RWS 34 won't uncock

[Brazos]

I have been out of town and a friend with a 34 was shooting a few days ago and the rifle cocked and would not fire.  He brought it to me earlier to see if I could fix it.  Typically if I keep trying I can get one to uncock.  It appears I won't be able to this time.  Normally with a 34 I don't even use a compressor.  I have a decent one and I will this time.  With it cocked though makes me nervous.  Before I do it I figured I would post something here to see if anyone has any last minute advice.  It has a T06 trigger if that is important. 

[DanD]

I have been out of town and a friend with a 34 was shooting a few days ago and the rifle cocked and would not fire.  He brought it to me earlier to see if I could fix it.  Typically if I keep trying I can get one to uncock.  It appears I won't be able to this time.  Normally with a 34 I don't even use a compressor.  I have a decent one and I will this time.  With it cocked though makes me nervous.  Before I do it I figured I would post something here to see if anyone has any last minute advice.  It has a T06 trigger if that is important.

I would point the thing in a safe direction and work with the trigger adjustment screws before trying to disassemble it cocked.
Good luck!

[Roadworthy]

I'd go along with Dan on this one.  If Diana has not yet incorporated  an anti bear trap design you may be able to take off the safety, break the barrel, and pull the trigger while holding the barrel to uncock the gun.  You may consider the same sequence after removing the stock and disabling or disconnecting any anti bear trap which may have been added to newer models.

Forgive my ignorance on this matter.  Both my Dianas predate that feature.

[Brazos]

Well I messed with all 3 trigger screws without success.  I also very beat on the rifle with my palm.  It won't fire.

[Brazos]

I took the stock back off. Then I loaded it and put it in a safe position in case it fired. I hit the rear of the piston with a punch and hammer. Nothing. While doing this I noticed the front trigger pin fell out. Then I realized both trigger pins where loose and I could easily take them out (if I were that brave) if I wanted to. With the stock off I could manually recock the trigger and then pull the trigger. The trigger seem to be functioning just fine. Safety too. It appears the piston latch rod is stuck in the trigger. It is holding the trigger unit in place, even w/o pins. Even when I cock and pull the trigger it does not release the piston. I am not sure what to do now.

[Methuselah]

I took the stock back off. Then I loaded it and put it in a safe position in case it fired. I hit the rear of the piston with a punch and hammer. Nothing. While doing this I noticed the front trigger pin fell out. Then I realized both trigger pins where loose and I could easily take them out (if I were that brave) if I wanted to. With the stock off I could manually recock the trigger and then pull the trigger. The trigger seem to be functioning just fine. Safety too. It appears the piston latch rod is stuck in the trigger. It is holding the trigger unit in place, even w/o pins. Even when I cock and pull the trigger it does not release the piston. I am not sure what to do now.

Maybe there is no pressure to separate the two parts (piston and sear), could be a broken spring?  Otherwise wouldn't you think the spring would push the trigger assembly (and piston) out the back of the receiver if the pins were out of it?

Can you push on the coils of the spring through the cocking slot ... are they loose?  Two interleaved broken pieces could look at first glance like one compressed.  Just SWAG, well, maybe WAG?

[Brazos]

Still pointed in a safe direction with the stock off I drove the 3 pins out of the trigger mechanism.  That released the piston rod and the rifle fired.  The piston, mainspring look fine.  I have the trigger and parts in a bag for now until I can take it all apart and trouble shoot.  It has to be the piston rod latch.  At least the rifle is in a safe condition now.  Thanks for everyone's help.

[kbohn99]

I have the same problem with my Airhawk. The gun is cocked but will not fire. Do you have an update on what you learned and how you fixed the problem? Thanks in advance for any information you can provide.

[happymecanic]

Hi Ken, the OP has a rifle with the model T06 trigger, on yours it's a clone of the T05 trigger, slightly different. Are you mechanically inclined, and at ease taking the rifle apart? By any means it's a potentially dangerous situation, be very careful dear fellow!

Have you tried screwing the trigger adjustment screw in all the way, and pull the trigger while having the gun pointed in a safe direction?

If that does't work, and you're comfy taking your rifle apart I can guide you through the procedure to fix it. If not I strongly suggest you take it to a (air)gunsmith ASAP.

[kbohn99]

Thanks for your quick response and concern for safety. I'm very comfortable working on mechanical problems. I had already tried adjusting the trigger with no luck. I just tried adjusting the trigger again as you suggested and again with no luck  Then I used a little persuasion. With the trigger adjustment screwed all the way in and the trigger pulled back I gently tapped the base of the barrel in the area of the trigger mechanism with a wooden hammer and the rifle fired. It didn't require much of a tap.

I fired several more rounds without any problems. However I am concerned that the problem will reoccur. It would be helpful to know what you found and learned to fix the trigger mechanism?

Again thank for your quick response. Any additional feedback would be appreciated.

[kbohn99]

After 10 to 15 additional shots the trigger mechanism stopped working again. A light but firm tap with a wooden mallet would get it to fire each time it failed to fire normally. Cocking and firing the gun sounds and feels normal.  Any feedback to correct the firing problem would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[happymecanic]

Hi again Ken, sorry for the delayed reply, I was away for the day.

I suggest you don't shoot your rifle anymore before you have the trigger assembly out and apart for a check.

Look for burrs or rough finish on contact surfaces, broken/misplaced springs and parts that are stiff on their pivot. The two sliding latch plates that grab the piston rod need to be very smooth, and benefit from a little moly lube. Also the piston rod that engages the latches may need a little polish. The potmetal trigger housing itself may need some deburring and smoothing.

On my own AirHawk, I found the adjustment screw was a little short, so I replaced it with one 3 mm longer.

These triggers are not always made as well as their German counterpart, often there's some variations with tolerances. That could play a role in your own issue.

Here's a tutorial I put together for these triggers, HTH: https://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=202771.0

[Roadworthy]

If you're shy about disassembling and working on the trigger (lots of small pieces) you could check with Mike Melick at Flying Dragon Air Rifles.  He would probably polish the parts for a very reasonable price.

[HectorMedina]

Sorry to be late to the party.

I am glad that  the situation is now under control.

Just in case you find yourselves in the same situation, and assuming that the excellent advice by all here have not produced a resolution of a cocked gun, let me give you a trick:

Keep a heavy burlap sack in the shop. I have an old one that was surely used maybe 50 years ago to ship flour. It is clean and in good condition, and it is as heavy as the cloth that is used for sail-making, real thick and sturdy.
The ends are closed, but I opened one of the sides/
This gives me a "box" where I can work on through the long open side, yet the ends are closed.

You put in the action in, then you surround it with old towels. The more the merrier.

Then, very carefully, remove the locking pins. Using dummy pins that are just the right size prevents the trigger parts from getting out of place during "flight".

If you do it right, the trigger block will fly rightwards, while the barreled action flies a bit leftwards.

But all parts will be protected and, more importantly, YOU, will be out of the "flight-path".

It is indeed a "last-ditch" solution, but it has worked well in the past over a dozen times.

You would be surprised how many guns come in cocked and without means to release the spring tension.

MOSTLY caused by someone messing with the trigger adjustment without understanding what they were doing, I have also seen cases where some debris/shavings from the guide or the spring have gotten under the levers and are preventing the firing sequence to take place, others have been even lead debris.

In all cases, all rifles have returned to normal.

So, if you find yourself in this predicament with a DIANA gun, take heart, it is complicated, takes preparation and care, but it will not mean the death of the patient.

;-)

Keep well and shoot straight!




HM

[Brazos]

Looks like an old post of mine from 9 years ago was resurrected. It’s been long enough I don’t remember this happening or making this post.  Looks like I got it worked out ok.