Yes i suppose we were environmentlalists then with our lead free pellets, wonder if JSB have ever though of making a potato pellet, grew up in Belfast and as you say lots of controls for airguns, but most Sunday news papers carried adverts for airguns on the back pages so just a matter of having it posted over from England, I had a little Diana/Milbro rifle which had a smooth bore brass barrel with a bead foresight, slugs pellets and darts where all obtained from the local pawnshop, i must have been around nine in the late fifties and could just about see over the pawnshop counter when making my order, but never had a problem, very different times.