BSA L pattern No.22

RedRoyRegulator

RedRoyRegulator

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I recently had my eyes on an air rifle for sale at Horners auction, nice little L pattern, what grabbed my attention was the No.22 peep fitted to the stock.🙂 Nobody was bidding, I think maybe one more bidder, so I took a shot at it, threw in a cheeky live bid, I was the highest bidder & won the lot😁
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The rear sight is missing but that’s not a problem as I have a spare, maybe the previous owner removed it, interfering with the peep sight.
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The peep sight hole looks to have been reamed out in past as other aperture holes I’ve seen are much smaller, I’ve also noticed these sights stamped with numbers 1-3 this one is marked 1, could this possibly be the aperture size?
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I also want to say a huge thanks to @4ndy who kindly offered to help collect the rifle from Horners in Acle Norwich & after having to prise it from his own hands,😁send it to me up North.

Without this kind offer this wouldn’t be possible & also a big thanks to @Dormy who also offered to help collect the rifle 🙌🏻👏🏻

A wise man once said “We make a living by what we get but we make a life by what we give”

So many great members on this forum you’ll definitely be on Santas nice list this Christmas 🎅🏼🙂👍🏻
 
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That' seems to be a good Light pattern, well done for spotting it, looks go be in nice condition. Great that you got a little help to make it all possible too. Hope it shoots as good as it looks, maybe just a blanking plate in place of the usual rear sight if it obscured the front sight or was a distraction. Either way, enjoy.
 
Thanks @lamin8 yes I need to strip & clean before testing, tap seems nice & tight when holding the lever gently & opening the tap👍🏻

I wasn’t happy with the peep sight hole being opened up by previous owner but I’ve found a neat little trick to reduce the diameter of the aperture hole. I used a piece of silicone rig tube from my tackle box🙂works great, could even go a tad smaller if needed using a smaller inner diameter tube.

You can see how tiny the tubing was with this pin next to it
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Before
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After
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Neat dodge. Not being a fisherman I'd have filled ig with dyed epoxy then opened it up in increments......but theres offem more than one way to go about things.

I really ought to have a look for one of these "modern" Lights, mine are pre WW1
 
The pre WW1 light models are nice with the pistol grip stocks. I actually prefer the pre WW1 rifles @lamin8 Metal butt plates, stocks are more slender with higher shoulder/cheek piece & a much more pronounced pistol grip👍🏻
 
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The gunsmith found a match in the piston of the BSF B45 I bought recently.

I'll always get a secondhand gun checked from now on!
 
The number 1 on the rearsight indicates that it is calibrated for the .177 Light pattern. The number 2 indicates that it is calibrated for the .22 sporting pattern, and the number 3 indicates that it is calibrated for the 45 inch .177 Number1 Club model . Each sight has different marking to correspond with the varying trajectories of the guns.
 
RedRoyRegulator said:
This is why you should always check the piston before testing.

Three copper coated bbs stuck in the washer🤨rifling is still good & looks clean I guess it was good thing that the bbs got stuck in washer & didn’t go down the barrel😅View attachment 625449View attachment 625450View attachment 625451View attachment 625452
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Is there a link to anywhere online showing how to take these apart?
I have a similar rifle, which I have never used....but it'd be nice to check it over and get it back into use, even if just for some backyard plinking - or maybe classic comps if it shoots ok
 
JonM said:
Is there a link to anywhere online showing how to take these apart?
I have a similar rifle, which I have never used....but it'd be nice to check it over and get it back into use, even if just for some backyard plinking - or maybe classic comps if it shoots ok
Click to expand...
How to dismantle a pre WW2 B.S.A Underlever Air rifle

Probably the main reason for dismantling the gun would be for regular service and in order to change the spring/piston washer. So I will describe this easy task first.

First, make sure the gun is not cocked and/or loaded.

Remove the trigger guard. This is done by removing the two or three (depending on the exact model of gun) screws holding the trigger guard in place and pulling the trigger guard free from the gun.

Next you need to unscrew the stock/trigger block from the cylinder. (On certain early guns such as some ‘H’ The Lincoln models, there may be a fourth screw holding the trigger block in place. You will see this on top of the compression cylinder just ahead of the trigger block. It also needs to be removed if present)

At this point it is advisable to have the end of the gun barrel placed against the floor (on a suitable pad to protect the muzzle crown). Using this technique you can lean on the stock continuously as you unscrew the trigger block and use your body weight to control the mainspring tension. (Some people prefer to clamp the cylinder in a soft jawed vice to leave both hands free to release the trigger bock).

You will need to pull the trigger back a little as you start to unscrew the trigger block away from the cylinder, but only for the first few turns, after which you can release the trigger. As you get near the end of the thread brace yourself to contain the sudden spring tension as the trigger block separates from the cylinder.

Once you have removed the trigger block/stock combination, you can gain access to the mainspring and piston. The spring guide on these guns forms part of the trigger block, so there is no need to worry about this being a separate component. Once the mainspring is removed, you can then go on to remove the piston.

In order to remove the piston from the compression cylinder, you first have to remove the short auxiliary cocking lever, just behind the larger hand cocking lever. This is done by unscrewing the auxiliary cocking lever pivot screw (and keeper screw if present), pulling the front of the lever down and disengaging the rear end from the cocking slot.

Once this has been achieved, a small screwdriver can be put gently through the cocking slot to push the piston back towards the rear of the compression cylinder eventually to emerge at the end of the tube.

At this point you can also remove the primary hand cocking lever by removing the pivot screw and lock screw (or round pin if a later model). After disengaging the front catch the cocking lever, you should be able to remove it from its recess below the breech.

If you want to remove the wooden stock from the trigger block, you need to either remove the metal butt plate by removing two screws at top and bottom (early models) or to remove the small oval wooden plug on the base of the stock (later models).

(If a later model, the oval plug will be secured with two dome headed wood screws and beneath the wooden plug there should be a curved spring steel washer, which pushes on the wooden oval making it easier to release. If the wooden oval is jammed in the hole, proceed very carefully and do not try to lever the wooden oval out, as they snap across the grain very easily and replacements are hard to find and even harder to replicate successfully.)

Once you gain access to the area behind the butt plate/wooden oval you will see a long hole with the head of a slotted bolt at the end. To remove the bolt you will need either a long, large flat blade screwdriver, or a flat bar bit attached to a brace or pair of mole grips (the large screwdriver is easiest!).

Once the bolt is loosened fully the stock should slide easily off the trigger block, but pay attention to the metal locating peg in the trigger block (this is often rusted or badly corroded)

Re-assembly is the reverse of the dismantling procedure.

I have not mentioned dismantling of the loading tap, as this part of the gun shows many variations and I will explain the different sorts of loading tap types in another post.

Lakey
 
Nice, congrats with your new acquisition.
Do you think the peepsight was factory mounted? It looks like there is an extra piece of wood under the rear of the base?
I had to deepen the inletting in the stock with mine, but yours has a taller front sight, so hopefully it's calibrated well.
Btw, we both appear to like taking photos of our guns on our wooden floors :LOL:
This was before lowering the peep, and mounting the No. 19 front sight.

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Lakey said:
How to dismantle a pre WW2 B.S.A Underlever Air rifle

Probably the main reason for dismantling the gun would be for regular service and in order to change the spring/piston washer. So I will describe this easy task first.

First, make sure the gun is not cocked and/or loaded.

Remove the trigger guard. This is done by removing the two or three (depending on the exact model of gun) screws holding the trigger guard in place and pulling the trigger guard free from the gun.

Next you need to unscrew the stock/trigger block from the cylinder. (On certain early guns such as some ‘H’ The Lincoln models, there may be a fourth screw holding the trigger block in place. You will see this on top of the compression cylinder just ahead of the trigger block. It also needs to be removed if present)

At this point it is advisable to have the end of the gun barrel placed against the floor (on a suitable pad to protect the muzzle crown). Using this technique you can lean on the stock continuously as you unscrew the trigger block and use your body weight to control the mainspring tension. (Some people prefer to clamp the cylinder in a soft jawed vice to leave both hands free to release the trigger bock).

You will need to pull the trigger back a little as you start to unscrew the trigger block away from the cylinder, but only for the first few turns, after which you can release the trigger. As you get near the end of the thread brace yourself to contain the sudden spring tension as the trigger block separates from the cylinder.

Once you have removed the trigger block/stock combination, you can gain access to the mainspring and piston. The spring guide on these guns forms part of the trigger block, so there is no need to worry about this being a separate component. Once the mainspring is removed, you can then go on to remove the piston.

In order to remove the piston from the compression cylinder, you first have to remove the short auxiliary cocking lever, just behind the larger hand cocking lever. This is done by unscrewing the auxiliary cocking lever pivot screw (and keeper screw if present), pulling the front of the lever down and disengaging the rear end from the cocking slot.

Once this has been achieved, a small screwdriver can be put gently through the cocking slot to push the piston back towards the rear of the compression cylinder eventually to emerge at the end of the tube.

At this point you can also remove the primary hand cocking lever by removing the pivot screw and lock screw (or round pin if a later model). After disengaging the front catch the cocking lever, you should be able to remove it from its recess below the breech.

If you want to remove the wooden stock from the trigger block, you need to either remove the metal butt plate by removing two screws at top and bottom (early models) or to remove the small oval wooden plug on the base of the stock (later models).

(If a later model, the oval plug will be secured with two dome headed wood screws and beneath the wooden plug there should be a curved spring steel washer, which pushes on the wooden oval making it easier to release. If the wooden oval is jammed in the hole, proceed very carefully and do not try to lever the wooden oval out, as they snap across the grain very easily and replacements are hard to find and even harder to replicate successfully.)

Once you gain access to the area behind the butt plate/wooden oval you will see a long hole with the head of a slotted bolt at the end. To remove the bolt you will need either a long, large flat blade screwdriver, or a flat bar bit attached to a brace or pair of mole grips (the large screwdriver is easiest!).

Once the bolt is loosened fully the stock should slide easily off the trigger block, but pay attention to the metal locating peg in the trigger block (this is often rusted or badly corroded)

Re-assembly is the reverse of the dismantling procedure.

I have not mentioned dismantling of the loading tap, as this part of the gun shows many variations and I will explain the different sorts of loading tap types in another post.

Lakey
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MANY thanks for that
I have now retrieved my BSA from the corner where is was gathering fluff....
The serial no seems to be S14xxx - with the "xxx" being triple digit of the same value - and it looks like there is a shadow of "44" stamped after that, but not in line and with a different font of stamp.

Basic rear sight seems complete but the brass insert looks on the wide side of things.
Front sight blade is very clean and straight. No sign that there was ever an aperture sight on it anywhere.

Loading port is very smooth to open, and has a "2" in front of it, the cocking lever has the small press button catch on the front...
Not seeing any BSA marking on it yet - the butt has that oval insert in it - & has a slight chip in the heel, and is stamped 14 1/4" just behind the grip. Several of the small parts near the port have a broad arrow mark plus a digit or two.
It's a sleeper in that it's not been restored, from what I can tell, and from the surface fluff and general patina.
It's in need of some TLC and a good clean/strip down, oil, etc.

I tried to cock the rifle. I'll get some Weetabix for breakfast tomorrow and have another go then...
 
Put some oil down the barrel, about a teaspoon and a dot on all the pivots and where you can see the spring + around the trigger mechanism area and leave standing up somewhere warm for a day or so, on a newspaper in the airing cupboard is ideal
No need to force anything,
Good luck with it,
They are lovely guns.
 Atb
 
martin st ledger said:
Put some oil down the barrel, about a teaspoon and a dot on all the pivots and where you can see the spring + around the trigger mechanism area and leave standing up somewhere warm for a day or so, on a newspaper in the airing cupboard is ideal
No need to force anything,
Good luck with it,
They are lovely guns.
 Atb
Click to expand...
I'll dig out the Kroil after tea and give a few dabs here & there.
While I'm doing that I'll have the dog clear a spot near the Aga to rest the gun by

I can see this old BSA becoming a regular thing to take out for some paper punching - I'll ask around to try to find an aperture sight for it, either a kosher BSA job or a Parker-Hale type. I'm sure I had a couple of the latter in a box somewhere...and I just reminded myself that I didn't check the serial no. on the dates range tables yet
 
Best "fix" and reblue I have ever seen on an old BSA, wonder if the owner knew about the stock butt trap / butt plate and the magical bolt within?


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ATB, ED
 
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