FWB Sport 124 Questions

[drewciferpike]

My wife's cousin inherited his grandfather's guns, which included a FWB Sport 124 in .177. It looks to be in great condition, and when fired it was a little twangy and had some buzz. He knows his grandfather never broke it down, so I have no idea what kind of lube this rifle originally received. The Cuz stated, "My grandad abused his guns, so expect the worst." The finish and stock look great, though, so I don't know what to expect. The 124 triggers have gotten a lot of complaints, but I was actually impressed: It broke consistently, and like a pipette. The only annoying thing was the twang and buzz.

Because he's an accomplished welder, he's agreed to make me a spring compressor in exchange for properly cleaning and lubing the gun. Suh-WEET.

I know nothing specific about these guns, besides what I've read on-line (and their awesome reputation; a tiny part of me wanted to tell him a newer gun would do him better, and I'd buy it off him for $175... but I knew that would be evil, and would destroy any chance of showing him the beauty of AGs, so I told him I'd convince him that this air rifle could be more fun to shoot than any of his PBs).
Any tips and tricks and must-dos so my wife's cousin can do right by this rifle?

At a minimum, I'd like to replace the seal--just to be safe--and replace one of the missing stock screws (see pic, below). Once I can chrony it, I'll see if the spring needs replacing.

Where is the best place to source a replacement stock screw (second pic)? Google is giving me way too many options, so I'd like to hear from you. (I don't trust any basic search info attached to something so popular...)

Anything else to think about?

[Frank in Fairfield]

PYRAMYD AIR has parts. Contact Motorhead on this forum. He is in Sacramento area. He too has a 124 and can help you out.

[chuckinohio]

  That's a clean looking rifle.

  You did the right thing by not trying to finagle it away from the cousin in law, he ought to enjoy shooting a ringer like that.

[Motorhead]

And it is a "Delux" version as well .... Nice score !!

[RedFeather]

Air Rifle Headquarters, absolutely.  Jim Maccari has full rebuild kits for these at a good price.  If the gun is stock DO NOT SHOOT IT.   The piston seals ALWAYS go bad.  Do a search on rebuilding.  The Pyramyd Air bolgsite has an article on how to.  Be careful of the safety tab when using the compressor.  Those are no longer available.

[drewciferpike]

Awesome... that's any easy decision; my past dealings with ARH were great, so I'll source there.

[RedFeather]

JM has gone way out of his way to keep this fine guns shooting.  Not only kits but custom stocks and metal triggers.  He must really like them!

[tjk]

The missing stock screw is a metric thread and can easily be found at most hardware stores. You might not find a slotted type head  (which would be the closest thing to OEM), but any type will work,.....phillips, allen head, etc. I would also follow the advice and NOT shoot the Sporter anymore until after you have serviced it or had it tuned  with a new piston seal. You can do harm to the compression tube and tube end with an old crumbled original seal still on it.  Just from the pictures and the look of the gun, one could easily sell it for $500 with a new seal and tune up. Whatever you decide to do,...scopeing it and adding a MB, ALWAYS keep the open sights. If you should decide to sell the Sporter, having the original "irons" will only add to the over-all value of the rifle. Nice Find!!!!

[tjk]

I just nioticed from the middle picture that you are missing the opposing locking pivot screw. It screws into the end of the main pivot screw. Maccarri sells this part and you NEED to replace that asap. tjk

[cnjl3]

I upgraded mine to hex drive which I found at my local Lowes.
The two front stock screws are M5 x 15mm Pan Head Slotted
The front trigger guard/action screw is M5 x 20mm Oval Head Slotted
The rear trigger guard screw is a #6 x 1/2" Oval Head Slotted Wood Screw

[drewciferpike]

I'll let Cuz make all the decisions, though I will certainly "suggest" everything you've all supplied.

I told him we're not going to shoot it until it's had its surgery, so that's a given.

At a minimum, I'm going to replace the spring, piston seal, and breech seal, and those missing screws (included both in that pic on purpose... I wondered how you could lose BOTH... I guess his grandfather really was hard on his guns. Haha). I think he might as well go with the ARH kit, instead of a stock spring. If he wants to--because we have access to the tools and materials--we might button the piston, too, though I don't think he needs that, as he's not currently an AG nut.

Once I see the inside of the tube, that'll determine if it gets honed, or not.

[cnjl3]

Not true! ARH has the safety slide in stock.
http://www.airrifleheadquarters.com/catalog/item/251483/9820249.htm
You would have to supply your own red paint -LOL
ARH rules!

Air Rifle Headquarters, absolutely.  Jim Maccari has full rebuild kits for these at a good price.  If the gun is stock DO NOT SHOOT IT.   The piston seals ALWAYS go bad.  Do a search on rebuilding.  The Pyramyd Air bolgsite has an article on how to.  Be careful of the safety tab when using the compressor.  Those are no longer available.

[RedFeather]

JM's been a busy old airgun elf!   

[Sundog]

Ace Hardwares in my area have a very good selection of screw variations.  I put SS socket cap screws and flat washers in mine to save wear and tear on the stock screws.

And don't forget to degrease the threads and add a drop of Blue Loctite to the screws so they don't fall out again.

 

p.s. Owner's manual available on Ebay.  Search Feinwerkbau.