For me, there's a ton of stuff to like. I have an HW35 I bought in 1976. When I shoot it, I am reminded that this was the rifle that changed everything for me. From that Rekord trigger that was light years ahead of anything of its kind at the time, through the build quality and its aim-stabilising heft, to the excellent open sights that helped me put hundreds, possibly thousands, of rabbits, pigeons, rats and crows in the bag over the years. I even used that rifle, open-sights and all, for lamping - shock-horror-probe.
That HW35 was the first rifle that inpired me to train, rather than just shoot, because I knew that the better I became, the more it would reward me. It produced just over 10.5 ft.lbs. in .177, and it was solely responsible for educating me away from the 'power is everything' mindset that afflicted all of my shooting friends.
It was that rifle that made others around me start to change their minds about airguns being 'proper' guns. The HW35 really did, and still does, represent more than the sum of its parts, although those parts are impressive enough.
Millions of shooters, right around the globe, hold the HW35 in high esteem, and it still outsells many 'modern' rifles decades on from its introduction. For me, it was great to see it still in production during my recent visit to Weihrauch headquarters. Long may it remain the useable, enjoyable, inspirational icon it has rightly become.