Some Eastern Front Firearms

[togor]

Pulled a few out of the safe the other day.

No import marks on any of them. The Soviet pieces I picked up from RayG. A 1939 TT-33 with a capture paper, and a SVT-40 that has matching numbers, even the stock, not arsenal refinished. It's a May '41 Tula rifle so early stock, split in multiple places. Rick Borecky glued it up, and since the original nitrocelluose finish was long gone anyways, I just went with oil, as might have happened in German or American hands. The P-38 is a spring '42 pistol I picked up along the way, and the K98k is a Oberndorf '43 in a mismatched stock.

For the shooting experience for these pistols I have a postwar P-1 and M57. I have a RC K98k for shooting. Refurb'd SVT-40s go for a lot of money these days, so LOL have to shoot the Garands instead.

Eastern_Front.jpg

[dryheat]

Had an STV-40 for a while. Should have hung on to that one. A lot of them should have stayed longer. The Mauser's I owned were almost always miss matched junk, although we did do a lot of long range shooting with the better ones(VZ-24). The 8mm makes a nice Whap! when it hits a rock out a few hundred yards. One guy shot, one guy spotted. Really fun. I am completely retired from that caliber. I have a 98 by FN that is a beautiful hunting rifle in 30-06. I really like that rifle. I miss my P-38.

[Art]

A lot of SVT 40s were destroyed by owners who didn't know how to take care of them. Many years ago I was asked to clean an SVT 40 that an acquaintance said belonged to a friend. It looked great on the outside but was still cosmolined to the max inside. Needless to say I had high hopes.....which were quickly dashed.

I disassembled the rifle and found a former owner had cleaned it up enough to fire it and had pumped enough corrosive Com Bloc ammo through it to completely ruin it. Not only did the barrel truly look like a sewer pipe, to the point that you couldn't actually see any rifling after giving it a good scrubbing but the gas system was so heavily corroded as to make it unusable. A lot of surplus rifles suffered a similar fate but I was especially sad to see this one. I gave it back and said it was, as the Brits say, beyond economical repair.

Fortunately yours is in good hands.

[togor]

On this one the bore is reasonably good, and the cylinder came free. The piston is stuck tight, however, defying kroil and some moderate percussive force with a Soviet piston wrench shimmed up with some copper to tighten the fit.

I have a feeling it would shoot loose, but not in this stock. So I'd have to make a jig out of some hardwood to hold the action while putting a few rounds through it. On the to-do list.

[bdm]

Very Nice thank you for posting the picture always wanted a SVT40

[rayg]

Nice ones and I especially like the TT-33 and STV..Lol. I was wondering if you ever did get the piston lose...I never wanted to shoot it as it's too scarce a gun being unfurbed and matching so I didn't care if the piston was stuck. I would bet by firing it, the piston would brake loose.. Might be worth a try as it wouldn't hurt the gun because if it didn't work. it would just not eject the shell..

[togor]

Hi Ray,

The cylinder is free on this one but the piston that screws into the gas block is stuck tight, as is the gas adjuster screw. The hope is that a few pneumatic whacks from fired rounds would help loosen up whatever rust is binding those threads. But like I said I need a jig to hold the action, plus some non-corrosive 7.62x54R, and time.

[lyman]

sold a few SVT's over the past couple years with horrid bores,

still brought a ton of cash, ,


the one I have I picked up back in the 90's when they brought the refurbs in, and it has a very good bore,

shoots very well,


bit of a PITA to clean,, but fun,

[free1954]

nice.