Monday, May 10, 2010

The Beeman R7 - part one

Not a review, but a tribute.

Mid era R7

If you have ever cracked open an auto magazine, chances are you found an article that compared the car being tested to a BMW. Sometimes the manufacturer’s ad will even provide the comparison, a quarter mile time or cornering number that beats or meets the theoretical gold standard of the BMW.

And so it is with the R7, anything that is a soft shooter is offered as an alternative. While both HW and BMW hail from Germany, the difference is the Beeman R7 is attainable by just about anyone and you need not worry about what your neighbors may think if you own one. Anything that pertains to the R7 will also apply to its sibling the HW30S.

So what is there to like about the Beeman R7?
 Fine all metal sights.......


To start the stock is a traditional handsome affair. Classic lines along with no deep cut in the forearm since the cocking lever is double jointed. Long stock versions will have a little more of a groove, but still don’t have the extended cut like most springer’s. Next is the barrel and receiver, nicely polished and blued, with a metal end cap instead of plastic. The sights will differ based on the exact model and year of production, but the majority will have the target style front with inserts and a solid adjustable rear, once again all in metal. If it seems I am infatuated with metal parts, I am. I’ve had a brand new Diana 40 with a broken end cap, brand new Gamo with a cracked trigger guard, older BSA with busted rear sight and on and on. All these were inferior plastic bits on what otherwise were good rifles. Yes I own centerfire handguns with polymer construction, but those are different animals.

Famous trigger:
The trigger is the famous rekord that in my opinion is second to none as far as non target springer rifles. No gimmicks or excuses are needed. It can be tuned and adjusted to the point that it is a lawyer’s nightmare, but still remains safe and predictable. Going back to the receiver, it is ready to accommodate a scope with ease. No worries of a special mount, weak bases really intended for aperture sights, non STD sizes or any other foolishness.

No deep forearm cut


As you might have guessed a solid build and good looks alone did not make the R7 the legend it is. The key is all these superb components come together to make a well balanced air rifle, and we'll get into that on the next post.








Also coming soon:


What caliber to pick...
and The Single Six, no pellets but .....

12 comments:

  1. Volvo,

    nice read. I am increasingly curious of the R7. Would love to shoot one. The only springers I have shot are the Gamo CFX and Hunter. Neither are impressive. I still have not sent my CFX in to PA for the piston upgrade, I'm sure that will make a huge difference. By the way do you think the piston will make it less hold sensitive?

    DSW

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  2. OOPS! the blogger told me there was an error in posting and it was lost, so I posted again. Suprise!

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  3. KidAgain,

    My R7 is the only airgun that I will never sell. It will be staying in the family, no if's, and's, or but's about it. It's definitely worth every penny.

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  4. Volvo

    I have a few observations.

    1. I must say I cannot stand the new format. I miss the old days. This new... leafy themed, throw rug looking thing, I'm in disarray. What happened to that magnificent berber? You didn't stain it, did you?

    2. Please tell me this isn't the R7 you paid $265 for.

    3. I'm looking forward to the rest of the series. I have read much about galling and so forth around the cocking link area on these rifles. Please address this issue if you would, in your review.

    4. Get your filthy pellets off the kitchen table.

    5. For a limited time only, I am prepared to offer you $266 for this rifle.

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  5. Slinging Lead,
    He already agreed to sell to me for $265.50. I would have gone $300, but he didn't want to kick in the Single Six.

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  6. Volvo,

    Great subject. You're not a true airgunner unless you've owned at least one R7. How true that every "soft shooter" is compared to the R7. I think a close 2nd would be the diana 27.

    Although your subject matter is very relevant I must confess that the primary reason I keep checking in and will continue to do so is because of your writing style.

    Keep up the good work.

    kevin

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  7. Kevin,

    Certainly the material is just review for you at this point, but perhaps some novices will benefit eventually.

    I am not sure that I have an exact style, but thanks for the complement. I find it relaxing at this point posting yarns over following the comments on the PA blog. I still read the blog post, but then off to my own world.

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  8. DSW,
    Don’t worry about the extra posts, no problem. I would not bother with the gas piston upgrade on the CFX, I had one and it made less power than the spring along with more noise.

    Slinging Lead,
    Yes, being an overnight success has gone to my head so I did not bother to take the R7 upstairs for proper photos. Yes again, that was the R-7 for $265 plus it came with a Beeman peep.

    As far as the table, it is actually my work bench although it could be a table as I’ll eat off of anything.

    Bg farmer,
    For you anything….

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  9. I sold my first r7 and regretted it the second it left my possession. I was lucky enough to find one of the early, full stocked versions in the local newspaper.

    I know it sounds impossible, but Jim Maccari's kit in this gun is amazing. It gave mien more power, but more importantly eliminated noise and that little bit of vibration the gun had.

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  10. Anonymous,

    Glad to hear you enjoy your R7.
    Yes, I agree that tuning makes it even better. I had a kit put in my HW30S which is essentially the same rifle and it was smoother yet also. But unlike the R1 which is as twangy as they come without a tune, just a little of Maccari’s lubes make me think I am 80% there.

    Right now mine is spot on power wise and smooth enough, but I do plan on installing a kit down the road. Did you install the bits and pieces yourself or send it to a tuner?

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  11. I did mine all by myself. Ive doen several r1's and r9's in the past, and the guns looked similar...well, to a point, anyway. I even installed the old-school buttons. I used all Maccari parts, including a seal and cocking lever insert. The insert is cool because it lets the linkage ride against plastic instead of sliding metal to metal. I used the pictured form Paul Watts sight as reference.

    I spent two evenings getting everythign just how I wanted it. I used some lube, but not an excessive amount.

    The first shot from the gun scared me. I thought I had screwed up. The lack of noise and smoothness was something else. After 100 shots velocity with Premier lights had gone up some, but the gun still has an incredibly tight feeling about it.

    I do believe the lubes help a ton, and that 80 percent figure you gave sounds right. That extra 20% will make you giggle like a schoolgirl when you shoot this gun.

    I have a tuned up hw55mm. It is a great gun, but it will be sold long before the r7 will.

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  12. Roland,
    I plain on a full tune fairly soon, but it is so nicely broke in I will leave well enough alone for awhile. I had Paul tune a total of 3 rifles for me and the results were as you say, so smooth you can’t help but think something is wrong.
    Do you still have his link to tuning the R7? I seem to have lost it.

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