AoA Diana 430L -- Experiences

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I just spent an hour editing a post. Submitted it and the forum ate the post and promptly informed me that I needed to be logged in to make a post. I knew that. I sure wish I had been logged in. So here is a summary of that post.

I really like my new 430L. I have never made such a fortunate purchase in all my years of shooting air rifles. This is one sweet lady. By the way, the checkering is cut, not pressed.

1579486262_952277725e250c36e82038.83840805_430-1.jpg


And she shoots. 😉 The groups on this target average .409" (1.56 moa) for the H&N FTTs and .300" (1.15 moa) for the JSB Exact Heavies. Those are CONSIDERABLY smaller than a dime. Groups were shot at 25 yards. Wind was as shown on the target. I shot five other pellets and only one of them did not exhibit similar accuracy but these two were the best. The rifle has less than 200 shots through it. I can't wait to see what it will do after a tin or two.

1579486409_5886986405e250cc96b4cd7.38525966_target-2.jpg


Sorry I lost that post folks. Next time I'll double check my sign-in status before I compose a post.
 
I just spent an hour editing a post. Submitted it and the forum ate the post and promptly informed me that I needed to be logged in to make a post. I knew that. I sure wish I had been logged in. So here is a summary of that post.

I really like my new 430L. I have never made such a fortunate purchase in all my years of shooting air rifles. This is one sweet lady. By the way, the checkering is cut, not pressed.

1579486262_952277725e250c36e82038.83840805_430-1.jpg


And she shoots. 😉 The groups on this target average .409" (1.56 moa) for the H&N FTTs and .300" (1.15 moa) for the JSB Exact Heavies. Those are CONSIDERABLY smaller than a dime. Groups were shot at 25 yards. Wind was as shown on the target. I shot five other pellets and only one of them did not exhibit the same level of accuracy. The rifle has less than 200 shots through it. I can't wait to see what it will do after a tin or two.

1579486409_5886986405e250cc96b4cd7.38525966_target-2.jpg


Sorry I lost that post folks. Next time I'll double check my sign-in status before I compose a post.
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I recently received one also and am very happy with fit and finish. Haven't shot it yet other than function testing inside. I worked the trigger down to where I wanted it and cleaned everything up. Actually took very little as it was quite nice as received. Cocking, as some have noted, is noticeable but not at all a problem. Yours is certainly shooting very well and, having another Diana rifle, I fully expect similar performance-they seem to be well made. Enjoy it.
 
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It was my first springer, I laughed after trying to get it to fire for an hour. Didn't realize I had not fully cocked it. The safety must be over ridden and then it clicks in. I loved shooting it, and now I have so many more to shoot. I must say I'm not able to get 25 yards out of my basement, so I will have to wait until spring to see what I can do. Enjoy the lady. 
 
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Hey Oldspook, just a quick tip on creating posts/threads that I find helpfull.

Once you are finished typing up a lengthy post and before pressing the SUBMIT button press the keys Crtl+A to select all of the text in the post box that you just typed and then press the keys Crtl+C to copy all of it to the clipboard as a backup because sometimes webpages or forum software can have hiccups of their own that can cause you to loose all that you type because it never actually uploaded your post which can leave you a little miff'd.

If that does happen all you need to do is start a new post and click inside the text box and press the keys Crtl+V to instantly past all of your text back into the box and try submitting again. Of course this assumes you are creating the post on a windows pc.

I am not sure how familiar your are with these keyboard shortcuts but thought you may find them helpful.
 
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This is an accurate 12 fpe rifle with Very good build quality,good looks and an Awesome trigger. As I had stated previously,it was a little "crunchy" out of the box but after adding some grease from Tom at Vortek,it's coming along nicely.

My only complaint is that the breech seems a bit on the loose side so care must be taken to insure the pellet doesn't fall out while cocking.

Mine was free of "buzz/twang" straight from the get go. Nice! 

For $150,this rifle is a Steal! 

Sooo... That's my take on the whole deal.

Mike
 
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This is an accurate 12 fpe rifle with Very good build quality,good looks and an Awesome trigger. As I had stated previously,it was a little "crunchy" out of the box but after adding some grease from Tom at Vortek,it's coming along nicely.

My only complaint is that the breech seems a bit on the loose side so care must be taken to insure the pellet doesn't fall out while cocking.

Mine was free of "buzz/twang" straight from the get go. Nice! 

For $150,this rifle is a Steal! 

Sooo... That's my take on the whole deal.

Mike
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Agree totally. I didn't need a rifle in that power range but the quality for cost made it too good to pass up.
 
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I've only shot the Diana 430L just enough to sight in the scope at 20 yards and after shooting about 30 pellets, my right arm is feeling the burn. I could probably spot another 430L shooter a mile away.

1579535582_13191094655e25ccde6e7e91.93708418_uneven-muscles.jpg
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That just isn't my observation. I suppose it is about perception. If I pick up this 430 after a session with the Model 48 or the D460 it feels really easy. If I pick up the rifle after a session with the Model 36 or the BSA GRT it feels a bit heavy. It really isn't hard to cock though.
 
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I've only shot the Diana 430L just enough to sight in the scope at 20 yards and after shooting about 30 pellets, my right arm is feeling the burn. I could probably spot another 430L shooter a mile away.

1579535582_13191094655e25ccde6e7e91.93708418_uneven-muscles.jpg
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That just isn't my observation. I suppose it is about perception. If I pick up this 430 after a session with the Model 48 or the D460 it feels really easy. If I pick up the rifle after a session with the Model 36 or the BSA GRT it feels a bit heavy. It really isn't hard to cock though.
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Same here-cocking is not an issue for me. Really cold here but went out long enough to rough zero it. Shot well with both 7.9 Crosmans (dime size) and excellent with AA Falcons (ragged hole) at 20 yards so typical Diana accuracy seems to be there. The lead is loose as has been noted-several pellets fell out so hold it level to load or watch closely. 1 pellet didn't fall through and got hung up in the mechanism so it is something to watch for. For the price, surely hard to beat if one needs a lower power springer.








 
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We can’t get these airrifles in Australia as they are not listed on the importers stock list, and I haven’t seen any advertised. It seems that you lot over the pond are buying them all👍. All the feedback reads that these are very good airrifles especially at the price you guys are paying for them.

Oldspook I know they are different beauties but how does it compare to your BSA GRT.

Gary
 
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We can’t get these airrifles in Australia as they are not listed on the importers stock list, and I haven’t seen any advertised. It seems that you lot over the pond are buying them all👍. All the feedback reads that these are very good airrifles especially at the price you guys are paying for them.

Oldspook I know they are different beauties but how does it compare to your BSA GRT.

Gary
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You know that is an interesting question. That BSA has probably got the best shot cycle of all of my springers, even the Model 36. That GRT is just a very solid thunk. I think that rifle is as accurate as this little .177 but the .25 cal is harder to shoot well out there at 35 yards and a little further. The GRT delivers a bit more energy than this rifle as well. Mine is shooting at about 16 FPE give or take a bit depending on the pellet. The GRT is so smooth that I keep wanting to spend the money on another one in .177 or .22. I think one of those in .22 would just about be perfect for squirrel hunting around here. But I have already got two tuned Diana .22 rifles and they are very accurate as well.

Fit and finish on both rifles is very nice, as you would expect from rifles built in the EU. If I had to carry one of the two on a day long hunt, the Diana would likely stay home. The BSA Lightning is quite a bit lighter, more compact, cocks easier and shoots about as good. When that big old .25 pellet smacks a squirrel every bit of that energy gets dumped into the critter. You know that .177 is going to pass right on through. I've only taken a few squirrels with the .25 and I have never had a pass through.

The trigger on the Diana is the better of the two by a wide margin BUT the one on the BSA is certainly better than adequate. It is hunting rifle with a good solid hunting trigger. The Diana is heavy. It is a very accurate rifle with a superb trigger and would serve well as a stand hunter's weapon but you are not going to want to walk all day with nine pounds of rifle and optic.

I really like both of them but I would give the nod to a BSA GRT in .22 if I was going to sit it beside the door and grab it on my way out to hunt whereas I'd go with the Diana if I wanted to spend some quality time shooting tiny little holes in paper or stand hunting OR ratting in a barn or out buildings.
 
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Thankyou for your thoughts on these two rifles. If you recall I have been thinking about buying the BSA. I have a 22 cal Benjamin Trail that is excellent for what I use it for In fact I shot that rifle in the 100 yard golf ball challenge. Hit the ball on the second shot, accuracy or luck but when sighting it in for that distance I managed to get several pellets in a one inch circle. I won third prize but as I live in Australia Dustin from Airgun Depot couldn’t ship it to me. Long winded I know but I might trade it on a new BSA in 22 cal.

Thanks again for your comparison.

Gary
 
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This will probably be the last post in this thread for a while. I took the 430L to the bench again today. I shot 21 shots. One shot to check zero and 4 five shot groups. The average group size CtC was 0.31 inches at 25 yards. That is smaller than two pellets across (0.354"). This rifle is currently limited by the optic. It will shoot better than the optic on it.

1580158282_5221856375e2f4d4a89be45.22922195_looks-good.jpg


1580158296_2163210975e2f4d58d2e833.31927847_20-shots.jpg


Had some obvious fliers. That was wind. The largest group was 0.6 ctc. A dime is 0.705 inches. Sure am glad I bought this rifle.
 
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