Haenel 310 - Parts 1 & 2

by B.B. Pelletier

First things, first. Two days ago, I showed you a teaser photo of the new PCP from Pyramyd Air. I said it is a derivation of the Benjamin Discovery, and in fact I was shown an early prototype of this rifle very early this year when the American Airgunner TV show visited the Crosman factory. At that time, they were toying with the idea of an upgraded Discovery, but since then the marketing plan changed.

The new rifle is called the Katana--named by Josh Ungier, for whom it was ultimately built. Actually, that name is attached to the blurred photo we teased you with on Wednesday. Paul Capello caught it, and I wonder how many others did without saying?

Follow this link to the Katana page. As soon as I get one, I'll review it for you. The low price puts the new rifle in a very good position among the new crop of high-value PCP rifles.

Now, on to today's blog report. Yes, this really is both Parts 1 and 2. I'm doing this because this is Friday and I like you to have something you can chew on for the weekend.


Haenel 310 is a bolt-action round ball rifle.

The Haenel 310 is a curious airgun. It shoots 4.4mm round lead balls instead of BBs or pellets. Before you get your knickers in a knot, 4.4mm lead balls are easy to get. Just contact John Groenewold. He sells them by the pound. He hides them on his website under "Shootable Ammo" and further under "JG Ammo," but here's a link to the exact page. Just buy 5 lbs., and you'll wind up with a lifetime supply. You can use them in a variety of other airguns and BB guns, so it's a long-term investment. I figure that if you're going to shoot a Haenel 310, you're going to be involved with a lot of oddball airguns in your life.

I reported on this model back in February 2007. That gun was different than the one I'm looking at now, but the layout is identical.

Haenel was a German company that wound up in East Germany after the war; and, when the Iron Curtain dropped in 1989, tons of airguns came out of there. A pawnshop located in South Carolina bought several containers of surplus stuff in the mid-1990s from the East German secret police (Stasi), among which were several thousand airguns. Most of them were Haenel 310, 311 and 312 models. The pawnshop contacted us at The Airgun Letter, and we helped put the word out about these guns. We bought several, as did many of our subscribers.

One person who bought many of these 310s was my good friend Earl McDonald. Over the years, Mac gave some away and traded others until he was down to his last example, which he took to the 2009 Roanoke Airgun Expo to sell. Several times people had the rifle in their hands but always they laid it back down again. The rifle was still with us at the end of the show, when Mac gave it to me to test for you.

Mac kept this one because it was the best one he saw out of those he received. It's a far better example than I ever saw from this source, so I'd agree that he got lucky in the surplus lottery.

The 310 is a spring-piston rifle that cocks via an articulated bolt. By articulated, I mean that it's hinged to stick out to the right side of the "receiver" when at rest, but it flips up to become part of a longer cocking lever. You pull it straight back to cock the rifle, but what really happens is the lever pivots at its base, inside that triangular metal cover under the stock. At the top it pulls the piston straight back against a powerful mainspring. It's not an easy rifle to cock, taking 29 lbs. of force according to my scale. While that doesn't sound too bad, you're doing is with just your hand instead of your entire arm. Adult men will find it difficult to cock. Most younger teenagers may be challenged.


When the bolt is down like this, the rifle looks conventional.


Flip the bolt up like this to make a handy cocking lever.


The bottom of the bolt is anchored deep under the stock in this triangular metal cover. When you pull the bolt back, it rocks in this fulcrum.

The rifle is 40.25 inches long with a fixed 14.25-inch rifled barrel. The length of pull measures 13.5 inches long, so a larger-youth-to-adult size, but trust me-- smaller kids aren't going to be able to cock this one very easily. This one weighs 5.75 lbs. That's 4 oz. less than the other one I tested, which could be the weight of the wood. Since I now use a balance beam scale to weigh guns, I'm inclined to think it's due to the better accuracy of the scale.


The rear sight adjusts for elevation, only.


The front sight is a simple barleycorn covered with a globe. It can be adjusted sideways in a dovetail.

It's a repeater!
While the triangular metal cover under the stock looks like a magazine but is not, there's a tiny magazine located under the stock directly under the rear sight. The normal removable magazine holds 6 balls, but there are also 12-shot magazines around. I used to own one. They're not as reliable as the 6-shot mags.


The 6-shot magazine is another engineering marvel. Just press down the lead balls from the top.

Prior to starting
First thing--I oiled the piston seal. I believe it's leather, which is consistent with the time and place of the gun's manufacture. And, once it's oiled, it responds in the same way as other oiled leather seals. I put 10 drops of Crosman Pellgunoil down the muzzle of the rifle and stood it on its butt for 30 minutes. Then, I worked the piston back and forth with the cocking lever and a slurping sound came out of the muzzle, which is what leather seals do when they're absorbing oil. Thirty minutes after that, I loaded the 6-shot magazine and shot the first rounds--being careful of the carpet because I knew oil droplets would be coming out of the muzzle. Kind of like a sneeze.

The oiling was to refresh the leather seal, of course, and also to get it ready for velocity testing. Leather seals tend to last a very long time and keeping them oiled is one thing that helps preserve them. Just use a good petroleum oil. Pellgunoil is made from 20-weight non-detergent motor oil and works fine.

Talk about quiet!
Apartment dwellers and others who are concerned about sound, the Haenel 310 was made for you! This little rifle makes a Benjamin Marauder sound loud. One of these coupled with the Air Venturi Quiet Pellet Trap, and you're rigged for silent running! And it's the perfect scale (velocity, range of accurate shooting) for indoors. What a wonderful house gun it makes. As for critters, it might take a small mouse or perhaps a bad insect, but don't even think of it for general hunting.

Velocity
Okay, not a lot of different 4.4mm lead balls to check. And a certain-sized sphere made of pure lead tends to be pretty much the same from brand to brand. Mac gave me a container of lead balls that I assume came from John Groenewold, so that's what I used for this test. The average was 345 f.p.s., but one low shot of 303 brought that number down. Without it, the average was 351 f.p.s., with a spread from 325 to 362.

The other 310 I tested in 2007 averaged slightly over 400 f.p.s., so this one is obviously a little slower. That happens with spring guns.

While all lead balls of the same size and purity may weigh the same, they aren't necessarily all uniformly round. I had one jam while firing--something that's never happened to me with this model before this test. So, using good undamaged ammo is a real plus.

Of course a 4.4mm lead ball weighs more (7.6 grains) than a 4.3mm steel ball (5.1 grains), so this rifle is a little more powerful than the average Red Ryder. It should also be a lot more accurate, but we'll look at that in Part 3.

Healthways Plainsman BB gun - Part 2

by B.B. Pelletier

A short announcement before we start. Airgun Arena is an alternate chat place that now has eMatches (postal matches). Click here to read more about them and to participate.

Part 1

Well, I'm back to the Plainsman today, and we're going to look at velocity. I have to tell you--I was surprised by what you're about to see.

But first, don't mistake the Healthways Plainsman that I am testing for the Challenger Plainsman--another CO2 pellet gun. The Challenger is much scarcer and commands a higher price.


Challenger Plainsman is a completely different airgun.

Remember that the pistol I'm testing still has a fast leak, so I can't test total shot count. And I have to be sensitive to when the velocity drops off during a string. That said, though, I believe I got good test figures--and what figures they are!


Healthways Plainsman is a very comfortable air pistol. It has a light, smooth trigger.

Low power
I started with the lowest power setting. I figured the gun would be down in the 200s, with the promised shot count of 100 on this power setting. The Czechoslovakian APP 661 is another semiautomatic BB pistol that gets lots of shots per CO2 cartridge. It gets over 200 per, but the velocity is down below 250 f.p.s. And the 661 uses some of the CO2 to cock itself as you shoot.

This Plainsman started out at 355 f.p.s., but after several shots to loosen the action, it averaged 385 f.p.s. The spread went from 381 to 388, but again I remind you that the gun is losing gas all the time. At 385 f.p.s., this is a brisk little BB pistol. And remember--this is all on the lowest power setting.


The safety is located on the left side of the grip.

Medium power
On some other airguns with adjustable power, the velocity often doesn't change significantly, so I was pleased to see the average on medium power was up to 415 f.p.s. The spread went from 410 to 419--a tight string! You drop to half the number of available shots when you go to medium, and I don't think it's enough of an increase to warrant the additional use of gas.

Firing behavior
As I shot the Plainsman, I remembered why I liked the gun so much as a kid. The trigger-pull is so smooth and light! It's long, but there's none of the stacking of effort as the blade comes back. You don't feel the hammer being cocked. Simply a smooth pull until the release.

High power
On high power, the average jumped to 437. The spread was 435 to 439, so it was very tight. I half-expected a higher velocity on high power because of the claims for penetration, but maybe that's all it takes to penetrate a coffee can. And maybe my pistol isn't performing up to par. I think I have to get this gun resealed.


On high power, the adjustment screw is all the way out. The detents are so distinctive that you will make no mistakes when selecting power.

Now, for something special
The Plainsman had another feature that was groundbreaking in its day and is still a pretty good idea. They offered a separate cap for the CO2 cartridges that allowed the use of longer 12-gram cartridges. I have seen one of these in a boxed Plainsman set over a decade ago, so I know they're out there. The set I saw had the cap inside the box, and words on the box told about it. I don't know if the cap was also available as a separate option for other Plainsman owners, but that's what I would think. Now that my interest in the pistols has been piqued, I'm going to look for this set.


With a different end cap, the Plainsman pistol can accept longer 12-gram CO2 cartridges.

Where can I get one?
I found two Plainsman pistols on Gun Broker and one on Auction Arms. One of the two on Gun Broker holds and shoots hard. It's boxed for $60, which probably isn't too bad. The boxed one on Auction Arms starts at $135 and the seller doesn't state whether it holds, so it's way too high in my opinion. If you want one, they do come up.

Something from nothing - Part 3

by B.B. Pelletier

Part 1
Part 2

Before we begin today's report, I have an announcement. Actually, I'm announcing that on Friday there will be a special announcement about the rifle I have alluded to several times. Crosman is making an upgraded version of the Benjamin Discovery. It's highly exclusive and designed for Pyramyd Air. They'll be selling and distributing the rifle, too. I've seen it at Pyramyd Air, but I haven't tested it yet. On Friday, you'll be given the details about this new PCP. They should be in stock very soon, and I'm scheduled to get one as soon as it becomes available. I'll rush it into testing for you.


On Friday, everything will be clear.

Today's report started as something simple I could write while on the road, but it has evolved into something much greater. Writing it and thinking about what I'm saying has reminded me of things I had almost forgotten about dealing in guns. And last Saturday that knowledge came in extremely handy when I was in a favorite local gun store. By telling you the story, I can illustrate how research helps you as a collector.

The dealer doesn't know what he has
So, I'm in the store looking at the used long guns in a glass case when I spotted a Savage over-under rifle/shotgun combo gun. It's model 24, and the gun I'm referring to specifically is the model 24B-DL. It was listed on the tag as .22 LR over 20 gauge and was selling for $200.


This Savage was found in a gun store last Saturday.


The Savage 24B-DL is the deluxe version of the combo. It has upgraded features.

I've long wanted a Savage model 24, but at the gun shows they seem to ask $425 for good used ones. I have that much, but it just seems high to me. They come in many rifle calibers, and the shotguns are either .410, 20 gauge or 12 gauge. The most popular two calibers found in the model 24 are .22 long rifle over .410. From perusing Gunbroker.com, I know that Savage 24s most often sell for $375 to $425. Some of the rifle calibers, such as .357 Magnum, are considered extremely desirable and command much more money, but I thought that a .22 Magnum over a 20 gauge shotgun would be ideal for me.

Wrong caliber!
Well, they pulled this one out of the glass case, and, lo and behold, it was mislabeled! It was a .22 Magnum over 20 gauge--exactly what I wanted. And it was the deluxe model with checkered walnut stock and forearm and a nickelplated, engraved receiver! The barrels were coated with rust and grime but seemed to have pretty good bluing underneath. I knew steel wool and Ballistol would clean it right up, which they did.

Long story short, I bought that combo gun fast, because at $200 I reckoned it was undervalued by about half. Nothing I have discovered since then causes me to change that assessment.

Why was it so cheap? The rust, for starters. Many buyers could not look past it to see a great gun. Also, some former owner had attached an aftermarket recoil pad and his work looks about as good as mine, which is to say something from the early hobo movement. While not quite as primitive as rice-paddy chic, early hobo displays a blatant disregard for style, good work or coloring within the lines. I, however, was armed with the knowledge that I could easily source a replacement buttplate for very little, if I ever felt the need for style closure--which I never will. Again, my research paid off.

Here's the lesson to take away: If you study the airgun market and know what to look for, you'll be prepared to jump on a real bargain whenever it presents itself. Yes, you may be looking for a Diana model 27. If, instead, you stumble across a Hy Score model 807, you'll know that it's really a 27 and know what it should cost. And if, instead of the Hy Score 807, you encounter a Hy Score model 801, you'll also know that it's a superior model because you have read David Enoch's remarks about them on this blog. I guess the bottom line is this: knowledge is power.

Here's some more knowledge
This next point is one I have wanted to tell you about for a long time, but other things kept intruding. This may not sound like a big deal, but I have another story to illustrate just how important it is.

The dealer isn't interested in the same things as you
Dealers sell what they are familiar with and discount what they're not familiar with. That is the nugget I'm giving to you. What does it mean?

It means that I can go to my CO2 repair center and spot an FWB 124 standing in a rack of used guns with a tag on it for $35. Yes, that really happened to me. Oh, the gun was rusty and missing its sights and it was the standard model--not the deluxe. But still--$35 for what should have been a $200 air rifle AT LEAST! I bought it, took it apart, cleaned it, installed a Maccari seal and mainspring and a cheap scope and sold it for $250. I did so because I knew what I was doing. Of course, I had to find the rifle to begin with; and if you live in Port Radium, Canada, (or Hilo, Hawaii), you might not have the same opportunities as I do. But you're on the internet, right? Yesterday, I did a special search on Gunbroker.com. Instead of looking for guns by their model names I looked for them by their attributes.

Believe it or not, there are dealers who advertise things not by their model names but by their features. This eliminates from the list of potential buyers everyone who is looking for the item by its common name. Therein lies my second story.

I've wanted to buy a Sheridan Knocabout single-shot pistol for a couple of years. The name is not misspelled. Sheridan spelled it that way in the literature and on the gun. I have special alerts on all the popular gun auction sites set up to notify me when one of these guns goes up. And they work. I get notices almost every week of a gun for sale. Unfortunately, so does every other Sheridan collector. These pistols usually sell for over $300, despite existing in great numbers and not being that unique. I don't want to pay that much, so I always get outbid.

But yesterday I found where a dealer on Gunbroker had listed one as a Knocabout .22 cal. single-shot pistol. I found it by looking at all the single shots. He said in his description, "Not the type of gun I normally sell, so $9.99 start price and $15 shipping."

Oh, and did I mention that this is a boxed gun with all the paperwork and is in UNFIRED condition? So, it's worth WAY more than a typical Knocabout, and we now know about what they go for. Here was an opportunity to buy something and make a little money.

Now, the last thing I do on auction sites is announce my presence. I don't want the other bidders to get their panties in a knot and get into a bidding war with them over who is the most macho. I don't bid until the last possible moment. On Gunbroker, they have a thing called the "15-minute rule" that says if a bid is received within 15 minutes of the end of the auction, the bidding time is extended by 15 minutes from the time of that bid. My strategy is to figure the most I will pay for an item and bid that much 15 minutes before the end of the general auction. If there's a crowd of anxious bidders waiting until the end, this strategy doesn't work very well; but if the item is flying below the radar, as this one seemed to be, there's a chance I'll get it.

When I discovered the gun with over a day remaining in the auction, the bid was $155.99. As the bid time expired down to 15 minutes, the bid didn't change, so I was either watching it alone, or the other bidder was watching silently. I knew the pistol in this condition was worth well beyond $300, so I decided that that would be my cap. If I couldn't get it for that or less, the other bidder wanted it more than I did. However, my study of human nature has also taught me that internet auction bidders never bid in even amounts, so my top bid would be $309.99

And here's what happened
I was immediately out-bid by $5. So the other bidder wanted it more than me. His maximum bid was larger than mine and the aution software automatically advanced his next bid past mine. That's okay, too. There is a saying in the buying business, "You win some and you lose some, but you suit up for them all."

So, I didn't get the pistol, but I did get a nice combination gun on Saturday. I'll continue to look for that Knocabout and dozens of other things that are on my list. And the next time a good buy comes my way, I'll recognize it.

Norica Quick - Part 3

by B.B. Pelletier

For those who are following the podcast, the November issue went up this weekend.

Part 1
Part 2


Norica Quick is a big, robust-looking underlever.

Today, I'll look at the accuracy of our Norica Quick.

I mounted a Leapers 5th Gen. 1.25-4x24 long eye-relief scope on the Quick using BKL two-piece rings. Before we get to the accuracy part of this report, I want to say a word about this particular scope. It is extremely bright and even though it doesn't magnify more than 4 times, I found it quite easy to bisect the small bullseye at 25 yards with the crosshairs. This scope is parallax corrected for 100 yards, so I focused the eyepiece to make the target sharp, and that's what made the difference. This would be a wonderful hunting scope for a centerfire.

This is not a cheap scope, but it won't break the bank, either. It's just more expensive than you might expect for a lower-powered scope. The optics seem to be first-rate, because the image is especially bright. If you need a scope that can make sense of targets in the dawn and twilight times, this is it. This would be a wonderful hunting scope for a centerfire rifle, as long as the range was held to 150 yards or less.

The front sight appeared clearly in the scope when it was set on low power, so I removed it. Only two screws hold it on.

On to accuracy
The first pellet I tried was the RWS Meisterkugeln. During sight-in, they seemed to want to group, so I continued to test them for several 10-shot groups. I noted that the Quick is not very hold-sensitive. I used a standard artillery hold that seemed to work best of all with this rifle. When I tried some more sophisticated modifications of the artillery hold, the groups opened up.


Following sight-in, four Meisterkugeln grouped well at 25 yards, but one dropped away without explanation.


This is pretty representative of a 10-shot group of RWS Meisterkugeln at 25 yards.

The feel of the shot is quick (no pun intended) and sharp. The trigger is a bit stiff, but it breaks clean.

Gamo Match
Gamo Match pellets did not do well at all. They fit the breech very loose, like the Meisterkugeln before them.

Beeman Kodiak
Beeman Kodiak pellets fit the breech tighter than the first two pellets, and they had such a tight velocity spread in Part 2 that I thought they would be good candidates for accuracy.


Beeman Kodiaks were a disappointment. They acted like they wanted to group, but they spread out way too much.

At this point I wondered what I would tell you about the Quick. I could see good groups inside the 10-shots I was firing, but the rest of the shots opened things up too much. It was at this time that I remembered I had promised to shoot the Norica wadcutters for you.

Norica Wadcutters
Inside the Norica Massimo box was a tin of Norica wadcutter pellets. Some shooters believe that a pellet that bears the same name as the gun will be accurate, so I'll include them in future tests of Norica rifles.


These Norica wadcutters were packed with the Massimo rifle. I'm going to include them in all future Norica accuracy testing.


This 25-yard group of Norica wadcutters looks encouraging, except for those two wide shots. We're getting closer!

JSB Match Diabolo
Next I tried JSB Match Diabolo pellets. They sprayed all over the place, so I didn't record any groups.

JSB Exact domes
The last pellet I tried was JSB Exact 8.4-grain domes. They gave me the groups I was looking for.


JSB Exact domes gave good groups at 25 yards. No wide shots and no surprises. These are the best of the six pellets I tested.

I showed you more bad groups than normal to give you the sense of what I was seeing as this test unfolded. As you can see, it was worth it to continue the test until the JSB Exacts were discovered. This is what you must do sometimes when looking for a good pellet for your own air rifle.

Sticky trigger
In the final 30 shots the rifle's trigger began sticking in the second stage, which was somewhat disconcerting. However, the best group(s) of the day were fired with this happening, so it didn't disrupt a good test of the rifle. It feels like the sort of thing that will work through with time, so I wouldn't worry about it. I just wanted you to know.

The bottom line is that the Norica Quick is a large, powerful underlever spring rifle that has good, neutral shooting characteristics. The trigger is a bit stiff, but crisp enough to do very good work. If you want something different in a man-sized spring rifle, this may be it!

SAM 10-meter target pistol - Part 1

by B.B. Pelletier

I know I have a couple reports left to finish, and I'll get right on them. With the trip to Roanoke and the weekend, plus the end of the month all coming at the same time, I got jammed with a lot of other things. There were articles, videos (that will be up very soon) and a podcast to do, and I just didn't have the time to mount scopes and shoot for accuracy. Sorry, but it happens.

I thought I would take today and start looking at the new (to me) SAM (Swiss Arms Manufacture) 10-meter pistol I got at Roanoke. You can't even buy this exact model any longer, but it's quite similar to Steyr and Anschutz 10-meter pistols, plus SAM still makes 10-meter target pistols, so I hope it will satisfy the curiosity of those what want to see reports on those other guns. The current top SAM model is the K15.


SAM M10 target pistol is world class.

One great thing about this pistol is that its design is guided and influenced by Cesare Morini, the famous maker of the finest target pistol grips available. You're assured that the grips on this gun will be the very best. While I've tested a great many air pistols with Morini grips, this is the first pistol I've owned with them.

My pistol came to me with two air tanks--each of which is supposed to get 220 shots from a fill of air to 300 bar (4,350 psi). I'll fill to 200 bar and get about 100 shots. One tank has a manometer built into the end and the other does not, but this pistol has another fail-safe feature. There's a lock that engages whenever the air pressure drops below a minimum. When that happens, the breech cover that cocks the gun is locked and you cannot cock the pistol. However, you can manually hold the locking lever back out of the way and cock the pistol anyway, and the manual says there are still 20 good shots when the lock first engages. So, you shouldn't get caught short in a match. With this feature, a manometer isn't really needed.


This hook stays away from the cocking arm until the air pressure drops too low. Then it locks the cocking arm. At that point there are still 20 good shots left, but the hook has to be manually moved each time the gun is cocked.

I had shot this pistol many years before, when the owner first acquired it. At the time, I remarked that the trigger was the best I'd ever felt. Well, in the interim, Feinwerkbau has managed to get their P44 trigger working just as well, but nothing I've ever tested felt better than this one. And that includes a Morini electronic trigger.

It felt like it was breaking at 10 oz. or less on dry-fire; but when I put it on the RCBS trigger-pull scale, it measured 18 oz. The trouble is, that's too close for comfort. The last thing I want is to have to adjust my trigger in a match, so I bumped it up to 19 oz. Five hundred grams, which is the required minimum trigger-pull weight, is ~17.7 oz.

Adjustments
The trigger adjusts for location, first-stage travel, first-stage weight, second-stage weight and overtravel. I fiddled with it after adjusting the medium-sized Morini grip to suit my hand. The grip adjusts for size (palm shelf), sideways angle and forward angle. You set it up so your wrist is locked when you're on target.

There's a dry-fire lever on the right side of the gun so you can fire hundreds of shots without exhausting any air. This is so essential for a 10-meter competitor, because they shoot many more shots dry than they shoot actual pellets. Their nervous systems get very accustomed to how that trigger feels, to the point that they can hold on the target and simply "wish" the shot off. I explained how this is done in a 7-part report on 10-meter pistol shooting. You might want to read that if this kind of shooting interests you.


Pull the dry-fire lever to the rear (left in this photo), and the trigger is set without cocking the gun. Trigger-pull remains the same with or without air.

More adjustments
The sights adjust for both windage and elevation. The front blade adjusts for width, and the rear notch can be adjusted to compliment it. Total sight radius (how far the sights are separated) is also adjustable.

The weight bar attaches to the front of the triggerguard if you like and there are two weights that attach to it and adjust forward and aft. The pistol weighs 950 grams without any weight and the bar, called a weight carrier, weighs 100 grams. Each of the weights weighs 25 grams, and you can go up to a maximum of 1,100 grams as the pistol comes from the factory. Naturally, you can buy optional weights for the bar if necessary.

And even more...
The pistol's velocity is adjustable to a limited extent. It comes set up for about 490 feet per second (~150 meters per second).

Next time, I'll chrono it and play with the adjuster. Meanwhile, I'll shoot a few dry rounds each day to get back into the swing of things.

Healthways Plainsman BB gun - Part 1

by B.B. Pelletier

I wanted to title this report Americana, because that's what it really is. But when someone on the internet wants to research their gun, the model is the only thing they are interested in. Make no mistake, though--the Healthways Plainsman is Americana, as much as Dad's Root Beer and Buster Brown shoes.

Unlike the Daisy Red Ryder that everyone knows by name, the Healthways Plainsman is the BB pistol that almost everybody knows on sight, without knowing what it is. It's about as ubiquitous as the Marksman 1010 BB pistol, but most of you may have to think about it for awhile. And showing you a period ad may stimulate your memories.


A Plainsman ad from 1965. They called the gun semiautomatic because you just keep pulling the trigger to fire. Actually it's double-action.

I DID NOT go to Roanoke to buy a Plainsman! In fact, I have assiduously avoided the Plainsman for the past 20 years. Before that, I wasn't a writer, so my avoidance was private and didn't count. I have blogged Chinese spring guns. I have blogged Marksman BB pistols. I have even blogged Wamo cap-firing BB guns that have less power than thrown BBs. So, why was I avoiding the Plainsman? No good reason. I just was.

In fact, this is a great little BB gun that I actually shot in my youth. My favorite relative was Uncle Don. He was a man's man. Whenever we got together, he got out his guns and let me shoot. One summer I spent a couple weeks with him and Aunt Gert on the shores of the St. Lawrence River. There, he introduced me to his Plainsman. It shot fast and hard--two things a 12-year-old boy likes. I went through so much of his CO2 that he had to put the brakes on and get me fishing to slow me down.

But I never owned one of these pistols myself; and when the time came to get airguns, I went other ways. In this report, I want to discover what I missed--right along with you.

I stumbled across this pistol on Mike Ahuna's table at the Roanoke airgun show last weekend. It was in the box and included an owner's manual, sales receipt (without the year of sale, unfortunately) and several other papers associated with both the gun and with Numrich Arms (the former name of Gun Parts Corporation), where it was sold. I've seen plenty of other boxed Plainsmans--there was even one at this show--but the condition of this box and papers caught my attention. The gun sang to me!


The Plainsman box looks like a big smile to me. It looks happy, and it makes me feel happy to look at it.

The timeframe
I've found ads for the Plainsman pistol as early as 1960 and as late as 1969. With just a quick check, let's assume I missed some and extend that by a couple years on both ends. The owner's manual that came with the gun is dated 1957, which may be the first year of release. The earliest price I've seen in 1960 is $14.95.

On the late end of the run, there would have been new-old-stock guns for sale for several years after they stopped making them, so they no doubt were sold well into the 1970s. But companies like Daisy were putting pressure on the market with newer guns made of plastic and having the same features and more modern profiles. The final price I saw in 1969 was $18.95.

Who?
Pat Pending must have been a prolific airgun designer, because we see his name on so many guns from the 1950s and '60s. Seriously, that was a dodge used by many companies to avoid the costly fees and time spent in getting patents. Many of the guns that say Pat. Pending have nothing patentable in them. I'm not saying that's the case for the Plainsman, but I sure am hinting at it!

Description
The pistol is all metal with plastic grips. It resembles a Colt Woodsman in shape, though its grip is larger than a Woodsman grip. The trigger works with or without CO2 in the gun and has a smooth, light two-stage pull, though stage two is somewhat long. The gun weighs 29.3 oz. The smoothbore barrel is six inches long.


Plainsman on top and Colt Woodsman on the bottom. The Plainsman is a little beefier than the firearm.

The Plainsman uses 8-gram CO2 cartridges instead of the 12-gram cartridges of today. In its day, more guns used the smaller cartridge, so it didn't seem so strange. Today, however, you can buy these vintage small cartridges here at Pyramyd Air, so there's no reason not to shoot your vintage gun.

Adjustable power
The Plainsman comes with adjustable power. There are three power settings. A coin-operated screw at the bottom of the grip selects each setting, and the detents are stiff enough that there's no question where you are. Healthways didn't use velocity figures for their gun because at this time nobody had access to a chronograph. So, they stated power by what a BB would do to a tin can. Remember, when this gun was made, tin cans were actually made of steel. Don't confuse them with the soft soda cans of today. Think more of a stout soup can or a coffee can. On low power, where you got up to 100 shots, a BB would dent one side of a can at 15 feet. On medium power, you got 55 shots and the BB would deeply dent or pierce one side of a tin can at 15 feet. On high power, you got about 45 shots, and a BB would almost go through both sides of a tin coffee can at 15 feet.


Turn the screw at the top to the left (located at the bottom rear of the pistol grip) with a coin to increase power. There are three settings.

Healthways claimed an accuracy of 50 shots through a one-inch group (they say pattern in the manual) at 25 feet. That seems reasonable, and places it among the most accurate BB guns. I've seen accuracy like that from the Umarex Makarov, so I know it's possible.

The barrel is a thin steel tube, but it's encased in a metal housing that looks more substantial. In fact, everything about this gun looks and feels substantial.

When I researched this pistol, I learned that Healthways put out many different models. This pistol, for example, has a rifled counterpart that looks the same but uses nickelplated lead balls for ammo. And there's a single-action western model I admit to never having seen before, though I might have seen one and thought it was something else. It, too, had a rifled-barrel counterpart that shot lead balls. Finally, there's the Topscore spring-piston model that's fairly well-known, though I admit that I never shot one.


Healthways also offered this Western-style revolver at the same time as the Plainsman.


Lift this gate and drop 100 BBs into the gun. Feeding is handled by the mechanism inside.

Crosman 114 - Part 3

by B.B. Pelletier

Well, I'm back, and today I'll resume testing the Crosman 114, but before I do I must comment on how relaxed I was at this year's Roanoke show. Taking three days to drive there and three to drive back made all the difference in the world. I got home without being exhausted. Maybe this gallbladder diet is beginning to work its magic.

Part 1
Part 2


Crosman's 114 is what little boys' dreams are made of. Read this report to learn just how true that is!

114 Man
I know I told you the story of the man at the show who discovered that he wasn't alone in owning a Crosman 114. I spoke to him at the Roanoke show, and, if I was persuasive enough, he is now reading this blog. I hope so, because the look in his eye when he discovered the world of airguns was priceless. I've been in the same position as he was several times, and I know what a joy it can be to finally connect with the right people over an area of common interest. So, 114 Man, I hope you're now with us. This is your gun.

I also must comment that I didn't see a 114 or a 113 at Roanoke this year. There might have been one, or even more than one, but I was looking and didn't see any.

What do we know about the 114?
We know the gun runs on CO2, and I will tell you now that it has a 22-inch, .22-caliber brass barrel. So, expect 14.3-grain Crosman Premiers to go in the range of 575 f.p.s. to 610 f.p.s., if the rifle has a factory tune. That would be at 70 deg., F. My office temp was 80 degrees when I did the velocity test for you, so I'll get right to the Premiers.

Premiers
I knew from the first shot that something was wrong with the rifle. There was a tremendous outgassing at the breech every time the rifle fired--something these rifles and pistols never do when they're working right. The blast of gas told me the gun has a serious leak in the firing system, which was evident in two different ways as I shot the Crosman Premier pellets. First, the average velocity was only 536 f.p.s.--well below what I expected to see. Second, the velocity dropped with almost every shot--something that does not happen with CO2 at 80 degrees. Look at the shot string below:

550
549
550
539
541
534
532
525
525
518

This isn't typical of a filled CO2 gun that gets 70 shots per fill. Something's wrong, and the blast of gas coming from around the action is a clear indication that repairs are in order.

RWS Superpoints
I started to shoot a string of RWS Superpoints, but stopped after just four shots. Look at the velocity:

517
509
507
494

If this were a PCP, I would think it had dropped off the power curve, but CO2 guns don't drop off like this until the end, when their liquid runs out. That should be after at least 50 good shots, if not more. Certainly not after the first five!

So, my 114 needs some attention. Maybe if it were made modular, like the 2260, I might even tackle the repairs myself, but it's not. It's all integrated into a whole, so I think I will send it off to a repair station. Only the metal action has to go, so the package can be small and light. I just have to exhaust all the CO2 before I pack it.

I could check accuracy now, but with the wide velocity variation, I don't think we would be doing the rifle any favors. I know this hasn't gone the normal way of a blog report, but sometimes this is what happens--especially with vintage airguns. We'll stay on top of it and see how it comes out on the other side.