GTA
Airguns by Make and Model => Weihrauch Airguns => Topic started by: JohnWI on January 31, 2015, 10:49:31 AM
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I have a 35 (nice!) and a 55 but I know the ravings regarding the older HW50.
Thoughts?
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Well if you have a 35 and a 55, the 50 is pretty easy to extrapolate!
The receiver, barrel, threaded rear secction, and trigger are exactly the same as the 55, except of course for the simpler detailing of the auto breech detent (in lieu of the 55's famous locking lever).
The stock mounting screw locations and receiver tube length are the same on all three guns (though the 35's tube is larger in diameter), which facilitated sharing stock designs. HW offered some deluxe stocks for the 50 which were actually derived from HW 35 designs.
So, think of the HW 50 as either a lighter, slightly powered-down 35, with the same near-perfect balance...or as a stripped, harder-shooting "speedster" variant of the HW 55. What's not to like either way? ;D
FWIW, I owned an R8 briefly--nice-looking gun, but the extra weight and bulk of the fancy butt rather messed up the balance for my tastes. The homely OEM HW 50S stock fits me like a custom gun, just nearly perfect.
Possibly only apocryphal, but I've read that the original Mr. Weihrauch, founder of the firm before The War, regarded the HW 50 as their finest product. He was known to sneak out of the office and go hunting with his pet example!
Here is an early-70's vintage HW 50S action in a deluxe dark-stained beech stock, next to the walnut "HW 35L" of the day. The old Air Rifle Headquarters in WVA sold this combo as the "HW 50E" for a few years (a name they made up).
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v734/kyofu2/hw50e/DSC00900.jpg)
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If you shoot long guns left handed the R8 has a palm swell that won't help your cause.
I really like my HW35E. I am still on the fence about my rather new to me R8.
Just my $.02,
Mark N