How to buy a second hand air gun

[hotshot]

I am very new to air gunning and want to buy a Diana RWS 54. Since its quite difficult and complicated to import it myself i will have to look for a second hand one locally. But i know nothing about what to look for and things to check and i feel i will get cheated. Considering that i will be paying in excess of 45 K i really want my purchase to be a good one. Could the experienced hands guide us on what to look for and how to go about buying any second hand airgun so that we do not get cheated.

[hotshot]

as a beginner i would like to go in for a 0.22 air rifle which is strong & sturdy and will give me no problems for atleast 5 -7 years. So in terms of spring life, and other factors which would be better a sidelever or a break barrel ? I have shorlisted 3 modes from Diana. Magnum 350, 54 & 52. I see from a few internet sites that the spring in the 54 has a very short life as it is a recoiless system. Any truth in that?

[TenX]

I am sorry I cant help you directly on the Diana stuff, since I dont have one.
But an under lever, as well as a side lever has its own advantages. What you should be looking at is which air gun is good, proven and as sturdy as you want. Some guns are good for some things. Some meant to last, some meant to perform, some meant for both.
Once you have a list, prioritize them and keep your browser open for any availability. Also check local stores and let them know what you want.
Its not like a bunch of gun owners have maintained a range of guns which are always available for sale. You may have to wait, and sometimes you may be lucky.
All the best in your search
P.S. You will find vast resources on this forum itself, discussing various air guns. Go thru it, while you wait for your dream-baby

[browning]

hotshot,
As you say, you are very new to guns. Why don't you consider starting with something smaller and cheaper like an IHP which is easily available and good for beginners. Get your basics in order first and the IHP's will be more than sufficient.

If you still want a something like a Diana....
why don't you consider importing one, its not such a big hassle as it is said to be, once you have your club membership. When importing, you have the advantage of a large variety.

The Weihrauch guns are said to be very good. I have a Diana 460 Mag.(not for sale) which i feel is very nice. Other members can share their experiances with their guns.

Regards.

[mundaire]

Browning did you finally get around to getting your .177 cal pellets from NRAI? We picked up 10 tins ourselves (3 for Yash, 2 for Olly, 3 for MadMax, and 1 each for Dev & Sid)...

Edit: Just realised they won't be of use for a Diana 460 mag as they are very light match pellets...

Cheers!
Abhijeet

[browning]

NO

I called them they said we can buy only 1 tin p.m. So i thought it would be quite useless to go only for 1 tin.

But seeing that you guys bought 10 tins im going to pretty soon.

BTW did they have any ammo (12ga.) ?

Regards.

[mundaire]

They have a store full of imported ammo - but for sale to clubs/ associations/ "up coming"/ renown shooters only - no contacts = no imported ammo

They also have IOF 12 ga ammo, but only No. 1 bird shot.

BTW - I forgot to mention we had two membership cards between us (Olly & me) so I guess it would be safe to assume that they should at least be OK with issuing 5 tins per card... try and cajole them a bit and maybe they'll sell you more. It's entirely up to them really.

Also see the edit to my previous post...

Cheers!
Abhijeet

[browning]

That was another reason for the laziness. I was looking for something like the Barakudas.

Are you sure they have imported ammo? If yes, then will try and work on it.

Regards.

[mundaire]

Are you sure they have imported ammo? If yes, then will try and work on it.

They have a store FULL of shotty ammo - the crates I saw were branded Victory Compaq... this is the same ammo being issued by various shooting clubs these days. No's would obviously be 7's & 9's loaded to 24 gram target loads... Hope you manage to get some issued for your use, all the best

Cheers!
Abhijeet

[TenX]

Yes they have a whole load of ammo
Matter of fact, the .177 imported pellets they are issuing now are the 4.49's which are well suited for new air guns...
Of course, standard issue of .22s are SK Club tins
The NRAI rate for the shot gun rounds are of very good quality for the price they give it at

[Mack The Knife]

Matter of fact, the .177 imported pellets they are issuing now are the 4.49's which are well suited for new air guns...

Not necessarily, Anand. Two new and similar air-rifles with consecutive serial numbers, needn't necessarily shoot the same with 4.49mm pellets. Infact there is no guarantee that they will even shoot to their full accuracy potential with 4.49mm pellets.

Of course, standard issue of .22s are SK Club tins

SKs sold in cans are called SK Magazine.

The NRAI rate for the shot gun rounds are of very good quality for the price they give it at

The renowned shots let me shoot their RC4s for Rs.15.00 per round. How much does NRAI sell their Victory Compaq rounds for? Bear in mind that the RC4 is an Olympic quality round whilst Compaqs are just average to decent rounds.

[TenX]

Matter of fact, the .177 imported pellets they are issuing now are the 4.49's which are well suited for new air guns...

Not necessarily, Anand. Two new and similar air-rifles with consecutive serial numbers, needn't necessarily shoot the same with 4.49mm pellets. Infact there is no guarantee that they will even shoot to their full accuracy potential with 4.49mm pellets.

Maybe... matter of fact, YES in most cases. But for those who have a new air gun and wanted to check if their shooting is better with a 4.49 (considering only 4.50 was available earlier, mostly), they have a chance now.

Of course, standard issue of .22s are SK Club tins

SKs sold in cans are called SK Magazine.

Right there I did not get the word when I wanted to

The renowned shots let me shoot their RC4s for Rs.15.00 per round. How much does NRAI sell their Victory Compaq rounds for? ...

Its just below Rs 18.00 ...

[Mack The Knife]

Its just below Rs 18.00 ...

That's hardly "very good quality for the price", Anand. If that is indeed the price, there's something fishy going on there. However, let's not hi-jack this thread.

[mundaire]

That's hardly "very good quality for the price", Anand. If that is indeed the price, there's something fishy going on there. However, let's not hi-jack this thread.

The same ammo was being resold by DSRA to members at the shooting range for INR 25-26 or so...

[Mack The Knife]

That is also the case at KSRA and I am not begrudging them this mark-up because they do have known and unknown expenses to meet. The same applies to NRAI but I have a feeling that their mark-up is on the higher side.