Record Champion Pistol

[ptdunk]

Hi Jimmie,
I have a champion in good nick but running at 1.5 ftlbs.
Got a new seal ready to install but can’t for the life of me undo the barrel nut.
Got appropriate circlip pliers, heated it a bit, used penetrant and even given it a little tap but can unsieze it.

Is it possible to strip it without removing the barrel?
I’ve removed the pellet insertor but cannot get the top casing off, there’s something stopping it lifting off completely and I don’t want to force it.

Cheers,

Matt.

I have stripped one of these. They're not too hard once you understand the mindset of FB. Most people don't realise the the muzzle is a "nut" that needs to be unscrewed. Once that's done I think the rest follows fairly well.

As for the seal though, you can't get these anymore. A friend tried to make some but the material is too hard really. It needs a bit of flex to make a good seal. Ideally one would try again and make a groove around the perimeter to fit an o-ring. However you also need to seal around the barrel too.

If I was to try to make another seal, I would attempt to make one from thick leather. It will swell a little with oil and seal the pistol better although the friction could reduce the power a little.

Other than the piston seal, the other very brittle part is the little plastic pellet probe. If do not follow the cocking procedure, it's going to snap. You might be able to make a replacement using a 3D printer.

A few people have asked how to service the Champion.... it's about time I wrote a guide!

All the best,
Jimmie

[JimmieDee]

Unfortunately you need to remove the barrel nut. There is nothing else holding the muzzle nut in place. You probably just need to "crack" it loose. Stick the gun in a vice so you then have both hands on the circlip pliers. Alternatively, you could make a tool from a hex socket. Grind / cut it to make some (maybe two) pins to fit the muzzle nut. Then you can fit a larger bar for more leverage. Good luck!

[ptdunk]

Unfortunately you need to remove the barrel nut. There is nothing else holding the muzzle nut in place. You probably just need to "crack" it loose. Stick the gun in a vice so you then have both hands on the circlip pliers. Alternatively, you could make a tool from a hex socket. Grind / cut it to make some (maybe two) pins to fit the muzzle nut. Then you can fit a larger bar for more leverage. Good luck!

Ok,
Thanks Jimmie,

I’ll mak a decent tool, circlip pliers are too unstable.

Cheers,
Matt.

[JimmieDee]

I managed of with circlip pliers. I bought some heavy duty ones from Screwfix. There are four in a case. I originally bought them for work on another airgun and had to grind down the ends on one for it to fit. They are very strong pliers. The trick is to use the 90 degree angled pliers and make sure they are deeply inserted into the holes and keep one hand pressing down at the muzzle nut and the other on the handles to turn the nut.

[Blackmax]

I broke a pair of circlip pliers doing it so used thicker electricians pliers.

I have however made a tool for similar applications, it consists of a bar with holes down it with bolts going through it and the end of threads removed so as not to mark the part. Ideal pepperpot type dump valves too.

[ptdunk]

I managed of with circlip pliers. I bought some heavy duty ones from Screwfix. There are four in a case. I originally bought them for work on another airgun and had to grind down the ends on one for it to fit. They are very strong pliers. The trick is to use the 90 degree angled pliers and make sure they are deeply inserted into the holes and keep one hand pressing down at the muzzle nut and the other on the handles to turn the nut.

It worked!

I did exactly as you said above, they were the heavy duty circlip pliers, which I ground down a bit for a snugger fit.

I've been wanting to get this apart for ages, finally put a new seal in and it's upped the power a bit so that's good.

Thanks for the advice.

Do these take a standard sized spring? would be nice to fit a new spring too.


Cheers,

Matt.

[JimmieDee]

No idea about the spring. Best you can do is measure outer diameter, wire thickness and number or coils per inch and see if you can find something similar. Coils per inch is important otherwise you will not be able to compress the spring down enough to cock the pistol.

[ptdunk]

No idea about the spring. Best you can do is measure outer diameter, wire thickness and number or coils per inch and see if you can find something similar. Coils per inch is important otherwise you will not be able to compress the spring down enough to cock the pistol.

I took it down the club at the weekend and it's shooting much sweeter with the new seal, and very, very accurate.
Think I'll leave the spring for a future project but good to know how to do it.

Such a fun pistol to shoot!

Thanks for the advice,

Matt.