Winter basement vintage pistol shootout - I have to choose my favorite

[45flint]

Time for some vintage fun. I’m taking the best pistols from my vintage blued milled collection. Over the week I’ll put each through its paces on my new to me basement range. I’ll test accuracy but also the many factors that go into the fun of shooting an air pistol. At the end I’ll try to rank them but my goal is to choose my favorite and try to justify my choice. It’s not about rarity but about the pistol itself. If you want guess my choice or which would be yours. Maybe I missed you favorite. These are all prewar but for the Hy-score. I’m including it because it was actually a prewar design that got interrupted?

[Geezer]

I think you’ll pick the Haenel.

I think I’d pick one of the Hy-Scores. Probably the Sportster.

[ggggr]

Ive never tried a Tell 3 or a Hy score, other than the Phoenix, which does remind me of a Webley. This is where things get interesting (to me). I think a lot of the "fun" factor can come down to firing cycle and it depends on which gun has which mainsping. For me, a slant gripped Senior with a "Slingy" action and a decent sear/ trigger would be the most fun. BUT, that is down to an individual gun.
I think you will go for the straight gripped Senior.

Most Smiles? Probably a BSA Scorpion, closely followed by a nicely worn in .22 Webley, which, for me would be a Senior or a Tempest.


Being able to hit what you are aiming at at short, plinking range is good for fun, but I've found some pistols shoot too high to be accurate at short range. Diana Modell 5, Slavia ZVP and the BSF20 spring to mind. There was a thread about this and aiming for the bottom of a target. Haenels are a PITA to cock and load. Original 5's are a bit big and clumsy, Relums, can be fun but a bit too hard to shoot well.Milbro Cougars, heavy, crap trigger and sights can move.

[45flint]

Interesting for me cause I do know what I like about individual pistols but I’ve never really shot them together and compared all their characteristics to each other. Great way to have some fun on my Winter range. Should take several days.

[harvey_s]

I'll be interested in the results....

The Tell is the best looking, but I've never tried one.

No idea about the Haenel.

The Webleys are nice, but I think the triggers could be found wanting.

I do like the Hy-scores, but the power has always been disappointing (possibly by being over-hyped), but on the plus side the triggers seem good.
The short one will probably be iffy with the short sight radius - but the longer barrel one might be OK and that's the one that I reckon that might take the prize?

[cinedux]

the post-war 'Senior". If you pick the wee Hy-score the magazine will drive you nuts!

[Geezer]

I think you’ll pick the Haenel.

I think I’d pick one of the Hy-Scores. Probably the Sportster.

So I guess I wasn’t far off in my prediction.

As Harvey says, your Senior seems abnormally nice and powerful. Webley’s claimed velocity (for many decades, with no pellet specified) was 416 fps.

A really interesting experiment and thread, thanks.