Satisfaction from getting an old rifle working again.

[BEESA]

It does have a feel good factor about it . I built a nice HW77k .22 out of bit I had aquired over the years . Shoots lovely . Decided to keep it with open sights . Very satisfying indeed .
Don

[duomatic410]

Well not HW, (but i have one) picked up a sorry Original 52 with more rust than the titanic, even the weaver steel scope blended in.

Cocked but couldn't move a pellet out so strip polish fitted a TX200 spring with its plastic guide that dropped strait in with very little preload and a lovely shooting tool it is.

Quirky loading but quite easy with long cocking lever, bedding in but may have to reduce a coil as right on 12.
Did clean up nice, surface rust and no pitting.
Accurate? You bet and a nice soft lazy recoil with it.👍

[Shed tuner]

Completely agree. So much so, I don't buy working rifles any more

[Blackrider]

Good job Paul, a great outcome !
J.

[Phil Russell]

It is always a superb feeling when you pull the trigger on a 'mended' old gun (rifle or pistol) and the 'machine' fires with a sound you just know is right. After a few shots the next step will be a chrono test to see if it is performing as it was designed to and you then get another wham when you see it is doing OK and is on spec. Over the years I have done several such rifles, with many coming from the 20's and 30's. Think of early BSA, Diana or Haenels. The pre-war Diana 27 and its clones is a favourite of mine. Post war we come into the 50s, 60s and 70s. Again these can generate such satisfaction. Some, no matter what age, can be a real challenge to get going and you have to be realistic about expenditure as original parts can be so expensive. So I am never averse to taking a few liberties as long as the end result is aesthetically as close as possible to original. Examples of such liberties can include re-tapping screw threads and substituting a different threaded screw ... especially useful where the original screw has been replaced by a self-tapper or even a hex head bolt forced in. With some care a non original screw head can be made to be very close to the original by judicious filing followed by heat/oil blueing. Worn or non-existent leather piston or breech seals can be made, barrels can be straightened, rusty exteriors can often be restored to a fair finish by the wire wool and oil treatment. In severe cases a cold blue can be tried but while a satisfactory finish can be achieved most times it is rarely perfect. And cold blue can give different results on different parts of the gun such that a barrel may end up somewhat different to a breech block ... very common on some older rifles. But I am wittering away........
In summary I love the process and have spent many hours toiling away in the workshop on a project.
Pet gripe: rifles where someone has removed the open sights. (I am still looking for a set of sights to fit the riser blocks on a Supersport Custom).

Cheers, Phil