Spring gun revival (again.....)

[Lumberjack]

It would appear that spring powered rifles ..... I would be interested to hear your thoughts on why you think spring powered rifles appear to be making a deserved comeback.

Andy

I realise that for some the benefits of pcps cannot be ignored but for me, cost, ease of maintenance, degree of independence and long term reliability are big factors.

Generally speaking a good quality boinger will cost significantly less to buy and maintain than a good quality pcp and bottle (or pump). For most people diy maintenance on a boinger is achievable. Diy on a pcp is not for everyone: and air bottle testing is certainly only for the few.

With an oily rag, an occasion spring and a new seal I can happily shoot a springer for decades - and everything is under my control. If I follow my pcp gun manufacturers recommendations I will have to send it off for servicing every 3 years (£150-200 a pop plus postage plus rfd charges??). My air bottle goes off to someone else every 5 years for slightly less £70-£100?? Either way I am reliant on others and it costs more.

In some ways it parallels stripping the engine on my ford in the 70’s to solve a problem compared with opening the bonnet / closing the bonnet and booking my car into a specialist today.

I’ve also noticed something else. Some guys I know have a springer in the cupboard. They’ve had it for years and years. It works fine, they use it regularly and they have no intention of selling it. The same guys change their pcp every 2-3 years. One guy in particular changed every 3 years because as he put it “after three years the problems start”.

I am sure there are many shooters out there who still own (and use) 20+ year old boingers. I wonder if many of today’s pcps will still be regularly used 20 years from now.

Some folk will need, or demand, the advantages of a pcp. Those of us who are not so constrained, and just enjoy the sport for what it is, can afford to be a little more flexible.

[Amac]

Some fascinating thoughts chaps. It is a really good point about us having the ability to attempt our own repairs and tuning with our old faithful springers.

My personal concern is that many younger shooters entering the sport are being spoilt by the easy available accuracy that comes with shooting a PCP. This is a great shame as many of the best shooting techniques are learned by novice shooters who, following some coaching and experience, learn to manage recoil properly when attempting to tame a springer.

When I shoot my PCP target rifle, if I miss it is because I have either miss ranged or misjudged the wind, as I know that the gun is supremely capable. This of course also applies to shooting a springer, but the added techniques of proper hold, trigger control and follow through means that a successful shot is both harder to come by and more fulfilling when it comes off.

I also think that those of us who attempted to tune our bikes and cars in the days when it was possible for the home mechanic not armed with an arsenal of computers to attempt such things as being a pertinent point. Most of us, even those with minimal practical experience, are able to strip down and attempt our own improvements with our spring guns. Sometimes, these "improvements"even work, and we are then able to pat ourselves on the back as we admire our efforts with a living gun that is now shooting even smoother with perhaps much less recoil.

Whatever it is, there can be no doubt that owning, playing with and just shooting springers provides the owner with far more positive feedback than a PCP. I just hope that this general interest is passed onto later generations as well. My eldest son comments that he "served his time" with springers (which he did,) however, he has absolutely no interest whatsoever in shooting them now as he considers them not accurate enough for serious competition. I of course point out to him that there are hundreds of excellent shooters out there who are more than capable of using a springer to the same standards of accuracy as an expensive German PCP. His point is that why should he shoot a springer when a PCP is just so easy?

I am not a brilliant shot, and if I end a competition within seven or eight shots of a winning score I am pleased with my own performance. I have very recently realised that I am now never going to match the performance of younger shooters. Therefore, I have decided that if I do shoot, it will be with a living gun that I enjoy trying to manage properly. I will be trying hard to encourage many more shooters to drag out their springers and to try and enjoy their shooting once again. My Anschutz target rifle is now lying unloved, and I cannot see me feeling the need to dust it down anytime soon.

I would encourage anybody reading this who does not currently own a springer, or who has one lying dormant in a cupboard, buy one, give your old one a wipe down, grab a tin of its favourite pellets and give it a run out. I guarantee that you will enjoy it more, and the time spent shooting will pass even faster for you as you swiftly forget the monotone inevitability of shooting a PCP.

Andy