Spring Powered Air Pistol Shooters Wanted.

[zooma]

We would like to find some owners of classic spring powered air pistols who would like an opportunity (or an excuse) to use them every month at home and at 6 yards!

The MPL postal competition was originally founded to give owners of these classic air pistols something to do with them - an excuse to shoot them - at least once a month!

This postal competition is shot over 6 yards (the classic traditional British distance for shooting with target airguns), and this can easily be shot at home, indoors, in the garage, in the shed, or in the garden perhaps?

Previous "home ranges" have been made in the most unlikely of places including:- down the hallway, from one bedroom to another, in the loft, standing in the garden and shooting into a shed etc - it seems that the only restriction has been the limit of ingenuity to find a clear 18 feet to safely shoot a pellet at a target!

When I first started the Exmouth Air Pistol Club in 1971, we stood in my drive and shot at our 6 yard NSRA competition targets that were inside my home garage.

The single car garage was too short (and had other things inside) to give us a full 18 feet between the target face and the shooting point - so an old table was placed outside on the drive at the correct distance Sometimes the weather was good - and sometimes it was not - but we always turned-out - even when we had the rarest of snow in sunny Exmouth!

Shooting classic air pistols is an enjoyable challenge, and exercising them does not do them any harm at all!

Most spring powered air pistols are .177 size, but if we have enough interest we could also have a separate class for .22 spring powered air pistols too!

Please contact myself or Paul SE if you have any questions or fancy having a go.

We would be pleased to help answer any questions you may have - or even discuss it here for the benefit of anyone else that could be curious enough to find out a little more about it .

[zooma]

Spring powered air pistol shooters would only compete against other spring powered air pistol shooters in this competition. These air pistols are sometimes referred to as "kickers" due to their classic recoiling action.

Some spring powered air pistols (such as an FWB Model 65 or 80 etc) have been made recoilless, and when they were the "top dog" in target shooting during the 1970's, their main rivals were the Walther LP3 and other Single Stroke Pneumatic (SSP) air pistols that also enjoyed a recoilless action.

These recoilless pistols will have their scores recorded separately and against each other - but they will not have their scores recorded against any of the "kicker" scores.

[bootneckbob]

Hi Bob,
would this be something like a HW45 and one handed rather than two?

I recently acquired another 45 after a very long break.

[PhatMan]

bootneckbob,

I have found the Diana/Original Model 5 to be just about ideal for a recoiling springer in this discipline

Have fun

Best regards

Russ

[Paul SE]

Hi Bob,
would this be something like a HW45 and one handed rather than two?

I recently acquired another 45 after a very long break.

Indeed, the HW45 can be used....I have one in .177" that has had a tuning kit fitted and it has a milder firing cycle compared to one 'out-of-the-box'.
Used on the low power setting, it fires with a quick nudge and is easy to group well with.

bootneckbob,

I have found the Diana/Original Model 5 to be just about ideal for a recoiling springer in this discipline

Have fun

Best regards

Russ

Indeed, I have a Model 5, however it is in .22" calibre.

It is easy to cock, with a good trigger and maintains good accuracy at close to medium pistol shooting distances.

[zooma]

Hi Bob,
would this be something like a HW45 and one handed rather than two?

I recently acquired another 45 after a very long break.

Yes - an HW 45 (shot one handed) would qualify as an MPL legal air pistol.

Do you fancy giving it a go?

[webtree]

Hi I have a collection of tempest and typhoon would they qualify as I could do with a reson to dust them off

[oldskoolzzz]

I could well be interested in giving it a whirl with an old HW45 that I’ve recently purchased

I’m very rusty though so my aim will be for the wooden spoon

[zooma]

Hi I have a collection of tempest and typhoon would they qualify as I could do with a reson to dust them off

Absolutely!

I have previously shot with various Webley air pistols in the MPL, and thoroughly enjoyed the challenge. The Typhoon and Tempest pistols are good to hold and shoot and with practice they can be as good a choice as any other springer.

It was good to see how my scores (sometimes) improved with each pistol over the 6 months of the competitions and I did enter twice (once with with two different springers) to see if I could do better with one type than the other.

My biggest challenge was entering with a Webley Junior! I found myself using my hand to smother the pistol and my second finger to pull the tigger with!

In the MPL competition, your biggest rival is only ever yourself, and I never had any interest in trying to win - only in using the competition to encourage me to actually use my airguns on a regular basis. Without the MPL I probably would not have shot my classic airguns as often as I did.

[zooma]

I could well be interested in giving it a whirl with an old HW45 that I’ve recently purchased

I’m very rusty though so my aim will be for the wooden spoon

We had an entry who shot an HW45 using a single stroke only for each shot to give the right sort of power for paper punching at 6 yards (and 10 metres too!).

The MPL is a great excuse to "exercise" any classic airgun that may not get shot so often without some targets to shoot with it every month !

[bootneckbob]

Yes - an HW 45 (shot one handed) would qualify as an MPL legal air pistol.

Do you fancy giving it a go?

Could do. My 10m comp has just kicked off with the first round due this week. Don't really want to water down my 10m time with another discipline but I do need a reason to have the 45; can't be just because!

[riflerob]

HW45 in 22 flavour here, I'd be very interested in giving this a go - and have the requisite space (all indoors !) in a barn.

[zooma]

Could do. My 10m comp has just kicked off with the first round due this week. Don't really want to water down my 10m time with another discipline but I do need a reason to have the 45; can't be just because!

Go for it Rob - get your entry in and enjoy giving your '45 some exercise!

[zooma]

HW45 in 22 flavour here, I'd be very interested in giving this a go - and have the requisite space (all indoors !) in a barn.

I think PaulSE would be happy to join you in a .22 competition with his Model 5?

The .22 entries could be scored separately to the .177 entries - so it would be possible...

If you fancy giving it a go - get your entry in and I will add you to the competitions list (along with PaulSE and his .22!).

Bob.

[riflerob]

I think PaulSE would be happy to join you in a .22 competition with his Model 5?

The .22 entries could be scored separately to the .177 entries - so it would be possible...

If you fancy giving it a go - get your entry in and I will add you to the competitions list (along with PaulSE and his .22!).

Bob.

I'm going to be really dumb here and ask exactly how I 'get my entry in' ?