HW 30 Suddenly Very Erratic

[CK94]

Yes, I love this little toy and have shot about 2,000 pellets through it. Up until yesterday it consistently shot one-hole, (<.04"), groups at 10 yards, rested on a bench, artillery hold. The last session started off in the usual way: bug-hole, 5 shot groups. Suddenly it started throwing fliers; not even a suggestion of a group! I mean they opened up to 2" or more. The scope is a 2-7 power Hawke, bought new and never used on any other airgun. Problem is I dont have a chronograph, so cant check velocity to see if the spring is broken. The scope seems to be OK. Nothing rattles or moves as I shake it.

Please tell me if the symptoms I describe are typical of  broken spring. If that is the suspected problem, who is a good man to replace the spring and do a tune-up?

TIA
Joe in Tucson 

[Taso1000]

My first guess would be the spring broke.  Is the rifle still under warranty?

Taso

[TF89]

Things to check:
Does the barrel need cleaning
Stock screws tight?
Barrel bushing tight?
Is it the scope?  Even though the HW30 is mild, still is a springer.
Did it get easier to cock, often indicates spring has broken.
Main seal has failed.

[c_m_shooter]

Check the torque on the action screws first.  Then check the breech seal (o ring around the chamber).

[CK94]

Yes, I did check the stock screw first. I used blue Lock-Tite on it about 5 years ago, and its still holding fine. I also tried using some o-ring lube on the breach seal. The lube didnt help, and the seal looks good, no wear or nicks. As far as I can tell, it still feels like it takes the same amount of force to cock it.

This all happened suddenly in the middle of a shooting session. It started out shooting bug-holes, then suddenly groups opened up with pellets going higher and lower than the initial very tight groups.

Just had a thought .... There was little variation from left-to-right: the groups were strung out vertically! An "AH-HA" moment ...... maybe the scope is the cause of it all! The only other scope I have is a Hawke 4-16 Sidewinder that weighs almost as much as the little HW30!  :-))  But, I'll give that a try and see what happens. It'll be next week before I can do that. 

[Roadworthy]

Vertical spread CAN be the scope but it can also be indicative of a broken spring.  Personally I think the most likely cause is a defective piston seal.

If it's not the scope I believe you're looking at dismantling the gun.

[tnutater]

The 2000 rounds were about what I got out of the springs in the 2 new HW30 that I tried.

Build a cheap spring compressor out of scrap lumber and a couple of all thread rods.

Buy a kit of your choice. De burr the cocking slot inside. Clean the compression tube . Use the lubricant sparingly. Also get a new breach seal. Make sure it is a factory HW brand. Make sure you clean whatever O ring lubricant  that you used off of everything(get it ALL off.)

Fire it about 50 shots. Clean the barrel. THEN reinstall the scope with blue Loctite. Should be good to go.

You should not have any problems doing this yourself. There are a lot of helpful people on here that will answer any questions or concerns that you have. Lots of You tube videos to reference. A self de burr/ kit installation is not a professional tune but
you will be happy with the results.

[CK94]

Gentlemen, I thank you for the great response. I feel my days of repairing/rebuilding are over. I'll be 92 in  few months, still love to shoot airguns but no longer confident in my gunsmithing skills. Ten years ago, I would have tackled this task with glee, but like other things, thats beyond me now.

Who would you recommend to do this work for me? There must be someone out there that is well known, and does top notch, reliable work. All suggestions appreciated.

TIA
Joe in Tucson

[redcobra04]

One other thing you can check is the barrel pivot bolt and nut on the other side.Have one doing the same thing. Went from shooting one hole groups to four inches low at 23 yds. By tighing the nut .started shootin. four inches high.
   Tried a new seal first. Ran it over chrony. Before changing breech seal. Shooting JSB 7.33 at 637 to 634 for a ten shot string. Had to play with adjustment on the bolt and nut to bring it back to POI.Same FPS after breech seal change.

[EMrider]

Gentlemen, I thank you for the great response. I feel my days of repairing/rebuilding are over. I'll be 92 in  few months, still love to shoot airguns but no longer confident in my gunsmithing skills. Ten years ago, I would have tackled this task with glee, but like other things, thats beyond me now.

Who would you recommend to do this work for me? There must be someone out there that is well known, and does top notch, reliable work. All suggestions appreciated.

TIA
Joe in Tucson

I hope to follow your lead and be shooting my R7 at 92.

I have received excellent service on my springers from Rob Hawkins at Spring Gun Tunes and Steve at Pomona Airguns.  There are many good tuners who can service your R7. Good luck.

R

[lillysdad621]

92! bless you Joe... i hope to get there and still be able to play with my airguns... by the way, rebuilding a hw30 is a simple affair... no spring compressor needed that i recall. just some screw drivers and some punches and that is all it takes... i would try it. if not then send the parts to your tuner of choice...

[thetroutwhisperer]

It's great you're out there shooting Joe! Stay with it. I think you should ask members Roadworthy or Motorhead for advice  on a good tuner. Those two guys are very knowledgeable. Send them a PM?

[Oldgringo]

Tucson is ~100 miles from Airguns of Arizona in Gilbert.  I would hope, all things considered, they would fix your HW30s right up lickety split.  If you were near me, I'd take it down tomorrow and install an original spring from one of my 30S' and a new seal.'

You, Sir, are an inspiration to all of us spring chickens.  Thank you for your service!

[Yogi]

CK4,

Get a chronograph!  Moral of the story.
HW 30 with a broken spring, should be easy to take apart without a compressor.

Let us know what happens,

Yogi

[AG72]

Wow Joe,92, god for you to still be able to do some shooting! I hope i will be aroud that long and still be able to shot my HW30! Love that gun so much! I hope someone who live near you reading this will help you, if i could afford it, i would buy a planeticket and come and help you, but living on the other side of the planet, that´s not posible unfortunitly, but as said, someone near you should.

[shooter r]

Hey Joe,

I'm retired, and if I lived within an hour or so drive of you I'd sure like to give you a hand getting your HW30 back in action. But since I live in Wisconsin it's not to be.

Have you tried giving Airguns of Arizona a call. Their phone number is 480-461-1113. I've dealt with them before and can say they are very professional, and could certainly diagnose and fix your HW30. They'e in Gilbert Arizona which is about 100 miles from Tucson.

Best of Luck, and keep on shooting! Randy