GTA
Airguns by Make and Model => Vintage Air Gun Gate => Topic started by: Raizer on June 07, 2012, 11:30:30 PM
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I've already got a thread about buying my Meteor in the airgun gate, but thought since I'm doing a rebuild on it I would start a thread in here for updates etc
I went into the local hunting shop today just to have a browse and found that they are closing down on Friday, so the few things they had left in stock had to go!
So anyway I go to see what they had left in the way of air guns hoping to pick up a cheap Raven or Stoeger X20 or something.
The only air gun left in the shop was one they were selling on behalf of a deceased estate (all the guns left in the shop were from the same estate), anyway long story short I got a fairly tidy BSA Meteor for $100($75US)! One I was watching on a local auction site a few weeks back was in worse condition and went for way over that!!
(http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7211/7158895763_f32cd5cc5d_b.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/t1ojm3z3.cza.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/vep4ehyj.xyt.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/rldb5eet.4cd.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/dlleze2w.00s.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/lq4k4cin.hfy.jpg)
Obliviously its a bit of a fixer upper, but there's no deep dings or anything in the stock and I was looking for a project :D
Have shot a couple of pellets through it to test it out, its pretty light to cock and the trigger is heavy as heck, but it fires nicely if you ignore the mass of TWANG from the bone dry spring lol!
Oops I forgot to mention its a .177, serial starts with NG, which I thought was mk4 just not 100% sure lol
Stripped it down just before, spring etc looks ok, will need new seals though.
Can I use a normal Oring for the main seal or is it a specific rubber?
Going to start polishing bits and getting it ready for a paint tomorrow, thinking of using hammerite on it.
Finally found the trigger adjustment screw too, not seeing how it would effect pull weight, looks like its just for travel.
Wishing I had had the $ to get the Hawk scope there selling for less than 1/2 price to go with it!
Lol even with the massive twang I can't get over how much quieter this thing is than my Hatsan!!
Made an adapter for my spring compressor and stripped it down today, has been apart in the somewhat recent past as the piston buffer and seal are like new (noticed the breech seal is mint yesterday).
Problem is whoever did the work last time used the wrong lube I think, the seal and piston were covered in a thick gunky layer of hard dried lube, at least it looks like they used some form of moly though lol
It took a bit of effort to get the piston out too, was gunked in pretty strongly
Going to sleeve the spring guide and piston the same way as I did my Hatsan and lube it up properly after polishing every thing.
(http://img853.imageshack.us/img853/8202/img60591024.jpg)
(http://img805.imageshack.us/img805/7998/img6056850tq.jpg)
The same lube has been used on the trigger and it feels really gritty, would I be right with the polishing points?
Would this thread be better moved to the vintage gate? Or should I start a thread in there on the tidy up?
Edit: After another inspection while cleaning and starting to polish parts I found that the end of the piston is really tight in the receiver!
Am going to skim a tiny bit off it tomorrow to gain some clearance.
After removing and cleaning the seals I have found that they are still pretty much new so will reuse them.
Today I checked that the receiver wasn't oval or squashed at all, its not, so then I checked the piston and found that id did have a bit of a high spot which was dragging in the tube.
Couple of minutes with the grinder and it now fits perfectly.
Stripped all the paint off the receiver and barrel as well as the finish off the stock, about to spray a bit of hd gloss black zinc paint at it after I post this.
The stock I have steamed with an iron which has removed all but one dent from it, so its ready to sand back then stain -I'm going to use tea to stain it, I have seen another Meteor done with it and I think it looks pretty nice.
Polished up the piston and trigger parts last night too.
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/00ipy0zd.ene.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/vu3uvx55.2c4.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/vhie0svt.5ui.jpg)
*Photos are before steaming the stock*
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Great find, I'm really looking forward to seeing how it turns out. My dad showed up with A BSA rifle and a BSA Meteor pistol back when we were kids. I've since found the pistol( missing the cocking aid and rear sight), and my brother says he still has the rifle--not sure if it's a meteor. I think this was back in about 1980 or thereabouts. I would like to do a rebuild on those some day. Good luck with it and thanks for posting.
Scotty
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Sanded:
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/n11jyr5b.gx3.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/f0hqollm.hqc.jpg)
Rubbed down with Dilmah:
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/xvbipt3s.uyt.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/tgbbjuss.51a.jpg)
The tea showed up all sorts of little spots that still need a bit more sanding, I'm just going to chalk it up as a learning experience and try again over the weekend, but this time I will really take my time and make sure I get it right!
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This evenings progress :D
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/wxwpvblr.u44.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/ucx4c1qa.ybt.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/vz4wrr1p.5eg.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/b4f5ek3x.cqb.jpg)
The paint looks a lot better in person, the flash seems to play havoc with it.
I ended up with a run in the paint on the barrel :( , so I'm going to try and sand it out tomorrow, hoping that works out and I don't have to restrip it and start again!
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Here's take 2 of the stock:
Sanded back down, got all the imperfections I could out of it, then restained with tea + I added a small amount of dark coffee to deepen the colour a bit.
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/5lv50zo4.13q.jpg)
Stained
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/1tq4bcgn.ouo.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/hlnv2wiw.m55.jpg)
Its getting lighter and the patchiness is going as it drys, will give it another wipe over with it tomorrow, then once I can track some down its time for tru oil or maybe a clear coat and a lot of polishing!
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See my refinishing thread on the vintage board above your post.
Also see my 'final report' on my Mk5 rehab on pg.2 of the Meteor board on the British BSA Forum. Tom
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Cool will check them out now Tom!
Wiped my "stain" over the stock 4 or 5 more times before going to bed last night then rubbed it back a bit with a worn out scotch bright pad this morning, its come out looking pretty nice to me!
Just need to track down some tru oil or similar!! The only way I have found it locally is in a $100 kit with a stain and other stuff I don't need :-\
Might try a furniture restorer tomorrow to see if I can find another option.
Also got the barrel back on it today, couldn't help myself so I ended up firing half a dozen pellets with no stock on it LOL!
A bit ungainly but its so smooth and quiet now!
The paint I used on it is turning out to be pretty crud though :(
So once I can track some PJ1 motorbike engine enamel down I will strip the gun again and repaint, its meant to be super hard wearing and a close match to the stock enamel BSA used.
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/l3tpu1yw.xd2.jpg)
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Pj1 is good stuff..been around forever.
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They don't seem to make PJ1 paint anymore, but I have found it listed as in stock on a NZ bike parts store, so just waiting for an email back to see if it really is or not.
Otherwise I have found a brake caliper paint that says it has a high ceramic content that could be worth trying.
Oh and sorry for the photoless update, but I just put my first coat of danish oil on the stock and I have to say I am impressed!!
Couldnt find it for less than $25 for 250ml in shops, but a local furniture restorer sold me over 500ml for $15 :D
He has used it on a gun in the past and highly recommended it.
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I love the danish oil look, a friend did it on an old table he re-juvenated, it looks fantastic.
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i like it , i am also a finsih aficianado, tell me about the bsa meteor , and bsa guns iun general, i know absolutely nothing about the bsa , are they good guns accurate well made, reason i ask is i run into them from time to time at gun shows here , what cal do they come in etc
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i like it , i am also a finsih aficianado, tell me about the bsa meteor , and bsa guns iun general, i know absolutely nothing about the bsa , are they good guns accurate well made, reason i ask is i run into them from time to time at gun shows here , what cal do they come in etc
While I'm certain you don't realize it you're asking for someone to write an encyclopedia for you!
Ain't gonna happen! Suffice it to say at this point that Birmingham Small Arms is an icon of British arms and quality. Educate yourself at:
<http://bsaog.co.uk/forum/index.php?PHPSESSID=7463791400dcdab403d7031ee4a91530&action=forum#c8>
Enjoy! Tom
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thank you for that lnk thatys what i was looking for thank you tom
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As Tom says theres just to much to write to give all the info lol
And I don't know too much about them myself yet, I've just always had a thing for old English stuff, cars, tools, furniture and now air guns! :)
Oh and the later BSA springers are rebadged Gamos.
So far I have got 3 coats of Danish oil on the stock, starting to get a bit of luster to it now!
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/z1zdqnde.tpi.jpg)
And paint take 3
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/oepyu4ey.ial.jpg)
Going to bake it in front of the fire tonight to get it really hard
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5 coats of Danish oil later:
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/ffk0zx5v.tyn.jpg)
Am going to try mixing danish oil with some varnish to try and get a little bit of shine to it, I'm not after a super gloss finish, but a little more shine would be nice!
Also after another couple of attempts at painting I finally got a couple of coats of paint that I am happy enough with on the barrel and receiver, its not perfect but its not too bad at all either.
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/j450yh5z.ref.jpg)
Ended up with 2 heavy-ish coats of caliper paint baked in front of the fire for a few nights.
And I figured out why the last few trys went to crud, specks of the paint were drying in the air and making a rough finish to the surface, I sprayed it from what should have been way to close this time and got a smooth gloss finish.
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Sorry for the pic less update, but I mixed some high gloss varnish with some of my danish oil, I've only done one coat so far but WOW!
Its not super glossy but it has enough gloss and a nice depth to it now.
Must say I'm happy with how its coming out!
Just annoyed that I couldn't sand the wear marks out (hence its dark around the grip and the end of the fore stock)
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Here's 5 coats of danish oil, followed by 3 coats of danish oil mixed with varnish (heavy on the varnish) =
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/rr2em2uq.xv1.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/oifg3t0f.xdv.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/nxn3yu1g.201.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/l3fyw1ht.a0u.jpg)
I'm still not 100% happy with it, but its more than good enough for a backyard plinker!
But knowing me it will get stripped down again at some point in the distant future lol
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5 coats of tru-oil over the 8 coats of danish/danish+varnish
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/oofc0zkn.sye.jpg)
And no flash to try and show the gloss
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/qewbg4d1.4vx.jpg)
3 more coats to go!
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Been a while since I updated this!
The Tru-Oil I was applying last time reacted with the danish oil that was under it, so I ended up stripping it back down and starting yet again from bare wood, I used 2 coats of epoxy sealer then 9 of Tru-Oil this time.
Finally got it to a state I'm mostly happy with tonight so I figured I would post a few pics
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/3li34d4v.lqd.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/z02wvwvk.fhg.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/hg1wc2f2.1k1.jpg)
(http://iforce.co.nz/i/jvbmwtaf.get.jpg)
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Wow Raiser ,Thats an awsome job you've done to that old rifle. Did you happen to record the numbers under the action when you had it apart .
John Nibbs, enquiries@airgunspares.com ,will be able and very happy to help you give it a manufacturers date .
Congratulations !!
You have the patience and tenacity of an old engineer .
Now , Yo go shoot that thang !!!
Best regards Supaflee
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Great job on the OL' BSA Meteor Very nice indeed. That was my first real Airrifle I had back in about 1969 I concider mine to be very very tired! Yours looks like a MKIII which was made 1969-1973 I think? makes me want find mine and do a refurbish. Thanks for sharing:)
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Just Chrony' it for the first time, and it kinda surprised me to be honest
With Gamo Pro Match 7.56gr wad cutters (it likes them)
709, 703, 708, 702, 698, 700, 703, 701, 708, 699
HI: 709 LO: 698 AV: 703 ES: 11 SD: 3
Av FPE: 8.3
Since I was for some reason expecting results in the 500 range I'm kinda pleased