Starting a STEN Mk V SBR in the US

[17thairborne]

peter,
I do not doubt he will do a superb job. I am hoping to learn a few new tricks and skills through this project, and I have never parkerized before. I am also tying to keep the costs in mind to minimize total outlay by using my labor....and....yes...your expertise, which when the opportunity presents itself for a mutual meeting on either side of the pond, we will quaff a few ales of your choosing!

---------- Post added at 04:13 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:10 PM ----------

If you do prefer to do the finish yourself, the process is quite straightforward.

Thanks it seems so, and Brownell has a very detailed description of the process to get the results correct. I am looking forward to trying.

Information

Warning: This is a relatively older thread This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.

[Brit plumber]

which when the opportunity presents itself for a mutual meeting on either side of the pond, we will quaff a few ales of your choosing!

Peter is an Armourer so unless he has turned into a xxx since leaving the Army, he wont quaff his ale, he will 'Down' his pint to the chant 10, 9, 8.....3, 2, 1 on yer 'ead!

But then again he did take a commission so it may be a glass of port, and then some burning of the mess piano or other such antics that would get the rest of us mere mortals 14 days in the glass house!

[17thairborne]

Peter is an Armourer so unless he has turned into a xxx since leaving the Army, he wont quaff his ale, he will 'Down' his pint to the chant 10, 9, 8.....3, 2, 1 on yer 'ead!

But then again he did take a commission so it may be a glass of port, and then some burning of the mess piano or other such antics that would get the rest of us mere mortals 14 days in the glass house!

For a minute there you had me doubting my understanding of the English language. To whit:

quaff kwäf verb: quaff; 3rd person present: quaffs; past tense: quaffed; past participle: quaffed; gerund or present participle: quaffing

1. drink (something, especially an alcoholic drink) heartily.
synonyms: drink, swallow, gulp (down), guzzle, slurp, down, empty;

Now I have never met Peter, but judging his profession, and having quaffed quite a few beers with British Officers in a lively bar while singing all manners of courageous tunes (out of tune), I was assuming I was characterizing his manner of drinking accurately. Or did I miss the boat here?

[17thairborne]

Terrible news on the MK V rebuilt front! Apparently Century arms, who did the STEN Mk V dewat work, did not properly cut the receivers to fully comply with the ATF rules regarding a gun parts kit. The kits they cut and sold to APEX arms were still considered live MGs by the ATF so they are recalling them. They state they will pay for shipping, cut the receivers IAW ATF standards and return the kits. Since my tube is already cut off of the trigger housing, I will be fine with sending the tube that I so wretchedly cut to shreds (thankfully), otherwise I would have had to send the whole kit back. I confirmed this with the ATF technology branch today.

Century Arms is having to recall over 500 kits. I was wondering what happened to the stock of them as they suddenly disappeared from every website about 2 weeks ago. I was hoping to make a Mk V (S) with paperwork later. Will have to wait until this issue is resolved.

[17thairborne]

I think the trust is the way to go, and I need to set one up. Was that cumbersome? Forgot the Trust does away with fingerprints, because you can't take a Trust's prints Is the NAF trust different from any other?

As far a hosting images, my wife signed us up for a Filezilla account for our various projects. You simply drag your images to the folder in your account and they will show up on your index page. Simply link the image in the thread to your file location which is unique for each image and it's there.

To post, you simply copy the link for the image at your filezilla folder, paste it between the following characters:

[img] paste here [/img]

Since I collect items from or attributed to the 139th Airborne Engineer Battalion, including inert demo items, I also collect some German WW2 inert engineer things as well. The engineer is holding a German inert 1kg demo charge with inert fuse. Supposed to be a training display, I just hung the STEN there for a photo.

Here's a more inclusive view showing engineer circa Mar 45 on the left, another undergoing parachute training 1944, and an engineer conducting training with captured German demo items at Chalons, France circa Feb 45:

[tiriaq]

If you do prefer to do the finish yourself, the process is quite straightforward.
I have not used Brownell's product - cross border shipping of chemicals is problematic - but a very similar product is available in Canada.
The carbine in the photo that I sent you was finished with Radocy brand Parkerizing process, apart from the magazine housing. It was painted. I had to sent the carbine to the RCMP for inspection, and wanted to get it in the mail, didn't have a batch of bits to park, and didn't want to get the system up and running for one piece.
The process is simplicity itself. I prepare the surfaces by blasting them with aluminum oxide grit at about 40 psi, and then immediately park them. Out of the cabinet, the parts are clean and dry. If there is any risk of residual oil or grease, soak the pieces in hot trisodium phosphate solution, rinse, and into the park. A stainless steel pot on a hot plate or bbq works fine. An enamelled roasting pan is also good. A cooking thermometer allows the temperature to be monitored. Just stew the parts until the colour is satisfactory. I do not like the idea of parking bores, and plug barrels using a threaded rod with seals, washers and nuts. Parking is much easier and safer to do than hot caustic bluing. Even then, doing it outside is not a bad idea, there are fumes. Once the desired colour has been achieved, rinse thoroughly in hot clean water. Dry and coat with oil to cure for a day. I have not applied a coating over a parked base. I do not know whether it is best to cure the park, and then remove all traces of oil, and apply the coating, or if the coating can be applied over fresh, clean park. I have only applied coated finishes to freshly blasted surfaces.
Instead of blasting, some folks use an acid etch to give a slight tooth to the surface.
The various spray coatings - some are catalysed to cure, others are baked - are easy to use, and are effective. Matte, semi-gloss and gloss blacks are available. Application may be done with an airbrush or some products come in aerosol cans. These coatings can be applied directly to clean blasted or etched surfaces, if desired.

[browningautorifle]

I have not used Brownell's product - cross border shipping of chemicals is problematic - but a very similar product is available in Canada

Where? From whom? That's what's been holding me up here...

[tiriaq]

Go to PJ's Gun and Metal Care Products. I have had excellent results with his park. solution and hot water bluing products. Found his cold blue to be inferior.

[tiriaq]

Coming along really well!

[17thairborne]

Coming along really well!

Thanks!