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Thread: bsa airsporter mk5 0.22 under repair

  1. #1
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    bsa airsporter mk6 0.22 under repair

    hi all

    i decided to strip down a bsa airsporter i have had sitting in a bag for the past 10 years
    so purchased the usual bits that would need replacing /spring /seals /and so on
    after stripping down the barrel because there was some old paint that needed removing ready for re blueing i noticed there was no drill whole for the front site so i assume the barrel has been cut down as i cant see any type of metal filler
    so my question is what length should the actual barrel be and why would you cut down the barrel in the first place
    is it possible to change the actual barrel only
    and also can the end of the barrel actually be removed as this one has been so a new whole can be drilled for a front site
    also would the barrel being shorter reduce the acracy in the gun

    thanks tony

    there is a gl stamp on the barrel
    Last edited by stonyat421; 07-03-2021 at 04:56 PM.

  2. #2
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    GL makes it a model VI, .22. Hiller gives length as 44" and it could well have had a 18" barrel. You may be able to determine how much has been taken off the barrel from this.
    Cheers, Phil

  3. #3
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    The barrel length on my Mk6 Airsporter (GL Prefix) is fifteen and a quarter inches (384mm) from the end of the barrel to the shoulder where it enters the block

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by ken69 View Post
    The barrel length on my Mk6 Airsporter (GL Prefix) is fifteen and a quarter inches (384mm) from the end of the barrel to the shoulder where it enters the block
    Thank you for that. Would they measure the barrel from muzzle to the tap? this could account for the extra length I found?
    Cheers, Phil

  5. #5
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    barrel lengh

    thanks for the reply's guys
    took a tape to the barrel and its only 12 and a quarter inches or 305 mm so looks like its been cut down
    not sure where to go with this now about a front site got a muzzle break that fits so thats 2nd choice
    i was thinking of drill and tap a whole for the front site but if the barrel has been cut down would it make any difference to the lining up of both sites and also i would need to remove any burring inside the barrel from the drilled whole

  6. #6
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    If it were mine I would probably fit a Webley Pro System Silencer and a period gloss scope

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by ken69 View Post
    If it were mine I would probably fit a Webley Pro System Silencer and a period gloss scope
    Even better a period Galway, Air Logic, or Hushpower one.

    Walter lists Airsporter barrels at 485mm (19.1”) for standard and 500mm (19.7”) for the S model.

  8. #8
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    Now I am pretty sure that on BSAs the actual rifled barrel ends before the muzzle, maybe 1cm? Sorry I do not have one to hand but I think this is right. So if your rifling comes right up to the muzzle then yes you have been cut down.
    Regarding the foresight: Some rifles ... maybe Gamo ones... had a plastic unit that fitted over the muzzle and included a foresight element as part of the moulding. I guess this is irrelevant as you would have to find one and find one the correct diameter at that.
    Did the original foresight securing holes penetrate into the barrel? I don't know. But it maybe possible to tap a shallow hole without going into the rifling. But then you have the issue of the thread used as I bet it was not a standard UNF or BA or even metric one.

    As the foresight was removed, presumably the intention was to use a scope.

    Cheers, Phil

  9. #9
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    barrel lengh

    well cheers for the reply's
    think il be going down the road of a silencer and scope for this one

    as i have not been on here for a while does any one no if uk neil is still on the group

    cheers tony

  10. #10
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    Airsporter barrels of this era were 485mm (19.1”) standard, and 500mm (19.7”) on the S.

    It’s interesting that they were round numbers in metric. Supplied from abroad? I don’t know.

    The muzzles were indeed counter-bored (larger, non-rifled bit at the end).

    The front sight block has a small male lug that fits a shallow female depression cut into in the top of the barrel.

    Slightly behind that, a vertical screw running through the front sight block (look at the diagram on Chambers) fits a tapped and threaded vertical hole in the barrel. IIRC, the latter hole is both in and goes through the counter-bored section, not the rifling. The screw either does not protrude inside, or only does a tiny bit, and not enough to impede pellet flight.

    I’ve read suggestions that the counter-boring was intended to protect the crown from damage in the field.

    It does that, but, if I am right in the para above, I suggest it was primarily adopted to allow the front sight to be screwed on from above as described without having to work with very fine tolerances or risk a random “choking” effect by pushing the top of the rifling down a bit in manufacture.

    PS: U.K. Neil retired and sold up his machinery a few years ago.

  11. #11
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    barrel lengh

    Quote Originally Posted by Geezer View Post
    Airsporter barrels of this era were 485mm (19.1”) standard, and 500mm (19.7”) on the S.

    It’s interesting that they were round numbers in metric. Supplied from abroad? I don’t know.

    The muzzles were indeed counter-bored (larger, non-rifled bit at the end).

    The front sight block has a small male lug that fits a shallow female depression cut into in the top of the barrel.

    Slightly behind that, a vertical screw running through the front sight block (look at the diagram on Chambers) fits a tapped and threaded vertical hole in the barrel. IIRC, the latter hole is both in and goes through the counter-bored section, not the rifling. The screw either does not protrude inside, or only does a tiny bit, and not enough to impede pellet flight.

    I’ve read suggestions that the counter-boring was intended to protect the crown from damage in the field.

    It does that, but, if I am right in the para above, I suggest it was primarily adopted to allow the front sight to be screwed on from above as described without having to work with very fine tolerances or risk a random “choking” effect by pushing the top of the rifling down a bit in manufacture.

    PS: U.K. Neil retired and sold up his machinery a few years ago.
    cheers for that shame would not mind another one of those silencers

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