Diana Original Model 5

[Aimstraight]

Anyone here have one or have experience with one?

Interested in one for variety. Are they reasonable to cock them, or do they need a cocking aid (hope not).

Is it fair to say there are three main variants, early ones with a one piece wood grip (extending along the frame), later ones with one piece plastic grip (in various colours) and even later ones with small two piece grips (not extending along the frame)?

Is there much difference in build quality between the variants?

[martintheveg]

Hi, yes I have one of these , in brown, one piece grip and in mint condition.
When I sometimes take all nine of my pistols out back to my range I am
always disappointed when shooting this one, I think I am too spoilt with
the no kick target guns, I like to shoot it and it is quite accurate but it will
always kick in my hand and I suppose this is part of the challenge for me,
having said that, the five feels great in the hand, it must be my most
comfortable gun of all to hold and if you fancy one then you can certainly get
a lot of enjoyment from it, just remember it`s recoil and don`t compare it
to say, an original 6m or 6 with newer giss, two part spring which keeps
these pistols recoiless,
martintheveg.

[gingernut]

Mines a mint brown .22
Very solid gun powerful and accurate.
No need for a cocking aid.
Bit more sophisticated than my Scorpion.

I shoot well with it but I have shot spring pistols for a long time.
Excellent can basher!

[scrapman]

Mine's an early wooden stock type in .22. I only acquired it fairly recently and haven't shot it much, but it seems quite powerful and accurate, and is certainly very solid and well made. Although it's a big pistol and weighs a bit, the tapered barrel and forward grip position make it very well balanced. It's quite easy to cock without any kind of aid, and the trigger release is long and surprisingly light.

I'm more used to shooting pump-ups (Crosman 1377, 1322) but I do have other springer pistols, and I seem to shoot better with this one than with any other spring pistols I own (various Webleys, Chinese pistols etc) except for my Gamo underlever target pistol which IMHO is one of the best low-end air pistols ever made. The recoil doesn't seem much worse than any other reasonably powerful springer.

Grab one if you can, I don't think you'll regret it.

[sproat]

Have a 22 plastic handle,Ifind it nice to shoot ,but be aware of the recoil pretty fine pistol well worth a try SPROAT

[Aimstraight]

Thanks for all the replies, very helpful indeed. I had assumed they were mainly in 0.177 for target work so good to see 0.22 available. I see they are not as advanced as the later Mod 6/6M in terms of recoil, but I do prefer the look of the Mod 5. Below is one that sold last year; what a cracking looking pistol...

http://www.airgunbbs.com/showthread....ana-Mod-5-.177

[AC99]

Mine is an early .177 model with wooden grips as has already been posted it is very easy to cock and pleasant to shoot. I acquired it in the late 50's from a second-hand shop for £5 but in the mid 70's I took a keen interest in air pistol target shooting at my local club and started using it for match and team competitions until I upgraded to an Original model 10 (recoilless) and then moved on to a FWB65 followed by a Morini 162ei and now a FWB P44. However after shooting pcp air pistols for twelve years or so it is a bit of a shock to the system in facing the challenges of the old model 5 but it is interesting gun and I still enjoy shooting it although not competitively. One problem I encountered though was when I had not shot it for a number of years I found the piston washer had disintegrated and had to be replaced - it was not leather; some synthetic material, but this is the only problem I have had with it over 50+ years ownership. You will not be displeased with your purchase!

[Aimstraight]

Just one replacement piston washer in all those years - that is excellent, very low running costs.

Spares are still listed/available from the likes of Chambers. Piston washer PW036 is now £13 plus post....so about three times the cost of your pistol 50 years ago

Good to see that the pistol is highly regarded...think I want one now

[Rickenbacker]

Yeap, piston seals turning to mulch is the achilles heel of those Dianas.

And it doesn't seem to be dependent on use, just time.

Maybe it was a combination of the original seal material & oils used... ?

Many healthy examples will have had the cure by now. As the symptoms are quite unmistakable - Very low power, and chunks of seal being spit out of the barrel.

Worse with the Mod 6s, as they're a much more scary prospect to DIY. Therefore prices can be dependent on documemted history of service work carried out.

Modern replacment seals are made of different stuff, so not a likely problem in the future.

Theres some great Mod 5 & 6 pictures on Garvin's forum: http://www.network54.com/Forum/66282...7s+air+pistols

The only thing I don't like with the (post war) 5s and the (non M) 6s, is the fixed foresight hood. It makes them comfortable to cock, but pesonally I dislike shooting with the hood so much that I wouldn't use the pistol

[Aimstraight]

Thanks for the link, very informative. I take your point about the rather huge sight hood, which seems to be even larger on some later variants (or maybe an optical illusion). Guess it is oversized to provide strenght while cocking and protection from/for the sight blade.

[gingernut]

That's what it's for.
Clearly Rickenbacker has never caught his fingers on a sharp foresight.

[Aimstraight]

Having looked further at the photos on Garvins website, I see the main differences between the earlier and later Mod 5 (grip shape/material, trigger guard, rear sights). Also see that the Mod 6 looks very similar/as good as the Mod 5 - so either would be nice (Mod 6 recoiless). The size of the hood became even larger (excessive) on some versions of the Mod 6, but having caught a glimpse of that sharp front sight beneath understand why the hood is there (the option to remove would have been ideal).

[Rickenbacker]

That's what it's for.
Clearly Rickenbacker has never caught his fingers on a sharp foresight.

I just can't stand the distraction of shooting with a hooded front sight.

To me, the twisty cocking shroud thingy on the 6M and Model 10 restores balance in the force.

[Aimstraight]

I just can't stand the distraction of shooting with a hooded front sight.

To me, the twisty cocking shroud thingy on the 6M and Model 10 restores balance in the force.

Oooh, I see, that serrated end part turns to allow cocking without piercing ones hand

This was the later 6 model that looked a bit odd to me...but I now understand its technological advantages.

[gingernut]

Clearly Rickenbacker has not caught his fingers on the foresight of a 6 or 10 m whilst using silly plastic shroud thing.
That's why my 10M has a straightforward Delrin shroud instead.
Some clever chap did it.

I do admit that I have removed hoods on other pistols and rifles.
But I never realised it was The Rickenbacker Factor at the time.