SUPPORT

It’s great to hear that you want to look after your guns. Our airguns will certainly soldier on for a while if they’ve been neglected, but will perform at their very best when they are being maintained to an optimal level and are being protected against rust or any other type of corrosion.

There are two potential issues with your own regime: are you carrying out any needless work, and are you doing more harm than good? It sounds like your cleaning method is thorough – but maybe a bit too much. Patching the bore or shooting felt cleaning pellets will certainly help maintain the right degree of accuracy, but it does take a few shots to re-lead a perfectly clean bore afterwards – sometimes by as many as 50 shots. Having said that, you can soon learn from experience exactly how many shots it takes for your particular barrel and pellet combination to come back on song. And your method also means you’re starting from a known baseline every time you shoot it. For most people though, cleaning a barrel after every tin of pellets is usually sufficient.

Removing a stock to make sure the gun is clean where it can’t be seen, and more importantly, isn’t gathering any trapped water or condensation is a great idea. I’ll do this to my rifles at least once a year even if they’ve only been shot at an indoor range, and will remove the stock every time the gun’s been out in the rain or particularly humid conditions.

Doing it any more than this will put some minor wear and tear on your stock screws, but more importantly you run the risk of cross-threading the screw when reassembling your gun . My own technique when screwing metal into metal (it doesn’t work as well when screwing into plastic or nylon) is to turn the screw anti-clockwise until you hear it go click as the threads engage. Then you can tighten it clockwise as usual.

As long as you’re careful not to cause any physical damage to your gun when cleaning it, the worst you’re doing is wasting your time. And even that’s a moot point if you enjoy the whole cleaning process. It’s good to spend time with your gun, and that doesn’t always have to mean time behind the trigger.

’ve always had trouble turning on the valve of my air tank when filling my PCP and today I filled my gun to 250 bar instead of the 210 it should have been. Have I damaged my rifle? Is this dangerous? A: Let’s talk about the danger aspect first. Your charging cylinder will have been filled to an absolute maximum of 300 bar by your local dive centre or gun shop. Both the charging cylinder and the air cylinder on your rifle are designed to withstand pressures far greater than this, so what you’ve done isn’t inherently dangerous.

Apart from wasting air and potentially messing up the power curve on an unregulated PCP, the only undesirable effect overfilling may have had on your gun is to put excess pressure on the seals, which can shorten their life. But the fix is really simple: ensure you’re gun isn’t loaded and dry-fire your gun until the level is down to the correct standard working pressure.

Prevention is always better than cure, so let’s look at why you overfilled your rifle in the first place. If the valve feels graunchy, it’s probably worn or damaged and should be replaced immediately, even if the cylinder itself may still be in test. Some valves, however, are just naturally stiff, and need to be opened slowly and carefully to avoid sending a massive surge of air down the fill line. In this case, try to build up plenty of torque with your hand before actually opening the valve – you’ll have more control. With practice, even a stiff valve can be opened slowly and smoothly this way. Open the valve carefully so you don’t overfill your PCP – but if you do make a mistake, just dry-fire the rifle until you’re down to the correct pressure.

Rifles can have neutral balance, be muzzle-heavy or butt-heavy, all of which offer certain advantages or disadvantages. A rifle with a neutral point of balance – usually just in front of the trigger guard – will distribute its weight evenly in the aim and be easier to carry either in your hands or with a sling.

Rifles that are butt-heavy are usually so by design, for example some bullpups due to the location of the action, or can be made to be butt-heavy with the addition of a counterweight. Butt-heavy rifles lock themselves in place once shouldered and can make the rifle feel lighter, simply because much of the weight is being transferred to your torso. They’re particularly useful for taking elevated shots. A butt-heavy rifle will usually be less comfortable than a neutrally balanced rifle to stalk with, but respond well to being carried with a sling.

Muzzle-heavy rifles are fabulous to hold on aim because having that forward weight increases stability, making the muzzle less likely to wobble around. The drawback here is the uncomfortable weight distribution when carrying them around. And If you use a sling, you’ll almost inevitably have to carry the rifle muzzle-down or else it will keep slipping.

If you want to change the point of balance on your own rifle you can, but alternatively you can just exploit the positive characteristics that are offered by its particular weight distribution.

Having a butt-heavy rifle can work to your advantage as it helps to keep it firmly in your shoulder, especially when taking elevated shots

The term ‘sporter’ became more widely used after the Second World War when many surplus military firearms were being converted to sporting use
(hunting, rather than target shooting), by being drilled and tapped to accept a scope mount and having the stock shortened. The term is nowadays more closely linked to the type of stock, with some airguns being dropped into different types of stock to change their handling characteristics and their use in the field or on the range.

The main advantage of the sporter stock is its ability to let a shooter bring the rifle quickly into the aim. Its main disadvantage is the fact that it can put some strain on the wrist. Sporter stocks with a pronounced pistol grip aim to combat this by providing a more comfortable hold, while still letting the rifle quickly be shouldered. Thumbhole stocks, in contrast, provide even more comfort, and arguably more control, for extended sessions and very precise shooting, but are not quite as fast-handling.

The stock of this Daystate Huntsman Regal displays classic sporter lines, but with a nice high cheekpiece, which makes it more suitable for scope use.

In the UK unlicensed rifles must not be capable of producing power, with any projectile above the legal limit of 12 foot/pounds energy. The rifle has been calibrated* at the Brocock factory with sufficient safety margin to ensure compliance with currently available pellets. This rifle has been set up to a power level, not under 11 and not exceeding 11.7 foot pounds energy using the recommended pellet as specified in the official handbook.

For any power related queries, please in the first instance contact the place of purchase for conformation of power.

*Calibration is carried out using 5 PVM chronographs, cross-referenced with the Sable ballistics chronograph held at the Birmingham proof house.

Brocock unregulated rifles are set to be filled to a maximum of 200bar (2,900psi). All regulated rifles can be filled to 240bar (3,480 psi). Please check the handbook that came with the rifle.

That depends on the model of gun you have, as well as the power and calibre. Please refer to the technical specification page for further information.

Only if the gun is being filled from completely empty, if it is the gun must be cocked before filling. This will allow the valve to close because the hammer is no longer resting on it and allowing air to escape. It is best to refill the gun at about 100bar (1450psi).

There are two possible reasons. 1. The gun has been used until the air pressure is so low that the valve opens and the rest of the air is released. This is not a fault, the gun just needs to be refilled as normal. 2. There is a problem inside the gun, maybe an “O” ring has failed so all the air has vented out. If this has happened the gun will need to be returned to us for a service.

Yes you can, but only if the bolt is closed. If you dry fire the gun with the breech open it is possible that the breech seal will be blown out of the barrel, this will affect the power and performance of the gun.

While it is possible to replace the breech seal without removing the barrel, it is far easier to replace with the barrel/shroud assembly removed which also allows for easier cleaning of the barrel. First remove any scope/mount that is covering the two barrel securing screws on the front section of the breech block. Then remove the rearmost screw using a 2.5mm (3mm on high power rifles) allen key. Carefully place the screw to one side and unscrew the front screw until the barrel shroud assembly can be withdrawn forwards. Replace breech O-ring by carefully rolling it int the breech aided with a small allen key, dowel, toothpick or other such aid. The barrel can also be cleaned at this point. Replace the barrel assembly using the rearmost hole to check alignment before tightening the front screw. Then replace the back screw and scope.

O-ring sizes:

.177    4 x 1.5mm
.22      5 x1.5mm
.25      6 x1.5mm

If you want a gun above 12 ft lbs you will need a firearms certificate in the UK, but yes most models can be upgraded to high power. Please contact us for more information, we will need to know the model, calibre and serial number of your gun.

Making sure the action is cleaned and lightly oiled after use, particularly if the gun has been used in damp or wet conditions. To oil the action use a soft lint free cloth, spray a light gun oil onto the cloth and wipe the action completely, do not over oil your gun. If your gun gets wet, remove the stock, clean the whole action to make sure no water or dirt is trapped and allow it to dry out in a warm dry environment before replacing the stock.

Try to keep the action as free of dust as possible. Only use a clean, high quality air supply to fill your gun, NEVER use any other gases as this could be extremely dangerous. Only use good quality ammunition designed for air rifles.

If it is not broken don’t fix it! Lead is a natural lubricate and is not corrosive so unless you notice the accuracy deteriorating it is best left. If you do decide to clean the barrel only use cleaning products designed specifically for air guns, which will not damage the barrel. DO NOT USE CLEANING PRODUCTS DESIGNED FOR LIVE FIRE RIFLES.

It will depend very much on how much and how often the gun is used. As a general rule it should be serviced by Brocock or an approved Brocock agent every three years.

This is not generally a problem. Because modern PCP rifles are almost recoilless, your head stays very still when shooting so in the right conditions you can sometimes see the pellet in flight for a second. This is normal. However, if you notice a severe drop in performance it would be best to get the action checked by a competent gunsmith.

All Brocock PCP air rifles leave our factory performing to the required power level, there is no way to tell the power of a rifle by the sound it makes. If in doubt, have the power tested by a competent gunsmith.

Using an oil impregnated lint free cloth wipe the oil over the action of the gun. Grease should be applied very sparingly and only on metal contact points such as sears. DO NOT apply oil or grease to the hammer, hammer spring and NEVER apply any form of oil in or around the charging valve. If oil or grease is applied to these areas it may affect the performance of your rifle and cause damage.

We use and recommend Bisley and Napier products

No, it will reduce the power for the first few shots and if you over fill the gun too much it may damage the valve which will require the gun to be returned to us for repair, this is misuse and will be a chargeable repair NOT covered by warranty.

Brocock do not recommend this as it can leave a pellet in the barrel which can easily be forgotten about, it is an unsafe and it is always better to discharge the rifle into soft ground or at some other safe target rather than de-cocking.

If you choose to de-cock your air gun, first remove the magazine to ensure you do not put a pellet into the breech, then you simply hold the lever or bolt back and squeeze the trigger. When the sears release you can slowly let the bolt move forward and close the breech.

Beware, this is a potentially dangerous procedure because to remove pellets the bolt has to be pulled all the way back which means that the gun will be cocked, so we do not recommend you try this. The best course of action is to take the gun to a qualified gunsmith.

This is called “Buck fever”: to tackle this annoying situation, there are a few things we can do. First of all, practising our shooting until it becomes second nature and use a thoroughly reliable rifle that we have total confidence in, allows us to tackle the first part of the problem. All we have to focus on is the moment at hand, not our technique or gear. We can also try to visualise the event in our mind before it happens, so we’re better prepared for when it does.

An example? Imagine a rabbit has appeared outside a hedgerow: what would you do next? At last, another technique when hunting is to set up a practice shot on a target such as a fallen acorn and imagine this is a real quarry animal. This, combined to breathing slowly and deeply, will make it easier for you to get used to the situation, bring your body back under control, acquire your target and take the perfect shot.