A shoot out down memory lane: Haenel, Tell, Webley, Hy-Score

[45flint]

With the edition of my new to me Webley Premier, thought I would take my blued steeled pistol collection out for a shoot off: all in .177, Haenel 28-R, Tell 3, Webley Premier, and Hy-Score 800.

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u...psoptw9rb1.jpg

Though old; all guns are in almost new condition except for the Tell 3. All chrony right to where the model should, even the Tell 3. This is interesting to me cause you have the Haenel and the Webley as probably the most popular pistols of the pre-war period. The Tell made a decade after the Haenel 5 miles from their factory in Germany. Lastly the Hy-score used the Haenel and the Webley in their research to try to produce a better pistol in America.

I should say in fairness I am comparing a 1971 Webley Premier which though patterned directly from the earlier models is probably benefiting from newer technology.

Here are the results from the shooting: the black circle is the size of an American quarter which is on the sheet along with a copper penny. Distance 25 feet.

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u...psf5inuigg.jpg

Without question the Webley is the best shooting pistol with the tightest group covered by a penny. It really is a heavy superb gun, with a trigger that is by far the best of the group. It feels right in the hand and seems a natural shooter. If I want to make my best shoot it's the one I would choose in this group.

The Hy-Score I think would be second. It too has a good trigger but I think is a slight step down. The group is good but not as good as the Webley.

Haenel would be third, the trigger is much stiffer though it breaks well. Much more inconsistent, part could be the barrel needs a little oversized ammo which I got with the round balls. Pellets do not tighten group. And the 22 seems more difficult to control. However fit and finish is the absolute best in the group. No milling marks just polished steel blued to perfection,

The Tell 3, at least mine, has the worse trigger, it is just a bear of a pull. Once released it is almost silent, that part of the mechanism is very nice. It had the largest group size.

Much is made of the difficulty or ease of cocking. Each has its own method and I really don't think one is that much better than the other. The Haenel is thought to be difficult but with the proper technique it's really not any worse for me than the Webley? The Tell is unique but not very easy on the hand really. Probably the Hy-score wins here.

It would be interesting to me to see how a older Webley would stack up here? The Premier is really superb and it's compactness came as a surprise.

[Mark D]

I see more Webleys in your future

[ccdjg]

Many thanks for the information. It is rare to see comparisons of the old timers like this, and helps to remind us collectors that our guns aren't just for looking at.

[45flint]

To me it is interesting to compare because that is what gunmakers of the day did. Andrew Lawrence of course wrote a paper on the comparisons to develop the Hy-Score. Naturally in collecting, shooting is often not even an issue. To me the Tell 3 is fascinating in that it is the pinicle of many prewar collections because of its rarity, it unique mechanism, and its superb styling. But now having one, as a working gun it is actually pretty poor. The cocking leverage offered by a short barrel is not fun on the hands and had to be a factor limiting its power. And the trigger is a beast, of course that could be my example, but I doubt it. You can see why Lawrence used the Webley mechanism as his starting point but just went concentric with the barrel.

[Abasmajor]

Hello,

I concentrated on Webley when I stated collecting vintage, spring powered air pistols mainly for their influence on my youth. There are however so many variations in each model for this to have become a life long quest. Instead, I focused on obtaining nice examples of the main models from both the pre and post war eras.

This led to an interest in contemporaries of the Webley from the UK, Germany and the USA.

I have since been lucky enough to either own or shoot most of these including some very rare models from each of these countries. My conclusion is that the Webley design is by far the best with the ABAS Major being its closest rival. This and some of its other rivals were however more expensive to produce and own and still couldn't quite match the compactness, accuracy and ease of operation of the Webley design.

Regards
Brian

[45flint]

Hello,

I concentrated on Webley when I stated collecting vintage, spring powered air pistols mainly for their influence on my youth. There are however so many variations in each model for this to have become a life long quest. Instead, I focused on obtaining nice examples of the main models from both the pre and post war eras.

This led to an interest in contemporaries of the Webley from the UK, Germany and the USA.

I have since been lucky enough to either own or shoot most of these including some very rare models from each of these countries. My conclusion is that the Webley design is by far the best with the ABAS Major being its closest rival. This and some of its other rivals were however more expensive to produce and own and still couldn't quite match the compactness, accuracy and ease of operation of the Webley design.

Regards
Brian

Totally agree given my recent acquisition. Curious if the finish of early models rivaled the Haenel 28. My later 1971 Webley, though finished well, still show some milling marks. The Tell 3 also shows some, Haenel seems flawless.

[Abasmajor]

Totally agree given my recent acquisition. Curious if the finish of early models rivaled the Haenel 28. My later 1971 Webley, though finished well, still show some milling marks. The Tell 3 also shows some, Haenel seems flawless.

Hi,

I have what might be described as near mint examples of the Webley range and a Haenal 28 in similar cosmetic condition. Although I prefer the wood grips fitted to the Haenal. I would consider the blue finish of both to be to the same high standard.

Brian