BSA Lightning

BSA Lightning
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★★★★☆
4.4 / 5
From 241 reviews
86.7% of users recommend this

Latest Reviews

★☆☆☆☆
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“VERY BAD MODLE OF BSA ”

Written on: 22/04/2013 by Airifler123

I brought this gun for Christmas it costs £303 and a nikko Stirling scope and the guns safety chatch failed and smashed 2 nikko scopes and got the gun replaced and that gun sheared the 2 screws that hold the stock to the inerds of the gun took it back to Exeter gun centre where I brought it from and told the man who sold it to me what kept happening and tryed telling that there was nothing wrong with this modle and he sent it of to BSA to see what. Keeps happening to the rifle. (read more)

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★☆☆☆☆
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“lightning xl se”

Written on: 27/11/2012

bought it new for 277 pounds put 300 pellets through it and both the stock forend screws sheared .came back from bsa repaired so called range tested . put 50 or so shots through it utter rubbish.i now own a hw 95k and cant fault it. i lost 57 pounds on part x would not recommend lightning xl se (read more)

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★★☆☆☆
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“Bad bad bad”

Written on: 11/11/2012 by Whw95

Bought brand new xl se lovely Finnish chose it over the hw95 had back to shop 3 times in 4 times out with it just trying to zero it first it smashed the scope a hawke 3-9-40 hd ir scope scope creep was horrendoeus then silencer came loose and wouldn't tighten up I put 400 pellets through it trying to zero in only 4 times out bsa credited the shop with another gun so I went for hw95 wat a difference I mite have just got a bad 1 but the trust was gone I couldn't have took a unreliable gun out... (read more)

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★★☆☆☆
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“Not worth owning”

Written on: 30/08/2012

Purchased as a weapon for removing ferral pigeons. Returned to BSA after the cocking lever snapped. Repair was ok but after shooting a weirauch 95k and 97k you realise how poor the BSA actually is. (read more)

Dsz77's Comment

Written on: 11/11/2012

Got to agree I picked a bsa lightning xl se over hw 95 bad mistake had back to shop 3 times in less than 2 weeks only used it 4 times broke the scope hawke 3-9-40 ir so not a poor scope had to change mounts cos scope creep was really bad then silencer came loose wouldn't tighten back up I put 400 pellets thru it and couldn't get it zeroed pile of poo basically got hw 95 brilliant gun shooting bottle caps out to 50 yards excellent gun

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★★★★☆
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“My BSA Banter”

Written on: 03/05/2012 by exterminator

hi i bought a bsa ultra pcp new from a shop and shot over the legal limit then they replaced it for an air arms with top scope silencer mounts worth triple the ultra :) what a bad thing to experience as a non fire arms licence holder!!!!!!!!!! total bil for them 950.00 for my free kit! BSA me 1 them nil i bought a bsa lightning springer again with a scope but no hope with accuracy AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! sent it back to the shop and bsa repaired it they called it rock barrel where the... (read more)

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★☆☆☆☆
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“WORST RIFLE I'VE EVER OWNED”

Written on: 03/04/2012

Went to Lincoln on a day out and on a impulse bought the XL Tactical version of this supposed great little gun from Lincoln city air guns, Can't fault the guys in their excellent shop, but the rifle is in a word a "PIG". Bought it Saturday tried to zero the pig with quality ammo IE accupells, superdomes, ft trophy and lastly airarms all to no avail!, and to top it all a energy level of 9ft pound. Now the round trip back to Lincoln is about 120 mile, so I duly sent it back to BSA, thinking... (read more)

Baggus's Comment

Written on: 12/05/2012

its called lightning because it never hits the same place twice, after 3 months and 2 different scopes i gave up on mine. i traded it in against an 8 year old tx200 and what a difference,I should never have bought it . the recoil was horrendous when i fired i lost sight of the target due to recoil being so fierce. The groupings were very poor and I even changed the scope thinking it was faulty,I was missing magpies at 15 yards.This was the worst gun I have ever owned but also the best looking gun.If it shot as well as it looks it would have been brilliant. the gun shop where I bought it offered me half of what I paid for it. (new 3 months ago). do not buy one of these without trying it first I dont know if there all the same but there seems to be lots of complaints about them. mine was .22 cal. but more chance of hitting a target by throwing the gun at it.

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Vultee's Comment

Written on: 12/05/2012

I also have a BSA Lightning XL, and I have found it a pig to shoot accurately, it's extremely pellet fussy, and as noisy as hell despite having a full length silencer, I have a 30 + year old Webley Vulcan that out shoots the BSA, and I've been an avid fan of BSA since cutting my teeth on a Meteor and moving to an Airsporter 'S', but sadly I will NEVER buy a BSA again

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★☆☆☆☆
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“Does not live up to it's reputation.”

Written on: 14/01/2012

I bought this gun new and it had to be sent back to Birmingham twice for losing power. It dropped to below 8fps each time. After a new spring was fitted and it lost power again, BSA offered me my money back And I bought a Weirauch and never looked back. (read more)

Guest's Comment

Written on: 16/03/2012

Had to send mine back today same problem i'v had mine two months and the barrel screws have snapped and its now 8fps well angry. Do not buy this gun!!!

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Guest's Comment

Written on: 05/04/2012

And here was me thinking it was just me, I did the same but I'm stuck with this useless rifle!

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★★★★★
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“great accurate gun”

Written on: 17/09/2011

I recently bought a second hand bsa lightning for £200 after doing much research on it. I have owned a number of spring air rifles including a hw97, crosman phantom and a modified Webley tracker. With the exeption of the weihrauch as that cost £100 more than the bsa, the lightning is by far the best. It gets 1cm groupings at 25 yards! Also, the woodwork and build quality matches the hw97 as I chose to buy the old model made in england. It's very light and the carbined barrel makes it easy... (read more)

Guest's Comment

Written on: 05/12/2011

Hi..I have also recently bought a second hand .22 lightning and waiting for its deliver this week.Having found these reviews after buying it has opened my eyes a lot more on the spec of the rifle and you do get some bad opinions always, sometimes its the factory building of it to handling and carriage .Their was a person that i was reading about could not get his lightning to stay zeroed so it was shooting out of aim terrible ,he try and checked all sorts ,check barrel ,checked scope creep, checked fitting screws .And after a long time the rifle was stripped down and it was found that it had a broken spring guilde tube..It was changed and was spot on ,but he curse this model to bits. The main thing i are just wanting to no are all lightnings made in the Uk. And the XL's models the GAMO range then..And what pellets People find best for their shooting.I'm looking for removing rabbits and vermin. I'm not looking to be shooting at 50mts unless it his the right day and everything his spot on well tested at that range...Thanks for any help new lightning bsa, owner shortly....

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★★★★★
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“A cracking rifle, takes out rabbits at 50yrds no...”

Written on: 21/05/2011

A cracking rifle, takes out rabbits at 50yrds no problem and has plenty of power. 10/10 (read more)

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★☆☆☆☆
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“ ”

Written on: 07/03/2011 by Infiltrator2K (7 reviews written)


Terrible rifle! Accuracy was shockingly bad. Then I found that the bullbarrel had actually bent slightly causing the pellet to clip. The direction it had bent indicated that it had been caused by cocking the rifle. The BSA Lightning Tactical is hard to cock, but you don't expect it to bend! (underlever next time).

Then I found the rifle's trigger and safety would lock solid. This turned out to be caused by the loose sear pin in the trigger mechanism misaligning. I loctited it to... (read more)

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Verdict for BSA Lightning

BSA Lightning - Editor Summary. Review Centre currently has over 130 independent user reviews about this air rifle from the leading British manufacturer. To save you time or to get you started our Editor provides a quick summary of opinions pus lots more helpful information. Written February 2005.

BSA Lightning

BSA Lightning

BSA Lightning

Summary

This extremely popular BSA Lightning lightweight spring-piston hunting air rifle was based on the previously successful Supersport. The BSA Lightning includes 10in barrel and maxi grip scope rail and state-of-the-art Volumetric silencer. It is available in either .177, .22 or .25 calibre. BSA barrels are rifled with 12 groove 1:19in rifling and crowned for accuracy.

Spec

Overall Length 99cm
Barrel Length 37cm
Weight 2.75Kg

Features

  • Standard - beech stock and single-stage trigger
  • De-luxe version - has a high quality walnut effect stock and a two-stage trigger unit with gold blade
  • Manual safety catch
  • Patented barrel latch for perfect barrel alignment
  • Hand finished stock with ventilated recoil pad
  • Maxi-grip scope rail

Review Centre Reviews

Over 150 reviews at this site and the vast majority of them are happy to recommend the BSA Lightning. Many describe it as superb and the best valued air rifle available. Super light and highly crafted and highly accurate is the consensus opinion of a vast number of owners who have reviewed it at Review Centre. In fact the verdict is the BSA Lightning is just a superb quality gun from a longstanding manufacturer with a good reputation. The addition of the silencer is an advantage for many. However, we have received reviews from a few reviewers who have experienced mechanical faults and in particular have had trouble fitting an accurate silencer. Read individual reviews for tips on this as well as advice about the best pellets to use.

Spec

.177 (4.5mm) 850 ft/s (260 m/s)
.22 (5.5mm) 560 ft/s (170 m/s)
.25 (6.35mm) 530 ft/s (160 m/s)

Note - Airgun Safety Code

  • Treat every rifle as though it was loaded. When handling any rifle or gun.
  • Do not take anyones word that its unloaded, check it yourself.
  • Never under any circumstances point your rifle at anyone.
  • Never shoot on land without permission from the owner.
  • Always ensure its safe to shoot and be certain of your target before you squeeze the trigger.
  • Be sure that there is a safe area behind the target or a backstop to catch your pellets. If in doubt, dont shoot.
  • Beware of ricochets - do not shoot at water or other smooth surfaces that may deflect the pellet in a new direction.
  • Make sure your rifle is unloaded when carrying it, or taking it indoors or into a car.
  • Always unload your rifle before climbling fences or other obstacles.
  • Never leave your rifle unattended, even if its unloaded.
  • After use unload, clean, dry and lubricate your rifle before locking it away safely and out of reach of children. Store your pellets separately.
Verdict

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