Back when this forum started and you posted pictures of your most impressive collection I was most taken with your TX-200, and we exchanged comments about it.   Well, that has stayed with me and kept gnawing at me, even though I have made the decision to only go PCP guns.  Well it finally became too much for me.   Behold:









Still very much a project gun, I just got done installing a Vortek SHO kit but I'm going to get the 12FPE kit as well if I make the commitment to try it for FT.   .177 gun, Walnut stock, trigger from heaven, Sightron SIII in a one piece BKL mount.   I admit it's fun going back to my roots, although this thing is WORLDS away from my old ARH Wishcho 55B.   Thanks for the recommendation.   Next I may have to grab a FWB 300.



 

Nice rifle.

Thanks.  Shoots great, too.  It does feel strange to go back to springers, but this is an exceptional rifle.



 

My apologies to Mrs. G

LOL,
Best way to cure that is to get her one of her own!!!

Once I get her to shoot it, she may forgive you.



 

She likes the Compact Cricket, but she is starting to warm up to it.  She says it's the prettiest air rifle I've owned, so that's a start.



 

LOL

I'll bet she ends up with fancier hardware than you in no time....

My wife took to trap and sporting clays. Her rigs put mine to shame....

Her pistol shooting was very good, but she got pregnant with our last daughter at the point just before she would have been asking for that too... Lucky break for me, and I ended up with a daughter that likes dirt bikes.

Yeah, if I really wanted to cause problems, I'd post photos of my shotguns . .  

Mine is just happy I've moved to air guns.  She still remembers my time shooting service match when I was active duty, I spent more time at the armorers shop and more money on my shooting gear and reloading equipment than I will ever spend on air rifles.   My M1A, Garand and 03 Springfield aren't getting much love these days.

 

Not to get you or me in trouble with your wife....

But I'm pretty sure some of my best air rifles cost more than anything I have spent on a match AR....

If the example of a Whizzer serves my memory, it cost double or triple what you would spend for a modern WOA and good lower. It is worth about a grand more than when I bought it, not that I would ever sell it...

So it is possible to get the stink eye from the wife for some of the airguns out there...  Mine gets even with better hardware each time... And she drives a nicer car...

I guess I should have been clearer, it isn't the money that's the problem, it's the fact that, after I stopped shooting match, I had slowed down pretty dramatically on my shooting and shooting related purchases.   Since this forum popped up, it sparked up a dormant flame in me, as the last air gun I had purchased was a BSA Supersport that I got on a whim the better part of 20 years ago, and which was never as fun as that first springer I bought from ARH back in the 70's.   All of a sudden I am beginning to fill up another safe, this time with air guns, and I'm filling up my man cave with compressors and tanks, and all sorts of arcane tools and gadgets dedicated to air gunnery.   What makes the TX purchase so egregious in her eyes is the fact that I made a long and impassioned speech about no more spring guns, I was only going to get PCP guns, and then, thanks to Bladeswitcher, here I am, buying another spring gun.   As far as a Whiscombe is concerned, yes, it's a remarkable and beautiful air gun, but it's my thinking that if I wanted to put down $5K for an investment it wouldn't be a air rifle, no matter how much of a work of art it is.   I've only got to handle one, and the owner told me he never shot it, just took it out of the safe, wiped it down, and put it away, as he was terrified he would damage it if he shot it.   I'd rather put my money into a RAW or maybe one of MAC-1's beautiful benchrest guns.   I guess that makes me a function over form guy, with the exception of that damn TX-200.




 
 

A buddy of mine has a Whiscombe with three barrels. He bought it about 25 years ago. I think he said he paid $1,100.

But does he shoot it?



 

He does shoot it some. He's certainly not afraid to shoot it and he doesn't treat it like a Faberge egg if that's what you mean.

Wayne, I've been thinking about this situation. I think maybe you should take your wife out to a nice dinner and tell her I suggested it. Maybe she wouldn't hate me so much . . .

Not to worry, I have a plan.   The weather is supposed to be nice on Saturday, I'll stake out some FT rat targets and let her have a go with it.  I'm betting she'll be be over it after that. and you won't have to go into witness protection.



Seriously, you were right.  It really is a remarkable air rifle.  Thanks for the recommendation.



 

I got lucky when I got one of the last ones he produced.

I had almost forgot when he warned me he was going to stop. I got busy working and traveling and let it slip somehow. Then I realized and gave him a ring.

It was lucky for me that the wood and parts were still there. Many folks who ordered at the end flaked out, so I was able to have my way.

A chance meeting I had to attend up near Liverpool put me close enough for a run down to visit with him. He is a retired BAE guy and I am also in the business, so we were connected in more ways than one. His place is in a beautiful part of the country, so it was an absolute pleasure to visit.

I was thinking selfishly when I wished he would keep building. I forgot he was older than me and all that hand work takes a toll on your finger joints. Once I saw him, I was very grateful he built me the gun.

I have several bbls for it but rarely swap. I love the .22 for hunting. It is a real thumper on power and a dream to shoot cause it is almost like a PCP.

I realize I am blessed to have a wife who is very understanding of this. I was started in this business very young and have many friends who were older. That meant they were further along economically and I was being exposed to things that I couldn't afford.

While raising kids, working and traveling all the time, and taking care of the rest... It takes an understanding woman to accommodate all the hobbies and interests.

Of the field capable recoil less spring guns, the Whizzer is my favorite, followed by a TX-200 SR that I was also very lucky to get. That one wasn't overseas, but I still brought it home from 3000 miles away....  The TX uses a slide action and is in .177. It takes more TLC to keep on point and more attention to slope when shooting than the Whizzer.

If you are in a position to try one or get one, I would recommend grabbing them if at all possible. Recoil less spring guns are rare but a real addiction to shoot. And... Because life can be short...

Thanks but I honestly think this will be the last spring gun, except perhaps for a FWB 300 variant, as I have warmed up to those of late.  My PCP collection continues to grow, and I enjoy working on them.  Thanks for sharing on how you got the Whiscombe, they certainly are beautiful rifles.