Pump-up air rifle not pumping up? Try the 'Alcohol Flush'. 

Thank you, Thank you. I have a Crosman 130 pump pistol that I got about 65 years ago. It would not pump up so I got a O ring kit. I installed the kit the best that could but no joy! To ship it off and have it repaired would probably cost about the same as a new gun, so me being a cheap skate it has set in a closet for many years. I came across this video and thought "why not"......well it is back to plinking tin cans!!!! It sure gave me a lot fun times as a young teen....now it will give me more fun as an old guy! THANKS AGAIN Ray

Someone gave my dad a Benjamin Sheridan 397 P that wasn't pumping up. I watched your video and that night I took it apart and reason for that was to check other parts and clean. But I just poured alcohol in small hole and behind cup and let it sit overnight and lo n behold this worked. Appreciate your time making the video.

I tried this on my "one pumper" Sheridan and it worked. Be patient, keep trying and you may be rewarded. Thanks for such a well-made, instructive video.

The inlet check valve is still not sealing as you pointed out. I've been alcohol flushing pump pneumatics for years. If it's going to work it works pretty quick. My method is to squirt, pump 2X, fire, repeat until all the seals hold air and there's no more dirt coming out of the muzzle. No need to soak overnight. Alcohol hardens and dries out the rubber seals so get some oil in the valve as soon as possible after you flush it out with alcohol. If flushing doesn't work then it needs a reseal job which is no big deal. Routine oil lubrication over the life of the gun flushes the valve out with every shot.

I bought a Benjamin model 342 air rifle in the 1970s. I haven't used it for over 30 years. Tried to pump it up but it did not hold any pressure whatsoever. I read about your 'Alcohol Flush' and decided to give it a shot(pun intended) last night. I pumped it up this morning and it fired like a champ. Great advice with greater results. Thanks a million!

I watched your video and decided to try fixing my dad's 40 year old Benjamin Franklin model 342. Unbelievable, it came to life after 2 nights of soaking. Can't wait to find some pellets and test it out. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge.

John, I saw your video on the alcohol flush and was quite skeptical at first, but decided to give it a try with 70% alcohol on my Benjamin 317 and it didn't work so I decided to follow directions and use 91% alcohol. I did it like you, above and below the pump cup, then set it in the corner, upright and pumped it several times in the morning and lo and behold I got pressure again! Thanks a lot for sharing! I'm going to try it on my Crosman 664SB Pumpmaster next and see what happens. Brad

Alcohol will rust metal

Made my day. I haven't picked up my 397P in years. After the alcohol flush I'm back in business....THANK YOU!!!!

Blimey! I'm amazed, I bought a 2200 on an online auction, blind, it didn't pump. I was looking at diagrams and seal kits to repair it. I was a bit underwhelmed with the gun when I picked it up as it felt like a toy gun I had 50 years ago firing caps at my little brother. I used a few squirts of 99% hand sanitizer from our COVID stash. I'm pretty sure this little plinker has more power than my Air arms S410 classic. Very impressed with this video that has revitalised an old American plinker (maybe not restricted for UK market)

Yes alcohol will clean the inside of the bore but Alcohol swells and destroys the rubber o-rings. You get compression because the o-rings are swelling but in short time dry out and become brittle and break apart. The correct fluid to use is brake fluid. Brake fluid cleans and preserves the rubber o-rings which make up your piston pump.

Thank you for the great tip. I have an old Crosman Powermaster 66 that stopped working recently. I did the alcohol flush as you suggested and left it overnight. I tried it a little while ago and it's working great! Thank you again for the great tip. It's greatly appreciated! All the very best..... John C.

I did this to my old 2100, Powermaster66 & 392. All were still pumping but they perform WAY better now.! Much Increased power with less pumps. Very glad I found your video!

Man I'm ecstatic! My wife's dad had a 317 he had as a kid and stowed away in a hidden cabinet, when I discovered it, it didn't pump up! So I tried your flush! 3 times and man does it shoot great! Like a new gun, no leaks, no problems!!! I really didn't want to take it apart to repair it! Thank you so much for this video! It's a cool classic gun I wanted as a kid! Thank you so much, again!

I have a 55+ year old model 310, which I used as a kid, that quit pumping. I tried the alcohol flush and it didn't work immediately. I left it overnight and it's not only pumping up but holding air. Thank you for this great video.

Got an old Sheridan that I need worked on. Cant find anyone in Texas! Would you be willing to look at it? I would love to get it to work again. Thanks

I did just what you did, and my 397 is pumping, pumping, pumping.....and holding pressure!!!! Thank you!

I used spray silicone to rejuvenate the seal and it worked very well.

Having worked as a mechanic for 20 years, when there were times a car had a slightly leaky fuel injector(or fuel rail) we would fill the car up with the worst/cheapest gasoline at whatever year it happened to be (used to always be ARCO gas but not sure anymore). And fill it with the highest octane rating (92 here in California) because it has such a high alcohol/ethanol percentage to achieve the octane rating on the shitty gas. This often fixed these smaller leaks because alcohol causes rubber to *swell* not because it was "cleaning out debris" so I'm a bit confused on your reasoning as to why the alcohol flush works. I do believe it works, and I plan on trying it myself on my benjamin 312. Perhaps both of our reasons are correct.

I like many other ole yeah ole not old LOL 66 years here.. had one of the greatest ... and Mr. NorthWestAirGun is holding one right now... The Great Benjamin .ss Cal pellet riffle. I remember when I got mine at 12 years old. If I remember correctly my dad and I picked it up at White's Auto But it may have been at Sears... for under 30 bucks. .. anyway... It to this day was the best 22 cal pellet riffle i ever had or shoot... I don't know what ever happened to it... I have other air riffles now... a77s and 22s but they just don't hold a candle to the Ben Bronze Brass Master... Anyhow I have a fairly late model Crossman that won't pump.. pumped great last year .. but not today so here I go... I'll be back to let y'all know how the alcohol flush works out. Fingers crossed. BTW I'm looking to purchase a vintage Ben now.. looking on Ebay as I speak... I want the one with the rounded wood pump arm like the one I had..

Hi there, I have a Daisy 990 that used pump up just fine, until I took the part in front of the cylinder pump apart. I didn't sounds the same and seems a little weak in power on the pump side. The CO2 works great after new seals. My thoughts is that I put the check valve in wrong.

"Pumper that will not hold air" A drop of two of Pellgunoil on the pump cup will also do the trick, sometimes.

Amazing!!! I have a Crosman Powermaster 760 I bought in 1980 (I was 23), pulled it out of storage ... no pressure at all. I was looking at rebuild kits/instructions and found your vid. I did this flush twice and let it sit for 3 days ... Bought some new Pell Oil, put 3 drops on the oil ring and TAH DAH !!! It's working perfectly. This was my varmint gun on every camping trip I ever went on (remote tent camping was my main recreation until 8 yrs ago). Thank you for helping me bring her back to life! Now, I'll watch for those pesky pocket gophers when they poke their little heads up.

Very detailed video, thanks for doing that. I have a Benjamin 317 Air Rifle that belonged to my dad and it won't hold pressure anymore. I will try the alcohol flush this weekend. Would denatured alcohol work? Also if this doesn't work, can you reccomend a good relable source to buy repair parts? I found the original parts manual and don't think it will be of use since it was printed in the 60"s . Thanks for any advice, would like to restore this rifle. Mike

It is not so much the gunk as it the alcohol reacting with the rubber seals and softening them. Exactly why you should never use gasoline with ethanol in some engines. It softens the fuel lines and all rubber components in the carburetor.

C9 1992. To your point, all kinds of crud came out. Had to do it 3x before it was clear. It pumps up. Don't know how long it will last, but wow that thing was dirty. Never loan your guns to your friends.

...When the alcohol evaporates it will dry the seals, so after the flush it's best to put Pellgun oil (or something similar) on the pump cup and into the compression tube as in regular maintenance....This will bring new life to the seals if they are not damaged in any way just by age.....Lubed up before any long time storage will also be a big benefit.........

Yeah with a tranny sealer 30wht non-detegemt oil mix 20-80 . Can get some working again but they will need a reseal done right to get back up to Real Stock performance levels and even better with a bit of performance mods.

I tried it on my Crosman 20 cal c9a and the air still come out the barrel . thanks great video.

The alcohol swells the rings so they seal the air better. This, I would imagine, is a temporary fix. Looks like it's time to replace the o-rings?

Thankyou very much for this Excellent advice!!! I just did the alcohol flush over 3 days and saw little bits of string come out the barrel when dry firing and adding more 99% isopropyl alcohol into the air intake each day , and this morning my Benjamin 317(no serial #- made 1940-56) held air, and I chronographed it shooting 5.4 grain Crosman lead free "fast flight" pellets at nearly 700 fps, so I'd say that the alcohol flush was a success :)

What do you think of pure Teflon as an Air Gun lubricant.Cheers fr Monterey, cal...

Will this technique work on my purple headed yogurt slingers pumper?

Holy smokes I just grabbed my old Sears .22 1400 off the wall, where it has been sitting for decades and had it shooting in minutes. Thanks for the tip. I’ll try it on an old 822 tomorrow.

there are product s for a car engine to stop leaking ,by making the rubber seals soft again ,maybe it wil work in a sheridan to . by the way >>>bij putting alcohol under pressure with oxygen ,and at some point there is a change that you get the diesel effect inside the chamber .i would not pump more then once . and shoot it empty then .

I have a Benjamin 317 that needs to be worked on. I'm in the Southern California and Austin Tx area a lot. Do you have any recommendations?

whats the main reason these pumpguns dont pump anymore after a while? dirt?

Thank you! Just revived a first run 140 Crossman using this method!

Thank you for the information! I want to ask you if for the pumpers is OK to dry fire

I hear the intro and outro music but nothing but static for the rest of the video.

The 312 likely has a leather piston seal and a nylon check valve. Neats foot oil is the proper piston lubricant. Mac1 secret Sauce available from Mac1 airguns in California is the proper lube for all rubber sealed guns.

I have one I used in the winter to dispatch fox's in my trap 14 years ago it was 10 below when I pumped it and after that it quit pumping air.. was going to just put it in the garbage can this week when I read this and all the comments about alcahol and break fluid so I went to my shed and opened the pump handle up and seen some small lettering that said use air compressor oil only. I put a drop in the oil hole and one on the push ring and one in the open chamber. I started with 1 pump then fired it with no pellet then 2 pumps and fired it then three and fired it ( air only ) and let it sit for 30 minutes then 5 pumps with a pellet then 8 ( that is max ) with a pellet and sweet I got my gun back - shot 5 pellets at 8 pumps and worked like it did when I first bought it , man sweet I almost sent it to its grave. - thanks for making this and the reviews help save my gun,

My assumption is the alcohol, is causing the rubber oring (s) seals.. to swell.. thus, the drying seals.. are made somewhat whole again.. least for a while..

friend factories, the bombs break those guns

Thank,you alcohol is amazing my gun Franklin ok

Auto ac refrigerant oil....pag46

I hope you're still here. I have a 1377 that I purchased during the early 90s. I never maintained it. It recently stopped pumping so I dripped some silicone oil where I could and it's now pumping again. At 14:19 into your video: Mine, regardless of how many pumps, the pump handle will sag all the way back down. It will even sag down if I apply VERY little pumping pressure. Do I have more than a cup issue? Thanks you.

Gona give it a try, although, min stoped pumping becouse I was dry shooting I believe. Supposed to top off at 7 pumps. Ill check in later and let you all know. I also hear MarvellMysteri oil helps with O rings..may ad that later.

Great video! I've got a 312 that belonged to my great uncle. It was made in 1957 and it works pretty well. I flushed mine with Super Slick Slick Stuff. A question... After I pump and fire it, I can cock the hammer and fire it 3 more times before it runs out of air. Is this normal?

Wouldn’t it just be better to keep pumping with Pellgun oil? I did that over a couple days to fix a 760 that stopped working.

Hey i just did that and it worked thank you so much I haven't shot it in like 25 yrs maybe longer your the man

Man if you cant speak up in your videos then you dont need to be making them cause no one can hear you. Smh.

The flush works. I flush on a regular basis now. Only a few drops is needed. Put a drop of oil on the cup at the same time. I get max pressure, max fps, and the gun holds full charge for days. Evidently manufacturers do not want you to know how to keep your air gun working for many years. $$$$.

Wish I’d seen this vid before I started makin my own tools to remove valve…was about to make a threaded valve remover( got square drive nut out ) and called around to find out who has a seal kit for my.177 H9 pistol ( nickel plate ) and can’t find it 😳..if anyone has info on this ..I’d really appreciate it !….if not I’m itching to slap it back together and try this alcohol method !!!

I did this with a 1322 that wouldn't pump up. . I poured in about a teaspoon of 91% alcohol and i shook it up and let the gun soak overnight. The next day i shook out all of the alcohol i could. Then i put some silicone oil in the pumping mechanism and a little in the Chamber . I pumped it a few times and it started holding air. I put more silicone in the mechanism every few days and it got better and better. Then i tried it in an old Crossman 140 thst wouldn't pump up. This gun pumps up but it's very weak. I think this one is going to get new seals So i am 1 for 2. That's not so bad for guns other people had given up on. Thanks for the video.

I bought an old Blue Streak that had been sitting in a shed for years, through frigid MN winters and humid summers. It would not pump up when I got it. I did the alcohol flush and the gun pumped up fine and held air for days. I sold the gun to a buddy 7 years ago and it’s still pumping and holding air fine.

Wow, that worked like a charm, only took a few hours to soak with 91% ISO... Saved me the hassle and time of a valve job.

The alcohol worked fine but now the gun is blowing air around my transfer port. I have some 1/4 inch tubing, so I want to cut a small piece and replace the transfer port. Can I remove the barrel without removing the trigger assembly?

My Sheridan has a leather seal on the pump, alcohol won’t hurt it. I have never done this because I always store it it with one pump of pressure. Mine is over 50 years old. I sent it in for rebuild about 1975. Still shoots great to this day. My Benjamin has leather seals on the pump also. I have had the pump seal get hard on it. I’m going to pull it out of storage and try alcohol.

Well,my dad's Benjamin is now fixed AND in under 10 minutes. I injected the alcohol and then just a touch of synthetic oil,gave er a few pumps and instant pressure building again. Running good and it's sat in the same spot for many years. Firing good. Thanks for this tip!!

from spain ....ok thanks

Excellent!!!!! Now to try!!! Thanks for the information!!!

While doing some maintenance on my Benjamin Sheridan C9A .50 Cal. rifle, I ended up having some gun oil creep into the air pump chamber. I had zero pumping power. I found this video and gave it a try, and IT WORKED! I added the rubbing alcohol into the chamber and pump cup, let it sit over night, and the next morning all was good again. Got my beloved air rifle back in working order. Actually has more pressure then it originally had. Thank you for this video!

there was no audio for me. the music at the intro was fine but after that nothing

I used silicone spray without knowing about the video and had similar results. It only stays strong for several months. I still want to change the rings.

I tried the alcohol flush and when I went to lose pump, it will not close. Extremely hard to put in close position. A day later I still can’t close pump. Do you know what cause that?

I put alcohol in my Sheridan and the pump is extremely hard to close. How do I get alcohol out. I don’t see anything drain when I tilt it forward.

Will it work with whisky ?

nice. but my mod 312 had its barrel come un soldered so i have that mess to deal with. i should have snuk it in wen i had jewelry class and sweat it back together with med solder. someday ill figure it al out lol

Hi!! Wish I have one B392S AG. In the Philippines do you have suppliers?

Thanks for this great tip. Got my old Sheridan Blue Streak shooting again. Since trapping didn't work, now I can get the rabbit destroying my garden. Some say it won't last, but I just need a couple days.

Crossman. Had goo gone sitting infront of me while watching. Worked immediately

Thanks for posting this tip and very good teaching style. I was given a crosmen 66 from the late 80’s by the serial # that didn’t pump. DOES NOW & holds air. Put some silicone oil in after several dry shots to remove the alcohol. Shoots great.

I'm going to do this on my silver streak. Hopefully it works?

Bought this for my grandson with the understanding that it's to be used properly...

Took my front end apart cleaned tube. Flushed with alcohol. Got it to shoot alcohol through it. Refilled with alcohol and set over night 3 times. Still only takes one pump.

How would I fix a Benjamin air rifle if it does pump in air but the air gets out, how do I fix this issue?

"no, we're not gonna drink the alcohol" said with a perfectly straight face... you're good

What about using Hydraulic/Brake Fluid ?

I under head space on a rifle what are you referring to in an air gun? Could not be the same thing.

Took your advice and my Benjamin 397pa immediately started pumping up. I lack patience so as soon as I seen the difference I did like you said and it works like new. Thanks

I didn’t believe it, but tried it and it worked! Just need to let it soak for a couple of days! Thanks!

THANKS FOR SHARING YOUR KNOWLEDGE. I DID THE FLUSH ONE TIME AND NOW IT WORKS PERFECTLY...

does anyone know what pressures these type of air rifles operates at? what pressure are they being pump to?

I never thought of that i tried transmission oil that didn't work, ill try it and let you it works

THANK YOU! JUST TRIED THIS YESTERDAY ON MY DAISY 856 AND TODAY IT PUMPED UP AND FIRED. SO I PUT MORE IN AND WILL TRY IT AGAIN TOMORROW!

Tried it on my model 137 pistol, works like new. Thankyou.

You sure did teach me something about that alcohol thank you 👍🙏👌

I like made in usa original .. but have no money to buy..😂✌ iam like your chanel and subscribe..

I am so happy I found this video last night. Earlier this week I took my Crosman 140 off of my gun rack to dust the Rifles on the Gun Rack. For the heck of it I tried to pump it up and it would not hold air. Took a extra Syringe I had around that I had left over from filling printer ink cartridges for my printer unused and poured some Rubbing Alcohol in a extra pill bottle I had around like you did and inserted it where you told us on the video to do. Did it a few times. It didn't do anything for me last night as it seemed to be leaking air from around the piston area. I thought there was no hope for it and that maybe I needed to rebuild the piston. Add more Alcohol, stood it up and walked away. Well this early afternoon I went and checked the 140 Rifle again and I could tell a big difference on the first pump. Pumped it just 2 times and tried it and it shot some air out of the barrel into a rag. Just ordered some Pelgun oil for it last night I should have on Monday. Can you suggest to me or do you have another video you can send me a link to on how to oil this 140 Rifle properly? I forgot to mention earlier that I purchased a seal kit of just O-Rings for this 140 Crosman Rifle maybe 5-6 years ago and resealed this Rifle back then and only shot it maybe 10 times to test it out afterwards. Got tired of pumping it up each time I wanted to shoot it. Didn't mind as a kid back in or around 1960 when my grandfather purchased this Rifle for me but at the time in my mid 60's then I just didn't feel like it anymore and put it back on my gun rack where it collected dust until the other day. I am 71 years old now. All and all this Rifle is in great shape. No rust. Blueing on the metal still in pretty nice shape. Wood Stock is nice also but with a few small chips. Thanks for making this video is all I want to tell you. You helped me revive my old 140 Crosman at least for the time being. I just want to Oil it with the Crosman Peloil when I receive it. Don't remember if I got any Crosman oil with the Rifle when I purchased it new. I believe back then I was using 3 and 1 oil on a rag just to wipe my Rifles down with and really nothing else maybe some WD40 also at times on a rag to wipe them down with.

Just bought a crossman 1377 that's not pumping, gonna try this.

Haha, I know absolutely nothing about pellet/bb guns- I know nothing about any guns as I live in Canada and my parents wouldn’t allow; nor did we live in the right setting for anything more than a cap gun! ANYWAYS.. I now live on some acreage and my 10 year old asked for a pellet gun for his birthday. I bought an airmaster 77 off of my coworker. When I got home and tested it out, it wouldn’t pump even a whisper of air into the damn thing. I watched your video and decided I better try this alcohol flush before buying something new- but seeing that I don’t have any alcohol of that kind on hand; I simply blew into the pellet loading chamber (I’m probably butchering the terminology) and holy cow sh¡t it works!

Si yo le puse un poco de thiner y en 20 minutos que estuve bombiando funciono de nuevo gracias por el tips me evite una reparacion

Interessant. I ll try it right away on my daisy powerline. Greetings from Norway!

Seems to have worked for me! Just tried it with my Sheridan 5mm. Thanks.

Just tried this on my 1975 Benjamin 342 and on my 1995 Benjamin 397PA. They're both working much better now. Thanks.

Interesting technique! Looking at the video and comments it seems like it is working well

Thanks that works really good, then I put light oil a day later.

My air gun I've shot and lubricated for years stopped working out of no where. It wouldn't pump any air at all, I put denatured alcohol into the system and pumped it to spread it around. After sitting for about 30 minutes it was back to life! It could probably use another soak and sit for a little longer. But im very thankful for this tip, I can't believe it worked. Now I have my favorite bb gun back and ready to roll! Will probably have to replace the cup soon. But im just glad it works again

It's pretty hard to argue with the success you and others have had with the alcohol, but I'd be concerned because of the water that makes up any alcohol that is less than 100%, and that is virtually every type sold. If I remember correctly alcohol has a great affinity for water, and if it's not already there, any strong product probably absorbs alcohol from the air unless there's none to be had. If I tried it, I'd make sure the barrel isn't closed at the receiver end and work it hard the next day to remove as much of the alcohol as I could to avoid rust. On the positive side, most guns have lots of oil residue in them. FWIW, I recently bought a Crosman that absolutely had no indication that the there was a pump seal in it. I oiled it liberally (I only use synthetic motor oil), and the pump cup did respond and would pump up. With frequent use, it remains usable, but in time, it shrinks back to the point it will not hold the pump lever closed. Time for a replacement. Doug