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Walther Rotex RM8

Walther Rotex RM8

German gun manufacturing giants, Walther, first established themselves on the UK airgun scene with the many and varied CO2 powered pistols and rifles they’ve long produced but more recently they’ve also made great in-roads with a few very appealing springers.

Specifically, that breakthrough to the mainstream came with the launch of the technically advanced LGV break-barrel action rifles and certainly was reinforced by the under-lever action LGU.

Not entirely new to the PCP power source, Walther had previously ‘dipped their toes’ into the market with a rifle known as the Dominator. I remember testing that rifle when it was first released, and although it was very accurate and had a very efficient 8-shot rotary magazine fed multi-shot action, unfortunately, due to its length, was quite cumbersome. Not surprisingly, sales in the UK weren’t astonishing and it was soon discontinued; but wanting to follow the success of their new development programme it follows that they would want to have a successful multishot PCP on the roster. That leads me to the rifle here on test, the Walther Rotex RM8, which by my reckoning ticks all the right boxes for a robust and reliable multi-shot PCP designed for the hunter.

On initial appearance, due to the front buddy-bottle configuration, the rifle has a similarity to the BSA SuperTen MkI. However, this is mainly due to the ‘bulbous’ shape of the buddy-bottle. However, a copy of that break-through rifle this is definitely not, as Walther firmly stamp their prestigious mark on this gun, opting to use a slightly modified action as used on the previously mentioned Dominator and even their CO2 powered 850 Air Magnum; but more of the action later, because first we need give credit to what is a very ‘dominating’ (no pun intended) and very appealing feature of this rifle, the Minnelli manufactured stock.

Taking stock

The fully ambidextrous beech wood furniture is quite chunky and sports a high and very well defined cheekpiece with a steep drop down pistol grip, generous thumbshelf plus a ventilated thick black rubber buttpad. The thickset forend helps the rifle feel very secure in the hold and extends part way over the buddy-bottle; so, you’re leading hand feels wood and not the cold metal of the front mounted air tank. Deep-cut chequering is very generously applied at the pistol grip and runs along both sides of the forend in ‘close-cut’ but stylish panels and wraps fully around the nicely rounded underside. This is definitely a rifle that you’ll find very easy to hold with gloved or un-gloved hands.

Charging the fixed buddybottle is via a very deeply recessed charging point, positioned right next to a neat air gauge found mid-way along the underside of the forend. The company state a recommended 232-bar fill gives approximately 160 shots in .177 calibre and nigh on 200 in .22.

Action

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The action is where anybody familiar with the Walther rifles I mentioned earlier will find a familiar layout for priming and loading this multi-shot PCP. For those who aren’t, it’s a simple and very practical one and is undertaken as follows: to remove the 8-shot alloy magazine, the generously sized ‘blacked’ steel, ball end cocking bolt needs to be lifted from its original forward position and pulled back until it locks in the fully rearward position. To release the magazine from the housing, you then need to slide back the lengthy slim, oblong serrated outer edge release catch positioned directly behind the magazine housing and below the cocking bolt on the right of the action. Once slid back, you can then lift the drum-shaped magazine out from the left-hand side of the action.

Filling the magazine is a simple task, as you just place a pellet into all the empty chambers with the centre boss facing you, ensuring all rear skirts fit flush. Once filled, replace the magazine back into its housing, slide the release catch forward, push the cocking bolt forward and return it down to its original position. This has now taken a pellet from the magazine and probed it directly into the breech. Once a shot is taken, to access another pellet you simply cycle the bolt, which operates very smoothly and positively. Incidentally, a nice design feature of the magazine is that once loaded, pellets are securely held in the chambers by a rubber ring that’s stretched around the outer edge of the magazine that is well seated in a recess. I mention this, because some ‘similar’ magazines use a thin O-ring that doesn’t ‘grip’ certain types of pellet; usually this is the case with pellets that are quite short in length, so therefore can and do fall out! But, that’s not the case here.

Trigger

The 2-stage adjustable trigger unit is equipped with a familiar design of manual safety ‘button’ positioned at the rear of the action. This unit has what is known as a ‘double safety system’, whereby to disengage it you first need to push down a slim vertical slide catch positioned on the outer edge of the safety button itself. Only then can you push in the main body of the catch to put the rifle into fire mode. When pushed in, this exposes a red dot on top of the action’s rear base plate, visually indicating that the rifle is now ready to fire. At any time, it can be manually re-set by simply pulling it back using your thumb and forefinger. The trigger unit is designated as the ‘XT-Trigger’, so I’d wager is upgraded from similar designs the company has used in the past, but I may be wrong!

My test rifle was fitted with what at first appears to be a silencer but is in fact a removable muzzle weight. At the tip, a screw off cap revealed a ½-inch UNF thread for fitting a silencer of choice. However, the company has already modified this part of the rifle, as production guns now come with a much more stylish and discreet muzzle weight, but this also can be removed for the fitting of a ‘can.’

Test and evaluate

I tested the rifle with and without a can and while having one fitted didn’t affect the rifle’s balance, it obviously did tame the characteristic ‘crack’ given off by any un-silenced PCP but also unavoidably added a good few inches to the overall length. On the plus side, it didn’t ‘feel’ unwieldy, but it is something I hope Walther consider, as in my opinion, the barrel could be shorter.

While the Walther Rotex RM8 weighs 8lbs un-scoped and the weight is felt slightly forward, once you have an optic on board, the rifle’s inherent balance then shifts more to the rear, as it sits very comfortably in the shoulder. The receiver has a lengthy run of uninterrupted scope rails, so fitting any size of optic isn’t a problem. For test, I teamed the RM8 up with an old Hawke Sport HD 3-9 X 50AO IR in high mounts courtesy of Sportsmatch UK, which suited the rifle’s high cheekpiece, as eye-scope alignment was spot on.

Conclusion

During test, I used various brands of quality ammo and it certainly wasn’t pellet fussy and shooting from a rested position soon producing clover leaf groups with Air Arms Field and Bisley Magnums at my 30-yard set zero. In other words, this is a very accurate and overall quite an impressive air rifle, especially when you consider the price, which will also make it a tempting choice for those who are looking to make the move into hunting with a multi-shot PCP.

  • Walther Rotex RM8 - image {image:count}

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  • Walther Rotex RM8 - image {image:count}

    click on image to enlarge

  • Walther Rotex RM8 - image {image:count}

    click on image to enlarge

  • Walther Rotex RM8 - image {image:count}

    click on image to enlarge

  • Walther Rotex RM8 - image {image:count}

    click on image to enlarge

gun
features

  • Model: Walther Rotex RM8
  • Type: Bolt-action PCP
  • Action: Multi-Shot
  • Stock: Ambidextrous beech wood sporter
  • Sights: No. Grooved for scope mounting
  • Length: 41-inches
  • Barrel: 20-inches
  • Weight: 8lbs un-scoped
  • Calibre: .177 on test .22 calibre available
  • Price: £449.95
  • Contact: John Rothery (Wholesale) www.bisley-uk.com
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