Theoben Sirocco "Rat Rifle" project

[Bluetoe]

Inspired by reading the @deleted member thread about the Diana mod 27 ressurection and not having a .177 springer type rifle I decided it was time to attempt to breathe life back into possibly the most mistreated Theoben gas ram rifle this side of the council tip. I'm not fussed about it looking great, the aim is simply to return it to a state where it can be used.
The rifle once belonged to me and came back to me some years ago in pieces
The bad bits:
The stock split across the grip and the barrel was bent when the sear released unexpectedly (or so I was told )
The barrel and moderator are gouged with tool and vice marks caused by efforts to separate them.
Stock screws are missing
One of the breech jaw shims is missing
It's possible that there really is a problem with the trigger and/or sear
The ram has been de-gassed
The good bits:
Externally at least the action is in fairly good condition
All parts other than those mentioned above are present
The rifle was given to me FOC
I've already repaired the broken stock using high strength 2-Octyl Cyanoacrylate (medical grade superglue) and two 5" screws across the split, one from above and one from below angled to cross over inside the grip. The stock now seems to be as strong as it ever was though not as pretty

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[Deleted member 408]

EXCELLENT start mate.... steady away... and IF you need owt making or machining up.. your just over t'ill.. your welcome to pop over and lets see what we can do fer ya....

 

[Bluetoe]

A good rub with P80 grit abrasive left the moderator smooth enough for the application of some black vinyl I had lying about, the grub screw hole and thread have been destroyed so will need to drill and retap to a bigger size, which I suppose I should have done before putting the vinyl on

EXCELLENT start mate.... steady away... and IF you need owt making or machining up.. your just over t'ill.. your welcome to pop over and lets see what we can do fer ya....

Thank you for that mate, I'm certainly not confident about straightening the barrel so watch this space

 

[Daniel Fait]

Well done mate, very worthwhile project, can’t wait to see the finished result

 

[Deleted member 408]

A good rub with P80 grit abrasive left the moderator smooth enough for the application of some black vinyl I had lying about, the grub screw hole and thread have been destroyed so will need to drill and retap to a bigger size, which I suppose I should have done before putting the vinyl on
View attachment 120339

Thank you for that mate, I'm certainly not confident about straightening the barrel so watch this space

Thank you for that mate, I'm certainly not confident about straightening the barrel so watch this space

Pop over... lets see if we can help you with that..

 

[1260engineer]

A good rub with P80 grit abrasive left the moderator smooth enough for the application of some black vinyl I had lying about, the grub screw hole and thread have been destroyed so will need to drill and retap to a bigger size, which I suppose I should have done before putting the vinyl on
View attachment 120339

Thank you for that mate, I'm certainly not confident about straightening the barrel so watch this space

Dont let Hali touch it . it will look like new

 

[Figgy]

Looking forward to more updated on the progress and finished product

 

[Deleted member 408]

Dont let Hali touch it . it will look like new

Thanks 1260..... in fact.. YOU gave me an idea which I am on with as we speak.. Watch the What have you made section soon!!!

 

[1260engineer]

Thanks 1260..... in fact.. YOU gave me an idea which I am on with as we speak.. Watch the What have you made section soon!!!

I will do mate Ive got to get a move on in my own workshop . been bizzy at work covering others off sick and lazy

 

[Bluetoe]

Pop over... lets see if we can help you with that..

Thanks Hal, there's no mad rush so whenever suits you, would after the festivities be best?

 

[Bluetoe]

In the meantime, for those few forum members who may never have seen a Theoben gas ram rifle "in the flesh" and are wondering what the fuss was about. It was much more than just the innovative gas ram, the attention to detail was excellent and included good quality retaining pins with C-form circlips for the trigger components and a hefty hex head breech pivot bolt with locking grub screw.

Another innovation was the fixed scope mount which did away with the need for arrestor blocks or pins, the downside, on the ones I've owned at least, is that the scope rings would only take 1" tubed scopes and with only 2 screw caps although the mount could never creep the scope could.

 

[Deleted member 408]

Thanks Hal, there's no mad rush so whenever suits you, would after the festivities be best?

PM me with you mobile mate and we shall sort summat out...

 

[Bluetoe]

PM me with you mobile mate and we shall sort summat out...

Done

 

[Bluetoe]

This next bit may be a case of "teaching grandmother to suck eggs" to many forum members but for the benefit of anyone who doesn't know about this here goes.
As the chequering on the grip had been ruined I removed it all using a Dremel type tool with a sanding attachment, once smooth I decided to stipple the whole area as on some target rifles, this both helps to disguise the cracks and also provides better grip.
Stippling simply means covering the area in question with dimple marks similar to on a golf ball, I used the same tool fitted with the bit below, I'm not sure what it is called but it does an acceptable job of stippling. I found holding the tool between 30-45 degrees gave the best results.

I stained the area to be worked on with a cheap furniture repair marker to make it easier to see progress, I also applied the same marker over the stippling to spot any missed areas. The beauty of stippling is that it is reasonably quick, the side shown below took about half an hour, and doesn't depend on super neatness to be effective.

 

[Bluetoe]

Finished stippling and given the stock a touch of colour and a coat of wax polish, it's not great but it'll do for now.

That's the easy part done.

 

[1260engineer]

 

[Cambelski]

It's nice to see anoth theoben been put back into fighting action

 

[Bluetoe]

Well it's been a while but with many thanks to @deleted member progress has been made

Before:


After:

The barrel is not only straight but also recrowned and screwcut for a moderator.
Hal also made a dished breech washer to replace the missing one.

Next job is to strip the action, clean up the damaged cocking slot and clean and polish the internal parts.

 

[ukzero1]

That looks a really nice project. Well done.

 

[Dan giliballs]

Coming along nicely is that