Hi Danny,
It's nice to know that it's your old rifle, rest assured it's in good hands and will be well appreciated.
It still has the tiny Biro mark on it
I just checked the serial number 789888 (on underside of barrel) on weihrauch-database.eu/dywp# and it comes up as 1980.
I checked the dates on all three HW55's on sale in the auction before I went and got the date mixed up with another one on sale with sn. 636794 which is 1976-1977
(I didn't like that one as it had a very heavy bull barrel which I found uncomfortable to hold in standing position.)
I don't know how reliable Weihrauch's online database is though.
Needless to say it's a lovely rifle that'll see some use at our Vintage/classic comps.
Many thanks,
Matt.