Theoben Gas Ram system HW 90

[amer4545]

Hello Folks,
Wanted some expert analysis on the Theoben Gas Ram System on my newly purchased HW 90. Wanted to find out the following?
1. The gun cocks really hard, twice harder than the Dianas....is that normal?
2. I have to tighten the screws every say 50 shots, feel the wooden stock is taking up a lot a weight while i cock? Will the stock hold for long?
3. I paid Rs.38,000 for a used HW 90, used condition with few scratches? Is that a good buy?
4. Is this a serious top of the league gun in terms of power, accuracy?
5. What would be a effective range(mts) for pest control?
Thanks
Amer

[amer4545]

I have had the oppurtunity of testing my HW 90 with Diana 52 and Diana 350 Magnum. Shot all the three guns with the same pellet, Gamo Pro Magnum 15 gr at a distance of 5 meters.
The result was impressive for all the 3 guns. The Mod 52 penetrated more pages, almost 70 more than HW 90 and 40 more than the 350 Magnum. So in terms of penetration, Mod 52 came first.
But in terms of the pounding that the HW90 and 350 Magnum gave is a completly different story. The Mod 52 simply passed thru the pages making a small hole, but the HW and 350 created cratures around the holes. That show how impactful these two guns were.

The good thing about the HW 90 is, the power can be adjusted by pumping air into the theoben gas ram. On the negative side, cocking the gun is tough, and for this reason, i have to come the crown to the 350 Magnum which has loads of power and V.easy to cock.

Will post additional info here after i put these guns thru a chrono.

[striker]

Congrats for you hw. Gas ram are really nice powerplant when compared to normal springers.but the down side the cocking effert id same from the start to end and vibration,recoil is low. I personally like hw series of guns than diana airguns .350 mag sells as they carry the name as magnum nothing great .is yours 177 or .22 cal if its later calibre worth the price you paid .
Sankar

[hamiclar01]

may i re-iterate that mere power in an airgun is a pointless test of comparision. there is no point in counting the pages of newsprint that got holed if you cannot shoot your gun consistently and accuratly at a distance. this is where smoothness of operation, recoil, trigger crispness come into play.

also, different airgun barrels react differently to different pellets. using the same pellet to compare different airguns is unwise. before you compare, find out the pellet best suited for each gun. then, shoot each at a distance of at least 10 m (more if you have the space) using the same grip and stance, and compare the group sizes and muzzle velocity using a chronograph. this will be a far more definitive comparision than holing a telephone directory.

if you do it the above way, you might see why striker (and lots of us) prefer Hws more than Dianas

[amer4545]

Hello Sankar and Hami,

Yes, my HW 90 is a .22 Cal and came thru UK...so its probably at 12ft/lb. I do understand that my test is not fully scientific, yet it is a start....and fully agree that putting the same pellet type thru 3 different bores may yeild different results.
In the process of finding a chronograph, any ideas where i can get one in India?

I do agree HW's rule...which ones are you both using...need to get a ruling on the HW 97k and HW 80.
Amer

[hamiclar01]

in 0.22, the hw80 is unbeatable.

for 0.177, i would prefer the 97k

the simple reason being the hw80 was designed as a .22 hunting airgun.

[amer4545]

I am looking for breach and piston seals, any idea where i can find them and for how much.

[amer4545]

I have found this guy named Lloyd who is also a member of IFG who has all accessories including the Dampa Mount. He owns/runs and gun shop in London.

[amer4545]

One peice of advise for HW 90 owners, dont put a huge scope on the gun regardless of which mounts you have on them. Its too much weight on the gun and the recoil makes it worse....more inertia kicking back, all anchored on the rail and the stopper holes. Holes tend to get widened.

[amer4545]

A little update on power factor of HW 90. I was shooting my gun with a cocking effort of about 42 lbs. The breach seal and piston seal were slightly torn and i could not get super grouping. For the same reason, i was experiencing a power loss of about atleast 150 fps. Ordered new piston, breach, o-ring seals and will do my HW 90 - as good as new and then compare different air guns to test power and accuracy.

will post again
Amer