eyesight and consequent slipping iron-sight skills, I feel the Smith accurate enough to justify scoping by drilling and tapping the top-rib for a scope base. My hope is she'll then average 3/4" 25 yard groups or better. Of course I'll post those results after I get around to scoping her, but might do more iron sight testing for a while first.
There are just so many things about the 78G that 'trip the trigger' of this old air pistol freak. 1) It's vintage! 2) It's Co2! 3) It's .22! 4) It's powerful! 5) It's a Smith and Wesson! 6) It emulates an S&W Model 41! 7) What a nice trigger action! 8) That loading-bolt arrangement is not only utterly cool and unique, but an aesthetic experience in itself. 9) I've seen after-market walnut grips for 78Gs. 10) Given the lack of rifling in the original barrel, collector value of this particular specimen perfect for my purposes is not enough to feel any guilt pangs about 'personilizing' her to Ron Robinson's deranged tastes and purposes!
I love the smell of Co2 on a hot Texas day!
That first, long-gone and sorely-missed 78G was great in several ways. Not just excellent power, but one of the most powerful of dozens Co2 pistols I've tested in the ensuing thirty-five years. Great accuracy; enough to justify scoping by attaching a 3/8" dovetail rail atop the rib by drilling and tapping said rib. And after effecting some basic trigger tricks, THE crispest trigger action I've ever felt... bar none! At least it went to a good home; a buddy who appreciated it enough to pay the price.
Since aforementioned false notion "I can always find another like it" has been wearing on my psyche evermore tellingly in the last few years, finding a nice 78G was at the top of my want-list for the recent Texas Airgun Show, though I little expected to find the right specimen; that being (hopefully) healthy and holding pressure well, clean enough that I wouldn't feel a need to refinish it, but not a primo-condition boxed example... and an early, adjustable-trigger version would be an extremely tasty bonus!
LO AND BEHOLD if I didn't find exactly the perfect specimen within the fist half-row at the show (including the factory adjustable trigger). Better yet, at a fair price. Nevertheless, by the time I talked the seller down to $120 I started feeling guilty and paid him $125. MAN, did I feel lucky!
But besides other apparent good deals I came home with that I've since found weren't as good as I thought, on cleaning the bore of my new (to me) 78G I was shattered to discover a complete lack of rifling. DOH!!!
Luckily the barrel measured .375 outside diameter. "Luckily" because I still had plenty remaining length of a bronze Philippine rifle barrel blank that I'd chopped enough off of to machine a long replacement for my Crosman 600 that wasn't accurate enough to suit me with its factory barrel. A (real) carbon sleeve hides the otherwise glaring bronze barrel.
That project having been an excellent success, I hoped to repeat such success on the 78G, that is perfect in every way other than no rifling. The barrel work went well, and I made the replacement barrel a bit longer than the original (9" rather than 8.35") for the sake of a bit extra velocity.
While at it, I also installed a shorter but stiffer hammer-spring, moly-lubed the hammer and spring, replaced the original steel transfer-port with a piece of poly tubing, and installed a set-screw behind the front sight to anchor the barrel in the upper. Decided to not drill and tap the top-rib for a scope base until iron-sight testing indicates her accurate enough to do so. So, "How do she shoot" you ask?
Chrongraphing a new cartridge in 92 degree shade, 25 full-power shots with 14.3 grain JSBs went- Low= 458, High= 470, ES= 12, SD= 3, Average= 462 FPS/6.8 FP. Suffice to say I'm very happy with those numbers!
The long first stage of the two-stage trigger requires 16 ounces of take-up, and the second stage breaks very crisply with just an additional 8-9 ounces. AWESOME!
Though the factory adjustable sights don't give a real precise or 'crisp' sight-picture, ten consecutive three-shot groups at 25 yards averaged 1.47" center-to-center yesterday; and today five consecutive five-shot groups averaged 1.80" c-t-c. Yes, that was from a sand-bagged bench-rest; no, I'm not good enough to do that offhand!
Given the less-than-precise iron-sight picture, my aging eyesight and consequent slipping iron-sight skills, I feel the Smith accurate enough to justify scoping by drilling and tapping the top-rib for a scope base. My hope is she'll then average 3/4" 25 yard groups or better. Of course I'll post those results after I get around to scoping her, but might do more iron sight testing for a while first.
There are just so many things about the 78G that 'trip the trigger' of this old air pistol freak. 1) It's vintage! 2) It's Co2! 3) It's .22! 4) It's powerful! 5) It's a Smith and Wesson! 6) It emulates an S&W Model 41! 7) What a nice trigger action! 8) That loading-bolt arrangement is not only utterly cool and unique, but an aesthetic experience in itself. 9) I've seen after-market walnut grips for 78Gs. 10) Given the lack of rifling in the original barrel, collector value of this particular specimen perfect for my purposes is not enough to feel any guilt pangs about 'personilizing' her to Ron Robinson's deranged tastes and purposes!
I love the smell of Co2 on a hot Texas day!
