BSA Mercury S

[jonnyone]

A friend of mine is considering putting the above gun up for sale. I took a look at it yesterday pm n its been a boxed sleeper. I doubt its had 100 pellets through it. Comes boxed with all the bits including a factory included 4x 20 TV view scope.

To be fair its gleaming and if I was a BSA fan it would be home with me now.

What do the BSA aficionado's out there think the gun could be worth?

Cheers
Dave

[Muskett]

There are blond ones and walnut ones, the former circa 1982 the latter a few years later and the better looking. Happy to be corrected. Both done in some numbers but getting increasingly difficult to find.
I think they are worthy of a good premium if mint in box, so £350 might not be robbing anyone. A tidy but used one then £140.

[kash2001]

Agreed the blondes carry a premium and if in original box with paperwork in my eyes, if the rear block that tails into the wood is unmarked then it'll be unfettered, as the aluminium block and paint are easily marked if serviced or tampered with.

Restored several of these and they're my favorite bsa be interested in looking at pics which tell the best story and goes without saying interested if he's selling.

Atb

[archie]

I have a later Mercury S and it has a beautiful walnut stock, and have yet to see one to match it. I would think a boxed minter with a similar stock to mine would be worth £200 upwards.

[Joncaddy]

Protek had a mint boxed Mercury S a few weeks back, advertised at £280 and it sold as soon as it was put on the website, and a standard Boxed mercury that was about £225 also now sold. So perhaps £300 + is not unreasonable.

[Airsporterman]

Protek had a mint boxed Mercury S a few weeks back, advertised at £280 and it sold as soon as it was put on the website, and a standard Boxed mercury that was about £225 also now sold. So perhaps £300 + is not unreasonable.

I would have agreed - a boxed minter around £300?
Care should be taken though as a boxed minter is how many years old now? (80s) The buffer washer/head can deteriorate in the box requiring a total strip down - not always but sometimes if the rifle has been incorrectly lubed!

ASM

[Muskett]

Boxed, mint or near mint are starting to hold a real premium. Massive difference between them and a used. I think they warrant that premium as there are few and they are the ones worth keeping. No one is going to make them again.
In truth they are only reaching what a good quality modern equivalent would be, so its not excessive. 1980 is my mint in box worthy date to start. It was the new era of air rifles and make or break for many companies. The Mercury S, Airsporter S, Webley Vulcan and Viscount Deluxe were the last throws of British makers to compete against German competition and new British makers like Theoben. Making a bog standard rifle fancy was never going to be enough.

[clarky]

Boxed, mint or near mint are starting to hold a real premium. Massive difference between them and a used. I think they warrant that premium as there are few and they are the ones worth keeping. No one is going to make them again.
In truth they are only reaching what a good quality modern equivalent would be, so its not excessive. 1980 is my mint in box worthy date to start. It was the new era of air rifles and make or break for many companies. The Mercury S, Airsporter S, Webley Vulcan and Viscount Deluxe were the last throws of British makers to compete against German competition and new British makers like Theoben. Making a bog standard rifle fancy was never going to be enough.

and it was the best since the earlier mk1 and 2 Airsporters.
Most found the Merc more accurate than Airsporters but they had cheap pivot pin breaches which wore inaccurate. Not so the S which had a pivot screw.
Velocity all the way up to the upper 11 ftlbs area ......this was the best 80s Britisher.
Never liked the scope ramp and higher arch arrestor of the later Challenger spoiling the streamlined style.

[look no hands]

and it was the best since the earlier mk1 and 2 Airsporters.
Most found the Merc more accurate than Airsporters but they had cheap pivot pin breaches which wore inaccurate. Not so the S which had a pivot screw.
Velocity all the way up to the upper 11 ftlbs area ......this was the best 80s Britisher.
Never liked the scope ramp and higher arch arrestor of the later Challenger spoiling the streamlined style.

Amen to that my friend, I have several BSA's and although the Challenger was a superb handling rifle it just didn't have the beautiful streamline looks of the Mercury S due to that higher trigger block, now if they had managed to graft the Challenger stocks rear end onto the front end of the mk2 Merc S and made it from Walnut and adorned it with skipline checkering then that would be one jaw dropping rifle.

A little something like this but in walnut.

http://i972.photobucket.com/albums/a...ds1969/005.jpg

Pete

[clarky]

Amen to that my friend, I have several BSA's and although the Challenger was a superb handling rifle it just didn't have the beautiful streamline looks of the Mercury S due to that higher trigger block, now if they had managed to graft the Challenger stocks rear end onto the front end of the mk2 Merc S and made it from Walnut and adorned it with skipline checkering then that would be one jaw dropping rifle.

A little something like this but in walnut.

http://i972.photobucket.com/albums/a...ds1969/005.jpg

Pete

That thing is utterly beautiful, i wonder why in the hell cannot rifles be like this.
Incidently my uncle at that time was a brilliant gunsmith and rubbed down his Mercury S stock, removing all the pressed chequering, and oiled it.
It came up beautiful. He had to detune as the Mercury S was very efficient in .177
Even mild mods to the head put the thing into 880 to 890 fps territory.....even stock they could run 855...
A great rifle.
He proved conclusively .....with absolutely no argument that the Mercury was more accurate than the AIrsporter even in the std Mercury mark.
It was certainly an idea to have a barrel kept permanently in line with the cylinder but someone forgot about the effects of jump of pellet from loading tap to barrel.
He never concluded if it was slight alignment issues of taps with bores, or if the jump from tap to bore causing slight consistancy issues but regardless the effect outweighed its permanent alignment maxim.
You probably cannot beat a pellet thumbed directly into a bore regardless of the system of temporarily unaligned barrel.

[kennp]

Amen to that my friend, I have several BSA's and although the Challenger was a superb handling rifle it just didn't have the beautiful streamline looks of the Mercury S due to that higher trigger block, now if they had managed to graft the Challenger stocks rear end onto the front end of the mk2 Merc S and made it from Walnut and adorned it with skipline checkering then that would be one jaw dropping rifle.

A little something like this but in walnut.

http://i972.photobucket.com/albums/a...ds1969/005.jpg

Pete

what barrel & mod have you got on that Mercury Pete?

[Muskett]

It took me an age to find s mint Challenger, then a week later a similar one. Both I sold on due to being ugly and that BSA stocks are set up for open sights. I think the lines are very sporting indeed and the handling excellent, but head position is wrong for scope fitting.
The Webley Omega got it right.

I am sure my Omega has a thorough tuning before I bought it as it is smooth as silk and very accurate for a .22. The smoother the action of a spring gun the more forgiving. I only ever found BDSA's 80's rifles average but wonder what they might have done tuned?? Airsporter tap to me as any such tap like found on the Webley MKIII just never going to be a good way to load a pellet.
Break barrels are faster to load, weigh less, and just more fun. So long as the lock up is good, barrel straight in line with the optics each tme then accuracy should be there. Anyhow you get more shooting, and plinking good fun.

Triggers can be made better and most good enough. Keep to farmyard ranges (25m) and even standing shots deliver with practice. All goes to pot with these styled rifle when trying deliberate FT precision shooting for nat shooting. Groups just don't hold together especially once beyond the farmyard; that heavy HW77 and more refined rifles.
Anyhow, Mercury S is of its time and well worth preserving a few mint. They point and shoot really well will open sight too; in fact better/more than that, open sights is how they should be shot. Plenty great when done so if you shoot them sporting style and not target style.

[clarky]

It took me an age to find s mint Challenger, then a week later a similar one. Both I sold on due to being ugly and that BSA stocks are set up for open sights. I think the lines are very sporting indeed and the handling excellent, but head position is wrong for scope fitting.
The Webley Omega got it right.

I am sure my Omega has a thorough tuning before I bought it as it is smooth as silk and very accurate for a .22. The smoother the action of a spring gun the more forgiving. I only ever found BDSA's 80's rifles average but wonder what they might have done tuned?? Airsporter tap to me as any such tap like found on the Webley MKIII just never going to be a good way to load a pellet.
Break barrels are faster to load, weigh less, and just more fun. So long as the lock up is good, barrel straight in line with the optics each tme then accuracy should be there. Anyhow you get more shooting, and plinking good fun.

Triggers can be made better and most good enough. Keep to farmyard ranges (25m) and even standing shots deliver with practice. All goes to pot with these styled rifle when trying deliberate FT precision shooting for nat shooting. Groups just don't hold together especially once beyond the farmyard; that heavy HW77 and more refined rifles.
Anyhow, Mercury S is of its time and well worth preserving a few mint. They point and shoot really well will open sight too; in fact better/more than that, open sights is how they should be shot. Plenty great when done so if you shoot them sporting style and not target style.

Even with the slightest adjustment to the head of the Mercury S .....increasing its volume, it would slip dangerously into post 12 ftlbs territory.
Bowkett had them up like 16 or 17ftlbs for the American market.....check his old Facebook page.
From here we can then chop the mainspring.
More efficient guide rods could be had from a whole raft of tuners, still available from a number of them.
With a superb lock up, screw bolt pivot and very good rifling this was a great vermin field gun.

Im not actually suggesting any BSA of that time was anything like good enough for FT up against ever more elaborate and weird stock designs and super massive scopes but then again none of this crazy parafinalia has any right to be walked around a rough shoot.
Here we want a nice streamlined rifle that sits under the arm.... comes to the aim fast. Not worried about scratching the stock on Hawthorns and a 6 x 40 scope as a maximum.
The Mercury S being a better than avg choice

[Muskett]

clarky, I'm with you on that, reason I walk with a FWB Sport or Theoben Fenman. I shoot all my game at farmyard ranges and never try longer shots; have powder burners for that. My scopes are x4, x6 or left on x9. Different styles of shooting, different types of combo rifles to suit. The Mercury S style hasn't been in fashion for a while, but at least some of us still practice it and its a lot of fun too.

[clarky]

clarky, I'm with you on that, reason I walk with a FWB Sport or Theoben Fenman. I shoot all my game at farmyard ranges and never try longer shots; have powder burners for that. My scopes are x4, x6 or left on x9. Different styles of shooting, different types of combo rifles to suit. The Mercury S style hasn't been in fashion for a while, but at least some of us still practice it and its a lot of fun too.

Im might well agree with you on those 2 ...The FWB Sport Mk1 a particular favourite of mine and still with me.
Never did try a Theoben but heard they were very good.
I loved FT when it first arrived, using simple sporting rifles, the sport designed to replicate the infield scenario. The very first one won by a .22 FWB sport weilding compardre.
......but the sport evolved too far for my liking and i left it be.
Seat cushions and keels bolted onto stock forends.....scopes the size Astronomical star viewers.
None of that has any place on a field rough shoot, least not round here it dont.
A few sleek 410 shotguns, one or 2 HW 95s etc ...
Maybe im too set in my ways or maybe the sport should have evolved into 2 separate sports.
Practical field hunter and FT maybe...
No seat cushions (mary preserve us) allowed on the former .....but im a country dude what do i know .