Is the Titan Mohawk collectible or a mistake?

[45flint]

I am always intrigued by the odd gun that doesn't have a long run? Maybe there's a good reason it's gone?

[yorkiets]

Mine was in .177 and brilliant for the first few shots, then the strenuous nature of cocking it makes you lose your sense of humour. This can be regained by letting someone else try to cock it and laughing at their attempt.

The PH dragon is only slightly more pleasant due to better engineering.

Great idea though. I'm still waiting for the 21st century version. It would be an instant hit, I'm sure.

[Geezer]

Definitely collectable.

What follows is from memory, so probably includes a mix of myth, rumour, and slander. And inaccuracies.

John Bowkett designed a single-stroke 12 ft/lbs rifle for the nascent Titan company. They made it as the JB1, the first production Bowkett. Unfortunately it was a dog and didn't work properly (were many of its parts badly made in India?) And they redesigned it for mass production, screwing it up.

The reworked JB1 was the Mohawk. It was better.

Back around 1988 or whenever the Mohawk came out, I thought that it and the Dragon were the future: all the recoilless advantages of the PCP, without all the charging gear faff and expense.

In reality, based on owning a Dragon, they were top-heavy, lopsided, and a pain to charge. A good HW77 did everything they would do, more easily and cheaply. And FT guys and really serious hunters were prepared to invest in PCPs - especially after Theoben and others brought out rifles with magazine feed.

So, a collectable mistake?

[Baxterbasics]

Well-if anyone regrets buying their PH Dragon (particularly if it has a H stamped on the action) and are thinking about skipping it-I will happily give them a warm home

[Muskett]

Never owned one.
Always thought they were an elegant rifle. Quirky and tricky so definitely for the collector rather than for the shooter.
No one is ever going to make one again. They are from a particularly difficult period of air rifle trading, so like quite a few at that time numbers are low so rarity will be strong. There are quite a few in this quirky arena and what happens in their place in the collectors market is anyone's guess. Eventually they should do well, but how well is another matter. Depend on the strength of the air rifle collectors market. I suspect in the future that could be quite strong as they are good items to collect. They are at least "interesting".

[hammy]

I've always fancied the FT version of the Dragon, lovely looking gun.
Only ever shot the .22 versions and liked them.
As for the Mohawk, it was ok for plinking or hunting , the cocking effort was just to much to shoot a competition course .

[Baxterbasics]

I've always fancied the FT version of the Dragon, lovely looking gun.
Only ever shot the .22 versions and liked them.
As for the Mohawk, it was ok for plinking or hunting , the cocking effort was just to much to shoot a competition course .

The .177 FT Dragon is a sweet rifle. I was in discussion with Aidrian Wilkes-the Parker Hale Wizzard, who was a friend of mine, I wanted Aidrian to build me a special "open budget" rifle from the parts in his possession. Unfortunately we both got sidetracked and it never came to fruition, Aidrians health deteriorated and he sadly passed away.

If a nice one comes available at some point and funds permit.......

[norris]

Well-if anyone regrets buying their PH Dragon (particularly if it has a H stamped on the action) and are thinking about skipping it-I will happily give them a warm home

What does the "H" signify ?

[Baxterbasics]

What does the "H" signify ?

Ok.

The firing valve on the earlier Dragons were not properly case hardened steel and were prone to failure. Parker Hale reworked the valve using a stronger material and these rifles usually have a "H" stamped into the breech block.

Aidrian Wilkes did a custom rebuild on the Dragons, which included a modified firing valve using aircraft grade materials-it is my understanding that Ken Turner (who was one of Aidrian's closest friends) worked with and advised Aidrian on the early improvements.
After Aidrian's untimely departure, I, along with several other BBS members, helped to clear the rented bungalow where Aidrian lived. As I had large vans and storage facilities, connected to my business, I volunteered to remove and store Aidrian's equipment and also the complete set of spares which Aidrian had acquired from Parker Hale, when production of the Dragon ceased.
It was decided that this equipment and spares would need to be sold off-I duly purchased it all from Aidrian's estate. It was my intention to try and carry on Aidrians good work with helping Dragon owners, with the help of My Stepfather who was a very skilled engineer. Pressures of work and other factors led to me coming to the sad conclusion that I would probably never have the time to carry this out. I duly sold them to a member on this site, who I understand has kept Aidrian's good work
alive

I think Graham Bluck's original design and prototype rifles were fabulous-unfortunately bean counters run the engineering companies, not the engineers

[T 20]

I am always intrigued by the odd gun that doesn't have a long run? Maybe there's a good reason it's gone?

Essentially there seems to be four different versions of the Mohawk.

When the Mohawk was first anounced in 1991 there were just two versions - the single stroke 12ftlbs gun and the multi pump FAC gun.

Later on the two stroke 12ftlb gun was introduced, this was based on the FAC gun but had a built in pressure relief valve which regulated valve pressure on the second pump stroke to keep power below 12ftlbs.
I'm not sure whether the single stroke 12ftlb gun was still produced after the introduction of the two stroke 12ftlb gun ?

The fourth version of the Mohawk is the Daystate Sportsman MK2 --- the John Bowkett designed pumps for the Mohawk were produced for Titan in India.
When Titan stopped production of the Mohawk, Daystate bought the remaining pumps and fitted their own barrels, breeches, triggers and stocks and these guns were sold as the Daystate Sportsman MK2.

At present I have a two stroke Mohawk and a Sportsman MK2 and I'm waiting on delivery of another Mohawk action I've purchased.



All the best Mick

[Paul SE]

I bought a Titan Mohawk in .177 when the model was first released. I remember paying about £200 for it, complete with a small silencer.

I attached a 4x32 scope on it, and found it quite a nice gun to use, once the cocking and loading sequence was mastered - accurate enough with RWS Superdomes or H&N FTT.

IIRC muzzle energy was about 10.5 ft/lbs.

The only issue(s) I remember is that it quite often leaked air, and this seemed to be due to grit and dirt getting into the gun during the pumping process. I recall that one had to release the cocking arm from the locking pin and unscrew the cocking arm pivot bolt.
Then remove the arm complete with a felt washer(?) that needed to be cleaned. There may have been a rubber seal in there as well....it was quite a few years ago.
Once any grit and grime had been removed, the gun could be reassembled and worked OK for an indefinite time.....

I'd probably have another one, but in .22 this time.

I PX'ed mine for a .177 Original 35 that had a bit more poke but looked a bit bland by comparison

[piggy589]

Could you compare it to the air logic genesis?.

A pal of mine was given one,quite a brute to cock and raise on aim.

[norris]

Could you compare it to the air logic genesis?.

A pal of mine was given one,quite a brute to cock and raise on aim.

I think that was a much higher quality rifle and possibly rarer.
I found one for sale a few years ago online and it was £1000.
It was a lot dearer than the Mohawk back in the day.
I would say the Mohawk is very collectible,nearly bought one myself.What I didn't like about it was in a very plain beech woodwork and it being a .177,however it was mint.

[Geezer]

Essentially there seems to be four different versions of the Mohawk.

When the Mohawk was first anounced in 1991 there were just two versions - the single stroke 12ftlbs gun and the multi pump FAC gun.

Later on the two stroke 12ftlb gun was introduced, this was based on the FAC gun but had a built in pressure relief valve which regulated valve pressure on the second pump stroke to keep power below 12ftlbs.
I'm not sure whether the single stroke 12ftlb gun was still produced after the introduction of the two stroke 12ftlb gun ?

The fourth version of the Mohawk is the Daystate Sportsman MK2 --- the John Bowkett designed pumps for the Mohawk were produced for Titan in India.
When Titan stopped production of the Mohawk, Daystate bought the remaining pumps and fitted their own barrels, breeches, triggers and stocks and these guns were sold as the Daystate Sportsman MK2.

At present I have a two stroke Mohawk and a Sportsman MK2 and I'm waiting on delivery of another Mohawk action I've purchased.



All the best Mick

Very interesting. I did vaguely remember the multi-pump versions, but wasn't sure if I was confusing the Titan with the Daystate so didn't mention them. But I had no idea of the connection between the two.

I wonder if you could make a two-pump Dragon? Probably not? Isn't it a "proper" SSP, like a colossal FAS 604, that can only take one stroke? Whereas the single-stroke Titan is, in effect, a multi-pump that is physically impossible to pump more than once unless you are Godzilla?

[Shed tuner]

I wonder if you could make a two-pump Dragon? Probably not? Isn't it a "proper" SSP, like a colossal FAS 604, that can only take one stroke? Whereas the single-stroke Titan is, in effect, a multi-pump that is physically impossible to pump more than once unless you are Godzilla?

Dragon valve is a bit "special"... would take a fundamental redesign to make it multi, not just a question of adding a check valve seal to the inlet side.

Personally I love dragons; much easier to cock and smaller arc than a mohawk, and the weight is fine too