Airgun Obsessions of The 70s

[coburn]

Eley Wasp, Webley Specials or Milbro Caledonian were my major decision in the Seventies.

[Hsing-ee]

Eley Wasp, Webley Specials or Milbro Caledonian were my major decision in the Seventies.

Wasps were pretty top drawer stuff, both in .177 and .22. Remarkably accurate for such a dumpy little round, with the skirt to head distance being seemily too short to give best accuracy.

The modern non-Eley ones are awful.

Milbro Caledonian were typically assymetrical, never seen one that wasn't, but still more accurate than the rather pleasing looking Marksman which came in carboard boxes like pellets should.

[coburn]

Wasps were pretty top drawer stuff, both in .177 and .22. Remarkably accurate for such a dumpy little round, with the skirt to head distance being seemily too short to give best accuracy.

The modern non-Eley ones are awful.

Milbro Caledonian were typically assymetrical, never seen one that wasn't, but still more accurate than the rather pleasing looking Marksman which came in carboard boxes like pellets should.

I remember in the very early 80's locating a source of very cheap Wasps at a farm supply shop near Guildford. I mentioned this to my fellow club mates, orders duly taken, off I went the following weekend from Epsom down to said shop near Guildford. The return journey on my Honda C70 proved interesting as the weight of thirty odd tins of Wasps in the top box had their effect on the handling.

[AC all day]

I remember in the very early 80's locating a source of very cheap Wasps at a farm supply shop near Guildford. I mentioned this to my fellow club mates, orders duly taken, off I went the following weekend from Epsom down to said shop near Guildford. The return journey on my Honda C70 proved interesting as the weight of thirty odd tins of Wasps in the top box had their effect on the handling.

Ooooh thats geat!!
Buying airguns and pellets in 'NON' gun shops, my local fishing tackle shop sold loads of Relums...
Or in fact just gunshops, I lived in Medway in Kent and we had 7 shops within 7 miles....now there all gone!

[Shed tuner]

Accuracy, quality power, sturdy mounts .
My obsession still remains from then.
Have recently bought a nr mint FWB 124, 11.5 ftlb
I fitted it with a Sportsmatch op adj mount and a Bushnell Legend.
Running on either QYS 9.56 domed or JSB Exact.
Seriously good performance still ,out of a 40+yr old gun.
The 124's are still the business, especially when they were fitted with the 300S barrels...and now ..the really good ammo...wow.

yup, those guns were way ahead of their time...

[where's it gone]

Things that used to concern airgunners in the U.K. in the late 70s early 80s included Â…

5. Twelve Foot Pounds. 12 fpe is just another power level to todays shooters, albeit the threshold for an FAC so quite important. Back in the 70s rifles that could actually get close to this number were held in awe. No one had a chronograph so no one really knew how powerful their guns were. .......

I disagree. My local gun shop always had a copy of Yellow Pages.
After 'tuneing' a HW 77 he proudly showed how many pages the pellet went through !

[TonyL]

Excellent OP, bringing back many of yesteryear's flavours.

Yes to the comments over the old Eley Wasp and FWB Sport. And I lusted over many of the exotic sounding German match rifles and their quality of engineering. It wasn't to be for many years afterwards until I finally got a 300S of my own.

Obsessions....."slipperiness" from moly.....Dri-Slide,, LT2 and SM50. As above, properly made mounts. And, when they came a little later, the Venoms and Airmasters tuning & customising houses.

[TonyL]

Oh yes, just for Pete......and the rifle is as viable now as it was back then......THE HW35!

[Papa g]

Eley Wasp, Webley Specials or Milbro Caledonian were my major decision in the Seventies.

I’d add Marksman pellets to that list, certainly used all of the above in my .22 meteor, that gun shot more vermin than any other I’ve owned since, certainly kept my ferrets well fed back in the 70s, great times I miss them.
Regard Graham

[Hsing-ee]

I’d add Marksman pellets to that list, certainly used all of the above in my .22 meteor, that gun shot more vermin than any other I’ve owned since, certainly kept my ferrets well fed back in the 70s, great times I miss them.
Regard Graham

'A well-fed ferret' is a concept completely unknown to today's generation. Maybe analogous to an iPhone with a full charge?

[MartynB]

'A well-fed ferret' is a concept completely unknown to today's generation. Maybe analogous to an iPhone with a full charge?

Like it

[Dornfelderliebe]

Being able to buy Marksmans from the local bike shop.

[TonyL]

'A well-fed ferret' is a concept completely unknown to today's generation. Maybe analogous to an iPhone with a full charge?

Like it

I like that, too. Loved my ferrets. They netted us plenty of bunnies.

My catapults and, later, Meteor andMercury nailed hundreds of rats.

[TonyL]

Being able to buy Marksmans from the local bike shop.

Yep, even in our small town, at least two sports shops and, I think, tackle shops sold pellets. The sports shops sold Relum and Milbro Diana airguns. A sports shop in the next town, Worksop, had BSA and Weihrauch rifles, too.

[TonyL]

Family mail order catalogues selling airguns!