QuestionHello,
Just received Daisy 1894 from my father. It was his father's. He estimates it was bought about 1970 or so. Stamping indicates Reg No 1823238.
It has not been fired in at least 10 years. Dad said that last couple of times he tried to fire it, it did not work. He suggested perhaps that I should clean it and break it down, etc.
I am concerned about personal injury since we don't have a book or any other information on how to "service" one of these. I understand, from what little info I can find on the 'net, that this is a spring-loaded model. I can imagine taking out the wrong screw at the wrong time and having lots of bits and pieces laying on the floor.
A - Can you suggest a "plan of attack" that would set me on a path that would make the gun operational agian?
B - Do you recommend particular lubricants be used/not used on this piece?
C - Do you have, or know where I can access, an exploded view of how this piece is assembled?
D - At the end of the arm stock there is now a tie-wrap. Apparently the original was broken or misplaced. Would it be possible to find a replacement for this? Perferrably one made by Daisy?
Thank you in advance for your time,
Chip
AnswerHello Chip! Daisy first introduced the Model 1894 in 1966 and continued to produce them, without interuption, for the next 24 years. (1985) They were introduced again in 1992-96, but had a crossbolt safety added to them at that time.
The Registration No. 18723238 does indicate that your particular piece was made sometime in the 1961 to November 1972 time period. Had it been made after October 31, 1972, the Reg. No. would have had a letter as the first digit of the number - beginning with "L", for November, "M" for December, "A" for January, and continuing through the alphabet with the exception of the letter "I", which was skipped over for obvious reasons. Beginning in Jan 82, the letter "A" would have been the second digit, with the #2 being the first digit.
The remaining 5 digits was the consecutive numbering system that starts over again at -00001 on the first of each month and whenever a different model is run in that particular press during any one month.
Thus,the age of your piece is, more or less, confirmed according to your description.
Chip, the 1894 B.B Rifle, as beautiful as it is, had a design flaw as far as keeping its ability to maintain its shooting power for a long duration, compared to many of the other Daisy air guns. If you will hold the gun in front of you, with the muzzle extending away, glance down length of the gun and you will note that the main barrel and receiver is on a constant "taper" from the stock connection of the receiver to the very muzzle of the barrel. This includes the "compression chamber" located directly under the rear sight.
When the gun is in the cocked position, the plunger seal is in the widest diameter of the compression chamber. When it is in the fired position, the compression seal is in the smallest diameter of the compression chamber.
Being made of a plastic composition, after a while the elasticity of the seal's outer diameter flare is lost, and it "takes a set" of the smaller diameter size. Thus, when the gun is fired, even though it sounds just as "healthy" as ever (as it does have a very good main spring in it), it fails to compress air - thus the power is lost. Sometimes after a long period of time, (your gun is now over thirty years old) it may not even push a b.b out the end of the barrel. Sometimes it will shoot ten feet, or so!
Another bad feature is if the seals are left pressed together in the fired position - after years of this they tend to stick together. Sometimes the barrel seal is pulled out of position, sticking to the plunger seal when it is cocked, and sometimes the plunger seal breaks off and stays at the bottom of the compression chamber, so there is absolutely no compressed air at all when attempting to fire the gun. Still "sounds" good, though!
Now. to answer your questions:
A. The plan of attack for setting you on the right track to make your gun operational again is simply: Replace those two seals - this will, probably put you back into business with it. It is a simple job for a person familiar with this gun. It is a nightmare for those who are not.
One fellow I know of in "AIRGUNSUSA" says it is the most difficult of all Daisy guns to work on.
IF YOU ARE NOT COMFORTABLE WORKING ON IT - Simply send it to a guy like me (of course), that can and will fix it for you. It's really not all that expensive, and the work is guaranteed.
This particular model of Daisy must be completely dismanteled IF the barrel seal needs replaced along with the compression seal, which is true in about 70% of the cases.
It is not so much that by removing a screw the thing will fly apart. You could drop some parts, I suppose, but it doesn't "fly apart" under pressure. The main thing is to remember exactly where and how the springs fit back together, and the routine of dismanteling and reassembling it. There is a trick to removing the plunger assembly, which includes the main spring, so that you don't damage the gun in the process and/or yourself, of course. The main spring must be compressed (by hand, not by cocking the gun) in order to remove the plunger anchor. (Cocking puts all the pressure right on the anchor - and the pressure needs to be released to dismantel it. That's one of the more
difficult parts - that and putting it back in again!
B. Daisy has recommended 30 weight motor oil for lubricating. Personally, I hate it! It's messy, tends to collect dust and dirt, and generally makes a mess of the interior of your 1894. When I disassemble the 1894, I clean everything, first, by wiping it down with paper shop towels, then with alcohol and cotton swabs and patches. I get rid of all of the old dirt and grime, and sometimes a little rust out of every bit of the interior, including the feed assemblies and the magazine assembly. Then, when I re-asemble it, I use faucet grease on all pivot points (hammer, trigger, and lever pins, and olive oil, or synthetic gun oil, (regular gun oil tends to deterioate the seals on air guns) on other wear points and the plunger oiler washer. This will last a long time as far as lubricating is concerned. After about 1,000 shots, I will add about a 3 to 6 drops of olive oil in the oil hole on top of the main barrel, to the right side of the rear sight. Then cock it and add an equal amount of oil again. Complete the cocking, and let it remain so....
Place the muzzle in a can to catch any excess oil and stand the gun in a corner, muzzle down, and not to be disturbed, over night.
Next day, put about half dozen b.b in it and shoot them out to get rid of the excess oil - and you should be good for another 1,000 shots, or so. (Not a good idea to dry fire any air gun. Too hard on the mechinism.)
Of course, if the gun ever gets completely soaked with water, it should be disassembled, cleaned, and re-lubed. When lubing - don't forget the magazine spring!
C. If you will send your e-mail, or mailing address to me, I can send this to you. <
[email protected]>
D. Yes, I can furnish a Daisy made replacement forearm band. Your's would have had a metal one - the later models have plastic. Give me a shout and we'll go over the prices, addresses, etc..
Sincerely
Old Injun
