Which budget Target pistol to start me off?

[BJ knome]

The FWB 65 and 80 are probably the best pistols to start with, great trigger, more accurate than most shooters, reliable and easy to get serviced (main agent Centra UK turn-round in a week and very nice people). And you should get your money back if you decide to sell and move up to a PCP.

The best thing to do first is join a good club and try other shooters pistols and club guns.

[mikehill]

Must admit I LOVE my 80 My favourite up to now.

[hwtyger]

Cant go wrong with a Tau 7. Great value for money, very accurate. I dont get higher scores with my pcps.
Dont like fwb65 at-al; they have them at my gunclub; very annoying to cock, and balance is way off (at the back).
Old co2s are great too, had a walther CP for instance, but they all work with bulkfill ánd cilinders are all out of date.
Tau 7 works with bulbs too and doesnt have a cilinder to go out of date

[RobinC]

We have a local shooter who has retired and is selling a Walther CP2 for £250 and a Steyr LP1 for £500, they may still be available. If you email me I'll forward his details.

[Lundy]

This has been a great thread of posts and I have received about 30 PMs on the subject too, many offering me pistols for sale or drawing my attention to ones others are selling as well as more advice.
I haven't jumped yet!
The conclusions I have drawn so far are now based on second hand prices as well as new from your threads, PMs and follow up reading:
-Rohm - Not much positive feedback
-Air arms Alpha - not much said, other than low shot count
-FAS 6004- not as good as the FAS 604, but good looker, good trigger, self contained, light.
-FAS 604 - sweet trigger, reasonably light, maybe too barrel light, low power unless seals regularly replaced, possibility of machining valve to increase power to get 400fps. Prices vary from £170-£310.
- Gamo Compact- cheap, light, low power, similar to FAS in concept, but poor trigger needs work from the box and not in same quality league as FAS.
-Air match 400- similar in look to FAS but side lever. Lovely looker but possible issues with spares, heavy to cock.
-Tau7 - some good and some say it's bad. Can tinker with trigger but it's CO2 and for some reason, I don't fancy the caplet thing and adding £3 CO2 cost to a tin of pellets. Someone mentioned filling from a fire extinguisher.
-Smk - no open sights but great value, can try adding sights from another gun to scope rail- sounds a bit of a bodge( why didn't they include sights?!)
-Baikal 46-most seem to rate it highly, definitely front heavy and often described as slightly agricultural. New ones in short supply, second hand ones even rarer. Good value.
-Original 6g/6m/10 -good guns, heavy, expensive maintenance if not been looked after
-Fwb 65/80 - good starting gun, great trigger, some hate side lever and or don't like the twang!. High service costs if not running right. prices vary from £120 to £500 depending on collectability.
-Fwb 100/103 - great gun, very few for sale, prices upto £500(gunstar!)
-Morini 62- fab gun but generally more in the £600 price bracket with old cylinders unless it's a fixed cylinder which has its own drawbacks
-Steyr lp1 - fab gun, no negative comments, generally £500+ for a good one
-Walther- no one has mentioned them, oddly
-Hammerli- not as good as Steyr, few second hand ones around

General conclusions
-Prices vary a lot, driven by condition, originality and inclusion of original case, manual and accessories which starts to generate a collectors premium.
-Gunstar prices are often high, better checking gun shops or joining clubs
-Everyone loves some and hates others. It's a very personal thing with lots of recommendations to try before you buy
-Check charged cylinders in a bucket of water to check for leaks
-Replacement cylinders cost around £250 per pair depending on model but they can be serviced for around £35 each
-Old cylinders are meant to be replaced after 10 years, not actually found a manufacturer say this but large ISSF competitions do check. No one seems too fussed about having 20 year cylinders unless they leak. If you get to big competitions, but a new spare cylinder.
-Full gun services, especially springers, can cost £100+ to get them back to perfection
-There seems to be quite a bit of trading-up as people perfect their collections, getting a better one then getting rid of the less perfect version, with many people having quite large collections!
-Everyone has been very helpful and understanding of my dilemma

So where do I think I'm going?
Option 1 -go for a cheaper gun to get started -try a Baikal 46 for feel ( is it too front heavy for me?) or get a mid range FAS or Fwb 65/80 , spending around the £200-£300 bracket and later justify moving into the newer high end second hand guns. Must be sound and not need servicing other than perhaps seals which I could learn to do
Option 2- increase budget to £500-600 and wait for a Morini 62 or Steyr LP1 that's right- still seems a lot to pay for a 20 yr old gun! Will need to do careful stakeholder management of Mrs L to achieve this!

Did I miss anything guys? Thanks for all the input. Now, off for a chat with Mrs L......

[mikehill]

IMO correct apart from

LP1's don't look, shoot or feel like a 20 year old gun
FWB 65/80's actually need virtually no servicing if you get a good one

And Webley Seniors occasionally shoot great !

Complicated though isn't it? If you lived closer you'd be welcome to try mine. You ever get up this way ?

[Bjacobs571]

Target pistols are supposed to be nose heavy it aids holding them steady.
FWB's 65/80/90 do need servicing and they are old enough that they will need new seals if they haven't been replaced already.
FWB 100 types start at £500 and go up. I have seen them advertised for £800 ish.
Walther pistols are good and the LP400 is as good as any on the market. The LP300 is a bit heavy for me. The old bulk fill CO2 pistols are a joy to use.
The Hammerli AP40 is a great pistol and as good as any in its day. The later ones such as the AP20 are not real hammerli's and are not nearly as good.
Importantly All PCP match pistols will shoot 100's if you are good enough and all of them are good enough for a beginner. Once you shoot 90+ regularly then you are good enough to tell the slight differences between them. Mostly it is how well they fit you and whether they adjust to exactly how you want. The biggest factor is fashion and peer pressure.
It is possible to buy a good used PCP for £350 if you are in the right place at the right time. I got a Match Gun MG1 for £250 once because I was on gun star just as he listed it.
My local gun shop has a Bikal 46 for £329. I agree hard to find second hand though.
Don't forget less well known makes such as Tesero. A bit heavy but well regarded.

[Rickenbacker]

And apart from it's AirMatch 600 not 400.

And the new model SMK does have sights. But wierdly they're not fully adjustable. And the trigger on them is shite.

Otherwise, a very good draft!

[Geezer]

And apart from it's AirMatch 600 not 400.

And the new model SMK does have sights. But wierdly they're not fully adjustable. And the trigger on them is shite.

Otherwise, a very good draft!

To be really pedantic, there was an Air Match CU400, though it is little known.

The draft feels very right.

My experience is limited to the FAS, FWB80, Gamo, and Diana 6G/M. I'm not a proper 10M shooter, but from my perspective the FWB is the best built with the best track record, but I do not myself shoot that well with it. The FAS is the cutest to play with, but too short and light. The Gamo - mine is an early one with a good trigger - is a good gun for not much money, but obviously not top drawer. I shoot best with a 6M.

On which basis, the 46M may be the best choice. I hear nothing but good about them. But going back to a Diana 6 and using it to get back into the sport while trying other people's guns might not be a bad option. Just ensure it has been properly resealed, or buy cheap and get it done.

[Lundy]

I was Emailed By a chap who is selling his AirMatch 400 , looked mint condition, but definitely a 400!

[hwtyger]

Hammerli AP40s are very nice shooters indeed. Had 1. Be aware of the 2 versions though, 1 with alu and 1 with steel barrel. The alu is too light up front.
Preferred it above the LP300XT though.

Reg the Webleys; yeah, I've shot a 47 with my Tempest too

[Rickenbacker]

To be really pedantic, there was an Air Match CU400, though it is little known.

I was Emailed By a chap who is selling his AirMatch 400 , looked mint condition, but definitely a 400!

Damn, yes of course. There was the lesser spotted model CU400.

I've never used a 400, but I did once own a 600.

I can tell you (without waxing on too much), that it had the BEST feeling trigger I've had on any gun. And as a bonus, from one side, it looked like Robocop's gun.

I shouldn't have ever sold it...

[Aimstraight]

Something else to add to your draft conclusions; does the pistol have a dry fire facility?

Many folk like to practice using the dry fire facility, not all the above mentioned pistols have this feature built in (e.g. FWB 65, Diana/Original 6, Tau 7).

[hwtyger]

Yr right, but its easy to make for a Tau 7.
And you'd first have to think about wether yr really gonna use it. Been shooting for 14 yrs now, never used a dryfire option other than for trigger adjustment
Dryfire practice is really bad for motivation too. No fun at all.
Mostly used at higher levels of competition training. Than yr not talking about fwb65s etc anymore anyway
Havent seen it used much with starters. Wouldnt advice it for starters either, as you miss the shots feedback, and practicing wrong (bad habits)come around the corner really fast. Its not necessary for AP either. You can easily and legally practice at home.

[mikehill]

Now that is a bargain, well done

Turned out to be not so much of a bargain .. two leaking cylinders at a £70 bill to refurb