Air rifles of the hinged barrel type

An air rifle of the hinged barrel type having a tiltable barrel with a bore pivotly connected to a buttstock, comprising:

• a compression chamber within said buttstock;
• a compression spring disposed within said compression chamber;
• a first sub-assembly at the rear end portion of said barrel adjacent said buttstock comprising a casing substantially enclosing the rear end portion of said barrel with a part of said barrel extending rearwardly from said casing, and a releasable locking means on said casing;
• a second sub-assembly comprising an injection molded plastic forked member having a cylindrical portion inserted within said compression chamber, a circumferential groove on said cylindrical portion, an O-ring seal in said circumferential groove to provide an airtight seal between said cylindrical portion and said compression chamber, at least two transverse open passages through said cylindrical member, locking pins in said transverse open passages and engaging said buttstock for securing said cylindrical portion in said compression chamber, two parallel fork limbs receiving therebetween a part of said first sub-assembly, a fork bottom between said parallel fork limbs, an intermediate part on said fork bottom having a flat transverse wall, an axial transfer passage extending through said cylindrical portion and through said transverse wall communicating said compression chamber with the bore of said barrel when said barrel is in a closed firing position for use, a semi-cylindrical shaped rabbet on said transverse wall and centered coaxially with said axial transfer passage for supporting said rearwardly extending part of said rear end of said barrel when in firing position and coaxially centering said bore of said barrel with said axial transfer passage, an inclined plane on said transverse wall engagable with said locking means on said first sub-assembly when in firing position for retaining said bore of said barrel in alignment with said axial transfer passage, and two-side rectilinear profiles on said forked member delimiting said transverse wall and engaging said rearwardly extending part of said rear end of said barrel for reinforcing and centering said barrel with the bore thereof aligned with said axial transfer passage in firing position;
• aligned transverse passages through said fork limbs and said first sub-assembly casing;
• a hinge pin extending through said aligned passages for pivotly connecting said sub-assemblies together;
• and
• a lever mechanism pivotly connecting said buttstock with said first sub-assembly casing for compressing said spring within said compression chamber when said sub-assemblies are aligned in the firing position.