Crosman archives might have answered this question for us, but unfortunately the company went through a violent purge of files and historical artifacts in the 1990s under a former management regime. Unlike Daisy, who has a positive track on their history, Crosman lobotomized much of its colorful past in the purge, leaving collectors to flesh out the details as best they can from the scant remaining ephemera. This gun and others like it may have been liberated during that great corporate potlatch of the mid-90s.
Two other Daisys without sights
The Quick Skill shooting set was too popular at the grassroots to die an easy death. Though the company tried to end it after the general public lost interest in the 1970s, shooters refused to let it go. The Quick Skill set was brought back to life over and over up to 1998. The last official Daisy instinct shooter was a sightless model 840 single-stroke pneumatic BB gun the company redesignated as model 842.
The final Daisy instinct trainer was a variant of the 840 single-stroke pneumatic. Called the 842, it came as part of the last Quick Skill set. From a brochure provided by Daisy.
Daisy also offered a target thrower with a VHS video in a set they labeled the No. 843 Instinct Shooting Program Kit. I have never seen one of these sets or the 842 BB gun, but Daisy was kind enough to share some promotional literature that proves its existence. This would be an example of a recent airgun with great collector value, should you be fortunate enough to locate one.
The other gun without sights is a Daisy No. 25 pump gun owned by collector Bob Spielvogel. The literature that came with it reveals that the New Jersey State Police bought several dozen of the Rogers-made 25s without sights for an instinct shooting program of their own. The sights were not removed; they were never installed to begin with, indicating that this, too, is a factory-made gun. Very little is known about it, but it is potentially a Colt Walker among modern BB guns.
Rarest of them all has to be this Daisy No. 25 pump gun made without sights for the New Jersey State Police, which apparently had an instinct shooting program in the 1960s. Bob Spielvogel collection.
There is much more!
The history of BB guns used for instinct shooting is quite rich, though nearly unknown outside the circles of serious collectors. There are other models of guns, target throwing systems and books, just to scratch the surface. Even if you have no personal interest in the subject, it might be worthwhile to keep an eye peeled at gun shows and yard sales, ready to snag an interesting piece of shooting history when it pops up.
Thanks to the following individuals who made available the guns shown here: Tom Woodling, Ted Osborn and Bob Spielvogel. The author also thanks the Daisy Manufacturing Company and especially Joe Murfin and Susan Johnston for their help in gathering historical Daisy material.
