Well, a tin of pellets later and this rifle, still smoking, it is putting 10 pellets in a 2.5" circle at 30 yards. With open sights and my eyes, the target is smaller than the front sight so the rifle is more accurate than it sounds. My arm is sore after 500 cocking strokes, so time to put it away for today.
Just took off the stock, the plastic screw covers over the fore stock screws just pop off. One stock screw was loose, the other was tight as was the trigger screw. Finish inside the stock is very good. The mainspring looked very smooth and was covered in machine oil. I eased some Moly onto the trigger sear and into the cocking slot.
I sighted it in today with Daisy HP pellets they are crappy pellets but good for breaking it in. About 1/3 of them had deformed skirts leading to a bit of scatter in the "groups". Overall, it sighted in with the rear windage cranked almost fully right. I'm not sure, but I think it may be the particular pellets. I'd convinced myself that the barrel was bent left, but a laser line shows the front sight is perfectly in line all the way down the barrel, down the compression chamber and through the screw for the scope stop, so its dead centre all the way along. Has anyone experience this before?
I'll keep this QB18 with open sights for a while, I have too many rifles now and no more scopes. The trigger is it's only negative... way too heavy.

Here is the stock, removed:




This is the barrel from a shooters view, note how the rear sight is off to the right.


Thia is the laser shining down the compression tube. See how it passes centre of compression, through the centre of the rear sights and the front sight... they are all in line.


More evidence of straight barrel, laser at the front sight


laser down centre of barrel


laser at centre of elevation adjustment screw


laser at centre of scope stop screw.... all in a straight line, front sight to scope stop.


Here is the main spring


and the trigger


and last the breach area with pivot screw:]