Printable View
Since I now have my Luger, I need to find something else to search for.
I'm thinking a WWI Webley would be good as I have a WWII Enfield. How hard are they to find in the US and expected price range?
Any other suggestions?
French I just have a MAS 76
Pretty good on German
Content with Japanese although I do see a Type 94 that's available. Not sure I want one.
I don't have a WWI Italian or Austro-Hungarian.
What about a S&W M1917.......?Quote:
Originally Posted by Aragorn243
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...1/sasww2-1.jpg
Beretta 34
My limitations at this point are it has to come in at Cabelas, I still have a lot of points left after the Luger but not much cash or gift cards at this point although I did find one gift card today.
Smith and Wesson 1917 is under consideration but the price would have to be right. I'd prioritize European arms over it in any case.
I have a Beretta 35 so don't really see the need for a 34 at this point.
watch gunbroker to see what webleys are going for. Ones that haven't had the cylinder shaved for 45 acp/ 45 auto rim go for more
"...have a WWII Enfield..." There's more than one flavour. More than one flavour of Webley too. Decided on a budget and how important shooting 'em is first. The latter is mostly about the ammo. .455 ammo isn't exactly common, Stateside. Non-200 grain .38 S&W(.38-200 is .38 S&W with a cast 200 grain bullet. The Brit loaded it in an attempt to make the S&W more powerful.) is fairly easy to come by though.
A .455 Webley Mk VI in decent condition on Gunbroker starts at about $1200US. An Enfield No. 2 Mk I starts at roughly $350.
"...S&W M1917..." Those have a fairly high demand with a low supply. Makes 'em pricey, but not stupid expensive.
I don't really buy to shoot, my only condition is they are functional and can shoot. I expect this is all moot as I'll probably buy the first thing that comes up that looks interesting no matter what it is. I have passed on an Egyption FN and a Japanese Type 94 so far but if the 94 hangs around long enough and nothing else happens, I may bite. It has some issues. Non-matching magazine and the one grip is missing a chunk I think a Webley would be great for my presentations though, just not sure one will show up. I understand the variations but not into all that. One's enough as an example.
Well I have a few Webleys but most have been under the knife. Barrels cut, cylinders cut. sights changed. 45cal are hard to come by with out issues at a reasonable price. 38's can be had for a decent price in real nice shape. Will keep my eyes open for you Steve if you want.
The info above on the Webley/Enfield .455 vs .45 is pretty good. They are great shooters and really look the part. Finding any in the original .455 is tough...and expensive. An example shaved for .45ACP can be found in the $500-600 range without too much effort. I actually have one I'm rebuilding, if you're not in a hurry. I have the bits, but have to do a bit of fitting.
I have decided to go forward with the Japanese Type 94. Did a lot of further research on them and figure it will be a good addition to my collection as a very interesting piece. Not a single other interesting thing a Cabelas after two weeks either.
Pics after...Quote:
Originally Posted by Aragorn243
The pics on this one aren't good. They didn't put much effort into this one. It looks to be in decent shape with little wear on the finish but the finish is a light color. I've seen these both like this and with darker finishes. This particular one is a December of 1943 so it's not a late war but they were starting to skimp on the finishing. Lots of machining marks. Small piece of the one grip is missing and the magazine doesn't match. I actually talked with them three times on this and got opinions from three different guys on it, they all seemed to agree the bore is excellent, the exterior at about 70% and uniform. No idea when it will come in. Coming from Texas this time. I'm hoping before Sunday but Thanksgiving and Black Friday may throw a monkey wrench into it.
Pics when you have it I meant...that way they'll be thorough.
Do not forget the Victory model. Can be had reasonable. And the M35 Highpower.
I understood what you meant. They only posted two, one of each side. Like I said, I talked to three different guys and had all three operate it, look at it and describe it. I kind of hate doing it this way but not much choice. I doubt it's in bad condition. I can see no rust or pitting on it anywhere, just machining marks. I'm thinking the bluing will be a bit darker in person like the luger was but not expecting dark blue. I can't really see any wear marks on it along the slide, or high spots so I'm thinking this was probably lightly finished to begin with. Many that I've looked at online seem to be the same color. I'll post what they have here. I can zoom in on them pretty nice. These are only two photos but some are zoomed:
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...RWechpng-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...xnTA2png-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...fVG7ipng-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...TWv6lpng-1.jpg
https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo...31bhTpng-1.jpg
Always thought they were an ugly duckling but you see so few of them, specially around here. I'd make the ammo from something so I could shoot it... Looks good. Yes, very rough by comparison to many others.
I also think it's a pretty ugly pistol. I actually have ammo for it already I think. Bought a box for my Type 94 years ago.
I've watched a lot of videos on these and get a kick out of a lot of them. This is the "worlds most dangerous pistol" to some. It can be fired without pulling the trigger. Cabelas even has it in it's listing that "Important design flaw: Regardless of the postition of the safety, any blow or jar strong enough to activate the firing mechanism of the gun , can cause it to fire."
This is patently untrue. If the safety is on, it can't be fired at all. A jar or blow also will not "activate the firing mechanism of the gun" either.
I even thought they were dangerous up until researching this one. The issue is the exposed sear bar. It starts with the rounded end directly above the trigger in photo 4 and goes back to the rear of the pistol just beyond the safety. If the safety is off, and you push on the round portion to a depth of about 2mm, it will fire. It will reload and fire again if you push it again. If the safety is on, you can't depress it, thus you cannot fire it. It is on a pivot in the center and the safety prevents it from pivoting, like a see saw. So the next thing is you could fire it by putting it into your holster shooting yourself in the leg. Pretty impossible to depress it with a smooth surface such as the inside of a holster. Also impossible to depress it while it is in the holster. And again, if you have the safety on, it isn't an issue. After that is that it was specifically designed to shoot someone while surrendering, despite there never being a recorded instance of this happening.
So it has a bad reputation probably undeserved. As it was standard procedure for the Japanese to carry pistols with an empty chamber at all times, it wasn't even an issue for them. It was designed for tank crews, pilots and also used by paratroopers. It was well liked, more so than the Type 14 because of it's small size and lighter weight. It is considered awkward by many but everyone seems to forget it was designed for the average Japanese soldier who had smaller hands than soldiers from other nations.
Better videos also explain the reasons Type 14's and Type 94's have so many issues today, because the current production ammo which is hard to find is not made to military specs or of very good quality.
So it has a good story to tell and will go well with my presentations.
What could it be made from? What's close...? Anything?Quote:
Originally Posted by Aragorn243
It looks like the Sig hibreds... Steinel Ammunition Introduces 8x22mm Ammo for Nambu Type 14 and Type 94 Pistols
I searched further and found a thread. I'd actually do this as I have time...and a ton of forty brass and 30/30 dies.
Reforming and Reloading 8mm nambu
MidwayUSA had a run made in their early days. There are still boxes of that floating around. I’ve seen a few at auction in just the past year.Quote:
Originally Posted by browningautorifle
Picked it up today. Through a wonderful coincidence of events, I got it for $125 less than their asking price. Turns out the local Cabelas was running a special on all used semi-auto pistols for Black Friday which amounted to $75 and corporate Cabelas gave me a $50 off coupon. Had the nightmare of black friday to deal with. Took 3 hours to get out of there. All numbers other than the magazine that I can see match. Bad news is while the extractor is all there, it is broken. Can they be welded? It pretty much looks like the photos. Bore is perfect. I'll try to get photos up soon and I'll put them in the appropriate forum. May be a few days, a lot going on here this weekend.
I did test the sear bar. It is not difficult to fire it by pressing the sear bar but it takes a deliberate action on your part. It is hard to do with a finger, easy to do with a thumb but they have to be in just the right place. You can't fire it with the safety on.
Happy Early Christmas present to you! That gun may be ugly, but that and it's history are what make it special. Enjoy!
It actually grows on you when you have one. My hands aren't exactly small either but it's easy to handle. Was reading about the broken extractor, seems a lot of them were broken trying to use Precision Ammunition that was not powerful enough to properly operate the action. Extractors were slamming into casings that were not ejected. Looks like it might be the same one that's in a Nambu Type 14. I'll have to compare them. Might make it slightly easier to find one.
I wonder if you could just make one. After cold blue it might look right at home.
Since you have all the pieces, you could make a drawing (I’m a draftsman by trade and would be happy to lend my services if you wanted to send it to me).
After that, I’d take a crack at silver solder. It may just hold for as little as you’d be shooting it. As far as that goes, I work with a guy that’s a crack welder. We could do that too.
He’s a fellow gun guy and would love the opportunity to help out too.
Let me know!
The back half is still in place but I didn't try taking it out. It may be too thin to solder or weld, I don't know. I'll work on getting it out and taking some photos first as well as compare it to the Type 14.Quote:
Originally Posted by rcathey
I’ve seen this guy weld eyeglass frames back together, haha.Quote:
Originally Posted by Aragorn243
Like I said, we’d be happy to do our part.
No worries if you take care of it on your end though!
Let me get it apart, I'll take some photos and if your guy thinks he can fix it, we'll go from there. I have someone that can weld but not anything this thin.Quote:
Originally Posted by rcathey
I ran into a bit of a snag today. I took it apart to verify serials on the two parts I didn't take out, the hammer and the trigger, and also to take photos and remove the extractor. I can't get the extractor out. I believe it is wedged in place at the rear end like a dovetail. It is tight and flush so nothing to be able to push on to get it out. I don't want to scratch the heck out of things getting it out so need some advice on the next step. Photos will be up in the pistol section shortly. I confirmed it is all matching. It is unlikely the extractor is stamped as the safety lever which is also thin metal for much of it is not stamped either.
A possible solution to the extractor issue has been found. While I appreciated the offer to attempt to weld it, I found a guy that will replace it with a newly made extractor. The only problem is I have to send the entire bolt to him and I'm not sure I feel comfortable doing it due to the possibility of it getting lost in the mail. Then I have to locate a new bolt and it will no longer be numbers matching. Am I being too paranoid with this? He will also just send me the extractor but apparently these require fitting. Fitting is free and he will take the broken portion out.
Anything could happen, I never had trouble with our posties until about two years ago. Then with eleven handguns and AR lowers floating around at the same time they lost two at once... I had to get the RCMP involved or they would have remained gone. So...you never know.
Steve Have item sent first class registered with receipt. That means hand moved thru postal system, then receiver must sign for it. Have it done on return. It is costly but worth it.