Sheridan first timer retaining air

[cclingma]

I've gone old pumper crazy over the last several months.  Latest is a 1964 Blue Streak that originally wouldn't hold air.  After a couple good doses of Secret Sauce and sever pump shoot cycles it now holds.  Shot awesome at 4 pumps in the basement but not so great outside at eight pumps and 25 yards.  I discovered that it's only dumping about four pumps worth so the velocity is all over at higher pump shooting.  I pulled the striker to clean, lube, and inspect spring.  It all looked good so I tried shooting again.  Same four pump dump maximum.  Ive had a few soldered valve Benj apart so I'm not too concerned about going in but I wanted to see if you guys had any suggestions before I commit to tear down.  I think if tear down Ill give it the full treatment of paint and Mac1 intake valve and adjustable piston.

[Rob112o]

Since you alread cleaned and lubed the hammer and the tube. Try the easiest thing first the hammer spring. You said you inspected it, but you dont know what that spring looked like 40yrs ago. Try taking it out and pulling it apart a good bit. Try it out should help a bit. You may need to get a new spring from the hardware store. If that doesn't work u may need to replace the valve spring.

[cclingma]

I can sure try giving the hammer spring a little stretch.  I'd really like to measure its length and coil diameter but I haven't been able to find what it should be.  Any ideas there?

Thanks

[avator]

Next take the main spring out of the valve and put it in a vice. Compress it once until all the coils touch then put it back in.

[Rob112o]

Dimensions, i do not know. You can always take your current spring and just match it up. Get it an inch longer, maybe 2" doubt it, and keep clipping it to desired length. Obviously your going to clip too much off so buy 2 springs at the store when you are there. So now you know clipping 8 coils leaves a little air left over. Now that spare spring only clip 7 coils off. If you decide to compress the valve spring do that first cause that will probably change things up again. If you dont you will need to clip another coil, 2, maybe only a half.

[anuthabubba]

Disassembled an older Dan today (my first time) that was not dumping all the air. Could get 2 med. power shots from 6 pumps! The striker/hammer/tube ID were cruddy and the exhaust valve stem was the same and hard to move. Have 'em out and soaking in varsol plus a Mac1 seal kit standing by. The tapered valve spring appears to be stainless and the check valve spring is brass/bronze.

 

[bbv13]

Disassembled an older Dan today (my first time) that was not dumping all the air. Could get 2 med. power shots from 6 pumps! The striker/hammer/tube ID were cruddy and the exhaust valve stem was the same and hard to move. Have 'em out and soaking in varsol plus a Mac1 seal kit standing by. The tapered valve spring appears to be stainless and the check valve spring is brass/bronze.

No doubt a good cleaning should be the first step. That may be all it needs to get back to factory spec.

Bryan

[cnjl3]

Could get 2 med. power shots from 6 pumps! The striker/hammer/tube ID were cruddy and the exhaust valve stem was the same and hard to move.

Wow! Would that be the first ACP Sheridan? I always read about just benji's as a platform for ACP conversion.

Soak/Clean/Scrub/Lube plus some new parts and you will no doubt have a very nice Dan for your collection.

[cclingma]

Thanks guys.  I'll find some time here soon and go at it's innards like Mr. Clean. 

[N6CRV]

Hope you have the correct thumb. That is my only compliant with my '61. I have to tape the safety down, I use painters tape so it comes off clean.

[anuthabubba]

Hope you have the correct thumb. That is my only compliant with my '64. I have to tape the safety down, I use painters tape so it comes off clean.

Same here. Tape or pieces of a round wooden toothpick in each side. Black vinyl tape doesn't show much and won't pull the paint off.

[longhunter]

You can always drill the safety and pin it down, from underneath. Looks cleaner that way.

[cclingma]

Hmm, wonder if mine is really a 64 because it is a rocker safety gun.  Says 1964 stamped backward on the left hand side of the receiver.

[anuthabubba]

4691 would be a rocker safety.

[N6CRV]

That was my mess up!!! My thumb safety is a 1961 and not a 64. My 68 has the rocker. Sorry.

[longhunter]

That was my mess up!!! My thumb safety is a 1961 and not a 64. My 68 has the rocker. Sorry.

I think you have one too many guns. You should send one to live with me, so it's not so confusing for you.we gotta look out for each other's mental well being,  you know.

[N6CRV]

That was my mess up!!! My thumb safety is a 1961 and not a 64. My 68 has the rocker. Sorry.

I think you have one too many guns. You should send one to live with me, so it's not so confusing for you.we gotta look out for each other's mental well being,  you know.

That sounds to much like my Wife.

[longhunter]

That was my mess up!!! My thumb safety is a 1961 and not a 64. My 68 has the rocker. Sorry.

I think you have one too many guns. You should send one to live with me, so it's not so confusing for you.we gotta look out for each other's mental well being,  you know.

That sounds to much like my Wife.

Just tryin' to help a brother out.

[DD789]

If the safety was rotated 180deg it would work for me. my thumb just touches the front part of the safety, if I stretch my thumb my trigger finger rotates back and causes the gun to fire.  so I just use a rubber band to hold the safety down.

[cclingma]

That was my mess up!!! My thumb safety is a 1961 and not a 64. My 68 has the rocker. Sorry.

No worries here.  I just thought I may have been misrepresenting what I'm working on. 

I'm all in now.  I'm tearing completely down, scrub, paint, adj piston, mac1 check valve.  What shooting Ive done at low power leads me to believe this rifle is accurate enough to warrant the best I can give it here at home.  I don't think this is "the one" that's going to get the Steroid but a dandy shooter none the less.