My FAVORITE Air Rifle

Just about everyone likes air rifles. In this video I discuss the Slavia 624, the Slavia 620, and, best of all, my favorite air rifle. Come see how all these work and hear my commentary on these great and unique rifles. No matter where you are in the world, air rifles are useful and mostly easy to own. Thanks for being here and check out the links below for more USOG.
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Music: www.bensound.com

[@TBullCajunbreadmaker]

I bought one of the Chinese air rifles from one of those truckload caravans that come through town every once in a while. Paid $20 bucks for it and I wasn't expecting much out of it. After I got it home and figured out how to load it and shoot it I got it sighted in finally and to my horror it was an air rifle that turned out to be one of the most accurate air rifles I have evr shot. And it has a very high velocity to boot. It is not at all hard to hit a 2" circle consistently at 50 yards and never get out of the circle. For such a cheap little air rifle it was and still is surprising at how well it shoots consistently.

[@3ducs]

The Lewis and Clark expedition had air rifles, at least one, with them. Very powerful, capable of taking quite large game. They had the advantage of rapid fire, they had an air tank that was pumped up and could fire quite a few rounds.

[@krockpotbroccoli65]

One of the first successful precharged pneumatics. What was it, the Gioandolini or something like that?

[@paulbryan1013]

Girandoni I believe 👍

[@grassroot011]

They awed the native Americans to where they thought they had supernatural powers.

[@grassroot011]

It was Forty Caliber I think I've read.

[@Romin.777]

@@grassroot011 Yes i saw that too in a documentary. Awesome stuff. And the swiss army had them for snipers.

[@markletts8802]

That BSA is stunning ..I've never seen anything like it..TY 😊🇬🇧

[@shawnwells5719]

Yes, they need lubricant, but some types of seals are degraded by petroleum. They require a silicone based lube. Petroleum can also combust from the diesel effect of the compressed air and leave residue where you don't want it.

[@Stigstigster]

Dieseling an airgun for many shots will also destroy the piston in short order. It'll distort the face and start to fail badly. Believe it or not, when a properly lubricated (not dieseling) airgun fires there are insane temperatures generated at the front of the piston and breech but for such an infinitesimal amount of time no damage is done. When dieseling, that high temperature is maintained for much longer causing erosion or melting of the piston face. Residue is also a problem as you say.

[@Romin.777]

@@Stigstigster I have a new Webley gaspiston and put at least 500 pellets through it and it's still dieselimg.. I think it's too wel lubed, any ideas how to get rid of this? Cheers

[@thetoneknob4493]

ive got an old Benjamin mod 312 22cal bolt action air rifle that started my love of all things that shoot!

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

You bet - those Benjamins started a lot of shooting engines : )

[@terrythoffman9375]

I have two from the late 50s! Still work great 👍

[@Avro93]

My Dad bought me a Savia 624 in 1962, and it still shoots great after 62 years!!! Gotta love that!!

[@tacocin]

Thank you sir for this excellent video! I share your enthusiasm for fine quality and workmanship. I also share your regret of letting a perfectly good rifle get away from me. Ugh ... hurts me to think about it. This is my favorite YT channel! Blessings to you and yours!

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thank you so much. Your words nourish me - truly do. God Bless.

[@richardgonzales8502]

As an avid AirGunner : The trigger finger of My Heart longs to shoot that rifle!

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

I like that wording Richard : )

[@richardgonzales8502]

USOG thank You.

[@corniezacharias4617]

Hello USOG. I love your videos. I must say though with a spring powered break barrel air rifle, cocking it only compresses the spring. The air only gets compressed after firing when the air trapped between pellet and front of piston seal is compressed by the rapid release of spring tension. Thanks for the videos!

[@auldman]

It’s a worry that people believe what he is saying

[@missey316]

@@auldman oh stop . Move along if you don't have something nice to say

[@ludgerleissner3122]

@@missey316 I agree, had that part wrong about springers, but still a great video, especially seeing some of his collection which included some items I've never seen before.

[@ragnar338]

The Diana 55 has the exact same action as the BSA You showed, it has the dimensions, weight and feel of a hunting rifle. The most mechanical interesting are in my mind the Diana 60/65 rifles and the model 6 pistol - they are matchspringers, the break action of the 65 is locked to improce accuracy. They contain 2 pistons moving in opposite directions to eliminate the piston bounce completely (Gissscher Doppelkolben) and they hit what You aim at. When still at school i always bought used airguns or got them as gifts - as long as the barrel - the inside - is not rusted they are easy to fix if aged. My favorite is a simple Diana 35 break action springer; with a new seal maybe a Titans xs spring if allowed and a washer brazed on as a ghost ring it feels like a shotgun and is great fun - for a pistol i like the HW40 precompressed air the most - not much power but a lot of accuracy (grip filled with shot for weight). In Europe citizen rights to firearms are lost at the moment in most places but who can hit with an airgun can hit with anything i was a solid shot easily passing effortless in militia service and hunting course and test after shooting airguns as a kid and still hit with a friends SW66 DA on falling plates for the practice with CO2 revolvers. For serious accuracy go with precompressed - sheridan pelletrifles/ the beeman pistol looks like a HW40.

[@Omnihil777]

I still cannot see why you don't have more subscribers, great informative videos about great rifles. Hunting / Sport rifles are just fascinating me, the workmanship, the design, the simple yet incredible hard to master concept of bolt actions, even just the manual handling of beautiful wood and steel, sometimes I almost smell the rifles when I see them on your table, smells like my fathers gunsafe, I imagine. Thank you for your content. With all these air rifles I'm getting nostalgic, was my first rifle too, shot .177 "eierbecher" (german egg cup, these little hourglass-shaped pallets)

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

I like that word : eierbecher - perfect description; I shot thousands - as you likely did too. I thought if I make the channel and keep at it, offering what I know and can share - people would come. And slowly, they are : ) Thanks for being here and good shooting!

[@ianwoods1384]

Hello Usog. Thankyou for your very informative, interesting video, which was a pleasure to watch. Best wishes.

[@bradyelich2745]

Mine is a Slavia 618. I bought mine from MacLeods Hardware when I was a pre-teen, over 40 years ago.

[@ekim000]

Thanks for another fantastically informative video!

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thank you for being here and commenting Mike!

[@franciscopeixoto6609]

Salut from France. Great stuff Slavia 's are great! Great review once again. Francisco

[@Gunners_Mate_Guns]

Others have corrected you on this one, but all of the air rifles you showed do not compress air when cocked. All of the rifles shown are functionally called spring piston, i.e. cocking the guns only compresses and holds a spring in place that releases and compresses air with a piston only when the trigger is squeezed. The first two air rifles shown are called break-barrel. The third with the fixed barrel and the cocker moved below the barrel is called an underlever. You didn't show one, but you mentioned having seen ones that cock with a separate bar to the side, and yep, those are called sidelevers. Finally, you mentioned having one with a shock absorber type mechanism that uses no steel spring. Those types of air rifles are called gas ram or gas piston, and they uses a compressed gas (usually nitrogen) inside a cylinder to serve the exact same function as a steel spring. I have two underlever spring piston air rifles (both are the Gamo CFX), one a conventional steel spring .177 caliber, and the other converted to a gas ram in .22 caliber. Many English sparrows and starlings have been taken with my Gamos.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Hello and thank you! I hope you start a KZbin channel soon : ) I got just about everything wrong - even though I know what's right - so funny. Thanks for taking the time to correct. All the best and I'm off to the starling roost now - I can hear them cackling.... you know what I mean.

[@Gunners_Mate_Guns]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns I actually have my own channel, but I haven't uploaded for about three years now. Most of it is gun-related, although my last two uploads were about personal experiences, one really spooky and the other was an occurrence that I have yet to find a valid explanation for.

[@flashgordon99999]

I have a Slavia 630 that I have had for nearly 40 yrs and it is insanely accurate out to about 30 yards. I also still have a (bought new) a 1976 Sheridan Blue Streak which is also extremely accurate. I have recently returned to shooting my air rifles as a cheaper way of getting trigger time. Great vid as always.

[@frankwebster6082]

Great video, thanks for relaying this info to all us viewers. Take Care and Be Safe.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thanks Frank - you as well.

[@DD-cg1tm]

i love this guys understated delivery. obvs an expert 'n all.

[@willbranson3216]

The 620 looks like my 1st pellet gun in the 1960's. It was great for shooting birds off the neighbor's bird feeding station. Muzzle velocity with a light, 7 grain .177 pellet was about 600-650 fps (when new with a healthy spring). Muzzle energy was about 6 or 7 foot lbs - the same as this gun. I like springers, but even the beautiful and powerful Diana RWS 350 can't compete with modern pneumatic air rifles. I went to a private, all-boys, Jesuit boarding school. The principal, Father ___, used to have a springer pellet rifle hidden under his cassock and, while walking by the dormitory, as the football team was practicing, he whipped the pellet rifle out and shot nuisance pigeons off the eavestroughs.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Amazing - I like the principal with the pellet rifle under his garments - reminds me of a Western movie.

[@AlexCausey]

I remember The Gun collector Grover Johnson had an air rifle that was from the Luis and Clark expedition. Girandoni air rifle Description DescriptionThe Girardoni air rifle was an airgun designed by Italian inventor Bartolomeo Girardoni circa 1779. The weapon was also known as the Windbüchse. One of the rifle's more famous associations is its use on the Lewis and Clark Expedition to explore and map the western part of North America in the early 1800s. Wikipedia Caliber: 46", 11.7 mm 146.3 grains (9.48 g), or.51", 13 mm, 201.49 grains (13.06 g) Muzzle velocity: about 500 fps (152 m/s), 117 ft lbs (159 J) In service: 1780-1815 Cartridge: spherical balls Sights: Iron Used by: Austrian Empire; United States (Lewis and Clark) Place of origin: Holy Roman Empire

[@13lochie]

You're a good egg usog. Cheers for yet another good video.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thank you! I try : )

[@bc30cal99]

Excellent video once again sir, well done. My first pellet rifle in the '60's was a Slavia 624 which I shot thousands of pellets through. Now I have a Slavia 620 as well as a Webley & Scott, which is a fine arm, but I prefer the Slavia as it brings back so many memories. The older Slavias have a stamp on the barrel which indicates the year of production. From what I understand they were made at the CZ Brno factory, which makes sense considering the quality of craftsmanship in them. Thanks again for the videos and all the best to you.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thank you! Great info on the date on manufacture! I'll check. They really know how to do things at CZ Brno! Excellence everywhere.

[@sjoormen1]

Nostalgia. My first rifle was Slavia 620. Good times.

[@mudbutton2]

A favourite topic of mine. The small Slavia's were popular boy's guns in Australia in the 70's and 80's along with some of the Chinese guns and the German made Diana's which were often rebadged as "Gecado" here, and the Hungarian Telly, often called a "Jelly" because of the flowing script the brand was written in. LOL. A friend of the family had one of the old BSA's back when I was a kid in the early 80's though I never got to fire it. The later BSA Mercury, Meteor and Airporters were popular here, with a few US made pumpers like the Crosmans and Benjamins and the rarer Sheridan. My own collection consists of my '78 vintage Crosman 761XL, '84 vintage Feinwerkbau 127, '81 Sheridan Blue Streak and a newer Diana 350 Magnum in .22.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Your Crossman is one of those rifles that just keeps going - at least mine was like that - until I sold...another bad decision. I like the "Jelly" name 😂 - I'll have to get a Sheridan - they are around and people love them. Diana remains "Goddess of the hunt" - superb. All the best to you in Australia.

[@mudbutton2]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns I resealed and revalved the 761XL and am pleased to say it has introduced some young kids to shooting. The Sheridans are a nice pumper. .20 pellets are a bit rare over here but I stocked up when a heap came up at a good price! Good luck and good health to you and may this pandemic be over soon!

[@TheQCollection]

The BSA .22 Buccaneer SE uses a similar style stock.. Mmm might try pick one up and try it out.. great video's as always USOG 👍

[@Romin.777]

Hi, Nothing wrong with airrifles, great wsy to practice your aim and very cheap to do it. The one Lewis & Clark took with them on their expedition was quite the beast. I love my Webley & Scott Vmax D-Ram (gaspiston) 20 footpounds .22 Wich is made by Hatsan and very acurate. Great for small game. Recently got a Diana mod.23 for free wich are quite collectable. Very small, advertised for kids and women. :)) When i was 12 i owned a Sheridan .22 CO2 pistol. Sold it and always regretted it. Started shooting again years ago with a Crossman 2240 .22 CO2 pistol and upgraded it with a shoulderstock wich makes it a carabine. Great for short range pest control. Take care. Ps: that last one is beauty.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thanks Romin - I got a lot of things wrong...but it was fun making the video and I just love those air rifles.

[@Romin.777]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns I think you've got it pretty acurate. ;))

[@baconator754]

Great video as always, Mike. A word of warning: Those Chinese springers lack an anti-beartrap mechanism, and if the ratchet fails while you're loading a pellet, not unheard of, someone else will be cutting your meat for you. There are pellet-loading thingys that eliminate that hazard. I had a side-lever version, but gave it away as at the time I had kids and was afraid they'd maim themselves. Keep up the great work.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Now I know - thanks to you!

[@countrywideboy]

I have my fathers in .177 he paid £6.00 for it in 1956, it has adjustable iron sights and the cocking handle differ's from you'res it is a sort of butterfly lever on the side of the cocking handle its marked patent canada 1906 from what I can see of whats left of the stamping on top of the rifle, it still shoots straight .

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

I'm hearing from so many people around the world! These rifles are legends! 1956 and your runs and is accurate! My goodness - not many things work now as they did in 1956 except maybe the rock in the garden. Thanks for the note!

[@mydixiewrecked515]

I use my Remington Vantage 1200 .177 all the time. It's a Crosman. It's pretty deadly at 25yds with 7.5 gr pellets

[@KingLoopie1]

I picked up a Slavia 634 5.5mm (22 cal). Great rifle! Also a Baikal model 513M in 22. A couple of great Wierauch, a model 57 in 177 and an HW90 with a 177 barrel along with a 22 barrel. The one I grab the most is my Walther 55 target rifle in 177 with nice curly wood. Easy to shoot at 10 yards, good balance, steady and accurate. Super light trigger that you just think fire and it goes off. I shoot that more than my air arms s 410 precharged pneumatic 22 which is more accurate, harder hitting and better suited to small game hunting. Ammo for all of them is cheaper than even 22lrs!

[@tonnywildweasel8138]

My grandfather taught me to shoot with a Diana air rifle when I was 7 or 8. Warm memories. Discovered the fun of shooting plinking things.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Hi Papa - Fine grandfather - hopefully still happening out there - grandfathers and grandsons/daughters doing things together.

[@22tanmay]

I have the same BSA in 177 but with a standard stock. The one you have is unique. BTW I love your channel

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

I'm so glad you have the 177! So great!!! Thanks for the words of support - they help me a lot! Good shooting and take care my friend.

[@888zzz]

Spring guns are greased internally. After a while they need to be taken apart and regreased, and the breech and piston seal need to be replaced. Otherwise the gun will be damaged. Usually a spring compressor is necessary to take spring guns apart safely. Spring compressors are easy to make. Many spring guns can be decocked by holding onto the barrel and pulling the trigger. But if you lose grip of the barrel the barrel will snap back with a lot of force damaging the gun or causing injury which is why it's best to hold onto the barrel while loading a pellet. Dry firing a spring gun, meaning without a pellet in the breech, will cause damage because the piston will hit with too much force without the resistance from a pellet. The safety can be reengaged on some springers by pulling down on the barrel until it stops at which point the trigger sear is reengaged. For plinking the HW30 is awesome. For hunting the HW95 or HW77 or HW97. Airguns of Arizona has good prices on Weihrauchs.

[@JamesTorson]

I am a little late to the punch on this one, I'll admit, but air rifles are some of my favourite things. The diversity in design is incredible. I value them as teaching tools, I value them for their recreational value, I value them for their availability in the UK. Unless you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland, there is very little paperwork and red tape to go through, and there is an airgun to suit every preference and budget. I have a variety of airguns, both air pistols and rifles and I enjoy them all. Like yourself, I find great joy in owning airguns which merely require a tin of pellets to get going (although I have modern airguns which run off compressed air). My favourite that I own is a Walther LGR from the late 1970s. A phenomenal rifle in all regards. Accurate, beautifully engineered and solidly built. The other airgun of mine which I would be most reluctant to lose is an Original model 66, a spring-powered target air rifle which uses opposing pistons to eliminate recoil. An incredibly well-engineered design which waned in popularity when the rifles like the LGR were released onto the market. There is no question that those who overlook airguns are really missing a trick or three.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Wish I could find a Walther LGR! Thanks for taking the time to write - great post.

[@JamesTorson]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns I found mine by chance! I was browsing through some used airguns for sale online and I searched for used Walthers just out of interest, and there it was!

[@mikemoore9757]

One of the best air rifles I ever owned was a Herrman Weirauch #55 Tyrolean. The schutzen stock was somewhat similar to yours. I think it was designed for the Swiss parlor competition (Tyrolean mountains). It was a real classy springer. For the younger crowd looking for info on air guns, read about Dr. Robert Beeman of Beeman airguns. He was an authority and had quite a collection. Better yet, try to find one of his old catalogs and read and drool.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thanks Mike! I found one of those Beeman cats. I'll show on a show. My best.

[@stephensmith4480]

Thanks for that Mike. I was always playing with Air rifles and pistols as a lad growing up, very enjoyable times. Like you, I have only ever been interested in the single charge gun. Some of the pre charged Rifles available now, especially the larger calibre ones, if they are over a certain pressure, here in the UK they have to be registered as Firearms, I am not sure what that pressure is off hand. That BSA is a beautiful looking Air Rifle. Cheers Mike.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thanks Stephen! Hope all is well in the beautiful place! Those air rifles are special and hopefully will remain under the radar. Stay safe and good shooting!

[@joshuagibson2520]

UK is regulated to 12 ft lbs.

[@stephensmith4480]

@@joshuagibson2520 Thanks for that my friend 👍.

[@441rider]

I have BSA's and that is the finest custom Standard I have seen. Scope mount is very trick.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thanks for letting me know!

[@paulbryan1013]

Hello from the UK air rifles have been in use for many years in Europe during the Napoleonic wars being captured with an air rifle meant immediate execution there were some extremely lethal weapons mainly ball reservoir that were charged independently from the weapon. I hear also there was a plot to assassinate Oliver Cromwell with an air rifle that clearly came to nothing. Thanks for another great video regards from an old shooter

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Hi Paul - I'll have to read about the Napoleonic Wars! Thank you. If you have some spare time, please have a read : The Emperor's Last Island This book is so good - about Napoleon's final times on St. Helena. The English give him an air rifle which he loved to shoot. He loved licorice as well. I was at Napoleon's tomb - a lot of people there. He died on St. Helena and then they moved his body. And as a child I read everything I could about Napoleon - not much in children's books though. A few months ago someone offered me an ancient air rifle with a huge round ball : the air cylinder, threaded into the rifle underneath. I should have bought it but it was over $10,000. I should also mention that it was a privilege to own a rifle made by Napoleon's gunmaker - I think the name was de Visme - but the years were confusing to me and I doubted the deal. I was young and foolish and sold to a fellow in France. He later confirmed that it was Napoleon's gunmaker. I was happy for him. The old rifle belongs in France. The bore was huge - from bad memory I thing .65 or even higher. Thank you for writing and take care.

[@flintrichards945]

My first air rifle growing up was a Crossman 760 pump is shot pellets and BB’s . I spent countless hours in the field hunting and shooting targets of opportunity with that air rifle.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Hi Craig! I had the same rifle! I pumped it up way too much - thinking I would get a powerhouse - which they already were with just a few pumps. Great rifles!

[@flintrichards945]

USOG I did to it was a good gun to withstand the torture test I put it through as a kid.

[@MrPrimoPR]

I think you should acquire an RWS / Diana 34 and the 350 break barrel spring air rifles before the authentic German made ones become scarce. The 34 in 177 is capable of shooting a 7.9 grain pellet at 900 feet per second and make 1/4 inch groups at 25 yard. As for penetration power it will take down a raccoon or Fox with a well places shot. The precision and accuracy of European air rifles from the 80s to the present is amazing, plus they are , with due respect, backyard friendly - something that cannot be said even of the CB cap 22s

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Will do - thanks for the advice!

[@feraltweed]

I have to say with no disrespect that the cocking lever does not compress the air. It compresses a sting behind a piston that compresses the air briefly when the trigger is pulled

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thank you : )

[@dalanwanbdiska6542]

Theres a video on youtube that shows them using a 177 air rifle and they were shooting into deer skulls. Theres alot of power behind those little pellets. I sold all mine awhile ago when i got into guns and now i just use a 22 semi auto for plinking fun and rodent control around the yard. I wouldnt mind to find a nice break barrel to shoot around but still i just shoot the 22 from the back steps.

[@krockpotbroccoli65]

Those are actually spring piston guns. There's a big ole spring behind a piston with a seal at the front. When the sear is tripped, the spring pushes the piston and the volume of air in front of it into the breech. There are springless gas ram guns but those are a fairly newfangled thing.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thank you - I like the spring ones : ) The German one I have with no spring - only the air ram - so far is incredibly accurate and powerful but I like a physical spring best. I like planes that use mechanical means to control the flaps and landing gear as well. Clearly I'm old fashioned. Oh well, there is a place for us all. God Bless.

[@krockpotbroccoli65]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns spring guns are ok but theres a lot of counteracting forces at play, especially when you start getting into the really high powered ones. You also can't just leave them cocked as the springs will begin to take a set. My go to pellet rifle is an old .20 cal Sheridan Blue Streak which is an MPP (multi-pump pneumatic). Its nice because you can leave it charged with the bolt decocked and a round in the breech. Simply cock the bolt and your good to go. Fully pumped it rivals something like a standard velocity .22 long, but you can vary the power of the shot depending on how many times you pump it. I want to try one of the gas ram guns too. They seem promising. But i dont shoot airguns enough to justify buying any more.

[@paulbryan1013]

Sir I have a theoben scirocco gas ram air made in the UK by Ben Taylor and Dave Theobald who held the patent for many years in conjunction with Weirauch of Germany they developed the HW 90 a superb weapon of all the guns in my collection my eldest son insists I leave him the Theoben in my will the rifle is over 30 years old and still consistently delivers 11.5 ft lbs energy with JSB Exacts

[@burnsboysaresoldiers]

When are you going to do an episode on the .17wsm? I'd really love one but the rifles are expensive minus the cheap savage. I really want the browning low wall .17wsm

[@deathb4digital]

Slavia was the springer of my youth.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

We're on the same page.

[@Stigstigster]

Yay to that BSA! What a beautiful example. As a Brit, airguns are the most accessible form of shooting and collecting to us and I have been collecting since I was a teenager, many years now! I have tried to collect examples of all the different types of powerplant and I think I'm pretty much there now. I have spring pistons (obviously!), single stroke pneumatic, gas ram and Pre-Charged Pneumatic (PCP) but now I just realised I don't have any multi-pump pneumatic guns but then again that's one type that didn't interest me as much as the others. I have rifles (and pistols) from BSA, Webley, Weihrauch, Theoben, Air Arms, Baikal, Umarex and Gamo. A Slavia is next on the list! Oh I had to edit as I forgot I've also got a rifle from Sweden, an FX Verminator. Edit again as I forgot the CZ 200! Thanks for doing a piece on airguns. Did I or anyone else mention your BSA is amazing? ;-)

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thank you and what a fantastic collection - and collector! My BSA is unusual (the stock) - but to me....fantastic! I had the multi-pump guns - good as well but I pumped them up too much haha. I wish there were more of the BSA Standard rifles around in decent shape. I'm looking for a .177 for starling therapy. Maybe someone should make a limited run of a thousand or something. Anyway, thanks for the note and all the best!

[@Stigstigster]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns It's a pleasure and thanks for your reply. I have an appreciation for all types of gun so you sharing your collection on your channel and also experience with us is valuable to me and clearly is to others here. About your BSA, in Britain there used to be (and to an extent it still exists) a very healthy airgun target shooting community. I suspect yours is the type of target rifle that people used to take bell target shooting. There is a target that people used to shoot here that involved a thick steel plate with a hole in centre not a great deal larger than a .177 pellet. Behind the hole was either a bell or a plate with a lever that rang the bell. You scored a point by ringing the bell and you needed a clean shot through the hole to properly ring the bell. Some rules had a scoring system beyond just ringing the bell and they would keep a brush and white paint handy to frequently paint the steel plate (with circles engraved for scoring purposes) so hits outside the "bell ringing hole" could be recorded. Bell target shooting was something you did at the back room or attic of the pub. People would visit neighbouring pubs with teams to shoot in competition and drink together afterwards. Long gone are the days of taking an air rifle to a pub though. Sad really. You could do more harm with a pool cue if you were so minded but people still take those out with them. Your BSA might be a little too powerful for bell target but maybe not? However it reminds me of such a rifle for that purpose. I don't have it now but I had an old Webley Mk.III as my first rifle as a kid and that was an old target rifle. A generation newer than your beautiful BSA but of the same class as your favourite air rifle, a target rifle. How old do you think that stock is? Do you think it contemporary with the rifle? I think it is but please correct me if I'm wrong.

[@northdakotaham1752]

BSA.... i have a 1968 model. Very unique and a classic. Motorcycle that is.

[@kpal2946]

The BSA is very neat.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

So true

[@kpal2946]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns It looks so well taken care of. Do you know how old it is?

[@richardbrown9760]

@@kpal2946 prob 1920's. I have one in .177.

[@kpal2946]

@@richardbrown9760 It surprised me to learn how good air guns were going back. Forgotten Weapons has a video regarding a air rifle that was issued and used by an army, can't remember details but very interesting.Thanks for your reply.

[@peternunn7104]

The BSA one if the LINCOLN JEFFRIES designed air gun deigned and manufactured in Birmingham England, i have one made in 1905 serial number 311.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Hi Peter - Low serial number - high value! I had serial # 2 in the Webley Junior Air pistol - should have kept it but instead put it up for sale - instant buyers and it went to a collector. Your #311 is the lowest I've ever heard of. The nice thing about these is they seem to work without much trouble almost indefinitely.

[@peternunn7104]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns I live in the west midlands UK just a few miles from Birmingham were the LJ was manufactured, for a 1905 .177 air rifle its quite powerful.

[@marcegrecco53]

In New York City and the five boroughs, they’re illegal. New Jersey has tough laws too on on air rifles.

[@krockpotbroccoli65]

What do you expect? Those places are run by commies and neocons. The peasants must be unarmed so that they may not have the means to revolt against the tyrants who rule them.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Oh boy. Sorry Marc - I had no idea. I guess in some places sling shots and knives are illegal too.

[@jabbalechat7910]

I presume you were talking about the Wiehrauch with a Theoben gas ram...

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Hi Jabba - I think you know more than I do. I know the Weirauch but not in much detail - I owned some of the side cocking lever models - superb. Thanks for the note.

[@justinmochi7323]

You should invest an a weirauch hw97k. Any fan of German engineering will appreciate it

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thank you Justin - I put it on my Christmas list : )

[@grahambamford9073]

That Chinese rifle is known as a "under lever" the ones on the side are "side levers" that loading device on the third rifle is known as a "pellet tap" quite interesting how they work alright.

[@eachday5705]

In my country, this Chinese rifle is called "finger slicer."

[@captainzeb1969]

Expert = Ex (has been) + spurt (drip)!!! A has been drip. Defines me to a tee! Great video.

[@grassroot011]

Has been squirt, the way I heard it, haa, Same-O, Same-O.

[@mqa1963]

you are not compressing air with this air rifle . you are compressing the big spring and piston . you pull the trigger ,it lets the spring go it pushes air out very fast from the sealed piston... nice vid, i enjoy spring air rifles also. thanks.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thanks for the correction : )

[@mqa1963]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns sorry . I wasn't trying to be smart . I have just worked on them . Tuned them . A lot. I love ur vids .

[@richardbrown9760]

Cocking the rifle does not compress the air ,it compresses the spring, which in turn compresses the air on release.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thank you. Stupid me.

[@rupertmcnaughtdavis3649]

My uncle and his brother, my father, were given such a BSA IN the 1920s. I shot my first guinea fowl with it .I had to give it to my cousin as my uncle,his father, had been killed in the Second World war in Italy while serving with the South African Forces.My father wanted his nephew to have something of his late father's. Last week, funnily enough, my cousin sent me a pic of it still in excellent condition.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

That's family history Rupert! I can't imagine many people shot their first guinea fowl with one of these - you're likely the only one! I hope your cousin takes it for a walk once in awhile - they seem to run indefinitely - with a little oil and lead ; deserve a little use. I wish your uncle had made it back from Italy; may seem silly for me to say but one feels something. My brother passed away in late June - only a few days ago really. So final. I think he's gone on ahead and in time we'll meet again on the trail. I think so anyway.

[@rupertmcnaughtdavis3649]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns I'm sorry to hear of the loss of your brother, Mike. We must live in faith to be reunited with our loved ones.

[@BloodnGutz43]

Loading tap, lever thing , ok, nice BSA Standard

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

I agree : )

[@TylerSnyder305]

My preference is in multi stroke pneumatic airguns, and my favorite is a 1979 Sheridan blue streak. Springers are not my thing, but of course it's well known that Europe does those best. My issue with them is that they're not as easy to shoot accurately , they're more unwieldy, and they're not variable power.

[@HD-ph1dc]

Ive heard springers have to be held the same each time or they shoot to different points. Don't know but have been told don't grip them just hold them gently.

[@TylerSnyder305]

@@HD-ph1dc It's called the artillery hold, named after the action of an artillery guns recoil sled. Most springers of modest to magnum power levels will require the use of the artillery hold where you simply hold the gun gently rested on it's balance point as to not influence the recoil from the shot cycle, for most sub 500fps springers the artillery hold is a non issue.

[@HD-ph1dc]

@@TylerSnyder305 thank you.

[@black_jackledemon6298]

It's okay I'm not triggered by it as I tend to now more about compressed air than powder pressure even now. But..... Break over pneumatic rifles are a piston action similar to a vehicle motor and the springs forward motion on release [trigger] moves it forward at a velocity that translates to ait pressure. The other two variants are pump up or main tanks. Advantages and disadvantages to everything. I like the challenge *can* be a relztively inexpensive one. I have a pile of now parts air rifles and did some insane but fun experiments with for cheap. I have one that isnt accurate at all but throws a impressively showy flame about 3 feet out the muzzle. Welding torch gas isn't exactly easy to measure out like gunpowder grains but giggle worthy. 😂🤣😂😋👍

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

👍👍👍👍 you're a kindred spirit! The experiments never cease to be interesting. My potato gun evolved into a cantaloupe gun and finally, a watermelon gun! I wish I could visit you and see the flame. I know I messed up everything in the video - sorry about that; but I am full of flaws and many times somehow can't say what I know ; but I believe in a forgiving god and the goodness of people. Take care my friend.

[@black_jackledemon6298]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns I subbed. I enjoy your videos I've seen so far. No doubt I will like the others as well. Loved the breakdown "poachers" shotguns. I only have one. 12ga Remington bolt action. I like that it accepts *any* ammo in 12ga regardless. I like the breakovers piston air rifle models too. They are extremely practical. Especially when there was a run on .22LR ammo a few years back and the shelves were often empty. I do have some bigger bore projects and tanks are better but the draw back besides what you mention is the decrease in power over multiple shots to compensate for while aiming. Not so with breakovers except about the first three to five shots after oil is often going to be a bit high because it often "diesels" the oil before settling down to consistent power. At the moment I have to much of the bill paying kind of work to do.I'm a machinist and welder. But if it slows down I'm in the middle of building a single shot .22 hybrid. It will use .22 nailgun blanks from a hardware store to propel a .22 pellet. It will be my improvised "apocalypse/ Great Depression" squirrel and pigeon hunter if I run out of ammo for my 10/22. 😂🤣👍

[@jamescampbell9533]

Not compressing air. Compressing a spring.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thanks James - good point. I like the German one that I own - that compresses the air - but my thinking got scrambled....like a lot of things in my head.

[@burnsboysaresoldiers]

I was watching a little documentary on some tribal hunters in the hills of northern India. Most had single shot shotguns or .22 rifles or homemade blackpowder guns. but several carried airguns too. and these guys were shooting small deer and pigs with these airguns! really impressive what a airgun will do

[@bowlofrice8]

Just put it in the ear.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Hi Brendon and captain - so true - I am amazed by these air rifles and mine are the weaker variety. As my surgeon friend told me - you can stop the heart of any living thing....with a small pin. Of course - getting things to places is another story - but a pellet in a brain is game over ...just as you wrote captain.

[@burnsboysaresoldiers]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns very munch, even these homemade airguns i've seen shooting soft lead pellets that resemble .45 slugs.

[@burnsboysaresoldiers]

@@UnitedStatesOfGuns puts me in mind of the sherlock holmes story "The Empty house" where Augustas Moran uses a scoped break down air rifle to attempt to assassinate holmes from across the street

[@MrMattw975]

Try John Knibbs International or Protek Supplies for BSA sights.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thank you Matt!

[@bjorntoulouse7523]

The BSA was designed by a small manufacturer named Lincoln Jeffries but the didn’t have the capability to make them quick enough so contracted BSA to make them on their behalf. If memory serves me right BSA got the best of the deal.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Wow Chris - Lincoln Jeffries - what a great designer/inventor.

[@duncnz3129]

The BSA has probably been modified for schutzen type off hand shooting competition

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

That makes sense - it really is dramatic looking 😂

[@auldman]

What?

[@vergaoneverga]

i have 2 slavias from grandparent

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Always worth owning and worth something! Great rifles ....those Slavias.

[@crispycornbread]

I've always found something extremely elegant about air rifles, especially the single pump/break action kind, but that BSA is in an absolute league of it's own.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Me too...I like that : "elegant" - and that BSA is a "keeper."

[@randyphillips2263]

When we where cleaning out my dads estate I found a little container of 22 cal. air gun pellets with tear gas. They are floating around here someplace. They do not really have enough gas in them to do much. I did find some info about them on the interwebtubes

[@brittakriep2938]

Airgun ammunition or rimfire cartidges .22 or 6mm Flobert? The last ones are still used in german blankguns.

[@Nick-wn1xw]

I have an RWS Diana .177 that I’ve had for many years. Still accurate and plenty powerful. The spring guns can be easily decocked by pulling the trigger while open and holding the barrel allowing it to go forward slowly.

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thanks Van Guard : )

[@jamesferguson2353]

the air is compressed after the trigger is pulled .cocking compresses the spring

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

Thanks James... I'm IQ challenged

[@yulusleonard985]

Wow revolving shotgun! Russian? Tukish?

[@burnsboysaresoldiers]

turkish or Brazilian i believe

[@ovation9657]

SLAVIA ,the best .Riflle .

[@UnitedStatesOfGuns]

I think so too.