Diana 27 (German), HW50, and similar

[Nikkormat]

I'm after a nice sporter for plinking out to about 50 metres. Something under £100, light enough for my female friends to use, with good open sights, and very easy to work on.

I originally thought of a new CZ Slavia 634, but while they look like nice rifles I am more inclined to get something classic and German, to fit in with my loose collection. It seems the second hand market here in the Czech Republic is almost exclusively home produced stuff, so that leaves eGun.

This brings me to my questions. What fits the bill? I know that the old HW50 has a great reputation, but I know less about the Diana 27. How powerful is the Diana? And how accurate? Which is easier to work on? What's parts availability like? Tell me everything please.

Incidentally, I've just been poking around in my friend's 1967/68 Slavia 620s. Both guns have spent their lives stored in damp sheds, being dry fired in childhood games of cowboys & Indians (or Imperialists & Righteous Communists), and yet inside they are in decent condition. The springs in particular look to be of excellent quality.

Matt

[fat man]

I am a big fan of the Hw50, mines the S model with the Record triguer, just about to get a full Red- Dragon Tune from Welsh -Willi. Then theres the Haenel 302, another very good classic East- German springer, mine has a period Niko- Sterling 4x28 scope on her, got it of this very forum a few years back and it and the 50 are still very much 2 of my all time faves, enjoy.

[FordM151A1]

Must agree with Fat man....

Hw50 is a lovely little gun.

Well not really 'little', more medium sized and a 'Welsh Willy' tune .... superb.

[Must be the Taffs sticking together!]


Barrie

[flatrajectory]

My HW 50 m2 (1982) version in .22 is awesome. This rifle is quite capable of a little over 12 ft,lbs. , BUT I run mine at 11.2.
It has a bigtoe01 advised stage one tune. It is smooth, very accurate and It can be carried around all day without fatigue.
I have little experience of the late Diana 27's so cannot comment.
Pete.

[junglie]

My HW 50 in .22 is the most accurate springer I've owned, the only one on your list that can perform out to 50ds.

[MDriskill]

I'm a fan of both rifles, but will focus on the 27 since no one else is!

In "out of the box" form the 27 is typically a few fps slower than the HW 50, but the diff is negligible. It is lighter than the 50 and has a much more slender stock.

Outstanding design features of the Diana 27 include an extremely high-quality spring and leather piston seal, a superbly designed adjustable-tension breech, the simple and strong ball-sear trigger, an easily-replaced O-ring breech seal, and absolutely outstanding open sights. The quirkiest detail may be how close the trigger blade is to the grip, but the simple rounded shape of the latter helps the hand adjust comfortably.

Much has been written about the horrors of dismantling the classic ball-sear trigger. In fact it is very simple, but does require a spring compressor, and a little fore-knowledge is helpful too! Really you just snug up the compressor, knock the two cross pins out, and gently let the stuff out to get it apart. Stack the bits back up and shove back in when done.

The trigger in these guns is really excellent, and an ingeniously simple design. It is adjustable, however only for the second-stage let-off point; there is no pull weight adjuster per se. That being said it is very light, crisp, and reliable when correctly up.

All in all a delightful little rifle. I have one made in 1981 that has never been apart, and is as powerful and accurate as when I got it--but shoots a lot smoother now.

[Nikkormat]

Thanks for the reply, Mike. I came across several of your posts about the Diana 27 on other forums and found them to be very informative.

I've now added the HW55 to the list - in a different class in terms of price and weight, but I've always fancied one. I can see a second collection on the cards, one in England and one here!

Matt

[gedfinn 2]

I'm a fan of both rifles, but will focus on the 27 since no one else is!

In "out of the box" form the 27 is typically a few fps slower than the HW 50, but the diff is negligible. It is lighter than the 50 and has a much more slender stock.

Outstanding design features of the Diana 27 include an extremely high-quality spring and leather piston seal, a superbly designed adjustable-tension breech, the simple and strong ball-sear trigger, an easily-replaced O-ring breech seal, and absolutely outstanding open sights. The quirkiest detail may be how close the trigger blade is to the grip, but the simple rounded shape of the latter helps the hand adjust comfortably.

Much has been written about the horrors of dismantling the classic ball-sear trigger. In fact it is very simple, but does require a spring compressor, and a little fore-knowledge is helpful too! Really you just snug up the compressor, knock the two cross pins out, and gently let the stuff out to get it apart. Stack the bits back up and shove back in when done.

The trigger in these guns is really excellent, and an ingeniously simple design. It is adjustable, however only for the second-stage let-off point; there is no pull weight adjuster per se. That being said it is very light, crisp, and reliable when correctly up.

All in all a delightful little rifle. I have one made in 1981 that has never been apart, and is as powerful and accurate as when I got it--but shoots a lot smoother now.

Hiya Mike, I have a couple of diana,s & Originals, The sights on my Original 27 is pretty basic, Good gun though, As is the 23 However the 22,23, 25, 27,s do not sell well over here,£40-£70 ish I couldn,t sell these , !



Cheers, Ged