Double Bell Cowboy Lever Action Rifle - CO2 Shell Ejecting

The Double Bell Cowboy Lever Action Rifle is based on several real firearms designs from the late 19th century used by militaries, law enforcement and civilians alike during the Old West era. This rifle was a revolutionary design for its time, and offered an incredible rate of fire in a light, handy and convenient package whilst many world militaries were still issuing smooth-bore muskets! Known as the "assault rifle of the old west", John Moses Browning's lever-action design could outpace any other rifle at the time and was renowned for its low weight, high magazine capacity, short overall length and ease of use on horseback.

The Cowboy rifle is a classic lever-action configuration, with a 19-inch alloy outer barrel and 10 shot tubular magazine running parallel beneath. At the tip of the barrel, we can find the front iron sight which has a serrated front surface to reduce glare, and a brass insert to make the sight bead highly visible and easy to acquire. The rear sight is also mounted to the barrel, just in front of the receiver and action. The rear sight is a "buckhorn" style open iron sight which can be adjusted for elevation by lifting the sight notch up, and pushing the lever between the sight and receiver back and forth to the desired position. The buckhorn style of iron sight is ideally suited to close and medium-range engagements, and allows for a great deal of precision as well as fast and instinctively aimed shots thanks to its wide outer notch and narrow inner notch.

Below the rear sight, we can find the faux wood handguard, which is very authentically finished with an excellent faux grain pattern. This handguard is nice and slim and feels great in the hand, and is also long enough for practically any user to hold this sleek rifle comfortably. The stock also features the same convincing faux wood effect, tying the whole rifle together and giving it that "Cowboy" aesthetic.

Next up, we reach the receiver of the Cowboy Rifle, which is constructed from Alloy with a matt black finish. On the left side of the receiver, we can find our cavalry style sling ring, which is not only compatible with period slings but can also be used with a modern single point bungee sling for some more modern features. This sling ring can rotate 360 degrees, meaning regardless of your positioning you won't end up tangled in your sling and have your movement restricted. The sling ring is made from steel which adds strength to this critical part, guaranteeing it is capable of supporting the weight of this rifle.

The cartridge loading gate of the Cowboy Rifle can be found on the right side of the receiver, in the centre. This piece has a helpful relief cut which allows you to index the shell with the gate and force the shell through, with a channel to guide it into the tubular magazine. The magazine holds all 10 of the included shell cartridges, matching the impressive capacity of real lever-action rifles. If you want to learn how to load your lever-action quickly, pop "Cowboy Action Shooting" into your favourite search engine; these rifles can be run with incredible speed with enough practice.

At the bottom and top of the receiver is where the real action happens. That must be why it is called "the action"! The cocking lever for the Cowboy Rifle can be found on the bottom of the receiver and takes the form of a standard lever-action mechanism which integrates the trigger guard and a loop with which you can work the action quickly and with ease. The manual safety catch of the Cowboy Rifle can be found on the right side of the lever, positioned on the lower stock tang. The forward position is the "safe" position, and the rear position is the "fire" position. Most real lever-action rifles lack a manual safety, but it is a thoughtful inclusion from Double Bell for safety and practical use on the skirmish field.

At the top of the receiver, we can find the ejection port which is concealed with an authentic looking bolt with a functional extractor which is visible from the top when the action is closed. Opening the action can be achieved by pulling the lever downwards. Inside we are treated to an authentic lifter mechanism, which raises a shell from the magazine tube to meet the bolt which then moves forwards to chamber the shell ready for firing as the lever is worked. This is as close to the real thing as we Airsofters will ever get, and the realism fans amongst us will definitely appreciate the fascinating and authentic way this lever-action rifle functions.

At the rear of the receiver, we can find the functional hammer which is cocked by the rearward movement of the bolt as the lever-action is worked. This is another nice realistic feature and gives the rifle its 19th-century styling. More evidence that this rifle is a period accurate design can be seen in the style of the hammer, which is a flat hammer, similar to that of a revolver of the same time period. This was used to allow for second-strike capability in the real rifle, i.e. if the cartridge does not detonate with the first firing pin strike, you can cock the hammer and hit the same cartridge again without opening the action and ejecting the problematic cartridge.

Moving rearwards we arrive at the stock, which is a classic straight rifle stock style design with a slightly curved butt plate to help you keep the rifle shouldered when working the action. The stock features the same impressive faux wood finish as the handguard, and even though this stock is constructed from polymer, finding the seam line is very difficult and appears to be almost non-existent in most areas of the stock. This elevates the furniture of the Cowboy Rifle above the vast majority of faux wood Airsoft rifles, even Double Bells KAR98k doesn't have plastic wood this convincing!

The Cowboy Rifle is powered by CO2, in the form of 2 12g CO2 cartridges which need to be installed into the stock of the rifle. This can be achieved by first removing the butt plate of the rifle. Turning the retention dial counter clockwise when looking down the rifle from the butt will allow the butt plate to be removed, and will reveal the CO2 compartment inside the stock, and the CO2 installation tool which is built into the butt plate. This is great as it means that, unlike other CO2 powered guns, you don't have to bring your tool kit into the skirmish as the tool is part of the gun itself.

The CO2 compartment should be visible at the bottom of the stock and can be opened by inserting the butt plate/tool and turning it counter clockwise. With the plug removed, two 12g unthreaded CO2 cartridges can be inserted, with the ends of the cartridges (the part that is pierced) facing opposite directions, the first facing forwards to the rifle, and the second facing backwards towards the butt plate. With the cartridges inserted, you can insert the plug and tighten it down with the butt plate/tool. This needs to be done quickly as otherwise, CO2 will leak out, so make sure you are ready to crank the plug down quickly! We advise that you add a small amount of 100% silicone lubricant to the tips of the CO2 cartridges before inserting to help keep your seals fresh, and do not store the rifle long term with CO2 bulbs inserted.

Performance wise, the "assault rifle of the old west" is effectively a sniper rifle when it comes to Airsoft skirmishing. The rifle fires at around 460 FPS out of the box on fresh CO2 cartridges, but naturally this will drop the more the rifle is fired and should stabilise around 400-430. The single action nature of this rifle classes it as a bolt action, but a bolt action with which the lever can be worked at incredible speed. If you have rigged up a shell catcher this could be a fantastic skirmish sniper rifle but is inhibited in this use by its shell ejecting functionality. The buckhorn sights are incredibly functional for the kinds of ranges we Airsofters engage each other at, and are highly visible, fast to acquire but with an impressive degree of precision, allowing you to take advantage of the greater range this rifle will have over a 350FPS AEG. This rifle also sports a fixed HOP-up which is set for 0.25g BBs but can handle slightly heavier weights for greater wind resistance at long range.

Those who dream of the old west, allow your dreams to become (simulated) reality! This rifle is an awesome piece, and even as a backyard plinker it is a true thrill to shoot. In a skirmish setting, coupled with a pair of SAA revolvers and a derringer, this would make for one heck of a Cowboy loadout primary. Running this rifle with a decent Cowboy loadout would be sure to turn heads on the field, and we are certain it would make for a very satisfying and remarkably effective loadout in-game!

Features

• Full metal construction
• Shell ejecting rifle - Very realistic
• 10x Shells included
• Fixed HOP-up  - Set for 0.25g-0.3g approx.
• Lever action rifle - Cowboy style!
• Well concealed manual safety catch on the stock tang
• Realistic lever action with functional bolt, extractor, lifter etc.
• Convincing looking faux-wood furniture
• Cavalry style sling ring located on the left side
• 10 Shell integrated tubular magazine
• Shell loading gate located on the right side of the receiver
• Takes 2x 12g CO2 cartridges inside the stock
• CO2 installation tool built into the butt plate
• Highly effective anti-glare front sight and buckhorn rear sight
• Very fun to shoot - Watch those shells fly!

Package Includes

• Double Bell Cowboy Lever Action Rifle - CO2 Shell Ejecting
• 10x Shell Cartridge for Cowboy Rifle
• User manual

Special Instructions

Some of these rifles have a small amount of wear on the loading gate from the insertion of shells during testing. This is unfortunately unavoidable and will happen on every one of these rifles after the first few shells have been loaded. Please bear this in mind before ordering.