A copy beats the original?

[Grant Lamontagne]

My father is at a point in his life where he's downsizing and so he's clearing out some of his belongings that he no longer has need of.  I got a few awesome things from him, and here's the first of stuff I am going to share- a Crosman Mk 1 .22 air pistol.



Rather than bore you all with details like I usually do about the specs and history of a piece like this I'll just post a few links to where you can find some of the cool pedigree of this air gun.  In short though, this air pistol was based on an actual firearm- the Ruger Mark 1.  It has been widely observed that the Crosman is more comfortable and more accurate than the Ruger, meaning this is one time the copy beats the original. 



Here's some more info:

http://my.tbaytel.net/coopers/CrosMkI/review.html

http://www.pyramydair.com/blog/2010/08/the-crosman-mark-i-and-mark-ii-part-1/

These were just some quick photos taken with my cell phone so don't persecute me for crappy pics. 





I remember playing with this as a kid- when no one was looking of course!     I've always loved this gun and now it's all mine.  I haven't shot it yet because the seals are old and degraded, but I've ordered new seals and as soon as they get here I'll have some real fun!



The first accessory I bought for it was this nice pistol case.  This gun has moved across the country many times, gone camping many times and I don't think it has ever been in a case, box or holster, so the shape that it's in is simply amazing.

I am giddy as a school girl waiting for the new seals. 

Def

[kirk13]

   

[Grant Lamontagne]

 

My thoughts exactly!

A lot of these that you see are beat to hell or modified but this one is all original- testament to how well it was made.  It's been through a lot, but you'd never guess that it's at least 40 years old from the condition it's in.

The only thing wrong with this one (other than the seals) is the cocking bolt is missing a knob on one side.  A good one of these runs all of about $100 so they are quite easy to get a hold of, if you can find one.  Since they were so popular there are a lot out there, and a lot of parts, so if you find a beat up one at a yard sale/flea market/car boot sale then grab it. 

Def

[hawkchucker]

That my friend is a fantastic piece to own.  I loved 22 Cal. It hits hard

[kirk13]

That my friend is a fantastic piece to own.  I loved 22 Cal. It hits hard

Hawkchucker!

Where you been? Good to see you!

[Grant Lamontagne]

That my friend is a fantastic piece to own.  I loved 22 Cal. It hits hard

This is a very cool gun to own in it's own right. 

I remember my father target shooting with this when I was barely old enough to go up and down stairs by myself.  I remember him shooting the boxes that our old Battlestar Galactica (the original!) toys came in. 

I can't wait for the seal kit to come in so I can fix it up and go out shooting.

Def

[sawman]

I love .22 cal. That's got to be so much fun to shoot. Congratz on your new toy 

[Mr. Whippy]

That's cool!  I'm going to have to post pics of the Ruger Mk1 I got from my father!

[Grant Lamontagne]

One of these days we'll have to get together and shoot the two of them side by side and see which one truly is superior!

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

I finally have an update on this thread.  I know it's late, but it wasn't by choice.

The seal kit came in shortly after I ordered it but after years of bouncing around I couldn't take the gun apart and had to enlist the aid of a local air smith.  He did a good job, but it took forever for him to get around to it, then I had to wait for him to get the right tools to take it apart, then I had to wait for him to get help from a friend, then I had to wait for a couple of replacement parts (Thanks to Felinevet for helping with that!) and then I had to wait for something else and something else and something else.



Finally last week I got it back after the better part of a year's wait.  The next problem was getting a chance to play with it.  Luckily I was working out of town the last few days and there were a few opportunities for a little bit of impromptu shooting.  Being impromptu, I didn't have a lot of selection for targets, so I opted for this:



I figured I wouldn't get more than a shot or two at it before it completely shattered, but the rain was coming down so I figured I wasn't likely to get too many shots anyway.  Still, I really, really wanted to shoot this gun and I wasn't going to let a little thing like rain stop me.



The result is that the fine folks at Tic Tac are apparently using a different plastic than they did a few years ago, so I got a few good holes in it but no shattering.   



Some good exit wounds though! 

I love the feel of this gun.  It feels and shoots so much like an actual firearm yet without quite as many legal hangups.  Judging by the kick and the sound on impact this thing hits like a tank.  On top of this being my father's gun, I really do enjoy it in in it's own right. 

Def

[MadPlumbarian]

Oh cool, that's a nice piece! JR

[zoidberg]

Sweeeet.         

[Grant Lamontagne]

Thanks everyone.  I actually like this pistol so much I am meeting a guy tomorrow to see if I can purchase the .177 version of it as well, the Mk II.

I have heard of people hunting small game like rabbits and partridge with it, which I thought was probably at the upper range of what this can do, but after seeing the pellets hit the water in a puddle behind the target yesterday I saw just how much power there is in this thing.  I have no doubt it could take down a good sized rabbit with ease.

For an air gun, the Mk 1 is a nail driver.

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

I did it. I got the Mk II today and an air rifle too.

Pictures when I get in. 

Def

Sent from my smurfing hunk of techno sorcery

[Syph007]

Thanks everyone.  I actually like this pistol so much I am meeting a guy tomorrow to see if I can purchase the .177 version of it as well, the Mk II.

I have heard of people hunting small game like rabbits and partridge with it, which I thought was probably at the upper range of what this can do, but after seeing the pellets hit the water in a puddle behind the target yesterday I saw just how much power there is in this thing.  I have no doubt it could take down a good sized rabbit with ease.

For an air gun, the Mk 1 is a nail driver.

Def

I took out many partridge with my daisy .177 BB gun back in the day, so a .22 should do fine.  Headshots of course though. 

[Grant Lamontagne]

Sorry for the crappy photos, but here's both guns together:



The Mk II is the black handled one on top and the Mk I is the brown handled one below.  Other than some paint chipping and needing new seals the gun is in very good shape.





I also picked this one up- it's a .177 Pioneer break open pellet rifle.



Apparently these are pretty horrid, but for $30 I decided to give it a shot.



Hopefully I'll have a chance to play with it soon and report back.

Def

[derekmac]

Those look great!

Sent from my Galaxy Mega.

[jerseydevil]

Very cool boss.    Those pistols have the classic lines of the Ruger, High Standard, or Colt Woodsman. 

[Whoey]

The pioneer break looks ALOT like the one I had growing up... I later got a crosman m-16 replica which while neat, and having a massive BB storage was not as efficient for shooting darts as the break. The mini magazine for pellets was fine though

[Grant Lamontagne]

Very cool boss.    Those pistols have the classic lines of the Ruger, High Standard, or Colt Woodsman.

They are copies of the Ruger which would explain the similar look.  Crosman copied the design then made a few changes such as the thumb ramp and ended up making the guns more accurate and comfortable to shoot than the Ruger.

Def

Sent from my smurfing hunk of techno sorcery

[kirk13]

Boss,is there any chance of some more pictures of the rifle? In particularly the receiver and the breach/hinge?

[Grant Lamontagne]

There's a very good chance.  I'll see what I can come up with for you.

I fired a few rounds through it earlier today- it's not too bad.  Almost eight out of every ten pellets comes out the end!   

Def

[Whoey]

https://www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/84890-red-ryder-guns-and-ammo