Milbro /Diana G80

[T 20]

Hi Phil

My brother has a .177" Airgunaid Diana G80 which was tuned by Eddie Barber, the original Airgunaid advert for these guns said that they gave full UK power.

From the swept volume of the gun it should be possible to get 12ftlbs from them but I am still waiting to get my hands on my brother's G80 to find out what Mr Barber did to them.

I think the Airgunaid tuned G80 was the first time an airgun was offered ready tuned from a supplier ?




All the best Mick

[Hsing-ee]

Hi Phil

My brother has a .177" Airgunaid Diana G80 which was tuned by Eddie Barber, the original Airgunaid advert for these guns said that they gave full UK power.

From the swept volume of the gun it should be possible to get 12ftlbs from them but I am still waiting to get my hands on my brother's G80 to find out what Mr Barber did to them.

I think the Airgunaid tuned G80 was the first time an airgun was offered ready tuned from a supplier ?




All the best Mick

I think the Normay Vixen was the first 'tuned from the supplier' air-rifle, but might be wrong.

I don't think Eddie Barber claimed 12 ft/lbs for the Airgunaid G80 (or '11.9' ft/lbs as they always said). The really 'trick' Airgunaid air-rifle was the Airgunaid SP5 which was the 0.20 version of the tuned G80. I think it did about 10.5 which is more likely with the leather-washer G80 action. Standard G80s were about 7.5 ft/lbs in .177 and 9 ft/lbs in .22, so Mr Barber did a good job on them, but you'd need some very special work to get them up to a true 12 ft/lbs.

I bet your brother's is a 9 or 10 ft/lbs gun.

[T 20]

I think the Normay Vixen was the first 'tuned from the supplier' air-rifle, but might be wrong.

Hi Alistair

I can't argue with you over which one was the first tuned gun as Mrs T 20 has decided to tidy up my Airgun Magazine collection.

From what I can remember I had to buy the G80 for my brother as he wasn't old enough and he didn't have a bank account so that would be in 1979.

I don't think Eddie Barber claimed 12 ft/lbs for the Airgunaid G80 (or '11.9' ft/lbs as they always said). The really 'trick' Airgunaid air-rifle was the Airgunaid SP5 which was the 0.20 version of the tuned G80. I think it did about 10.5 which is more likely with the leather-washer G80 action. Standard G80s were about 7.5 ft/lbs in .177 and 9 ft/lbs in .22, so Mr Barber did a good job on them, but you'd need some very special work to get them up to a true 12 ft/lbs.

I bet your brother's is a 9 or 10 ft/lbs gun.

This is why I'd like to get my hands on my brother's gun and find out what has been done to it.

The G80 had about the same bore and stroke as a HW77 so the potential is there for 12ftlbs as John Bowkett showed with the Meteor.

This afternoon I was playing with a very close relative of the G80 --- a Westlake b2, both are derived from M&G designs.




All the best Mick

[fat man]

I think the Normay Vixen was the first 'tuned from the supplier' air-rifle, but might be wrong.

I don't think Eddie Barber claimed 12 ft/lbs for the Airgunaid G80 (or '11.9' ft/lbs as they always said). The really 'trick' Airgunaid air-rifle was the Airgunaid SP5 which was the 0.20 version of the tuned G80. I think it did about 10.5 which is more likely with the leather-washer G80 action. Standard G80s were about 7.5 ft/lbs in .177 and 9 ft/lbs in .22, so Mr Barber did a good job on them, but you'd need some very special work to get them up to a true 12 ft/lbs.

I bet your brother's is a 9 or 10 ft/lbs gun.

yes smack on the Vixen was the first " tuned gun " out there, love mine to bits. .22 Standard version , stock refinished and fitted with a period Optima scope. My G80 is a series 1 with the deep foreend, doing 8ft/lbs with Accupels. What struck me was how consistent it was over 50 shots, only varied by about 3% better than some pcp,s out there. I only payed £ 15.00 for it back in 2007 from Jeanes Military Memories at Harragate in Yorkshire. It sat in my gun room for over a year due to a serious accident which left my arm heald together with pins and bolts and the hand working at less than 40%.The gun was sort of a therapy as I used it to help build up the strength in arm by cocking and shooting it in a mates garden and cleaning up/ restoring it. Very good gun, yes bassed on M&G patents but then wasnt the Webley Mark 3 and the Falcon, as well. Own both, shoot both, great guns.

[grandad333]

Hi all, just to go back to the piston sleeve. I have inserted a plastic sleeve with a washer to stop spring twang and this has cured it, BUT,
should the spring now be tight in the piston or should it still be allowed to rotate feely? It's certainly shooting okay.
I also added two rubber o'rings either side of the trigger housing to stop the trigger wobble, another cure!
Cheers, Kev

[Phil Russell]

Hi, the spring should be a smooth fit into the sleeve and able to turn, certainly not a firm push fit. The spring outer diameter expands as the spring compresses ... if it is too tight you can generally feel the spring binding as you cock it.... not good. The 'proof of the pudding' though is how well it shoots.
Cheers, Phil

[grandad333]

The spring turned as I inserted her into the piston with the sleeve, not overly tight and seems to cock okay. I will see how it goes for a few days. Thanks for quick reply

[TonyL]

Hi Phil

My brother has a .177" Airgunaid Diana G80 which was tuned by Eddie Barber, the original Airgunaid advert for these guns said that they gave full UK power.

From the swept volume of the gun it should be possible to get 12ftlbs from them but I am still waiting to get my hands on my brother's G80 to find out what Mr Barber did to them.


All the best Mick

Remember them well, Mick.
The .20 calibre version was meant to be really something.
From the age of 13, a friend and I were stripping springers and "tuning" them, ie de-burring, polishing, Dri-Slide etc. many of our tips originated from Eddie Barber's writings. I don't know what he did to these, but they were very nice, apparently.
My friend had one of these ( a standard G80) whilst I had my Mercury. We stripped it, polished etc., and on the re-build, lubed it with dry graphite powder, buffed into all the contact surfaces, and a little LT2 on the spring. It did seem very sweet to shoot. Power wise, haven't got a clue (no chrono back then), but this .177 example would bowl bunnies over at 25 yards all day long.
If I could think of a modern day equivalent, it would be my HW30S. Obviously more solid and more robustly made and with a far superior trigger...Very, very sweet straight out of the box, very mild firing manners, extremely forgiving to shoot and VERY enjoyable. A gun to shoot all day long and it never fails to make you smile. Power maybe 7.5 ish standard. I know Tone's had a bit of a play with The Void's piston on his lad's 30, it'll be interesting to see how that comes out.

I could certainly give a G80 a loving home if one ever came up at cheap money.....

[evert]

My brother has a .177" Airgunaid Diana G80 which was tuned by Eddie Barber, the original Airgunaid advert for these guns said that they gave full UK power.

From the swept volume of the gun it should be possible to get 12ftlbs from them but I am still waiting to get my hands on my brother's G80 to find out what Mr Barber did to them.

An old thread, but my googling of the 70's/80's Milbros got me here..
Did your research on the G80 modifications ever come to any conclusions?

[partner k1250]

wasnt there a g 80 major?