Diana Oktoberfestgewehr BB Gun Review – Part Two

VALUE FOR MONEY

We begin Part Two of this Diana Oktoberfestgewehr BB gun review with a price discussion. (Part One can be seen here). At the time of writing, this air rifle is selling for $149.99 at Pyramyd.

Now the first observation is that this is a “gallery gun”. That means that it’s designed for use at a range of 5 Metres. Yes, that’s right, just 5.47 Yards. It’s not claimed or intended that this is a precision shooting machine.

And, as you’ll read below, the accuracy is not stellar, even at that range…

But somehow I need to convey that this is a great air rifle to shoot. I had a ton of fun with it!

This is an ideal basement range gun for the Millions of us in the North East USA (and elsewhere) who want to shoot but are dissuaded from going outside by the snow and cold. Everyone can set-up a 5 Meter range somewhere indoors: in our basement – or even garage.

Sure, we need a target holder/trap that will catch the BBs and prevent them from flying back us us. But that’s not exactly rocket science. (I use a strong wood box filled with rubber mulch).

With that in place, I achieved some real quality trigger time using the Oktoberfestgewehr. In fact, I should probably say that the highlight of the gun is in the cocking of it, rather than the firing.

More will be explained below. But for me there’s huge value for money in this airgun, even if it’s not in the ways that we normally find it in an air rifle.

BUY FROM PYRAMYD
Diana Oktoberfest BB Rifle 0.177

SPEED AND ACCURACY

This Oktoberfestgewehr BB gun review found that the gun developed over 500 FPS with all the standard HAM BBs. As anticipated, this fell to around 400 FPS with the much heavier H&N Smart Shot lead BBs.

H&N Smart Shot is clearly more accurate than any of the steel BBs. Plus. they don’t ricochet like hollow steel BBs. However – if you really want to use steel BBs, it’s tough to choose between the Hornady Black Diamond and Umarex Steel BBs, as you’ll see from the targets below.

If accuracy is the criteria by which you judge all airguns, this Diana Oktoberfestgewehr BB gun review proves that this is not the gun for you!

However there’s more to shooting and the Oktoberfestgewehr could – indeed – be a tool that does improve your downrange accuracy. That’s because it’s a great way to provide you with “trigger time” inside during the winter when there’s no other place to shoot.

There’s no doubt that repetitive shooting – call it trigger time – builds long-term accuracy. That’s why precision 10 Meter target guns provide a “dry fire” capability. There’s proven value in cocking, holding and pulling the trigger, even if no actual shot is taken.

I see the Oktoberfest’s accuracy is this light. No, this is not an accurate air rifle. It’s not intended to be. However it provides a fun, low cost way for many airgunners to keep their skills alive during the months when they would otherwise go rusty.

The results of this will be there in the Spring when you go back outside with your precision shooting guns!

If you’re not familiar with H&N Smart Shot, you can read about them here. H&N does produce copper-plated lead BBs with a diameter of 4.3 mm (nominal: 4.4 mm) especially for Diana for their gallery guns. However these are not available in the USA, so far as I know.

This is what Smart Shot BBs look like…

TRIGGER AND COCKING EFFORT

The single-stage trigger has a long, gritty pull, combined with a somewhat uncertain sear break. Just like that of my old, much-loved, Mosin Nagant 1891/30 sniper rifle!

Sure, there’s plenty of other air rifles out there with a better trigger, yet I still enjoyed it – even if it was in a perverse sort of way.

And no, there’s no adjustment capability built-in to this trigger. It’s what it is. But the 4 Lb 3 Oz average pull weight is not too bad.

The unusual cocking action is delightful! It’s heavy and rather rough. If you are used to a Kar 98k or Nagant M1891 military rifle, you’ll immediately recognize and love the feel.

The noise is similar, too, to that of operating an old-time military rifle bolt action.

In operation, you rotate the bolt handle up, pull it back – right back – then push forward and back down. All done while pointing the gun upwards!

There’s a manual safety in the traditional Diana location – just in front of the trigger. It’s ambidextrous, easy-to-use and works well.

COMPARISON TO MAKERS CLAIMS

The manufacturer’s website makes the following claim for the Oktoberfestgewehr. “The name DIANA and the legendary Mod. 30 have stood for unique shooting fun for many decades. No matter where, if on a fair, carnival or the word-famous Oktoberfest – you will find a rifle from DIANA almost everywhere. Anyone can now have this special kind of shooting experience at home. Many features, known from Mod. 30 can also be found on the Oktoberfest rifle.”

Agreed, the fun aspect is definitely there – for me, at least!

Diana also lists a maximum Muzzle Velocity of 360 FPS. In this Oktoberfestgewehr BB gun review, we recorded a maximum of 516 FPS with Umarex Steel BBs.

If that Muzzle Velocity spec. was intended for solid lead BBs, then it was also exceeded by the 397 FPS we achieved with H&N Smart Shot.

CONSISTENCY

To be honest, I had low expectations here before starting this test. However working through the Diana Oktoberfestgewehr BB gun review process, I was surprised at the excellent level of consistency it demonstrated.

After taking a few dozen shots to let the gun break-in a little, the average Standard Deviation (a statistical measure of shot-to-shot consistency) was just 3.13 FPS. This is waaay up there in the thousand Dollar PCP range!

The trigger pull weight was similarly consistent, varying by just plus or minus 3 Ounces around its 4 Lb 3 Oz average. Again, that’s very decent consistency.

Oh, the accuracy was consistent too. Consistently poor with steel BBs, but better if you want to go for the expense of Smart Shot ammo.

NOISE LEVEL

Firing the Oktoberfestgewehr is quiet!

I could detect just about no noise from projectiles flying down range. In fact, there was more noise made by the gun’s internal mechanism and the sound of the BB hitting the target than there was from the expulsion of BBs from the barrel.

I’d go so far as to say that the noise of cocking is actually louder than firing!

This makes the Oktoberfestgewehr ideal for basement use as you’ll not be disturbing other family members when getting that vital trigger time during the long winter months.

SIGHTS AND SCOPE

In the interest of complete honesty, it’s important that I stress in this Diana Oktoberfestgewehr BB gun review that I was entirely unable to use the supplied open sights.

With their very fine rear “V notch” and delicate front barleycorn, these sights may be fine for those with young or good eyes. But if you’re older and wear trifocals like me, there’s no way they work.

Below we see the rear sight. It’s adjustable for windage and elevation through the “slide and clamp” system.

The front blade is protected by nice ears. But again I couldn’t see it.

Fortunately the rear sight can easily be removed by loosening one screw. This reveals a short – but usable – length of standard airgun dovetail rail. I used this to mount a tiny Leapers UTG OP3 micro green dot sight (using a UTG dovetail to Picatinny adapter).

As you can see below, it fitted just fine. Now I could see the target. Magic!!!

The UTG sight has elevation and windage correction capability, as can be seen from the photograph above.

SHOOTABILITY

At a shooting weight of 7 Lb 3 Oz, the Oktoberfest feels solid and appropriately-heavy. This weight translates into a pleasant, old-time shooting experience.

Loading is somewhat unusual. First you need to remove the magazine cap (location arrowed). Then stand the gun upright and locate that beautifully-turned Alumimum funnel in the open end of the BB magazine.

Now pour BBs into the magazine using the funnel. Full capacity is around 100 BBs, but you can load less at one time should you prefer.

After returning the magazine plug to it’s approved location, it’s important to understand that the Oktoberfestgewehr must be held upright in order to cock and load it. Diana includes this cartoon character as a reminder.

Although this seemed strange for the first few shots, I soon found it became natural during the course of this Oktoberfestgewehr BB gun review.

Please note that the gun tested in this Oktoberfestgewehr BB gun review fed and functioned well with all of the HAM standard BBs we have in stock. This was also true with H&N Smart Shot.

However I obviously cannot speak for the performance of other BBs that have not been tested here. Nor can I promise One Million Percent that there may not be an oversize BB out there from any of these manufacturers that makes it’s way into an Oktoberfest and causes a jam.

However, Diana recognizes this possibility and provides specific instructions for how to clear it. Basically, you point the gun down and the BB should run out. If necessary discharge it safely with the muzzle down.

Not experiencing a jam myself, I cannot confirm that this works. But my expectation is that it will.

APPEARANCE AND FINISH

Here we have a good, old-fashioned, 44-Inch long, wood-and-metal airgun. It feels solid due to that real tree-wood stock. Plus the weight probably helps with accuracy (?) when shooting.

All the wood and metal parts are extremely well finished, particularly for the price. The stock of the sample used for this Oktoberfestgewehr BB gun review also showed some nice figuring, as we can see below.

True, there are a few plastic parts, for example the trigger guard, action top cap, sights and safety mechanism. But these are also well-finished and certainly do not look objectionable to me.

Overall, this is a good-looking – if unusual – air rifle of traditional appearance with a finish above its price point.

BUYING AND OWNING

Most people will buy the Oktoberfestgewehr online, from a major vendor such as Pyramyd or Airgun Depot. It may make its’ way into some big box stores, but I wouldn’t count on that.

As is usual with Diana, the user’s guide is excellent. It’s clear, well-illustrated and covers multiple languages.

The manufacturer’s warranty is 2 years.

SAFETY FIRST. As with all BB-firing airguns, it’s necessary to wear shooting glasses when firing this airgun. Also do not shoot at hard surfaces or water. BBs tend to bounce off these surfaces and may hit you, or something other than what you intended. If in doubt, don’t pull the trigger!

5 METRE TEST TARGETS

BUY FROM PYRAMYD
Diana Oktoberfest BB Rifle 0.177

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