bsa mercury

[joffy]

I’ve just re-sprung re-sealed and relubed my .177 Mk IV .. it’s a bit like an S but with a thinner barrel and a beech stock. I’ve yet to coax any accuracy from it, could be the wrong pellet, a dirty barrel, duff scope mounts or me the shooter. Nice and smooth and surprisingly twang-free inspite of a standard guide and no piston sleeve. Just perplexed that it’s giving a 1” group at ten yards off a bench …

What's the tap fit like ?

[Hsing-ee]

What's the tap fit like ?

Erm.. it’s a break-barrel so this isn’t something the Mercury has. If you’re talking about a pellet loading tap.

[joffy]

Erm.. it’s a break-barrel so this isn’t something the Mercury has. If you’re talking about a pellet loading tap.

So it'll be a mk1 or 2 the bigger marks are the airsporters hence the confusion . Roughly the same guns . Its usually the .22 guns that are a bit erratic due to their British bores

[Hsing-ee]

So it'll be a mk1 or 2 the bigger marks are the airsporters hence the confusion . Roughly the same guns . Its usually the .22 guns that are a bit erratic due to their British bores

No, it’s a BSA Mercury Mark IV. No ‘confusion’.

https://twchambers.co.uk/airgun-spar...all-marks/mk4/

[joffy]

No, it’s a BSA Mercury Mark IV. No ‘confusion’.

https://twchambers.co.uk/airgun-spar...all-marks/mk4/

Should be shooting quite nicely in .177

[TonyL]

I’ve just re-sprung re-sealed and relubed my .177 Mk IV .. it’s a bit like an S but with a thinner barrel and a beech stock. I’ve yet to coax any accuracy from it, could be the wrong pellet, a dirty barrel, duff scope mounts or me the shooter. Nice and smooth and surprisingly twang-free inspite of a standard guide and no piston sleeve. Just perplexed that it’s giving a 1” group at ten yards off a bench …

If the lock-up is good, I'd guess it has to be pellet incompatibility, dirty barrel, scope mount as mentioned, a problem with the barrel itself or the breech seal (either leaking or standing too proud, leading to inconsistent lock-up). Stock fastenings tight?

[TonyL]

I have the 635 Carbine (0.25) which I enjoy very much indeed. Standard size and carbine Challenger models, along with a couple of Mercury S models, but, like the Airsporter S, which is still boxed with tags with condition as new bought from Ramsbottoms in the middle eighties, the walnut stocks are bland and nothing to write home about. I must say, the painted finish Mercury I bought very cheap a few years ago was in most excellent condition apart from the well known stuck nylon piston, I replaced with an alloy one, shoots as good as the S models.

I think in our modern times, our more experienced senior (dare I say it, sorry PC brigade if I have offended) members which have gained more knowledge of every aspect; detail, quality, technical, design, tuning, specialists, enhancement, forums, magazines....etc, that have stuck with it and maintained that interest in air rifles since the early days are maybe forgetting that in those days, the market and built to a price and aimed more at the impressionable teenage era and we were more than happy with any air rifle to go shooting down at the canal or woods, carrying them without covers, along with our William Rodgers Bowie Knives. Accuracy, power, triggers, what was all that about in the early days? That Littlewoods catalogue by mail order was a must. I still have a passion for the 1960's - 1980's air rifles for what they were, and will acknowledge the ever developing "superior" offerings of todays products. Thank god the interest has been maintained by us dedicated lot, it is a fascinating subject. My grandchildren will have arthritic thumbs and misshaped ears and treatment for withdrawal anxiety by the time they are twenty with those bloody iphones - not interested one bit in air rifles

Kind regards to all...

A most excellent post, sir. And thank you for also confirming the existence of those carbine models.

[look no hands]

If the lock-up is good, I'd guess it has to be pellet incompatibility, dirty barrel, scope mount as mentioned, a problem with the barrel itself or the breech seal (either leaking or standing too proud, leading to inconsistent lock-up). Stock fastenings tight?

Yep as Tone says, pellet choice is normally the problem, had the same problem with Karen's HW30, brand new so knew it couldn't be any of the other things mentioned, was given a tin of JSB RS by Knibbs saying they are what goes through them the best, couldn't hit anything with it, Tone had a go with it at the bash and then recommended the orgasm delight hammers, hitting everything now.

[TonyL]

Aha! And it wasn't a recommendation as such, just what I used in the .22 Mercury S that I had that's yours now, Pete.
Your experience with the JSB performance through Karen's rifle highlights how we have to try a few different ones to see which our barrels like. Who knows, a different batch of those JSBs might perform totally differently?
I've found in recent times that the FTT does seem to go well in most HW barrels, but those caveats regarding individual barrels and testing must always apply.

Back to the Mercury......how many here can remember Rod's pellet testing series in the early days of AGW? And, if my memory serves correctly, did the Mercury in .177 not deliver one of the tightest groups of the entire series using Marksman pellets?

[joffy]

No, it’s a BSA Mercury Mark IV. No ‘confusion’.

https://twchambers.co.uk/airgun-spar...all-marks/mk4/

Is the barrel crown OK?

[look no hands]

Is the barrel crown OK?

Not easy to check as the Merc barrel is counter sunk down about an inch.

[joffy]

Not easy to check as the Merc barrel is counter sunk down about an inch.

That's what I was thinking too .....my airsporter doesn't have the counterbore so thinking maybe the mercury was the same ......

[look no hands]

Aha! And it wasn't a recommendation as such, just what I used in the .22 Mercury S that I had that's yours now, Pete.
Your experience with the JSB performance through Karen's rifle highlights how we have to try a few different ones to see which our barrels like. Who knows, a different batch of those JSBs might perform totally differently?
I've found in recent times that the FTT does seem to go well in most HW barrels, but those caveats regarding individual barrels and testing must always apply.

Back to the Mercury......how many here can remember Rod's pellet testing series in the early days of AGW? And, if my memory serves correctly, did the Mercury in .177 not deliver one of the tightest groups of the entire series using Marksman pellets?

The thing is though Tone, most of the rifles, including BSA's I own seem to like JSB's but the 30 didn't, so it's always been my go to pellet.

[Big Seth]

Back to the Mercury......how many here can remember Rod's pellet testing series in the early days of AGW? And, if my memory serves correctly, did the Mercury in .177 not deliver one of the tightest groups of the entire series using Marksman pellets?

I remember -4.5mm groups with Marsksan pellets! Thinking back perhaps only one shot hit the target and the rest of the shots missed the target altogether?

[wickerman]

i used marksman pellets all the time in my fwb 127 with great results