Airguns at the Great British Shooting Show 2023

Well here we are, the first major show of the year, and it’s the biggie! Now well established at the NEC, Birmingham, the Great British Shooting Show really is the perfect way to showcase our wonderful sport. So, with a raft of new product launches and upgrades aplenty, here are my highlights.

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The Sportsman Gun Centre

FX Airguns were on show on the Sportsman stand, and their brand-new Panthera was causing a stir. Designed for high power, long range competition, it’s a bold piece of design. Launching at the show was the latest ultra-compact version. The Panthera features a special breech block designed with slugs in mind, along with optimised airflow, an AMP MKII regulator, and of course, the FX Smoothtwist barrels. As usual, there are a host of options, along with adjustable features aimed at the more experienced airgun enthusiast.

Contact: www.sportsmanguncentre.co.uk

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Edgar Brothers

Edgar Brothers have taken on the Airgun Technology label. However, the big highlight here was the launch of Edgar’s new own brand, EB Arms, with the EB XV2 taking pride of place on show. Available in three colours - black, olive green and bronze, this tactical-style PCP has plenty to offer. It shows a smart anodized receiver (especially in bronze as per the demo model), a huge 500cc buddy bottle, an adjustable stock, a side-lever action and picatinny mounting.

Contact: www.edgarbrothers.com

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Ammotec UK

With Zbroia airguns hailing from Ukraine, the supply chain has seen some disruption! So, it was good to see them back in the frame now, with Ammotec UK taking them onboard. Apparently, a factory has been established in Poland too, to assist the situation, and with a host of new models now available, Zbroia are clearly expanding. All are PCP, and the Sapsan is one of several new models to emerge. This striking newcomer features a side-lever action, skeleton thumbhole two-part woodwork and a regulated action.

Contact: www.ruag.co.uk

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Daystate

The irrepressible Tony Belas was on hand at Daystate, eager to promote yet another special, this time the Safari version of their ultra-high-tech Alpha Wolf. All their electronic wizardry is here, including AVT (Advanced Velocity Technology), yet in Safari guise, we get a high grip, ambidextrous, textured wood stock, plus a bronze-anodized action. If you like your airguns computerized and programmable, then this is the one. The design includes a digitally controlled HUMA regulator and even an onboard chronoscope. Stunning and ingenious in equal measure.

Contact: www.daystate.com

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Umarex

Umarex is a huge operation, and their extensive range of Walther PCPs, like the Reign 2 and derivatives, were all on display. A big slice of their business model is producing replica airguns under license from the original branded manufacturers, and the new Smith & Wesson M&P9L looks set to impress when it hits the shops. The action is designed to fire BBs, there’s a ported slide, threaded barrel (M14 spec), a blowback action and the grips are interchangeable. It’s one to look out for.

Contact: www.bisley-uk.com

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BSA Guns

BSA’s stand is always buzzing, and the new upgraded version of the Super Meteor, now made in Birmingham, looks superb, in its all-new Minelli woodwork. One unexpected highlight was the newly revised Scorpion TS. OK, yes it looks very familiar, yet with some clever tweaks and simplification of the production process, around £150 has now been slashed from the retail price. Elsewhere, all the new big hitters such as the classy R12 were here, so this famous brand looks well-positioned going forward.

Contact: www.bsaguns.co.uk

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Best Fittings

This company specializes in supplying aftermarket accessories and charging equipment for PCP airguns, and their new carbon fibre buddy bottles were getting lots of interest on the show stand. Starting at around £125, these highly attractive replacement bottles will undoubtedly enhance the looks of the gun. There are options for the BSA R10 and R12, plus PCPs from Walther and retrofits for Theoben and derivatives. Check out their website for full specifications and an incredible catalogue of accessories.

Contact: www.bestfittings.co.uk

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ASI

There was plenty of interest in ASI’s range of Cometa and Rainsom airguns, but all the attention was on their new Accumax springers. Three Turkish models are available that feature the same action but different stocks. There’s the S1 with black synthetic, the W1 with a wood finish and the C1 with a camo effect. Trevor Dolman’s enthusiasm was infectious: “We can’t quite believe the response we’ve had with this model, and it’s the ultra-smooth action and great accuracy that has taken everyone by surprise”.

Contact: www.a-s-i.co.uk

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Air Arms

The Xti 50, Air Arms’ new flagship competition rifle, is actually about to hit the shops. As you’d expect, this no-compromise, top-end airgun is designed to win silverware. However, there were two more new guns to drool over! The Ultimate Springer is a clever upgrade of the TX200 action, showing an adjustable stock that’s available in laminate or walnut. The Kymira is a rather special 40-year Anniversary model that’s visually similar to the S400, but with a titanium cylinder, regulator and much much more.

Contact: www.air-arms.co.uk

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Weihrauch

All the latest tweaks and revisions to the Weihrauch range were on show. The classic HW80 gets a sleek new stock, plus there’s revised woodwork for the HW100 showing a more prominent cheek, and the push-button cheekpiece adjuster for the HW100 laminate is particularly neat. Hull was also proudly displaying some of the special gold-plated HW35s that have been presented by the Weihrauch factory over the years. They were simply mouthwatering.

Contact: www.hullcartridge.co.uk

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Hawke Optics

Hawke Optics always brings an impressive stand, and all their models were on show, ready to be handled by customers. Their burgeoning catalogue of new kit was released at the beginning of the year, but new to the show was the 6x36 prism sight, complete with BDC Dot and Weaver-style rail mounting. This style of sight has slower target acquisition when compared to their reflex options, but having 6x magnification to play with is a huge advantage, not to mention the ten-stage digital illuminator.

Contact: www.hawkeoptics.com

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Raytrade/Ratworks

I was a huge fan of the FAS 611 when I tested one years ago, and this perfectly proportioned marvel has now resurfaced as the Chiappa FAS 611. This compact rifle has all the features needed for competition work, sporting a scaled-down but highly effective walnut stock, a totally floating barrel and a lovely side-lever PCP action. It’s available as a standard factory product from Raytrade or as a tuned special from custom outfit, Ratworks, who fit a new regulator as part of the package.

Contact: www.raytrade.co.uk

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Form Stocks

British stock maker, Form, has been a regular exhibitor at the NEC, and this year they had a wide selection of pistol grips and cheekpiece covers etc, to fit various brands of PCP, including Airmaks and FX models. All beautifully crafted from coloured laminates or American Walnut, they’re an easy retrofit and can dramatically improve the ergonomics and visuals of your gun. Form’s classy Chieftan stocks were also on show.

Contact: www.formriflestocks.co.uk

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Highland Outdoors

Highland now distributes the RTI range of PCPs and these were all on display. I headed straight to the Diana area, where a factory technician over from Germany was holding court. The long-awaited laminate-stocked Diana 54 Airking looks superb and is set to hit the shops after a few delays. The big news was the brand-new ‘made in Germany’ PCP, in the form of the XR200. This sleek sporter includes a Lothar Walther barrel, plus an Altaros regulator system, and is a statement of intent from this famous German manufacturer.

Contact: www.highlandoutdoors.co.uk