Anschutz 335 - truly amazing accuracy

[andrewM]

I bought a 335 in 177, Mk 1 (with the older sliding scale open sights and the bolt release mechanism, which was parallel to the barrel), from a gunsmith last year for £235 (8 out of 10 for condition). Not a bad price, I thought, albeit slightly expensive compared with what occasionally is offered here, but these are not easy to find. I read about their performance on this site and the pleasing reports from owners persuaded me to get one.

I have only had an opportunity to test it out properly today, on which I mounted a simple Hawke 4x32 scope.

I am astonished at the accuracy of this rifle, with close clover leaf groups at just under 25yds, firing from a table using a cushioned rest.

However, whilst testing it out, I noticed scope creep. Happily, the Hawke has an anti-recoil screw and I placed this into one of the stud holes at the rear of the 335 cylinder which, I think, might have been designed for fitting the Anschutz peep sight. Assuming the anti-recoil screw does not snap, that should deal with this problem.

Despite what some detractors have observed about the trigger, I find this to be more than satisfactory and it is easy to master.

I used JSB Exacts, 4.52mm, 7.33gr. These operated at a slightly flatter trajectory than the larger 8.44gr JSBs in 4.51mm, albeit the accuracy appears similar. Perhaps the tighter 4.52mm just has the edge.

One criticism: the stock screws work loose, especially the front two. Not sure what to do about this. I wonder if others have noticed this problem or am I alone?

The Anschutz peep sight, No 6706, is advertised in the manual which someone here kindly sent me. I wonder how this sight performs, if anyone has used it.

It surprises me that this magnificent rifle was not continued but I suppose they were rather late to the game, by which time every other manufacturer had cleaned up. However, they must surely be one of the most accurate springers available and I have only tested three types of pellet.

That said, I think there were two further models, the Mk2 and Mk3 but I don't think there was much difference, albeit the open sights were changed. Mine has an anti-bear trap device, which means the rifle, once cocked, cannot be uncocked unless fired but I think this design was common to all.

Mine also has the old leather washer and I wonder if this was changed to a synthetic washer in the Mk2 or Mk3 and, if so, if it produced any noticeable improvement.

The serial number on mine is 40691 and I wonder if anyone happens to know the date of production?

It is now merely a question of whether I seek a 22 version too - suffice to say I am delighted with the 177 (which the gunsmith told me was performing at about 10 to 10.5ft lb with S.domes). In due course, I will see how it performs at greater distances.

Rgds to all
A

[stevegv8]

This reminds me of a newbie mistake I made with one of these.
Roughly 7 or 8 years ago I returned to collecting aiming (see what I did there?) to lean towards vintage, and I came into contact with someone dealing in all sorts.
I showed a few of my collection that I still had from the previous ones I'd collected 15-20 years before and a .117 335 was one of them, in fine condition too.
He advised me they were rubbish, broke a lot and were impossible for spares so I ought to get rid but could give me £65, if I left the scope on!

I declined but put it in a local auction having been spooked by his advice, whilst disposing of my shot gun collection. It went for £85 less fees.

A year later I decided I wanted another so found one at a higher but probably still fair price of £130ish if I recall, not quite a good as my first one condition wise, each were the earlier version with the pull barrel release.

I had a similar bit of advice from him on another air rifle some time later and another person I know said the same, obviously low balls you with a scare story to acquire something of yours he fancy's so I don't deal with him anymore, my mind was made up having bought something he'd just serviced pre sale that I found full of steel wool. No doubt the service equivalent of wiping with an oily rag.

[Geezer]

They are very good.

They do have a habit of breaking the spot-welds on the front cylinder mounting blocks. And spares are not the easiest.

Apart from the above, the reasons they didn’t do better were: better at 10 than 11.9 ft-lbs when we were all power mad; expensive; and often marketed as an entry-level 10M rifle, not a “full hunting power” sporter.

[andrewM]

This reminds me of a newbie mistake I made with one of these.
Roughly 7 or 8 years ago I returned to collecting aiming (see what I did there?) to lean towards vintage, and I came into contact with someone dealing in all sorts.
I showed a few of my collection that I still had from the previous ones I'd collected 15-20 years before and a .117 335 was one of them, in fine condition too.
He advised me they were rubbish, broke a lot and were impossible for spares so I ought to get rid but could give me £65, if I left the scope on!

I declined but put it in a local auction having been spooked by his advice, whilst disposing of my shot gun collection. It went for £85 less fees.

A year later I decided I wanted another so found one at a higher but probably still fair price of £130ish if I recall, not quite a good as my first one condition wise, each were the earlier version with the pull barrel release.

I had a similar bit of advice from him on another air rifle some time later and another person I know said the same, obviously low balls you with a scare story to acquire something of yours he fancy's so I don't deal with him anymore, my mind was made up having bought something he'd just serviced pre sale that I found full of steel wool. No doubt the service equivalent of wiping with an oily rag.

It sounds as if your contact was a confidence trickster of the lowest order. Being a member here allows one to obtain an accurate picture of the market for individual makes and models. You should, at least, be up on your later purchase. These rifles are well sought after.

Rgds
A

[MDriskill]

I'm not familiar with the "Mark" terminology on these, but I owned a later-version 335 with the deeper stock fore end, and angled clutch-type (Walther LGV-ish) breech lock - sold as the "Crosman Challenger 6500" here in the US. It also had a leather piston seal, and was also amazingly accurate.

Besides Anschutz's high-quality, heavy 16mm barrel and breech lock, the neat tapered breech leade is an outstanding detail IMHO. It's very tolerant of different pellets, and a gentle nudge with a seating tool would in effect seal and size any size skirt diameter. I got along fine with the trigger, too. I regret selling it and would like to find another!

[isobar]

i have a model 333,the same action but a more basic stock.I too was amazed by the accuracy,unfortunately the rear stock mount parted from the action so i got it welded,knowing the front lugs were prone to failure I got those done as well.shoots small groups at 20yds and not that pellet fussy.

[Mr Pusk]

However, whilst testing it out, I noticed scope creep. Happily, the Hawke has an anti-recoil screw and I placed this into one of the stud holes at the rear of the 335 cylinder which, I think, might have been designed for fitting the Anschutz peep sight. Assuming the anti-recoil screw does not snap, that should deal with this problem.

...

One criticism: the stock screws work loose, especially the front two. Not sure what to do about this. I wonder if others have noticed this problem or am I alone?

...

The Anschutz peep sight, No 6706, is advertised in the manual which someone here kindly sent me. I wonder how this sight performs, if anyone has used it.

...

That said, I think there were two further models, the Mk2 and Mk3 but I don't think there was much difference, albeit the open sights were changed. Mine has an anti-bear trap device, which means the rifle, once cocked, cannot be uncocked unless fired but I think this design was common to all.

Mine also has the old leather washer and I wonder if this was changed to a synthetic washer in the Mk2 or Mk3 and, if so, if it produced any noticeable improvement.

The serial number on mine is 40691 and I wonder if anyone happens to know the date of production?

I have a Mk1 (c.1971 to 77 or 79 depending on who you read) with a dioptre sight and just the base for the regular rearsight, #56***, and Mk2 (c.1979 - 86) #899**, scoped, both in .177. The former (which has the barrel catch you describe) does about 6 ft lbs which is fair enough for a 10 metre rifle with an F mark. The Mk2 (with a clutch type barrel catch) a bit over 8 ft lbs, but even with this I reckoned the scope was sliding back until I made sure I used a scope with a stop peg on the mount. It is beautifully accurate once I got the scope to stay still. As the range I use is 25yds I can't speak as to my Mk1's accuracy at any other distance but it is pretty tight at 25 with the dioptre sight. Both have leather seals. The Mk3, from what I've read, came in around 1986 and added a safety catch, supposedly for the US market.

Both mine particularly like QYS Domed pellets.

There is precious little information online about Anschütz air rifle serial numbers and they charge a discouragingly high amount (£150) for looking in their records. https://www.anschuetz-sport.com/en/s...sfeststellung/ . In the circumstances I decided to remain ignorant of their exact age.

I've had problems with the bolts loosening too - not helped by the bolts trying to eat their way through the stock. Anti-slip washers? I've heard about the weak front stock bolts so treating them with particular respect!

[andrewM]

I have a Mk1 (c.1971 to 77 or 79 depending on who you read) with a dioptre sight and just the base for the regular rearsight, #56***, and Mk2 (c.1979 - 86) #899**, scoped, both in .177. The former (which has the barrel catch you describe) does about 6 ft lbs which is fair enough for a 10 metre rifle with an F mark. The Mk2 (with a clutch type barrel catch) a bit over 8 ft lbs, but even with this I reckoned the scope was sliding back until I made sure I used a scope with a stop peg on the mount. It is beautifully accurate once I got the scope to stay still. As the range I use is 25yds I can't speak as to my Mk1's accuracy at any other distance but it is pretty tight at 25 with the dioptre sight. Both have leather seals. The Mk3, from what I've read, came in around 1986 and added a safety catch, supposedly for the US market.

Both mine particularly like QYS Domed pellets.

There is precious little information online about Anschütz air rifle serial numbers and they charge a discouragingly high amount (£150) for looking in their records. https://www.anschuetz-sport.com/en/s...sfeststellung/ . In the circumstances I decided to remain ignorant of their exact age.

I've had problems with the bolts loosening too - not helped by the bolts trying to eat their way through the stock. Anti-slip washers? I've heard about the weak front stock bolts so treating them with particular respect!

Thank you for your interesting response. I had been thinking of emailing Anschutz to ask about the date of production but in view of what you say, I shall not bother! On the other hand, I wonder if they still produce their peep sight for this model, albeit for use elsewhere.

I have not heard of QYS pellets but it is always interesting to hear from others about what performs best for them. It is impossible to try everything, excepting at great time and expense.

I understand the German market permits only 6ft/lb, so the F mark is presumably a German restrictive model.

I will consider buying a 22 version, if one comes up.

The leather washer adds to the mystique. Clearly, it works extremely well here and experimentation will determine how often it requires lubrication. With my Original 45, also with a leather washer, it is minimal.

I am still reflecting on the accuracy - it knocks many more modern rifles into a cocked hat.

Rgds
A

[Mr Pusk]

Thank you for your interesting response. I had been thinking of emailing Anschutz to ask about the date of production but in view of what you say, I shall not bother! On the other hand, I wonder if they still produce their peep sight for this model, albeit for use elsewhere.

I have not heard of QYS pellets but it is always interesting to hear from others about what performs best for them. It is impossible to try everything, excepting at great time and expense.

I understand the German market permits only 6ft/lb, so the F mark is presumably a German restrictive model.

I will consider buying a 22 version, if one comes up.

The leather washer adds to the mystique. Clearly, it works extremely well here and experimentation will determine how often it requires lubrication. With my Original 45, also with a leather washer, it is minimal.

I am still reflecting on the accuracy - it knocks many more modern rifles into a cocked hat.

Rgds
A

I can't help re the peep sight, but I suspect it is not made any more because things have moved on. The link I put in my previous post should enable you to have a dig around the Anschutz website. As I mentioned the model with the dioptre sight only came with the base of the normal rearsight, not the bit that slides. This was doubtless so that it didn't get in the line of sight when using the dioptre. Now obvously if you find a dioptre you could modify the rear sight if it's a problem, but that seems a bit of a shame and you might lose the bits which would be a pain if you ever wanted to sell it! Plus it should be reduced power for 10 metres. If yours is doing well as it is I'd be inclined to keep it in its original configuration and enjoy it like that.

On the other hand it is always worth having a saved search for "Anschutz" on that popular auction site, with an automatic notification. Things do come up, and there aren't so many Anschutz things around so you don't get bombarded. I waited a while for a magazine for my Anschutz 275 but something came up in the end. It depends how purist you want to be - if you would consider another make of sight just have your search looking for "anschutz sight" and you get all sorts of hits as sellers tend to tag all dioptre sights with "Anschutz", "Walther" etc regardless of the make of the article. Or whether it fits!

QYS are a Chinese pellet brand, and by no means cheap, but seem very good quality. A lot of people here seem to get on with them very well. My .177s which liked Daystate Sovereigns seem to get on equally well with QYS which is just as well, as I haven't found a tin of the Sovs in that bore for quite some time.

Yes, the F in a pentagram symbol (the Freimark) means the rifle was under 7.5 joules (5.5 ft lbs -ish) originally, so legal in Germany.

Good luck with the search for one in .22 . Persistence usually pays off.

[andrewM]

Thank you for that, Mr Pusk.

I will keep the rear sight in place because, currently, with the scope, it does not create an obstacle although I removed the foresight. I keep these pieces in a box, carefully labelled with all the parts. It is infuriating when rifles come up for sale but the sights have become lost over time, once removed to make way for scopes.

Should I fix a peep sight, then I will remove the entire rear sight.

I checked your website link for the date of production but I think this refers to firearms. I will email them and see what they say.

Best
A

[MDriskill]

L-R: Anschutz models 6705, 6700, early 6702, and late 6702 diopters. The latter three have steel bodies and are much nicer sights than the alloy 6705, costing twice as much when new. Any would work perfectly on the 335. None of these are made any more, but are pretty common finds on auction sites, etc.




The 335's model 6706 sight - originally made for biathlon rimfires - was a simple mod of the common 6705. The round boss on top was drilled and tapped to have a Weihrauch-like flat thumbwheel screw, to lock it into one of the holes on the receiver (note also the side rail cut-aways for it). The 6705 has more than enough clamping power without the thumbscrew, though.

(As an aside, the 6706 is seen on some early examples of the second-version Webley Mk 3 Supertarget. On these the thumbwheel was deleted, and its mounting hole used to access the Mk 3's sear adjustment screw!)

[andrewM]

Fascinating - thank you for this very helpful information. What is the horizontal screw-in tube on the far right sight (No 6702)? This is not present on the three sights to the left of the pic.

Presumably, all of these sights would also fit onto a standard 11mm rail on most air rifles.

Rgds
A

[MDriskill]

IMHO these old Anschutz sights are masterpieces of simple and efficient design. The long flexible mounting rails have tremendous gripping power, allow a great range of positioning, and will fit any flat rail or arched receiver with grooves close to 11mm, including Anschutz, Diana, or later Weihrauchs (they do NOT fit the slightly wider Walther or FWB grooves, though).

All German sights use the same 9.5 x 1.0 mm eyepiece thread - those fitted in the photo above are from Gehmann, Diana, FWB, and HW! The glare shade on the right is not a factory part either, but a nice home-made one I found online. (On the steel sights, the eyepiece thread passes straight through its mounting block to allow such accessories; not so for the 6705/6.)

Just for laughs, here's the 6706 on the Mk 3 Supertarget. The holes in the diopter mounting rail and sight align, to access the trigger adjuster. The red circle approximates where the thumbwheel would have gone.

[Mach 1.5]

Had a 335 MK2 Zephyr tuned one back in the day running at 11.1 ft lbs in .22 cal. Also had a later MK2 with the safety in the rear of the cylinder and a nice touch I must say. Mach 1.5

[Muskett]

One of my favourite springers of all time. All the ones I've had shot exceptionally well and very accurate.
The three negatives for me were the pressed checkering, unglamorous wood, and the biggy was shooting barely 10ft/lbs.
They would need some serious tuning skill if not some reengineering to get closer to 12ft/lbs.

Otherwise one most underrated and quality springer made; loads to love.
I really ought to get another.