N/A Barrel Droop

[Twiceshy]

Hello everyone

Just a question, can barrel droop be checked with a straight edge? I have access to a straight edge used to check cylinder heads for warp/flatness and am wondering if I could check barrels that way?

Thanks for your thoughts.

 

[Hateful McNasty]

Put barrel in the crook of a tree and bend it a bit. Don't get too overzealous bending it upwards, bending it back down is difficult if you go too far. Others have made jigs that basically do the same thing in a vice.

This guy got it going on .

View attachment 591035

Heres a post with necd bender

Droop Barrel - Airguns & Guns Forum

Droop Barrel, Air guns, Airgun Forum

www.gatewaytoairguns.org

Youd think you could edit a reply in that did not reply

 

[Twiceshy]

Youd think you could edit a reply in that did not reply

That fixture looks like a winner, will have to keep that in the back of my mind. For when I find a used springer to tinker with . Thanks

 

[marflow 777]

so is barrel droop a myth not if you own a Diana 48-52-54
so here is a little reading

Airgun barrel droop is when a airgun barrel points downward relative to the airgun's receiver, meaning the barrel's axis is not parallel to the line of the scope. This misalignment requires the scope's vertical adjustment to be near its highest setting to aim at a target, which can exceed a scope's effective range and result in shots that are consistently low. While the name suggests the barrel is bent, droop is a condition of a straight barrel that is not mounted perfectly parallel to the receiver.
Why barrel droop is a problem:

• Scope adjustment issues:Scopes have a limited range of vertical adjustment, typically functioning best when the adjustment is not near its maximum.
• Inconsistent point of impact:The barrel points downward, so the point of aim ( POA) and the point of impact (POI) are not aligned, causing the shooter to hit low.
• Reduced accuracy:A severely drooping barrel can make it impossible to get on target, even with a properly adjusted scope, leading to missed shots.

How to compensate for barrel droop:

• Shimminglacing shims (thin pieces of material) in the rear scope ring can angle the scope downward to better align with the barrel.
• Adjustable scope mounts:More advanced adjustable scope mounts can provide a greater downward angle than shims alone.
• Bending the barrel:A more drastic measure, bending the barrel can sometimes align it with the receiver, though it is not recommended for all types of airguns and can be risky.
• Using open sights:If the droop is too severe to compensate for with a scope, open sights that are mounted on the barrel itself will move with the barrel, maintaining a consistent sight radius and POI.

 

[Mycapt65]

Shimminglacing shims (thin pieces of material) in the rear scope ring can angle the scope downward to better align with the barrel

This is not a good method. Shims flex the scope. All it does is raise one end while the other holds the end lower but still parallel to the to the higher one. It sort of puts an S in the scope tube. Shims can also cause scopes to oval. Burris makes signature rings that have eccentric shims to align scope without bending it. They're excellent. I'm not sure they have anything that would work for springers directly.

A tilted or adjustable scope mount or bending the barrel are the safest methods for your scope.

 

[Frank in Fairfield]

Hello everyone

Just a question, can barrel droop be checked with a straight edge? I have access to a straight edge used to check cylinder heads for warp/flatness and am wondering if I could check barrels that way?

Thanks for your thoughts.

Yes and a bubble level.

 

[jps2486]

You must be new to these.View attachment 591001
View attachment 591002
Barrel droop is real. So is barrel sweep View attachment 591003
View attachment 591004
I fix stuff like this on Weihrauchs all the time. Dianas are worse.

That's disgusting. How can quality control be so piss poor these days? All these parts are CNC machined and assembled on jigs. There's no excuse for this kind of stuff.

 

[Mycapt65]

All these parts are CNC machined and assembled on jigs.

You'd think so but not necessarily so. If this bothers you I could show you pictures that would really freak you out. At least the barrel angle is fixable.

 

[3Crows]

Would droop matter much if we could mount the optic forward on the barrel rather than the spring tube?

Do not most springers have droop and barrels not in alignment with the spring tube? And having measured a few using a dial indicator, I do not see them coming back to the exact same lock. Thus my desire to move the optic to the barrel with a pistol scope or long eye relief scope. And is not this why most springers come with the iron sights on the barrel? Or just keep the useful range around 10 yards or so and then it matters not too much.

 

[Hateful McNasty]

Would droop matter much if we could mount the optic forward on the barrel rather than the spring tube?

Do not most springers have droop and barrels not in alignment with the spring tube? And having measured a few using a dial indicator, I do not see them coming back to the exact same lock. Thus my desire to move the optic to the barrel with a pistol scope or long eye relief scope. And is not this why most springers come with the iron sights on the barrel? Or just keep the useful range around 10 yards or so and then it matters not too much.

I don't guess if using irons or your scope dont run out of elevation adjustment / clicks . As long as your guns droop is in them bounds your good . When you max out adjustment and your still in need of more then it's s problem.

If you buy new and get a gun and you feel its too much you just rma it back . with today's prices im going to be more picky . I was picky before but now ..lol

It did seem after covid hw was having supply/ production problems they looked to me from forum postings a rash of guns with droop that you really never hardly seen prior . So ? Bad q.c? .

 

[JW.]

It is not uncommon for the bore to not be concentric with the OD of the barrel, this is why set up for barrel work on a lathe is such a tedious process, you need a spider clamp on the out feed side of the chuck so you can line up the bore independent of the OD.

 

[JW.]

Put barrel in the crook of a tree and bend it a bit. Don't get too overzealous bending it upwards, bending it back down is difficult if you go too far. Others have made jigs that basically do the same thing in a vice.

Just make sure you are bending the barrel and not the joints that connect the barrel to the action (on a springer of course). Which could also be part of the issue, that hinge joint could be bad and causing the misalignment in both directions. I would start there and verify everything is correct before I went and bent things.

 

[Mycapt65]

On many springers, you can adjust droop by tweaking the breech seal. Dianas typically use an O-ring with thin shims underneath which can be added or removed. The tight-fitting HW seals may not seat fully, and can have a small air relief groove cut in the side, or be trimmed at the inner face. Worth a look before bending the barrel anyhow.

Breech seals can cause droop if they're are too thick. Breech seals don't wear but they will compress with time. Barrel lock up should strictly be determined by a metal stop. Breech seals are made of compressible materials so they can fit to fill the gap tightly without impeding full metal to metal lockup. Breech seals that are too thick or too hard will hold a gun off lock up and cause droop.

Hw30s are prone to inconsistent lock up when new because the breech seals haven't compressed enough yet. This is a common occurrence with them when new. People often blame the ball detent design or complain how fussy they are with pivot bolt tension. With some shooting the breech seal will smooosh to the right size and lock up will be consistent. I wrote a whole big thing about Hw30 lock up issues to educate people.

Factory breech seals are the best to use in Weihrauchs. They may start slightly too thick but will flatten to the right size with use. They have the correct durometer to seal the gap without impeding lock up. I've only seen one legitimately bad Weihrauch brand synthetic breech seal on a break barrel. It was 42 years old. It was rock hard and crumbled. After market breech seals are usually too hard and or too thick and will cause droop and inconsistent lock up.

Bottom line barrel droop isn't a deliberate design to accommodate breech seal wear. It's the opposite. Breech seals can cause barrel droop. Lock up should 100% be determined by metal parts. When it ain't, there's problems.

Hth
Ron