I just bought the holy grail of airguns!!!

[johnbaz]

Hi all

Some of you may know that I collect airguns (as well as watches and all manner of other stuff )

Anyhow, I went and parted with a wedge of wonga and came home with a luuuurvely 84 year old icon of British gun making, a Webley Mk1 Air rifle..

There are two types of these guns, the acid etched version and the 'rolled in' text type (the text is impressed)..

Apparently, it looks as though this in only one of three still in existence with the acid etching still intact!!


some pics of the old girl..











I also have a Webley Service Mk2 rifle which was the follow on to the Mk1 but they aren't anywhere as rare..




The chap that I bought the mk1 from also has a fair few more 'oldies' that he's willing to sell so i'll be back and forth to his house as soon as I save enough :lol:


Cheers, John :)

[ArcofZen]

Nice! I have an old Webley Tempest somewhere... Great air guns/pistols.

[clockwatcher]

Nice piece of history, and a great looking gun

[geordie]

Nice, and in great condition too mate 8)

I really really need to downsize my collection soon :shock:

[seikopath]

geniunely excited for you john although tbh it does absolutely nothing for me

[mark a.]

Aaah, look, it's broken! Send it back.

It looks lovely otherwise. Will you use it or does it have to sit in a protective atmosphere or something like that?

[IANAN]

I began shooting with a Webley air rifle when I was young and ended up getting University National Colours in rifle shooting and captaining at the National Championships. I still have that air rifle - good memories.

[johnbaz]

Thanks everyone 8)

Geordie- Give me chance to save up some cash before you start selling them :lol:

Mark- it won't be used but it will be locked in the spare room (not in a special atmosphere or anything like that )

Ian- Whch Webley did you start your shooting with??


John :)

[swanbourne]

Good find, I used to have a Webley Osprey with competition trigger and reflex sights. I remember as a kid I had an old Gat pistol and lusted after the Webley pistol.

Eddie

[Neil.C]

Nice one John, what year is it from?

Have fond memories of the old Junior pistols. :)

Did I read recently that Webley went out of business?

Got a modern Webley carbine around here somewhere.

[magirus]

Interesting old guns there. How would they compare power-wise to a moddn gun? Also, do they use the same size pellets?

[mikeeb]

I have a Tempest pistol too, unfortunately the barrel seal is damaged so it can't be used. Anyone know where I could get a replacement?

[johnbaz]

Interesting old guns there. How would they compare power-wise to a moddn gun? Also, do they use the same size pellets?

They are the same calibres as modern guns, ie, .177 and .22cal..

The Service mk2 could be bought with .177, .22 and .25, they're quite rare with all three barrels and cased so are very expensive when they turn up for sale..
There are other guns that are different calibres, Many old Daisy BB guns are .173 (4.4mm) and were made to use BB sized lead shot which was bought by the pound years ago for reloading shotgun cart's

I have a 4.4mm Anschutz mod275 which is a six shot repeater..


Here's a pic of what shooting the Webley mk1 at a patio slab at point blank range does to the pellet..


It's not overly powerful but then it's only a small rifle..

Neil- Webley was bought out by a Turkish company and production went over there :(

The Mk1 is around 84 years old..

Eddie- you Osprey sidelever sounds like a Supertarget, they also made a Mk3 supertarget, they command a higher price than the normal versions :thumbleft:


Cheers, John :)

[johnbaz]

I have a Tempest pistol too, unfortunately the barrel seal is damaged so it can't be used. Anyone know where I could get a replacement?

Hi Mike

You can get a new seal from Chambers guns, the part number you want is-BS037 and costs £5.88, I think there may be some postage on that too..

Scroll to the bottom of the page, it's there :wink:

http://www.gunspares.co.uk/shopdispl...281979-2005%29


Cheers, John :)

[SPEEDY]

John....

You should post a pic or two of the rest of your stash...

Its well worth a look :wink:

John is also sitting on one or two watches too :shock: :lol: :wink:

[magirus]

Thanks for that info! :)

[mikeeb]

I have a Tempest pistol too, unfortunately the barrel seal is damaged so it can't be used. Anyone know where I could get a replacement?

Hi Mike

You can get a new seal from Chambers guns, the part number you want is-BS037 and costs £5.88, I think there may be some postage on that too..

Scroll to the bottom of the page, it's there :wink:

http://www.gunspares.co.uk/shopdispl...281979-2005%29


Cheers, John :)

John

That's fantastic, it must have been sat in a draw still all boxed for 10 years.

Thanks

Mike

[johnbaz]

I have a Tempest pistol too, unfortunately the barrel seal is damaged so it can't be used. Anyone know where I could get a replacement?

Hi Mike

You can get a new seal from Chambers guns, the part number you want is-BS037 and costs £5.88, I think there may be some postage on that too..

Scroll to the bottom of the page, it's there :wink:

http://www.gunspares.co.uk/shopdispl...281979-2005%29


Cheers, John :)

John

That's fantastic, it must have been sat in a draw still all boxed for 10 years.

Thanks

Mike

Any time Mike

Glad I could help :thumbleft:



I was told that there aren't many people in the world that will have a Webley mk1, mk2 and mk3 in their collections (it hadn't occured to me!!) so I took a pic of mine :)





Cheers, John :P

[colin]

Wow, nice! I remember having a BSA Goldstar when I was about 15(?) and being the envy of my mates. Good times.

Never had anything as nice as yours though.

[johnbaz]

Wow, nice! I remember having a BSA Goldstar when I was about 15(?) and being the envy of my mates. Good times.

Never had anything as nice as yours though.

Hi Colin


The top rifle will probably bring back memories from when you was 15 years old :thumbleft:



Cheers John :)

[mikeeb]

John

You seem to have quite a large collection there. How many in total?

Mike

[johnbaz]

John

You seem to have quite a large collection there. How many in total?

Mike

Hi Mike

I lost count around seventy, at a guess seventy six to eighty..


John :)

[mikeeb]

Wow I've just looked through your photo stream!

Well I ordered the seal for my Webley. It's a Typhoon not a Tempest, do you know what the differences were as the seem to look very similar and produced at similar times? The Hurricane also looks similar?

Mike

[johnbaz]

Wow I've just looked through your photo stream!

Well I ordered the seal for my Webley. It's a Typhoon not a Tempest, do you know what the differences were as the seem to look very similar and produced at similar times? The Hurricane also looks similar?

Mike

Hello Mike


The Typhoon was a junior pistol and slightly slimmer than the Tempest or Hurricane (slightly less powerful too if I recall correctly)

But for all that they were only produced for around three years and are harder to find than their bigger brothers :wink:

I had a mint condition boxed Typhoon and sold it like a halfwit (well, almost gave it away ), it took me years to find another and paid double what I received for the boxed one :cry:


Cheers, John :)

[colin]

Hi Colin

The top rifle will probably bring back memories from when you was 15 years old :thumbleft:

I love it. Do they still make Goldstars? Is that a Supersport under it? Looks familiar but it's been half a lifetime (literally) since I was into air rifles.

[Juice]

This thread has made me get out my Tx200hc and oil her up ready to shoot tommorow........:)

[Jega]

Beautiful set of guns .

[Neil.C]

Hi Colin

The top rifle will probably bring back memories from when you was 15 years old :thumbleft:

I love it. Do they still make Goldstars? Is that a Supersport under it? Looks familiar but it's been half a lifetime (literally) since I was into air rifles.

The Supersport was a break barrel not an underlever.

[johnbaz]

Hi Colin

The top rifle will probably bring back memories from when you was 15 years old :thumbleft:

I love it. Do they still make Goldstars? Is that a Supersport under it? Looks familiar but it's been half a lifetime (literally) since I was into air rifles.

Hi Colin

Neil was correct, it's actually a Superstar carbine (Mk2)..

The Goldstar unfortunately is obsolete nowbut is a fabntastic rifle, it's a ten shot repeating rifle and was the flagship of the BSA springer range..

Bsa springers are now exclusively made in Spain and don't really do it for me any more :cry:

The BSA Pcp's are still made here though :P


Juice- the Tx200 is a fabulous rifle, mine is in the 'girly' cal (177) and I love it to bits :D


Cheers, John 8)

[beaser]

I have fond memories of my Walther LGR. I bought it so I could continue shooting at home. My 7.62 sniper certainly had limited use. A real PITA to find a 1000yd range. With the LGR I could shoot down my hallway into the bedroom.

[Jamessh]

Lots of nice looking guns, what do you shoot at and is there lots of difference in the 'performance' of the guns so to speak?

[johnbaz]

Lots of nice looking guns, what do you shoot at and is there lots of difference in the 'performance' of the guns so to speak?

Hi Jamessh

Yes, different guns have different powers, with springers, swept volume is all important for power, a smaller diameter cylinder will have much more trouble attaining our legal limit of 12ft lbs whereas a larger cylinder like a HW 80 will be capable of almost doubling the limit..

Pre charged pneumatics will go much much higher than springers with no recoil..

BTW, I don't actually shoot any of my guns as the clubs near me have their membership books full, even the waiting lists are full :cry: so I just collect the airguns (pistols as well as rifles)..

Here are some of my little 'uns...



A couple more..




I also collect pellets and tins




Cheers, John :P

[dan d]

Did that BSA come with a wire shoulder stock? I think I had one of those along with various Originals.

[Mjolnir]

I love seeing pictures of your collection, John.

I had a Webley Osprey a little while ago but I let it go for some reason. Wish i'd kept hold of it. Somebody had replaced the spring for something mental and it had a hell of a kick to it. Needed to be put back to stock if you actually wanted to hit anything with it.

I've got a BSA Airsporter, Mk5 I think, that I found in a second hand shop ages ago. It was a right state. The ball bearing in the loading tap had fallen inside the gun and mangled the piston. I restored it to the best of my ability. There's a gun shop that's reasonably local to me that was helpful in getting hold of the original parts.

I remember seeing pictures of an Airsporter Stutzen that I thought was the best looking rifle that i've ever seen. I have a weird feeling that it may belong to you :D

[beaser]

Lots of nice looking guns, what do you shoot at and is there lots of difference in the 'performance' of the guns so to speak?

The sport is highly competetive and the 10 ring is only a pencil dot. This is an Olympic and ISSF sanctioned competition whereby 60 rounds are fired at a target 10 metres away (33ft) in the standing position. What you are paying for is accuracy and consistancy. The sights alone are worth a few bucks. These are vernier aperture peep sights and not a scope. Back in the day my Walther was a $600 air rifle and would fire 10 rounds through the same hole at 10 metres (benched) The Air pistols have become extremely accurate as well.

When I was shooting it was a major effort to get out to a 1000 yard range. In Canada we have The Dominion of Canada Rifle Association which is allowed use of military ranges and military amunition and the Can equivilent of the UK NRA. In winter and when I couldn't make it to the 100 yard range I'd shoot one of my Martini (match) 22's at the local gun club. Finally i went with the Walther and shot off hand down my long hallway into my bedroom which was just long enough for 10 metre targets.

It's just like anything else. You get the bug and you learn to appreciate the best. The olympic match air rifles are clearly worth the expense if you understand their capabilities.

Any WIS should fully understand that concept :D

[johnbaz]

Did that BSA come with a wire shoulder stock? I think I had one of those along with various Originals.

Hi Dan

I didn't think that wire stocks were available for the Scorpion (unless someone was custom making them for the Scorpion)

Are you sure it wasn't a cougar than you had as below??

http://www.gunstar.co.uk/images/Gun-...ugar-A8215.jpg

ROB- did the Stuttie have a dark stock??

If so then it probably was mine as I haven't seen another the same shade, mine was refinished at some stage by some other person :wink:


Cheers, John :P

[Mjolnir]

ROB- did the Stuttie have a dark stock??

It did, Certainly darker than the others i've seen.
I remember the wood had a lovely grain to it as well.

[johnbaz]

A few more of my British guns..

I love Beesas and Webbos!!

Mk1 and Mk2 Airsporters with three Webley mk3 rifles...


Top to bottom..

BSA Airsporter S

BSA Mercury Challenger

BSA Airsporter RB2 carbine..


T to B...

BSA Mercury mk2

BSA Airsporter mk5

BSA Airsporter Stutzen..


BSA Superstar mk1..


BSA Cadet..


1936 BSA Standard mod2..




John :P

[tardinabox]

Nice find cool gun congrats

[Neil.C]

I love the look of the Stutzens John and that Cadet has a nice old style.

What year will the Cadet date from and have you refinished the stock?

I'm guessing '50's?

[Duff Beer]

All beautiful rifles there. This was mine a couple of years ago though it lives 'oop norf' now. It's an Air Logic Genesis with the proper scope.

[johnbaz]

COR!!

That Genesis is gorgeous 8) 8)


Neil- the date prefix is BC- 1951/59..


Cheers, John :)

[Duff Beer]

Thank you, it was a pleasure to use and own though I couldn't do it justice. It had a French Walnut stock canted to one side for the right handed shooter, and a Walther barrel with internal suppressor. It was a bitch to charge but it was totally recoil-less. I hope the guy who's got it now is enjoying it! If you ever get a chance to have a go on one I strongly suggest you do.

[Junaid8]

Wow nice collection of guns :)
Into airguns myself but more the modern types. I currently own an Umarex Walther PPK/s
Here's a quick video of it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=504E5DBDCdw

Its cool I guess? Not half as powerful as any of your pistols though lol. In America they would consider my "airgun" a toy

In your honest opinion what's the worst airgun you have owned?

[beaser]

Anyone with any amount of common sense would never refer to a quality air pistol or rifle as a "toy". It is true that hand and long guns are very loosley regulated in most states of the US compared to most countries of the world. With that fact in mind people that wanted more horsepower would opt towards the more powerful and cheaper fire arm.

In many instances competition air guns are more accurate (at short range) and more expensive
than fire arms.

I live in Canada and the plain fact is it's almost imposible to casually shoot in any discipline. Being seen with anything resembling a firearm may result in a full tactical takedown.

[rossylad92]

Decent that is my man..

[johnbaz]

Hi all


I added a couple more to the collection last weekend, a Weihrauch HW90 and a Webley Vulcan KS..

HW90..


Webley Vulcan KS...



Sorry that the pics aren't up to much, it was getting late in the day and the light was fading :(

Both rifles are in superb condition..

I'll have to do better


Cheers, John :P

[Neil.C]

Nice additions John.

My son has the same Webley carbine.

[johnbaz]

Nice additions John.

My son has the same Webley carbine.

I haven't gotten round to trying mine out yet Neil


Cheers, John :P

[JWL940]

I can't fire a rifle straight to save my life (right handed but left eyed) but found I was surprisingly good with a Browning 9mm self loading pistol when I was given one as my constant companion for a few months (never used in anger I hasten to add). I'd quite like to play with one again but thankfully that is never going to happen so I wonder are there any air pistols out there that have a similar weight and feel to the SLP that I could terrorise a barn door with?

Edited to add I've just read Johnbas's replay on page 3 so the new question is what make should I be looking for that feels like it is bigger than it is?