Confessioms of a fettler

[CapitalBee]

I had a similar experience when rebuilding my fwb 300. Circlip pins in back to front on the sledge and wondering why it wouldn't cock! Also, despite telling someone on here to assemble the barrel before the spring on their hw95, forgetting it myself and struggling like crazy.

[peddy]

There's a few school boy errors to be made on the 78, can think of at least 5 that I've made over the years, which is why I always take photos. Sounds like you've done a good job on yours. When sorted they make great rifles.

[Phil Russell]

Oh I am so glad I am not alone ...
Not an error but an experience. At an antiques fair ... Swinderby (?), more like Swindleby some years ago. A fair BSA Standard languishing in a corner. Looked fair and at a reasonable price so bought it. On getting home I was fortunate to strip it before test firing. The pesky rifle had no piston head washer at all, just a bare piston. Mumble mumble. All sorted though.
Also, once bought maybe 5 boxes of Defiant pellets at auction at what I thought was a good price. All boxes were securely taped up and I assumed they were all full. On arriving home it turned out each box was only half full with the rest of the space being occupied by packing. Buyer beware!
Cheers, Phil

[MartynB]

i have a pic of me shooting out a whole door glass panel in our consvertory

I did similar in the mid 70's, put a hole in the double glazed study window, parents said it was a stone thrown by the mower

[MartynB]

Just remembered one my uncle did whilst checking his rifle over in his front room and firing a pellet into the ceiling donut

And a friend did the same thing, it was a white artexed ceiling and he stuffed cotton wall into the hole, his parents were none the wiser until he confessed a few years later

[Turnup]

HW 45 strip and clean. Now shooting with much more recoil but much less velocity. I had put the steel spring guide inside the piston [surprisingly it fits just fine at that end]

[u.k.neil]

Time to 'fess up...... Many moons ago I was machining an S200barrel in order to fit it to an S400 action. When fitted, I could only get the muzzle energy to around 6 f.p.e. On investigation I found that I had been one revolution out on my metric 0 - 25mm micrometer and had machined the groove that the air travels around from the transfer port and had machined it at too small a diameter. There was enough meat on the barrel to part that off and start again.


Neil

[I. J.]

I have to admit to fitting at least one scope with the turrets 90 degrees out. Ive also been my own victim of setting the Rekord trigger on a re-build and then wondering why the gun wont cock. Rebuilding a '77 and not putting the lug into the cocking slot so the (big) main spring had to come out again. I once spent ages trying to zero a .22 Ace fitted with a .177 silencer. Only last week I turned up at the club with right rifle - wrong magazines. I did once 'help' someone fit a torch to the top of their scope. It was only when they mounted the rifle they saw the torch was facing the wrong way.

A good friend of mine once shot into a plastic bucket filled to the top with water to catch a pellet. A small puddle appeared under the bucket. He also rebuilt an early Airsporter and couldn't figure out why it wouldn't cock. He had fitted the piston rod 180 degrees out.

The 'Club Gladys' has been known to try to fit .20 pellets into his .177 Mercury.

Oh the joys of airguns.

[MartynB]

I'm going to remember these Ian

I did once 'help' someone fit a torch to the top of their scope. It was only when they mounted the rifle they saw the torch was facing the wrong way

This one made me laugh the most