160 Years of BSA Guns

THERE can’t be many people who have never shot a BSA airgun. These solidly built, dependably accurate and competitively priced rifles seem to have been around for ever, yet their current line-up still manages to stay abreast of the cutting edge of airgun design.

BSA Guns recently celebrated its 160th anniversary. That is a very impressive milestone, and the business has not let it go unmarked. To enable GTN readers to share in the birthday, I caught up with the Birmingham airgunmaker’s managing director Simon Moore to hear about what it takes to go that distance, what the team did to commemorate the occasion and what might be coming next.

MM: BSA has a very long and accomplished history. What are the most important values that have been carried through the business from its establishment 160 years ago to the present day?

SM: Brand value. That’s the most important thread for all BSA businesses over the years, and something we work hard at: craftmanship, accuracy and precision.

MM: Those values have obviously played an important role in the longevity of BSA Guns. What other factors do you think have helped to keep the brand so popular for so long?

SM: Our brand is quintessentially British. Despite being saved by Spanish-owned Gamo in 1986, and being now under US ownership, we have continued with being British and continued to be based in Armoury Road, Birmingham.

MM: Do you still use any production techniques that would look familiar to someone who had worked in the BSA factory more than a century and a half ago?

SM: No. Our manufacturing is much more aligned to automotive techniques than old-fashioned gunsmithing.

MM: BSA Guns has witnessed some big changes in the airgun industry. What are the key demands of most customers when they are buying a modern air rifle?

SM: We can only speak for our brands. From our market research, most airgun shooters fall into one of three categories: plinkers, pest control and target (not necessarily competition). So our objective is to firstly get more customers into airguns and to have faith in our brands and products. We want to give consumers the right balance of cost, features and performance so they pick one of our products. If they come into the sport at plinking level—with a lower specification, lower cost product—we can in time move them up the airgun pyramid onto another one from our portfolio.

MM: The famous BSA Ultra PCP was given a revamp and branded CLX (160 in Roman numerals) to mark the business’s 160th anniversary. Can you tell us a bit about the gun and the updates that have been made?

SM: Everything changed. Well, apart from the cold hammer forged barrel and just one or two other components. The whole thrust of the CLX was to create a new rifle that is more efficient in its operation and more efficient in its manufacturing process, so where we have had to increase the cost of many components we can shield the consumer from those costs by being more efficient in how we manufacture our guns. The overwhelming objective was that this needed to be a new rifle from the ground up, but still clearly an Ultra.

MM: And you went a step further to produce a limited run of the CLX 160 Commemorative Edition. What separates these guns from the standard Ultra CLX?

SM: There are three main differences. Firstly, the stock is a limited run of Minelli’s Black Pepper stock with the bespoke 160-year inscription. Secondly, this model is a sidelever. We wanted to test out the sidelever market, and this was a very special way of doing that. Finally, we only made 160 each in .177 and .22 calibres. They come supplied with added items such as the certificate of authenticity and the commemorative 160 fabric patch, which makes the whole package even more special. All 320 units actually sold within two hours, which certainly proves the point.

MM: What other airguns in the BSA Guns line-up, past and present, are you particularly proud of, and why?

SM: There are so many, but I’m going to reference two, and they may surprise you. The first one is the BSA Scorpion Cadet. We are now officially certified as the only manufacturer, and the Scorpion Cadet is the only approved air rifle which is purchased by British Army Cadet Force Regional Command. This rifle was tested against seven other products in 2020, and ours won hands down on features, design, quality and our ability to supply. We are now well into that long-term supply contract. Being able to continue the long history of BSA supporting the British military is something we are all very proud of.

My second choice could be considered as a bit of an oddball. It is the Gamo-branded Phox. This is a product designed and manufactured in Birmingham, and we took advantage of being part of the Gamo group with the availability of a synthetic stock, which works on a PCP. (Tooling for these carries a high cost.) We designed a rifle which we could combo with a scope, gun bag and a pump to get new shooters into PCP with everything they need to get started, and more importantly a bomb-proof airgun. This rifle is part of a family of product which, globally, is our biggest selling PCP.

MM: If you could return one discontinued BSA airgun to the current product range, which one would it be and why? SM Wait and see!

MM: That sounds interesting, but you’re clearly keeping tight-lipped about it. Aside from the Ultra CLX, do you have any other new releases lined up over the coming months and what can you tell us about them?

SM: We are always looking at new opportunities and market trends, so at some point new product will be launched. At this stage we have nothing to confirm.

MM: What do you see as the most important factors to ensure that the BSA Guns brand continues to thrive for many years to come?

SM: Very simply, three things. One: customer satisfaction for both the trade and the consumer. Two: product innovation, because we must always move forward—we’ve been around for over 160 years but that alone doesn’t guarantee the next 160 years. Three: stakeholder value, and that doesn’t just mean our shareholders, although return on investment is critical. It means that everyone associated with BSA has value, and that includes employers, suppliers, customers and consumers. GTN