Hard Air Magazine is published by Stephen Archer. It’s a free online publication that does news and reviews about everything related to airguns. Stephen has been a long-time friend of Airgun Nation and an occasional poster.
Stephen and I met up most recently at the 2018 SHOT Show in Las Vegas. I hit the record button and away we went!
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Q. Stephen, thanks for talking to us. I know you’re very busy running Hard Air Magazine.
A. Michael, it’s a pleasure! Yes, it’s true. I’m mostly a “lurker” on Airgun Nation. But I read much of what’s being said. You’ve done a great job developing this Forum!
Michael: I appreciate that! We try very hard to make Airgun Nation a safe and inclusive place for all airgunners to express their views.
______
Q. Stephen, I’ve gotta know… What is that Avatar in your profile pic?
A. It’s a steam locomotive. To be precise, it’s a steam locomotive in Poland in the main station of the city of Poznan - and I actually drove it! Ever since I was a kid, I’ve loved steam trains. For some years, I drove and fired (shoveled the coal into) steam trains running on the PKP - the Polish national railways. In fact the first train I drove had about 500 people on board and I drove it for 50 miles with 15 stops! As for firing, be prepared to shovel 2,000 Lbs of coal into this baby every hour when it’s running, in addition to doing many other tasks in your “spare” time!
______
Q. So airguns haven’t always been your only interest in life?
A. When I was a kid, my main ambitions were to drive steam trains and London double-decker buses. I’ve been fortunate to do both in my life so far. But shooting was never far behind and I’ve done plenty of that too…
______
Q. Driving double-decker buses in London huh? Of course… not everyone may know that you were born in England…
A. That’s right, I’m an Englishman and moved to the US about 25 years ago. But I still speak funny. And I spell funny sometimes, too. But that’s what computer spell checkers are for!
______
Q. So, Stephen, did you shoot air rifles back in England?
A. Surprisingly, no. I used to shoot high power military rifle a lot at Bisley ranges, out to 1,000 yards with open sights - no scopes allowed! That’s the British equivalent to Camp Perry here in the USA. I discovered airguns after I came to the USA. Compared to England, we had much more land around our house in Upstate New York, but not so much that touching-off a Lee Enfield wouldn’t upset the neighbors! So I looked for something else to shoot and discovered airguns.
______
Q. So what led you to start Hard Air Magazine?
A. Back in England, there’s at least three hard copy airgun magazines. Each one is published monthly. This means that there’s lots of information being published on airguns. Clearly in the US, there was no equivalent high-quality airgun magazine in existence. Having a background in magazine editing - among other things - I decided that the US deserved its own quality airgun magazine. I felt that the online approach was best, rather than hard copy, and so started Hard Air Magazine as an Internet publication.
______
Q. Do you think you’ll ever make Hard Air Magazine into a hard copy monthly print publication?
A. Never say never! But probably not. Publishing online means that Hard Air Magazine can be updated every day - multiple times a day, sometimes. Just like Airgun Nation, Hard Air Magazine is instant and immediate. There’s something new to read almost every day. But I do think that there’s a place for hard copy publications. I actually write every month for the UK print magazine “Airgun World” and we’ve just published the first Hard Air Magazine printed book. It’s a full-color, 25,000-word, 190+ photograph handbook for the Umarex Gauntlet air rifle. It’s called “Choosing and Using the Umarex Gauntlet” and it’s available on Amazon. How’s that for a plug!
Michael: Good one Stephen! Laughs…
______
Q. I was really impressed when I flipped through your book. Why did you choose to write a book on the Umarex Gauntlet?
A. Well, the Gauntlet has clearly created a huge amount of excitement. It’s probably a “tipping point” product in the widespread adoption of PCP air rifles. With so much performance available at such a low price, the Gauntlet is making many shooters interested in PCP airguns for the first time. They have many questions and my book aims to answer those questions and help people make the correct choice with this airgun. If they’ve already bought a Gauntlet, it advises them on how best to use their new purchase!
______
Q. So “Choosing and Using the Umarex Gauntlet” is not an official Umarex USA publication?
A. No, it’s an independent Hard Air Magazine book. Of course, Umarex provided help and support for my work, but they saw value in it being produced by Hard Air Magazine as independent endorsement and guide to their new best-selling air rifle.
______
Q. Stephen, I believe you live near the Crosman factory in New York. Is that correct?
A. Yes, Michael, that’s right. When we moved to the USA I had no idea that I would be living in one of the “airgun hubs” of this country. You see, I live less than 20 miles away from Crosman! This was a complete coincidence, but one that’s become very appropriate over the years. I know many Crosman employees and have great respect for the company and what they do.
Winter. Stephen and his wife were not used to winters like this back in England.
______
Q. As publisher of Hard Air Magazine, you probably have a good idea of what’s happening in the airgun industry. Where do you think airguns are going?
A. Well there’s no doubt that things are changing fast in the airgun world, as we can see at the 2018 SHOT Show. More and more, air rifles are becoming multi-shot and, more and more, PCPs are gaining ground over the traditional break barrel format. In my view, the trend towards PCPs will be unstoppable as soon as the cost of the associated charging equipment - pumps, compressors, tanks etc - falls in the same way that the price/performance of PCP air rifles already has. With pistols, it’s clear that fast-firing CO2-powered firearm replicas have become the big sellers. Overall, a lot more people are clearly shooting a lot more shots with airguns than was the case, say, ten years ago!
______
Michael: Stephen, it’s great to see you again! Good luck with the Gauntlet book - I’m sure it will be a great success. I’ll keep reading Hard Air Magazine and I hope we can persuade you to lurk less and post a little more on Airgun Nation!
Cheers!
Stephen and I met up most recently at the 2018 SHOT Show in Las Vegas. I hit the record button and away we went!
______
Q. Stephen, thanks for talking to us. I know you’re very busy running Hard Air Magazine.
A. Michael, it’s a pleasure! Yes, it’s true. I’m mostly a “lurker” on Airgun Nation. But I read much of what’s being said. You’ve done a great job developing this Forum!
Michael: I appreciate that! We try very hard to make Airgun Nation a safe and inclusive place for all airgunners to express their views.
______
Q. Stephen, I’ve gotta know… What is that Avatar in your profile pic?
A. It’s a steam locomotive. To be precise, it’s a steam locomotive in Poland in the main station of the city of Poznan - and I actually drove it! Ever since I was a kid, I’ve loved steam trains. For some years, I drove and fired (shoveled the coal into) steam trains running on the PKP - the Polish national railways. In fact the first train I drove had about 500 people on board and I drove it for 50 miles with 15 stops! As for firing, be prepared to shovel 2,000 Lbs of coal into this baby every hour when it’s running, in addition to doing many other tasks in your “spare” time!
______
Q. So airguns haven’t always been your only interest in life?
A. When I was a kid, my main ambitions were to drive steam trains and London double-decker buses. I’ve been fortunate to do both in my life so far. But shooting was never far behind and I’ve done plenty of that too…
______
Q. Driving double-decker buses in London huh? Of course… not everyone may know that you were born in England…
A. That’s right, I’m an Englishman and moved to the US about 25 years ago. But I still speak funny. And I spell funny sometimes, too. But that’s what computer spell checkers are for!
______
Q. So, Stephen, did you shoot air rifles back in England?
A. Surprisingly, no. I used to shoot high power military rifle a lot at Bisley ranges, out to 1,000 yards with open sights - no scopes allowed! That’s the British equivalent to Camp Perry here in the USA. I discovered airguns after I came to the USA. Compared to England, we had much more land around our house in Upstate New York, but not so much that touching-off a Lee Enfield wouldn’t upset the neighbors! So I looked for something else to shoot and discovered airguns.
______
Q. So what led you to start Hard Air Magazine?
A. Back in England, there’s at least three hard copy airgun magazines. Each one is published monthly. This means that there’s lots of information being published on airguns. Clearly in the US, there was no equivalent high-quality airgun magazine in existence. Having a background in magazine editing - among other things - I decided that the US deserved its own quality airgun magazine. I felt that the online approach was best, rather than hard copy, and so started Hard Air Magazine as an Internet publication.
______
Q. Do you think you’ll ever make Hard Air Magazine into a hard copy monthly print publication?
A. Never say never! But probably not. Publishing online means that Hard Air Magazine can be updated every day - multiple times a day, sometimes. Just like Airgun Nation, Hard Air Magazine is instant and immediate. There’s something new to read almost every day. But I do think that there’s a place for hard copy publications. I actually write every month for the UK print magazine “Airgun World” and we’ve just published the first Hard Air Magazine printed book. It’s a full-color, 25,000-word, 190+ photograph handbook for the Umarex Gauntlet air rifle. It’s called “Choosing and Using the Umarex Gauntlet” and it’s available on Amazon. How’s that for a plug!
Michael: Good one Stephen! Laughs…
______
Q. I was really impressed when I flipped through your book. Why did you choose to write a book on the Umarex Gauntlet?
A. Well, the Gauntlet has clearly created a huge amount of excitement. It’s probably a “tipping point” product in the widespread adoption of PCP air rifles. With so much performance available at such a low price, the Gauntlet is making many shooters interested in PCP airguns for the first time. They have many questions and my book aims to answer those questions and help people make the correct choice with this airgun. If they’ve already bought a Gauntlet, it advises them on how best to use their new purchase!
______
Q. So “Choosing and Using the Umarex Gauntlet” is not an official Umarex USA publication?
A. No, it’s an independent Hard Air Magazine book. Of course, Umarex provided help and support for my work, but they saw value in it being produced by Hard Air Magazine as independent endorsement and guide to their new best-selling air rifle.
______
Q. Stephen, I believe you live near the Crosman factory in New York. Is that correct?
A. Yes, Michael, that’s right. When we moved to the USA I had no idea that I would be living in one of the “airgun hubs” of this country. You see, I live less than 20 miles away from Crosman! This was a complete coincidence, but one that’s become very appropriate over the years. I know many Crosman employees and have great respect for the company and what they do.
Winter. Stephen and his wife were not used to winters like this back in England.
______
Q. As publisher of Hard Air Magazine, you probably have a good idea of what’s happening in the airgun industry. Where do you think airguns are going?
A. Well there’s no doubt that things are changing fast in the airgun world, as we can see at the 2018 SHOT Show. More and more, air rifles are becoming multi-shot and, more and more, PCPs are gaining ground over the traditional break barrel format. In my view, the trend towards PCPs will be unstoppable as soon as the cost of the associated charging equipment - pumps, compressors, tanks etc - falls in the same way that the price/performance of PCP air rifles already has. With pistols, it’s clear that fast-firing CO2-powered firearm replicas have become the big sellers. Overall, a lot more people are clearly shooting a lot more shots with airguns than was the case, say, ten years ago!
______
Michael: Stephen, it’s great to see you again! Good luck with the Gauntlet book - I’m sure it will be a great success. I’ll keep reading Hard Air Magazine and I hope we can persuade you to lurk less and post a little more on Airgun Nation!
Cheers!
