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Alstone · Moderator & Site Supporter

From your photos Slavia it looks as though the tapered plug has worn its way to far into the plug body, and I don't think the bit you filed off was the problem, it you hold the plug in line it will leak, so it must be wear.

You could try getting the plug metal sprayed, only a few thou, then using some valve grinding paste re grind it back into the body until it lines up with the hole in the barrel, you may also have to run a drill through the plug to clear any spray in there.

Apart from that problem you have made a nice job of the Hakim. Thumb Up!

Have Fun

Al

Slavia · Moderator

Slavia · Moderator

Since the loading tap is pending, I decided to make a trip down to Charlie's Hardware and work on the barrel/stock band and sling mount. In all the photos I've found on the net, not one has a closeup of this part - so I was on my own. It has to clamp the band, it has to hold a sling, but it doesn't have to be QD because the rear already is. Here's what I came up with:

Slavia · Moderator

Went to work last night and my source for the Hakim (also a coworker) gave me these. He said to try them; one might fit.

I'm amazed. The gun was made 54 years ago in Germany for one customer (the Egyptian army). 2800 were made. And this gunsmith in rural Minnesota has seven taps in his junk drawer.

broommaster2000 · Moderator

Well, that's pretty awesome.

By the way, does this rifle shoot 4.4 balls, or real genuine airgun pellets.

I was shooting a Haenel 311 which was also a tap loader, but it used the same cocking mechanism as a 310.

Slavia · Moderator

It shoots .22 pellets. I've read elsewhere that pointed pellets work best, probably because the sloped head leads the pellet into the bore better than WC or RN pellets. That's my guess, anyway.

broommaster2000 · Moderator

Interesting. I see a some of K-98't Haenels coming by on the dutch forum, but they usually are fabricated from K98 stocks with Haenel actions fitted to them. They fit reasonable, so it seems.

Other interesting training rifles are the Haenel 33 Sport Modell, VZ 35, VZ 47 and some more of those kind of rifles.

The VZ 35/47 being one of the nicest ones:

VZ 35

VZ47

Haenel 33

Wish I owned one of these...

Slavia · Moderator

Well, I've got a gun that actually shoots. One of the replacement taps worked pretty well, and the pellets don't look damaged (like they would if they were hanging up on the breech end of the bore). But it only shoots at 310 FPS - I've read that 450FPS -475FPS is more usual for this gun.

I de-burred and polished everything. The bore and compression tube were clean when I lubed it. I used Maccari moly, covering all the swept surfaces sparingly (covered, but no big goobers). The seal slid in with only light pressure on the piston, about the same resistance as when the old one came out. The firing cycle is very smooth - just slow.

What would you say? Perhaps:

1. "Slavia, it's a 54 year-old gun that came in a Cool Whip tub. You're lucky to have it shoot at all, so relax and enjoy it the way it is."

Or maybe:

2. "Keep shooting - it will loosen up."

Or :

3. "The new seal is too tight. Go back inside and tune it."

Any thoughts?

The pellet was captured in Charmin ballistic medium.

Slavia · Moderator

Accuracy isn't too bad. This is at 10 meters, supported, open sights, RWS Superpoints. It should get better when I try it with the stock assembled. It's a little hard to hold just the action steady.

broommaster2000 · Moderator

Did you try domes?

Slavia · Moderator

Yeah, but my trigger finger gets stiff from the cold.

Slavia · Moderator

Oh wait, you meant the pellets.

RWS Superdome (domed) = 340 FPS
Beeman Kodiak (very heavy domed) = 140 FPS
RWS Superpoint (pointed) = 310 FPS
Daisy Maxspeed (pointed) = 340 FPS
RWS Meisterkugeln (flat) = 320 FPS

Since they are all roughly similar (or explainable due to weight) I'm thinking it has more to do with the energy available from the powerplant than pellet-to-gun "fit."

Words of wisdom?

Slavia · Moderator

So I took the thing back apart, and looked down the compression tube at the port and tap. The tap looked fine side-to-side, but looked like it could move a little farther past the fully-closed position to be centered vertically. Three light strokes with a file on the limit stop cured that (see photo). I also took a little off the piston seal, and added a washer (for a total of two) against the spring. Each thing contributed incrementally, so now it's shooting at 390 FPS.

It shoots, where it didn't before. It is smooth, and has a nice trigger. This may be where I say "good enough."

Slavia · Moderator

Another setback! I had the stock resting on my workbench, on top of a piece of carpeting so nothing would fall on the floor. Then one day I find the thing on the cement floor, all scratched up. I suspect the dog - he thinks anything not nailed down is a chew toy. So I stripped, sanded, stained, and refinished. Again.

I left the front sight area for last, given that the rifle is slower than normal and the rear sight is a replacement. As it turns out, the rear sight has enough adjustment so the gun will zero at 25 yards without surgery.

The five shot group is from a rest, in a 10-15 mph crosswind, taken at 25 yards with open sights. (The square is 1".) I also found a plinking target worthy of the Hakim's Egyptian heritage (just the photograph - I don't have the cans).

According to the scale down at Charlie's Hardware it weighs 10 pounds, 12 ounces.

The end.