What is your biggest airgun related disaster ?

[eyebull]

I seized a tap on an Airsporter or something like this as well. Airgun World was to blame, they used to go on about silicone oil & grease and apart from lubing Airsoft or maybe a bit in the molybdenumised SM50 for leather washers, it shouldn't go near any kind of gun. I think it was the idea that silicone oil did not diesel. Well the Airsporter didnt diesel with the grease seizing its tap as I couldn't fire the bloody thing til all the silicone had been flushed out with WD40 god bless it paraffin ina can.

They don't have much place in airsoft either! It's quite something to watch, wide-eyed, as people liberally douse the innards of blowback pistols with silicon spray and then remark upon how they don't seem to last that long...I've had much better results with moly, and occasionally lithium. GT85 at a push.
There's enough metal-on-metal contact to contraindicate silicon even in those plasticky things.

[Dutch]

They don't have much place in airsoft either! It's quite something to watch, wide-eyed, as people liberally douse the innards of blowback pistols with silicon spray and then remark upon how they don't seem to last that long...I've had much better results with moly, and occasionally lithium. GT85 at a push.
There's enough metal-on-metal contact to contraindicate silicon even in those plasticky things.

I always assumed the silicon was for the gas seals in airsoft guns, keeping them airtight. The 12oz Co2 canisters even carry a bit of silicon as well alongside the Co2. I use moly for most moving parts, works great. But in the end of the day all my magazines (not using the guns much), in spite of keeping them gassed & silicon lubricated started leaking

[eyebull]

I always assumed the silicon was for the gas seals in airsoft guns, keeping them airtight. The 12oz Co2 canisters even carry a bit of silicon as well alongside the Co2. I use moly for most moving parts, works great. But in the end of the day all my magazines (not using the guns much), in spite of keeping them gassed & silicon lubricated started leaking

Silicon grease applied sparingly to the o-ring seals in the mags etc perhaps, but people get that silicon spray and just drown the action with it. Then wonder why the gun is eating itself. I use moly and lithium on the mag valves and touch wood have only ever had an issue when mags have been left ungassed.
I tend to reserve silicon grease for applications where there is no chance at all of it migrating to metal on metal bearing surfaces.

[sparko]

I sold my Improved model D S/N 25115 to a certain member, in order to fund a BSA lightning XL … This must have been 15 years ago … I haven’t slept properly since!

[Robert j]

As a child I bought my first push-barrel cocking air pistol HS 9A from a friend and my mother caught me, took it and found it under the mattress of her bed a year later.

[laverdabru]

Glad to see I am not alone in suffering a silicone related FUBR.

In my teenage years, a few incidents... aiming my Hawk at the TV, only for it to fire - fortunately not loaded.
Ratting in a barn, missed & damaged a new tractor battery sitting on a shelf.
Hitting a window frame when trying to shoot a crow.

Bru

[Mark D]

Around 15 years ago I swapped a break barrel Whiscombe JW50 for a Theoben Imperator FT SLR88 .177 and topped it up with £100, yes a temporary moment of madness... As soon as I got back in my car I realised that it wasn't right, so called the guy I swapped with and offered him another £100 for a swap back to how things were, so he would have made £200 for nothing. When I called he told me to get lost and told me to never call him again. Moral of the story, I have sold very little since

Had to laugh at this, sorry. I can feel your pain, even in the telling of the story now. To be fair the Imperator FT is a rare rifle, Whiscombes never floated my boat.

[eyebull]

I sold my Improved model D S/N 25115 to a certain member, in order to fund a BSA lightning XL … This must have been 15 years ago … I haven’t slept properly since!

Just buying a Lightning alone has kept me up at nights, never mind chopping in an Improved mod. D for it

[WebleyWombler]

In my younger , experimental days, I made an injection system to inject a small dose of ether based model aircraft fuel at every cocking stroke of a Relum Tornado. After a few shots which seperated the pellet and sent it out in 2 parts. I then tried 5.5mm steel ball bearings out of a French push bike hub.
A couple of shots with those and the cylinder burst just behind the tap and knackered the gun. The barrel later got sawn off for another project but was found to be smooth bored and useless so it was sawn up and used to make spacers for a motorcycle I was rebuilding. The rest of the gun just languished in my shed until thrown away about 30 years ago when I moved house.

I avoid any oils that may diesel and have done since then.

[steviebee]

I was given a original 50 back in the late 70s, and swopped it for a crossman 766, hhmm all that plastic and slick looks, hhmmm the fog of youth.
Thing is! If I knew then what I knew now? I would have kept it due to the consecutive serial numbers that ran 012345.

[WILBA]

I always assumed the silicon was for the gas seals in airsoft guns, keeping them airtight. The 12oz Co2 canisters even carry a bit of silicon as well alongside the Co2. I use moly for most moving parts, works great. But in the end of the day all my magazines (not using the guns much), in spite of keeping them gassed & silicon lubricated started leaking

I use sm50 but only on pivot points. It should never go anywhere near a piston or you are asking for trouble. Although wd40 did work in getting the stuck bufffer washer out of my bsa buccaneer.

[WILBA]

Had to laugh at this, sorry. I can feel your pain, even in the telling of the story now. To be fair the Imperator FT is a rare rifle, Whiscombes never floated my boat.

But that whizzer is now worth 4-5k. The slr about £100-£1200 now thats painful and eye watering difference

[nurek]

Had to laugh at this, sorry. I can feel your pain, even in the telling of the story now. To be fair the Imperator FT is a rare rifle, Whiscombes never floated my boat.

Well, I have had 3 Imperator FTs at one point as used to shoot HFT with one and wanted the others as 'spare' just in case.

They shot well, when maintained and as I worked in Cambridge I used to drop them off at Ben Taylor's shop.

I sold all 3 Imperators but have kept a Whiscombe as it's simply a superior gun and probably the best spring gun ever made...

[I. J.]

In my younger , experimental days, I made an injection system to inject a small dose of ether based model aircraft fuel at every cocking stroke of a Relum Tornado. After a few shots which seperated the pellet and sent it out in 2 parts. I then tried 5.5mm steel ball bearings out of a French push bike hub.
A couple of shots with those and the cylinder burst just behind the tap and knackered the gun. The barrel later got sawn off for another project but was found to be smooth bored and useless so it was sawn up and used to make spacers for a motorcycle I was rebuilding. The rest of the gun just languished in my shed until thrown away about 30 years ago when I moved house.

Now that's how to treat a Hungarian Swamp Donkey.

In my teenage years I was shooting at a tyre (yes, they had invented rubber tyres by then ) with my Airsporter and was amused to hear the pellets flying back over my head - until one hit me on the forehead.

[MDriskill]

I had the action of an HW 45 pistol fully open for loading (as the instructions recommend), but somehow the sear did not fully engage. A few seconds later it snapped shut on the three fingertips carelessly wrapped around the receiver side, making a right smashed mess of all three and breaking one bone.

My VERY pregnant wife drove me to the hospital - the staff flocking to her until she disgustedly pointed to her idiot companion. Less than 12 hours later, I drove HER to the hospital to greet our new son.

No other issues with that pistol in 30+ years...but yeah, load 'em BEFORE cocking.