Last Updated on July 14, 2022 by Albert Smith
I do a lot of shooting, I have handguns, I have hunting rifles, and I have airguns, but the gun I shoot the most is the RWS 54 Air King.
Now this is a German made air rifle. It is marketed as the RWS 54, Diana RWS 54 and the Umarex RWS 54. It is not an inexpensive rifle. It is actually quite costly, but excellent quality is always going to cost. And if you want the best, then get the RWS 54 Air King. Let’s take a look at what makes it the best air rifle on the market.
The RWS 54 Air King is available in .177, .22 and .25 calibers, so get the one that fits you the best. They all have excellent FPS and impact power, but of course the .177 is a bit faster. That is the one I got. You choose the one which fits your requirements..
- Spring powered, side lever action .22 caliber pellet air rifle
- Totally Recoilless: Action hovers on a set of rails giving a "floating action" effect making it totally recoilless for maxium accuracy
- Streamlined Monte Carlo beechwood stock with checkered grip and raised cheekpiece
- Shoots .22 pellets at up to 900 fps
- Includes a 4x32mm air rifle scope and scope mounting rings; Features a blade and ramp front sight, an adjustable rear sight and an 11mm dovetail rail for optics mounting
Last update on 2024-11-20 / Ads
This is not a traditional break barrel. The cocking motion is made by a side lever, that you pull back, which opens the breech, giving you access to insert a pellet.
What makes this rifle unequaled in precision is that it is a recoil free air rifle. When I say “free” from recoil I mean that the only recoil you will ever feel is when the pellet has already left the barrel, so it will not affect the precision one iota. This is handled by a floating rail system, that pushes the receiver part of the rifle forward inside the stock. This is what handles the recoil. If you look at the barrel from the side when shooting, you will notice that the barrel is pushed back about an inch or so when firing a shot, but this is all handled by the floating rail, so the recoil is not transferred to the stock. The stock only pushes back about a millimeter. This is very useful, and translates into amazing air rifle precision. When I review air rifles I usually shoot 2 inch groups on 20 yards. With the RWS 54 Air King and a good scope I get dime sized groups on 20 yards and 1 inch groups at 50 yards! This is one hell of a difference. You can hit the head of a rat at huge distances. When it comes to vermin control… well, you can figure out the advantage of such precision.
With the .177 version, or 4.5 mm version of this air rifle I gain speeds of about 900 FPS with a deviation of less than 15 FPS.
As expected, the online reviews of the RWS 54 Air King, no matter if it is the Umarex RWS 54, The Diana RWS 54 or just the RWS 54 Air King that is being reviewed, score very high indeed. I have not found a single bad review anywhere online. Take a look for yourself. You can start with clicking the following link to see the ratings, or buy the rifle at what is possibly the best price, at Amazon.
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