TargetTalk

Hey shooters,

I've been shooting with a FWB 700 Alu for a while now. I also shoot with an open palm which suits me very well. The problem is that the 700 alu has a heavy front which doesn't feel comfortable, although it was an advantage to have a heavy rifle when I first started shooting cause it was easier for me to control the movements of the rifle.

I've been looking at some videos lately & I've noticed that most of the shooters with an open palm position are using either WALTHER or ANSCHÜTZ, few of them are shooting with the FWB 700.

After reaching a good level of shooting I decided to purchase a new precision rifle & would really appreciate your suggestions & opinions about a well balanced rifle.

Thanks,
Jenni

have you thought about adding weight to the rear?
Matt

I shot a Walther LG300 alutec, FWB 700, and FWB 601 all open palm. The Walther was my favorite, but it was more due to the better ergonomics than the others. I did appreciate the fact that you could put puck weights inside the stock, rather than just at the front or rear. In reality, the ergonomics/comfort will probably play the biggest role, as almost any of the aluminum stocked air rifles now have provisions to add weights front or rear, wherever you prefer.

WesternGrizzly
Thanks for the suggestion. My coach replaced the original Buttplate with a heavier one a while back to balance the rifle, but my rifle weighs around 10.5lbs which is too heavy for me.

WarWagon
Thanks for the review. I'll put the LG300 in mind, I've also read about the LG400 but I'm not sure whats the difference between those two models.

Hmm, a 10.5 lb rifle is really not that heavy. Have you thought about removing the front riser block that comes with the rifle and shoot off of the dovetail with conventional risers? you could also get one of the shorter air tanks.

I shoot with a FWB 700 in a MEC stock. The way I got it from the factory was just like yours. VERY muzzle heavy. It still is a little muzzle heavy, but much better. I removed the weights in the front and added weight to the back in the form of stick on wheel weights.

I REALLY like the Walther anatomic. I wish I had bought one in the first place.
Matt

Jenni wrote:I'm not sure whats the difference between those two models.

About €1500 :D

Have you considered a Steyr? We have a few shooters using the LG100 and LG110 here and open palm works fine for them. (Personally I use an old Anschutz but if it broke tomorrow I'd switch to an LG110 and keep the open palm hand position).

Matt
Thanks for the reply.
I have no riser blocks on the rifle, but replacing the tank with a smaller one seems a good idea for the meantime, I never knew it was possible.


Sparks
Thanks for your reply.

Sparks wrote:About €1500 :D

lol, if I ever decided to buy the LG400 I just hope it will be a successful investment.
I never really tried a Steyr before, it's not widely available where I live.

I have one more question, please bear with me.
Whats the difference between Walthers Alutec version & Anatomic version?

I've read somewhere in the forum about the weight distribution: The Alu is front heavy whereas the Anatomic feels lighter?

Jenni
I think most newer rifles have the capability to move weight around and improve the ballance, I try to get the ballance point a tad in front of the left hand. The first step is take off the barrel weights and remove any from the front of the fore end, some have weights tucked inside which you may not be aware of. I've not done a P700 alloy, but we have set up both the Standard wood and the Basic stocked P700's and they can be set up easily and don't end up heavy, I would have thought an alloy one would be easier as the basic alloy stock is quite light, its mostly added weight.
Another thing to consider unless you are very tall is to shorten the stock as much as it will go which moves the weight back. Im not sure on FWB but Walther offer a choice of sizes for cylinders and also steel or alloy. I know FWB do, or did, a Junior so I'm sure they will do a shorter cylinder, not sure if there is a choice of alloy or steel.
LG 400? I use one, the stock is very light, the weight is all added so it is very easy to set up rearward weighted as is mine, and I do use an open palm. The total weight of mine set up for me is 4.2 KG's thats 9 1/4 lb in old money. My wife uses a walther LG 300 Junior weighted rearward with a total of 4.1 KG's.
The alutec is an alloy stock, the anatomic is a wood stock, I did not notice much difference in the standard ballance between them, the anatomic also has added weights that can be removed if you wished, the big difference is the price, the anatomic is much more expensive.
The 400 is a new model, the action is very similar with detail improvements over the 300, but the alloy stock is a big improvement over the old alloy one, less bulky, and with a lot of scope to tailor it to the shooter. My wife has a wooden LG300 so I expected her to want a 400 when I got mine, but she has her stock set up how she wants it, and after trying mine she thinks the trigger is marginally better, but so negligible to be of no significance, and it may be just set up.
The top lady air rifle shooter in the world, Sonja Phfielshifter used an LG300 action in a LG400 alutec stock for quite a while before going over to a 400.
In Europe they are still suplying the 300, and similar spec 300's and 400's are not a lot different in price, about 300 Euros.
Have fun.
Robin

Jenni
I also should have mentioned, as you are probably aware most modern air rifles have a very short actual barrel, most of it is a sleeve to get sight base, on the LG300 and 400 that sleeve is carbon fibre which reduces forward weight.
Good Shooting
Robin