Gun Collectors Dream Auction #67 April 20 & 21 2024
Lot 1454:
In Russia the Pioneer youth movement originated and was named, The All-Union Pioneer Organization, called the Young Pioneers. It was a school youth organization similar to the Cub and Boy scouts in America. In the Soviet Union, children between the ages starting at 7 or 8 to 14 were forced into this school organization that existed between 1922 and 1991. Later Soviet satellite countries also participated. Similar to the American Scouting groups, both Girl and Boy scout organizations; the Communist youth, both boys and girls, were participants in the Pioneers. Like the American scouts, shooting was an activity. They had their own rifle trainers to improve marksmanship. In America a huge cache of surplus Romanian Pioneer training rifles appeared on the air gun market in 1990. They arrived on pallets and were stacked so high that the toy like air guns were bent under their own weight with those at the bottom of the pile suffering the most damage. Since these are inexpensive youth rifles designed for training very young children they are basically toy like in size and simplicity. The Romanian rifles are simple, single shot, .177 lead pellet, springer air rifles that were produced as two types. The late 1960s and 1970s dated rifles have a composite bakelite tough plastic stock, in contrast the later 1980s rifles have a yellowish wood stock. Each model is marked differently and are rather short with a length of approximately 35 inches. The metal action is the same on both types, it is a simple springer break barrel breach action single loaded pellet rifle. To cock the air gun one simply pushes down on the barrel and the barrel breaks down to expose the loading chamber and cocks the rifle. Very few arrived in excellent condition. They were subject to years of use, had wear, and suffered from poor storage and shipping conditions.
please refer to pictures when bidding this lot, what you see is what you are bidding., there is a sling attached but is not the original that came with the pellet gun, th
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