Feinwerkbau Sport pt III

[tjk]

Good evening everyone. I thought  I would give my initial thoughts on this rifles performance thus far.
    When I first heard of this new fwb offering, i was like “cool, bringing back a classic”! When I read the marketing mumbo-jumbo and saw where fwb was able to enhance the velocity somewhat, I thought to myself,....”hmmm, did they install a heavier piston or a thicker wired spring??” .  Sadly they did not,..so to speak. They just built a bigger gun!!! Really Feinwerkbau?? I was looking forward to some new advancements in springer technology. Now just fyi, I was kinda getting out of the hobby for a while when this rifle came out, and the introductory $800 cost wasnt anywhere in my horizon at that time. So I haven’t actually researched or read/seen any reviews of this rifle. I just bought it because the price at champs choice was rather inviting and a deal I couldn’t refuse.
    Now when I first unboxed and unbagged this rifle, i drew it to my shoulder and the very first thought that came to mind was “this rascal feels like an R1”!!!! Knowing that the Sport is manufactured lole just about any factory gun, i knew it would detonate for the first dozen rounds or so, so i just tossed some h&n ftt’s and shot them in the ground. Besides at this time of year it is too dark to shoot after work. Honked/twanged like a goose!! The next weekend I cycled some pellets and immediately performed a slot tune and fork lubrication. Things smoothed out and quieted down some and I was able to access my opinion of the open sights which I mentioned in my earlier post. One thing I would like to praise FWB with is, once the rifle settled down, dieseling has almost vanished,.....no black or amber vapor i. The barrel after a shot,....even with the slot tuned lubes inserted into the action.
    So in an effort to overcome my personal conundrum, I ordered the BKL riser blocks and added a old fwb diopter and the front sight from my 600 ten meter rifle. During that afternoon, i wasnt very successful in getting the sights lined up. It was then that i realized that the front sight was slipping back and my efforts were all for naught. Removed the risers and just shot it with the irons to continue the cycling. Finished  off the day plinking at spinners and plastic bottles.
     Now to anyone that has shot springers for a while, once you’ve been in the game long enough, you can tell when you’ve got the right pellet weight for the power plant just by the way the rifle sounds when fired. Especially with a factory set rifle given a slot lube tune. Too light or loose fitting a pellet, the more spring reaction you will encounter. Pellets too heavy/tight seem to give a “too much of and agressive pop” sound and feel to the cycle. But once you find that intermediate pellet weight where the rifle sounds and moves in a more natural way, you know youve found the correct weight area. Imo, it is harder to tell this difference with a tuned rifle with a kit that stifles all of the natural movement due to tight spring guides, and normally tight unsized piston seals offered. Sooner or later they will break in though
Mine happens to be around the baracuda ft at 9.57 grain area. And over time this may change some. Mind you this is a stock slot tuned rifle.
   In my honest opinion, the new Feinwerkbau Sport is somewhat an over sprung gun. If they wiuld have offered this rifle in .22, it would have been the perfect formula of power and pellet weight. .20 cal (my personal fav ) would be awesome but we wont go there. Had FWB come out with this rifle in .22 and perhaps added a smaller or closer the the original Sporter  sized offering in .177 called the Sportster, i think they would have hit the ball out of the park. Especially with the improved trigger and safety. I doubt many people that shoot both the old and the new sporters would object.
    The performance of the new Sport model is still the classic Feinwerkbau accuracy that they are known for. Anyone that knows about vintage makes and models knows that when you buy a rifle with a know quality barrel, that is pretty much what you are buying. The gun and a tion are pretty much an after thought, and the sport is no different. Even with the uncomfortable open sights (to me) this rifle still held sub two inch groups at 25 yards off handed on paper. Spinners were much easies to shrink the groups at 20 yards at hit with a “whack”. The Sport is no sloutch whatsoever. Upon closer inspection, i was getting multiple strikes on the spinners in a very concentrated way. Two thumbs up for FWB!!! But .20/.22 would be so much sweeter.......anyways, the Sport would be a gun I would consider a long range shooter in .177. And a gun of this make can definitely handle heavy weight pellets with ease and accuracy.
Today, my order from brownells arrived and I immediately installed the Lyman 93 target sight on the BKL riser mount. And let me put it this way. A thermal nuclear blast couldn’t separate this sight from that riser mount. Took a few hammer taps and a table vise to marry them together. I also swapped the fwb diopter for an old beater Beeman/williams peep sight with knobs and an unknown scope stop I had laying around. Now I am more concerned with this rear sight ‘holding on’ to the Sport rifles magnum shot cycle. And yes, i would consider this gun as a true magnum by todays standards. I am sure future kit offerings will increase this rifles velocity. But with the peep,....Worse comes to worse, I may drill and tap this sight into the rear riser for a solid mount and finish.
   This passed weekend, after a few hundred cycling rounds down the pipe, my Sport has almost zero spring buzz and the target strikes are a solid pop. The target strike is way louder that the gun firing. Things are improving rather fast with this rifle.
   So my shooting thus far is still rather limited and I may have to perform future sight work, but I am confident I can get this rifle set with long range open sights and drawl her accuracy in no time. For your viewing enjoyment, here are a few pictures of my Sport rig so far. Hope i havent bored yall too much with my johnny come lately review. But I am glad to be getting back into the hobby.
Sorry still not  sure about posting pictures. Somtimes it works . Sometimes it dont.

[Oldgringo]

I've read and enjoyed your, Fwbsports, and Joanie's reports on your FWB Sports to the extent that I bought one of Champion Shooter's offerings. 

The FWB Sport is indeed a well made and beautiful break barrel springer.  I enjoy shooting mine in my backyard at 30 yards.  She is becoming more accurate and manageable with each outing; but, truth be told, if I had to give up all my frauleins but one, I'd keep my beloved Beeman R7.

[Cslinger]

I would agree that the rifle is over sprung. I think it wants to be a rifle for all seasons so to speak. Target, hunting etc.  Since I am purely a target shooter I would have been just as happy if not more so with a detuned 600-700fps rifle.  That said I have no complaints about it’s performance.

Mine, as I have said, had/has NO spring noise or honking. Just a sharp pop/jolt. Also out of the box I remember very little if any truly noticeable diesaling.

All in all I am still thrilled with mine.

Good detailed write ups by the way.  Thanks for the effort.
Chris

[Cslinger]

. truth be told, if I had to give up all my frauleins but one, I'd keep my beloved Beeman R7.

Well yeah. .

[north country gal]

Can't argue with anyone's subjective feelings about the FWB Sport and, make no mistake, this is a gun that brings out a LOT of those feelings. Case in point, after owning one Sport, I added another Sport because I like the gun so much and the way it shoots, right out of the box. I don't want to change a thing on either one. I like the Sport precisely because it is different. We have plenty of other springers if I want something more conventional.

The Sport fits me like a glove, whether I'm shooting scope or irons. I like the shot cycle, wild as it is. (I've always been a bit of a recoil junkie, anyway. ) That's me, though. Each to their own.

It's more than just fit, though. I prefer break barrels and with the Sport, I get a break barrel that is just as powerful as my best under levers, as accurate or better than my best under levers and all in a package that is a bit lighter, to boot. Did I mention accuracy?

No, the Sport will never replace my beloved light HW break barrels such as the 30 or the 50 and certainly not our 35E or even our HW95, but the Sport could very definitely replace my big under levers.

[Jason_Garvin]

I would agree that the rifle is over sprung. I think it wants to be a rifle for all seasons so to speak. Target, hunting etc.  Since I am purely a target shooter I would have been just as happy if not more so with a detuned 600-700fps rifle.  That said I have no complaints about it’s performance.

Mine, as I have said, had/has NO spring noise or honking. Just a sharp pop/jolt. Also out of the box I remember very little if any truly noticeable diesaling.

All in all I am still thrilled with mine.

Good detailed write ups by the way.  Thanks for the effort.
Chris

Interesting on the diesel, I have owned 4 of these, and did much work getting them to be enjoyable.  People have read my opinions in the past.  My first one come from PA, and literally had chain saw bar oil, yes that is correct, running out of every crack in the stock.  It smoked, it smelled, it was violent.

Jason

[Cslinger]

Now I have owned a on HW45 pistol for like a decade or more an I swear that thing has a Diesel engine in it.  . Always diesels a little for the first couple shots. 

[thompsje]

I would agree that the rifle is over sprung. I think it wants to be a rifle for all seasons so to speak. Target, hunting etc.  Since I am purely a target shooter I would have been just as happy if not more so with a detuned 600-700fps rifle.  That said I have no complaints about it’s performance.

Mine, as I have said, had/has NO spring noise or honking. Just a sharp pop/jolt. Also out of the box I remember very little if any truly noticeable diesaling.

All in all I am still thrilled with mine.

Good detailed write ups by the way.  Thanks for the effort.
Chris

Interesting on the diesel, I have owned 4 of these, and did much work getting them to be enjoyable.  People have read my opinions in the past.  My first one come from PA, and literally had chain saw bar oil, yes that is correct, running out of every crack in the stock.  It smoked, it smelled, it was violent.

Jason

Are you sure it was bar oil?   You might have gotten the gun they reviewed.

https://www.pyramydair.com/blog/2014/10/feinwerkbau-sport-air-rifle-part-5/

Tom Gaylord apparently though gear oil was a good idea for some reason...

[tjk]

Now I have owned a on HW45 pistol for like a decade or more an I swear that thing has a Diesel engine in it.  . Always diesels a little for the first couple shots. 

I find that if you have a gun that is heavily dieseling, by shooting heavier pellets through it can help to lower the dieseling rate some. The idea behind this theory is that with a heavier pellet giving more resistance to the shot cycle, the piston seal will expand the cup or ring portion of the seal and in a way “squeegie” the inner wall of the compression tube and clean any excess lubricants that can and may migrate passed the piston seal. This may or may not cause some thicker dieselling at the offset, but after a few rounds, the lubes will cycle out of the gun via dieseling and then subside. I avoid lightweight pellets more than i do the heavier pellets because they seem to drag more lubricants foreword with a less tight sealing action and then migrate forward causing more dieseling.

[Jason_Garvin]

I would agree that the rifle is over sprung. I think it wants to be a rifle for all seasons so to speak. Target, hunting etc.  Since I am purely a target shooter I would have been just as happy if not more so with a detuned 600-700fps rifle.  That said I have no complaints about it’s performance.

Mine, as I have said, had/has NO spring noise or honking. Just a sharp pop/jolt. Also out of the box I remember very little if any truly noticeable diesaling.

All in all I am still thrilled with mine.

Good detailed write ups by the way.  Thanks for the effort.
Chris

Interesting on the diesel, I have owned 4 of these, and did much work getting them to be enjoyable.  People have read my opinions in the past.  My first one come from PA, and literally had chain saw bar oil, yes that is correct, running out of every crack in the stock.  It smoked, it smelled, it was violent.

Jason

Are you sure it was bar oil?   You might have gotten the gun they reviewed.

https://www.pyramydair.com/blog/2014/10/feinwerkbau-sport-air-rifle-part-5/

Tom Gaylord apparently though gear oil was a good idea for some reason...

You know what, I think that is right.  It has been awhile.  This was the first rifle I bought from PA.  They were squirting that heavy weight oil in the action to try and calm them down .... lol.

It wasn't really that funny being I paid almost $900 on the first one.  The rest I bought from Champions choice.  Those didn't have the nasty diff fluid running out the action.

Jason

[limbshaker]

I would agree that the rifle is over sprung. I think it wants to be a rifle for all seasons so to speak. Target, hunting etc.  Since I am purely a target shooter I would have been just as happy if not more so with a detuned 600-700fps rifle.  That said I have no complaints about it’s performance.

Mine, as I have said, had/has NO spring noise or honking. Just a sharp pop/jolt. Also out of the box I remember very little if any truly noticeable diesaling.

All in all I am still thrilled with mine.

Good detailed write ups by the way.  Thanks for the effort.
Chris

Interesting on the diesel, I have owned 4 of these, and did much work getting them to be enjoyable.  People have read my opinions in the past.  My first one come from PA, and literally had chain saw bar oil, yes that is correct, running out of every crack in the stock.  It smoked, it smelled, it was violent.

Jason

Are you sure it was bar oil?   You might have gotten the gun they reviewed.

https://www.pyramydair.com/blog/2014/10/feinwerkbau-sport-air-rifle-part-5/

Tom Gaylord apparently though gear oil was a good idea for some reason...

You'd think the "Godfather of Airguns" or whatever he decided to call himself would know better than to do that.

Keep that in mind the next time someone has to remind you that they are an "expert" because they write stuff on the internet, lol 

[Jason_Garvin]

I would agree that the rifle is over sprung. I think it wants to be a rifle for all seasons so to speak. Target, hunting etc.  Since I am purely a target shooter I would have been just as happy if not more so with a detuned 600-700fps rifle.  That said I have no complaints about it’s performance.

Mine, as I have said, had/has NO spring noise or honking. Just a sharp pop/jolt. Also out of the box I remember very little if any truly noticeable diesaling.

All in all I am still thrilled with mine.

Good detailed write ups by the way.  Thanks for the effort.
Chris

Interesting on the diesel, I have owned 4 of these, and did much work getting them to be enjoyable.  People have read my opinions in the past.  My first one come from PA, and literally had chain saw bar oil, yes that is correct, running out of every crack in the stock.  It smoked, it smelled, it was violent.

Jason

Are you sure it was bar oil?   You might have gotten the gun they reviewed.

https://www.pyramydair.com/blog/2014/10/feinwerkbau-sport-air-rifle-part-5/

Tom Gaylord apparently though gear oil was a good idea for some reason...

You'd think the "Godfather of Airguns" or whatever he decided to call himself would know better than to do that.

Keep that in mind the next time someone has to remind you that they are an "expert" because they write stuff on the internet, lol 

Chase,

No kiddin, any expert would have known that Mobile would have been a better choice than that Castrol.....lol.....

You should have smelled that Feinwerkbau man, it was like sticking your face in an ol pumpkin after pulling the cover.

Heck grease hardly shuts these things down, and the parachute seals are about the only option with those out of round tubes.

I still can't understand all that work thay went into these, and FWB missed it with those terribly designed powerplants.

Jason

[limbshaker]

I would agree that the rifle is over sprung. I think it wants to be a rifle for all seasons so to speak. Target, hunting etc.  Since I am purely a target shooter I would have been just as happy if not more so with a detuned 600-700fps rifle.  That said I have no complaints about it’s performance.

Mine, as I have said, had/has NO spring noise or honking. Just a sharp pop/jolt. Also out of the box I remember very little if any truly noticeable diesaling.

All in all I am still thrilled with mine.

Good detailed write ups by the way.  Thanks for the effort.
Chris

Interesting on the diesel, I have owned 4 of these, and did much work getting them to be enjoyable.  People have read my opinions in the past.  My first one come from PA, and literally had chain saw bar oil, yes that is correct, running out of every crack in the stock.  It smoked, it smelled, it was violent.

Jason

Are you sure it was bar oil?   You might have gotten the gun they reviewed.

https://www.pyramydair.com/blog/2014/10/feinwerkbau-sport-air-rifle-part-5/

Tom Gaylord apparently though gear oil was a good idea for some reason...

You'd think the "Godfather of Airguns" or whatever he decided to call himself would know better than to do that.

Keep that in mind the next time someone has to remind you that they are an "expert" because they write stuff on the internet, lol 

Chase,

No kiddin, any expert would have known that Mobile would have been a better choice than that Castrol.....lol.....

You should have smelled that Feinwerkbau man, it was like sticking your face in an ol pumpkin after pulling the cover.

Heck grease hardly shuts these things down, and the parachute seals are about the only option with those out of round tubes.

I still can't understand all that work thay went into these, and FWB missed it with those terribly designed powerplants.

Jason

I know man, it's a real shame that they dropped the ball so miserably on the powerplant of these guns. Imagine if it would have been a 26-28mm bore, with good round tubes, tight guides and a decent piston seal.....they would have been an excellent competitor to Weihrauch, and especially interesting in .22.

Supposedly they fixed the two worst areas of the old FWB Sport, the trigger and barrel lockup.

I'd still love to have one, but not with so much swept volume in .177 and such poor tolerances.

Thanks for the honest info on these things.