This was written back in April but I had it labeled wrong so not many people read it. I have added on to it.
After being here a few weeks I noted that several members said that they had called certain manufactures about air rifles and had gotten good deals. Well I took the plunge. Just on a whim I tried it. It’s not the gun I wanted, or thought I wanted, but I did it anyways.
What I received was a wonderful air rifle at a steal. I am now one of those guys that you hear about that got the deal of a life time.
Let me welcome you to my RWS 34 Meisterschutze pro.
It came double boxed. The RWS box however wasn’t even taped closed. How rude! Even if it is a demo model, please show that you care about your customers.
Minimal packing material, but it seems to do the job. However, I did hear something rattle as I took the factory box out of the shipping box.
Out of the box the Rifle shows some slight wear on the barrel, stock and compensator, but nothing to even worry about. The letter R is stamped on many places on the rifle so I guess you can’t sell it as new.
It appears that there is a new barrel seal in place. The rifle is heavy, solid feeling and front heavy, but yet steady with no wavering holding it off hand.
The finish is beautiful and will look hand rubbed in a few years. The bluing is heavy and nice except for the slight nicks in the bluing which I’m sure is just from males handling it in the store and wearing wedding rings. The barrel was clean but was hard to break open. I had to use a knee to open the barrel.
The scope was hanging out of the box when I opened the factory box but it seems ok. The mounts are RWS lock down 1-inch mounts with droop compensator. It installed well despite no real instructions.
The scope is a RWS 3-9x40AO which is my first and seemed straight forward to mount.
You can tell the mount was used by the marks on the package and how it wasn’t closed all the way.
After mounting the rail and scope I took it out side for my fist test firing. I used Gamo Hunter pellets 7.56gr. At what I thought was 10 meters. It measured out to be 36ft. Not bad for an old army guy.
As you will see in the pic, there is one flyer and this is why.
The cocking surprised me, it took more effort than I thought it should but it wasn’t hard. I think that I just didn’t want to pull on the barrel weight. The cocking was smooth and locked in with a sounding click.
I loaded a pellet and rested the rifle and took off the safety, as I sighted the target down range and took in a deep breath, my finger came to rest on the trigger and the rifle fired.! WOW was I surprised. The trigger was so light. Not at all what I’m use to.
Ok, now I know. I loaded another round, had a sight picture and fired. Was there a twang? I duno! I was just so excited, there was something though. So I fired again and again. Was it loud, any recoil…I just don’t know. Heck! I don’t even know if I hit the target. So I walked down to it and OH MY GOD! I’ve never had such a nice grouping and I don’t EVEN know what I’m doing!
Mind you I was in the ARMY for eight years and did shoot expert with the M-16, but that was back in the late 70's. I have been shooting a Daisy 120 and a Crosman 3100 this past month, but this……was wonderful, I was so excited that I had to pee!!
I shot another group which was as good as the first, but this time I did note that the pellets were coming back at me from the pellet trap. This thing hits hard…I love it! I just need to back up a bit. At 10 meters the pellets rebounded in the trap and came out the top and tore the target.
Since I started this a month or so ago I wanted a .22 cal gas ram rifle, I came close to picking the Gamo Whisper, or CSI rifle, but I didn’t want to pay $400 or $ 500 bills, so I called Umarex at 1-479-646-4210 and wanted to speak to Glen but a young man named Ryan called me back and after talking offered me this rifle at $214.00 including shipping. With scope , mount and all paper work…..no warranty though but said they would fix anything within reason if it arrived broke.
I was worried that I would be taken for a ride but I got a heck of a deal. This is one rifle that will be passed down to my grandchildren and I will enjoy shooting this for a long time.
As time passes I’ll let you know if the scope drifts or any other problems. There has be no dieseling, smoking or any other problems that others report with new rifles. There is some noise when firing, but as of yet I’m not sure what it is. I’ll know in a few days.
6-6-09
After having the rifle for a few months now Here is an update.
This thing is heavy! It weights 9 pounds with the scope. That doesn't sound like alot but holding 46 inches of rifle steady is work. So I use a bench rest. This rifle is more accurate than I am. I sent away for a pellet sampler pak in .177 from Straight Shooters.com. This rifle likes a wide assortment of lead. At 20 meters everything from Napier Hunters 7.7 gr to beeman Kodiak match 10.6 gr grouped well. Of course there were a few that didn't do well at all. Gamo Matchpoints and Gamo Tomahawks to name a few.
I decided that what grouped the best were pellets that I could buy locally. Crosman Preimer Hollow points 7.9 gr, Crosman Destroyer 7.9 gr and Gamo Hunters 7.56 gr all did a great job. However the best are the Gamo Rockets 9.6 gr.
The metal on this rifle is anodized. The compenisator has what looks like scratches on it, but its the gold from my wedding ring. The finish is that hard.
The scope mounted well and has not moved and is of good quality. The rifle came with a RWS lockdown mount with droop compensaitor. My only complaint is that the mount is to low. I have to place my head in such away that after a few shots my neck hurts and I have a bad neck to start with. So I ordered a UTG mount to solve that problem. The eye relief is also not right so I've ordered a Leapers Accushot 1-Pc Offset Mount w/1" Rings, Weaver/Picatinny Mount
Cocking the rifles has become much lighter. It shoots well from a rest but almost to heavy to free hand it. It has some spring twang and using a light hold on the rifle the recoil will cause the rifle to jump and twist to the left. Not all the time, but most of the time when I'm trying to be as accurate as possible.
It's becoming smoother and easier to handle the more I shoot it. I don't get all Bullseyes all the time. I still have a lot to learn about springer rifles, holding, sight picture and breathing etc. but getting there is where the fun is.
I don't have a chrony, I should buy one. This thing hits so hard that it has destroyed 2 Gamo pellet traps. Just knocked the crap out of them. So I got a bullet box which is a much better improvement. I can now just print a target off the internet and the normal size paper will hang just fine from the bullet box. I couldn't do that with the gamo pellet trap.
With all of this being said, I think the RWS 34 Pro is a wonderful rifle and I will hang onto it for a long time and pass it down to my grandson in the future. I'm sure it will kill most any varmit that comes along but its just to heavy for me to shoot off hand. I enjoy shooting it and it will look great in my rack but for everyday fun and pleasure I ordered a Whisper with a gas spring. I want to be able to chase tree rats without having to tell them to stop so I can bench my rifle so I can take a shot. ! LOL!!
Thanks for listening,
