Well, its been a long journey, but today I got the action back from restoration, and have now rebuilt it into the original stock that I have restored.

Its a really interesting story, full of drama and incredible coincidences, but we both have to admit to a little tear seeing the rifle back looking exactly as it left her 40 years ago!! It was the rifle that started her International shooting career, and won her many medals International and UK, and the rifle that put her on a stage that led to support from another manufacturer that continued that trail of success. Now retired from air rifle, but at ( I dare't say!!) years old, she is still successfully shooting small bore and 300 mt full bore prone rifle very successfully.

So many have searched for the rifle for about ten years now, and many have helped, it surfaced by luck, it had been sat in the loft of a local ex shooter for 30 years, and he fortunately saw this thread and agreed to sell it back to us!! Thank you Scott.

Thanks our friend Bob (Zooma) who pushed me to not give up and continue the search, and when all seemed to have failed pushed me to build a replica, and that produced the biggest coincidence of the lot!!! Thanks Bob.

The first 75 was imported specially just for her, in early '77, before they were available in the UK, I believe a dispute over import rights meant they could not be imported before late '77 or '78, it failed (Jammed open!) at the British championships in 1977. and the importer who had a trade stand at the championships, switched the action from the only other one they had, which they had on display on their stand, just for display, and not permitted to sell (due to the import dispute), and that's the one she has the history with and we have just got returned.
But the failed one?? by the most strange set of coincidences, the earlier one she used at the beginning of the year we aquired to build the replica, arranged by friend Andy, and then discovered it was actually the earlier one that Jammed!!!! So she now has both the firsts two 75's into the UK and that she shot competitively with both!

You could not make up a story like this!!!

Any way the final historic one, its home, the action was restored by Roger Moy, thank you Roger, he told me it was a nightmare to restore, he had problem after problem, and so much was not the same as other 75's he has done? He'd forgotten I'd told him it was a pre production version, and they had so many issues they revised the design before they became generally available! But he succeeded, and did a great job, Thanks Roger.

So I have fitted it in the stock that I restored, simple job, then I set about adjusting the trigger to how the boss likes them. Hmmmm, Oh dear, that's perfection, and she's still the most critical person I know on triggers!!
To set the trigger was a nightmare, took me most of the afternoon, not helped by her special trigger to bring the reach back short, and I continually had to fit it in the stock, then take it out, and then refit, took me most of the afternoon.
I can hear the laughter from "Oop North" from here, come on Bob, its 40 year since I set up a 75 trigger, I'm allowed to forget how!!! But I found the breakdown diagram from my papers and wrestled through, and the memory slowly came back! Any one who thinks old rifles are as good as modern ones, think again, tech has moved on in 40 years!!! But I got there, and the trigger is now as crisp as a packet of Walkers!!

So thanks all those that helped and made this happen, Bob, Andy, Roger, and Scott, and all you who searched and inquired and helped.

We hope we can arrange a special event some time, to display this Special 75, (and the "Jammed" 75!), and perhaps all her other air rifles that followed it, her pre production Walther LGR Junior Special, her Walther LG400 expert wood stocked Junior Special, another prototype, and the medals she won with them all, and I'd love to see our club juniors shoot with these historic rifles, that's our wish, but we'll have to see if it can happen.

So have Fun,
Robin