Airgun World and Terry Doe?

[ashf9999]

Well every gun he was sent to test had probably been checked & double checked to ensure it was perfect, so they probably were brilliant...

Exactly - if he was sent a duffer then you could guarantee people would have heard about it, and it wouldn’t have been a sensible move from the manufacturer.

[Phil Russell]

I still get the mag on subscription and thoroughly enjoy it ... perfect read with coffee and biscuits.
I see nothing wrong with adverts, it's the volume of magazine text (excluding non important picture space) that is important.
Mind you, if it becomes a hunting only mag (heaven forbid!) my key enjoyment will go down. I hope the mag continues.
Cheers, Phil

[Bob Brown]

Due to illness and loss of motivation, i have recently had a few years hiatus and didnt follow anything.
The first thing that struck me was the amount of different manufacturers,that have recently come out of nowhere in the uk.
The numerous different pcp models that were available,and the amount of different models by the same manufacturers,ie Hatsan for example. Also the amount of models being offered for high end money,2-3k upwards offered by new companies.
Plus what also hit me in the face straightaway was how much more expensive everything was,the same as everything these days,but still....
Then there potentially could be lots wrote about each new model,after the usual test periods of course.
We dont have to hear about hunting stories,there is enough material to write about.
There should also be sections where it shows commonplace problems are being solved or better improved.
Reviews of all the new silencer/moderator examples that have come out,which imo are recently massively overpriced.
For years there hasnt been any mods that have bettered weihrauch long standing offerings,and many are 3 time the price.
There is therefore lots to talk about,plus they should bring back all the adverts,it generates money for the magazine and it is a well known fact that we all read them.
There shouldnt be any excuses,with all the newcomers we have recently seen at our ranges the market is certainly still there.
You shouldnt have to search around online,it should be all there in a monthly issue.

[capt hindsight]

3rd party airgun shooting insurance with a free airgun magazine, what's not to like?

[Phil Russell]

3rd party airgun shooting insurance with a free airgun magazine, what's not to like?

Yes .. a good deal but it does not apply to all. I get my magazine on subscription, as I have for many years. I expected to get a note from AGW (FieldSports Press?) telling me about the insurance offer but did not receive one. I contacted AGW to ask if I was entitled to the insurance offer. I was told that the subscription offer I was on did not include the insurance and if I wanted the insurance I would have to start a new subscription. When comparing the costs of the options open to me I declined the offer and decided to stay as I was. I think it is a pity that the vagaries of the insurance offer are not made clear in the advert. But never mind ....

Cheers, Phil

[ashf9999]

Yes .. a good deal but it does not apply to all. I get my magazine on subscription, as I have for many years. I expected to get a note from AGW (FieldSports Press?) telling me about the insurance offer but did not receive one. I contacted AGW to ask if I was entitled to the insurance offer. I was told that the subscription offer I was on did not include the insurance and if I wanted the insurance I would have to start a new subscription. When comparing the costs of the options open to me I declined the offer and decided to stay as I was. I think it is a pity that the vagaries of the insurance offer are not made clear in the advert. But never mind ....

Cheers, Phil

Not sure how it worked then. I ordered a print subscription before they offered the insurance, then mid way along the subscription (after about 4 issues) got an email from them with a welcome to the insurance (I thought initially it was a scam or incorrectly sent email and ignored it), then got the letter/insurance pack through the post a couple of weeks later. I am covered by BASC and CA anyway, but if I wasn’t then it may be useful.

[Phil Russell]

Not sure how it worked then. I ordered a print subscription before they offered the insurance, then mid way along the subscription (after about 4 issues) got an email from them with a welcome to the insurance (I thought initially it was a scam or incorrectly sent email and ignored it), then got the letter/insurance pack through the post a couple of weeks later. I am covered by BASC and CA anyway, but if I wasn’t then it may be useful.

OK ... I suspect that it depends on which subscription deal you are on. But if anyone has not had the insurance offer ... give them a call or an email to check if you are entitled.

Cheers, Phil

[Brad3]

OK ... I suspect that it depends on which subscription deal you are on. But if anyone has not had the insurance offer ... give them a call or an email to check if you are entitled.

Cheers, Phil

Terry aside who seems like a good sort, the Mag on the other hand seemed to turn soulless. Never could quite put my finger on why I stopped buying 10 yrs back but my best guess is down to how it all started. Incredibly exciting and new and all of us knowing little about the guns and how they compared. Also the incredibly rise of the new models. Not to mention the colourful fibs (harmless fun) added to the hunting articles. It was fun.
All gone with the wind along with the colourful writers but I remain forever grateful for what it once gave me.

[dair]

Terry aside who seems like a good sort, the Mag on the other hand seemed to turn soulless. Never could quite put my finger on why I stopped buying 10 yrs back but my best guess is down to how it all started. Incredibly exciting and new and all of us knowing little about the guns and how they compared. Also the incredibly rise of the new models. Not to mention the colourful fibs (harmless fun) added to the hunting articles. It was fun.
All gone with the wind along with the colourful writers but I remain forever grateful for what it once gave me.

It's really a shame if the magazines are on the way out. Online articles just aren't the same as a real magazine in your hands. Maybe it's because I'm old but I would miss thumbing through the pages and smelling the fresh ink. It's just a completely different experience even though the info is the same.

[TonyL]

It's really a shame if the magazines are on the way out. Online articles just aren't the same as a real magazine in your hands. Maybe it's because I'm old but I would miss thumbing through the pages and smelling the fresh ink. It's just a completely different experience even though the info is the same.

Fully agree. And it's a shame that this long-standing publication has (in my eyes) been going downhill ever since the latest owners took over. As said previously, there are still one or two writers on board whose articles I do enjoy, but there does seem to be more and more articles on hunting than ever before.

[where's it gone]

No disrespect to anyone but, no one has mentioned the changes of editor. I've always thought the magazines are in the way what the man in charge wants. I personally enjoyed Airgun World when Adam Smith was at the helm. I appreciate that even the editor has someone above him.

[Gary C]

The magazines used to pay a reasonable amount per page. I wrote for them for 8 years and it never changed, so it became "cheap" . Then there were less and less paid contributors, notice a lot of reviewers you never saw their faces?
Finally they dropped the rates to ridiculous and some of the best writers just walked away.

Seeing your name in a mag is great until the novelty wears off then it becomes work unless you still enjoy it. When you are mugged off that enjoyment goes and you just feel crap about it. Hence a lot of good writers chucked it in.

No hard feelings from me, I wrote for TD and he was an absolute diamond as an editor and a top bloke outside the mags

[Brad3]

The magazines used to pay a reasonable amount per page. I wrote for them for 8 years and it never changed, so it became "cheap" . Then there were less and less paid contributors, notice a lot of reviewers you never saw their faces?
Finally they dropped the rates to ridiculous and some of the best writers just walked away.

Seeing your name in a mag is great until the novelty wears off then it becomes work unless you still enjoy it. When you are mugged off that enjoyment goes and you just feel crap about it. Hence a lot of good writers chucked it in.

No hard feelings from me, I wrote for TD and he was an absolute diamond as an editor and a top bloke outside the mags

For me at least, and we all have our own reasons, The Mags of the late 70s to mid 80s were actually stories.
Some tall ones, but it bought its own magic. In the same way you might read a book about yarns in the wild.
The writers seemed to have a flamboyance about them and made it exciting.
The articles now are certainly more accurate, but incredibly dull for that.
I think the likes of Lynton and co were talented story tellers but a time gone..
Doubt anyone will agree but regardless it's probably finished.

[TonyL]

The magazines used to pay a reasonable amount per page. I wrote for them for 8 years and it never changed, so it became "cheap" . Then there were less and less paid contributors, notice a lot of reviewers you never saw their faces?
Finally they dropped the rates to ridiculous and some of the best writers just walked away.

Seeing your name in a mag is great until the novelty wears off then it becomes work unless you still enjoy it. When you are mugged off that enjoyment goes and you just feel crap about it. Hence a lot of good writers chucked it in.

No hard feelings from me, I wrote for TD and he was an absolute diamond as an editor and a top bloke outside the mags

Yep. And thank you for the input.

[TonyL]

For me at least, and we all have our own reasons, The Mags of the late 70s to mid 80s were actually stories.
Some tall ones, but it bought its own magic. In the same way you might read a book about yarns in the wild.
The writers seemed to have a flamboyance about them and made it exciting.
The articles now are certainly more accurate, but incredibly dull for that.
I think the likes of Lynton and co were talented story tellers but a time gone..
Doubt anyone will agree but regardless it's probably finished.

Agreed; and some very good points there. The timing obviously helped - having our very own publication dedicated to our favourite toys was immense. We were also younger and much more impressionable and (at 13 years old when AGW was first launched), I was like a big, grateful sponge and wanting to soak up all this new and wondrous knowledge. It was to be many, many years until the advent of the Internet too, so AGW, other shooting publications, later airgun magazines and word of mouth / shops were our source of information and learning.