Wooden air-rifle?

[Mr D]

Does anyone have a wooden air-rifle? A friend of mine who spent some time as a teacher/civil-engineer/anthropologist in Botswana says he made a fine airgun from stinkwood, ebony, leather and the barrel of a broken .22 rimfire pistol. He got the mainspring from a BSA Airsporter (it is not recorded whether it was from a model with a self-opening tap) by writing to a gunsmith's in Johannesburg. It was of the underlever design, heavy and accurate to 10 yards with .22 ammuniton he cast himself.

Sadly he was unable to bring it back with him, as his Botswanese girlfriend, a lady of fiery tempers, wanted to keep it. She was very fond of drinking rum, and then taking pot-shots at the weasel-rats that are such a plague in the Botswanian Riviera.

Has anyone made an air-rifle from wood? Obviously my friend had the advantages of plentiful African hardwoods and a lathe, but surely someone else must have tried this obvious experiment?

Yours In Sport

Mr D

[Prewar]

There was a smoothbore BB gun made entirely from wood, by Markham, its in the Smith book I think.

[Prewar]

Pic here (top right) http://www.daisyking.com/history/markham.htm

[Vic Thompson]

This was crude, but "all wood", just more detail as per the above posting.

http://www.pyramydair.com/blog/2007/...n-sire-to.html

Vic T

[Mr D]

This was crude, but "all wood", just more detail as per the above posting.

http://www.pyramydair.com/blog/2007/...n-sire-to.html

Vic T

Obviously an introductory rifle sold to those on slender means, it is nevertheless ingenious. I am particularly impressed by the complete lack of a transfer port.

[silva]

Ay Mr D,
Redd your thrapple and palavars, hurry and ken the kirk library at the manse and meikle your attention to the Edinburgh Magazine of Popular Mechanics Spring 1923, a fell technical article by a girt billy called Mr Colquohoun, to make yon bonny wooden air gun trig and trim.
Wheest, I cannae ken the page but the article begins “He cut a sappy sucker from the muckle rodden tree …”

Hoots, my heifers choking on a turnip ! Ah well I'll be away to my bed.......

[magicniner]

I am particularly impressed by the complete lack of a transfer port.

Woo Hoo, that old chestnut It was noted as a weak shooter compared to contemporary bb guns, maybe it would have been better with a transfer port
Nick

[keith66]

Has anyone ever found a Holmes patent "Woodsman" rifle its about .30 caliber, trouble is it was not very accurate & tended to spray its projectiles due to bending in the middle at the breech

[olivercromwell]

this will hit a barn-door size target 9 times out of ten at a range of 3-5 inches........

[markspit]

Has anyone tried to restore a Markham Chicago air rifle? I want to take out the piston but unsure how to keep from breaking it!