Proper Care of Air Guns

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Ignoring the proper cleaning and lubricating techniques of todays modern high power spring-piston air guns can lead to wear, power and accuracy loss, and ultimately a repair bill. Improper lubrication can cause damage to the gun and possible injury to the shooter and bystanders. Understanding the principles will both prolong the life of good air guns and increase shooting enjoyment.

The compression chamber of air guns is that portion of the receiver where actual air compression takes place when the piston moves forward upon pulling the trigger. The piston seal must remain lubricated to reduce friction, create the best air seal and prevent seal wear. To prevent destructive 'dieseling', ONLY high flash point lubricants should be used. This means that almost all petroleum based lubes and synthetics used in regular firearms and pneumatic air guns. They will cause detonation (dieseling) that can possibly damage air guns and injure the shooter or other bystanders. Only specialized synthetic and organic oils carefully selected for high flash point, proper viscosity and purity should used. Over lubrication is very common and is harmful also. Use literally only one or two drops of air chamber lube (using an oiling needle never used for any other purpose) every 4,000 to 5,000 rounds, or each 6-12 months. As always, you should follow the manufacturers recommendations.

Air gun mainsprings are the storehouses of energy the shooter provides by cocking the airgun. To expand smoothly with as little friction and vibration as possible, the mainspring should be lubricated regularly. The mainspring is housed in the spring cylinder, which is a polished cylinder containing the piston, the mainspring, and the spring guide shaft. All metal mainsprings eventually have some cant; therefore, the polish and lubrication of all surfaces here is critical for best performance. Velocity and smoothness can be somewhat increased by simple, but careful, treatment. Apply 2 or 3 drops of Spring Oil via an oiling needle through the long slot in the receiver which is exposed through the cocking rod slot in the stock or the stock may be removed if necessary. The spring oil should be applied to the mainspring of all recoiling spring-piston air guns about every 3000 pellets or every six months. Beeman Metal-2-Metal Paste can be used for the excellent lubrication value of its moly; it provides dry lubrication and smoothes the metal. It is of special value when burnished onto a clean mainspring and onto the inside walls of the spring cylinder after disassembly and cleaning by those skilled in servicing air guns.

Cocking lever linkages of modern spring-piston air guns receive considerable pressure. Proper lubrication insures smooth operation and minimum wear. Moly Paste is also useful in those areas.

Barrel pivot points and detents benefit from regular lubrication with either Ultra Lube or a light polarizing oil. Remember, do not over-oil, and keep low flash point oils away from air vents and breech seals of all spring piston air guns. Moly is good here.

Trigger mechanisms in spring-piston air guns vary from the simple two moving parts of economy models to the beautifully engineered complexity of the Feinwerkbau Match Rifles. In most cases molybdenum disulphide lubricants should not be used on trigger mechanisms. Triggers and sears on less expensive rifles and pistols benefit from very sparing application of B30 White Lube Paste 9200.

Bore cleaning is not necessary to prevent most rust; however, it is essential to good accuracy in air guns. Use Cleaner/Degreaser designed for air guns. Accuracy suffers badly due to caked grease residues blown into the bore from the compression chamber and from leading of the pellets. Most accuracy complaints are the result of dirty bores, even though they may look clean! For storage, clean the bore and leave it with a light coating of MP-5 polarizing oil 9205. After cleaning with Beeman Cleaner/Degreaser (do NOT use regular firearm bore cleaners as they may injure seals and cause dieseling), follow with dry patches until no trace of oil is seen. A few regular or airgun cleaning pellets will have to be shot through a cleaned barrel before it can be expected to return to its "zero".

Exterior surfaces should be regularly wiped with a Beeman Silicone Cloth 9400 to maintain the quality of the finish. Before any air guns are stored they should be given a good wiping with a very high-grade polarizing oil such as Beeman MP-5.

Use only high quality Beeman pellets to avoid harmful oils, abrasive material and gun-wrecking air blow-by. Precision adult air guns are intended for use only with lead shot or pellets; steel shot or darts generally injure rifled bores. Properly seated pellets should not show rubmarks on rear of skirt if breech is reopened prior to firing. Damaged, used, or unauthorized projectiles may be unsafe. Plastic jacketed projectiles may cause dangerous ricochet, excessive piston impact and excessive penetration.