OT: CMP Garand, Springfield 1903A3

IT is problematic to get a rifle designed for a longer cartridge to feed and shoot a shorter one. The Navy marksmen converted some of the Garands to 308.


munk
 
munk said:
IT is problematic to get a rifle designed for a longer cartridge to feed and shoot a shorter one. The Navy marksmen converted some of the Garands to 308.
Click to expand...

I've been told that before the Navy actually rebarrelled their Garands, they tried to get away with a chamber insert to make up the difference. That doesn't sound like a good idea to me. Apparently they finally decided that it didn't sound like a good idea to them either.

There are some Navy Garands floating around on the collectors' market but they seem to be scarce. I used to be up to speed on the work necessary for the conversion but it's been a few years and a lot of beers since then. IIRC the weapon will work (some better than others) with just a new barrel, assuming that the gas port is sized properly for 7.62mm, and a spacer in the magazine is required to do it right. I will check on this.
 
Satori, here's the story on the 7.62 Garands:

http://www.odcmp.com/Services/Rifles/762MM.htm

also, I've been meaning to tell you, when you get your Drozd, throw away the package of Russian BBs that comes with it. They're poorly ground and can get stuck in the gun. Actually, I saved my pack to shoot out of a blackpowder cannon.

and the thread wanders on... :p


Ad Astra
 
Basically the way that I understood it but I had no idea about what happened to them afterwards or any of the specifics. Thanks for the link, AA.

Too late about the BB's...they were shot off the second day that I had it. I'm about a quarter of the way through my first 6000-pack of Copperheads and I have yet to experience a single jam. (God bless Russian arms designers.) I've mounted a BSA red dot on top, dyed the yellow bits purple, and installed the older (1000 rpm) FA board. I have the schematics for the newer 1200 rpm board but I don't feel confident enough to try to build one yet; in any case, when the Drozd Forum guys make another run of 1200 rpm boards I can always buy one from them. I've got a pic up at the FA BB gun forums in the Drozd section.

The difference between the 1000 rpm and 1200 rpm FA boards is simply the value of the three resistors on it, believe it or not. I may just desolder the ones in there, add three new ones, and make the fix that way. That I can do. It's laying out traces that I'm no good at. (You'd think that with the amount of PCB etchant laying around my house, I might actually etch a board or two with it...)

This thing's a hoot. :D :D :D And, come November 7th, it's the only full auto action that I'll be getting for a long time so I'm very glad that I got it.
 
Hey! Congrats on the Drozd. I've had mine about a year. Goes through 25-packs of CO2's and milk cartons of BBs like eating popcorn.

Had the BSA red dot on til recently. Gotta get the fake silencer/barrel extension- it quiets mine down a little, gives better feel. Spare mag too.
Watch for rust on 'em from the condensation of ripping through multiple C02's.

Where's the Drozd forum?

And 600 RPM is fine by me. I don't even use the sights except as a general suggestion of where its pointed. At least one shot in every burst usually hits anyways. Great gun, awesome toy.


Ad Astra
 
Drozd Forum

If you like 600 with a burst limiter, 1000+ at full auto is just more of a good thing. There's no legitimate need to rip off a magazine in under two seconds but by God it certainly feels good. :)

Some of the guys on the Drozd forum have been using, abusing, and hotrodding these airguns from the beginning. There are also a few Russian posters who've been involved with them even longer. If you'd like, I'd be more than happy to send you some of the, ahem, literature that I've received from these fine folks - just send me an email or PM me. Be sure to ask any questions there, though, as they are a wealth of knowledge about all things Drozd. I'm Satori over there, as well.

I have a habit of letting the mag warm up after each powerlet is expended and I have fairly good fire discipline (I typically fire off 2-3 round bursts until I'm on target, then 5-10 round bursts for effect) so I don't freeze up too badly. My plan is to buy two more magazines so that I can rotate them. Having three mags to keep the cooling to a minimum would be helpful now; in a few weeks, when daytime temps are down in the fifties, it will be vital.

For the record, I'm sticking with the red dot. I've got it sighted in about as well as one can sight in a Drozd ;) and by the second or third load of BB's I can follow their trajectory visually through the sight, making corrections very easy.
 
1000-1200 RPM? duzzat make da bursty thingy go away too? How much it cost? How easy to install?

My interest is obviously piqued.... :D

Mine's been alotta fun so far. It makes even the most fun hating folks that come by my house grin when they fire it. Incidentally, it's taken out a few squirrels quite nicely. When they hid in the dense leaves a quick burst always got 'em runnin', then I could mow them down with the six round burst. quite a fun pest management system. Although I have since "upgraded" to an RWS 48 .22 cal pellet rifle.

I actually found mine to be surprisingly easy to shoot straight, jus' because of the light electric trigger.

May have to try dying mine soon also. I've just been nervous to do it for fear of muckin' up the electronic gadgetry stuff.

Just so I'm not feeling too guilty for going completely OT, I'd go with the Garand. Jus' cause Patton said it was the best battle implement ever created, Although it does make ya' wonder what he woulda said about the M-14.... :D Maybe it's just because of my age (32) but I personally just seem to connect more with the Garands.
 
The way the FA board works is this: you strip the Drozd down to parade rest, cut two connections on its board, solder a few more connections between the mod board and the original board, and stuff them all back in to the original compartment. (The FA board is very small and piggybacks neatly on top of the main board.)

What happens: your burst settings work as usual...for the most part. Your firing rate settings change - 600 rpm works as normal, 450 rpm dies (consider it a "safe" setting, it will not fire regardless of the burst setting) and the 300 rpm setting becomes your new FA mode at whatever rate it's set to. The original design was for 1000 rpm but this has since been superceded by the 1200 rpm design. The only difference, evidently, is in the ratings of the resistors on the FA board.

I have the schematic for the FA board and the instructions on how to install it. Additionally, I have a general information document that one of the Drozd forumites was kind enough to send to me. Building the board would be a major PITA for someone of my skills but it's less than $5 in parts - it's very simple, actually. The Drozd forum guys make a run of boards every so often when enough interest builds up. Installing it is not too bad unless you're a knucklehead like me but if you're even reasonably careful, you're not going to break anything in the process. Getting the Drozd apart and back together again is the hard part; other than that, you're severing two traces and soldering a few connections. Fairly easy.

The trick to dyeing one successfully is to detail strip it first; only the plastic goes in the dye. The metal parts and electronics stay safe.

Email me for what I've got; check the Drozd forum for more goodies.
 
That link is seriously unfair, for a variety of reasons. Is he willing to part with any of those? (NOT the GF!)
 
Satori, thanks for the info. Being as I'm VERY threatened by any types of wires, I'll have to take a couple weeks to work my courage up to even do the dye job.

One helluva link! Nice gun collection! lil' lady was pretty awright lookin' too, although once I got done err...ahem...examing ther uhmm....rest of the picture.... I was a tad disappointed to see her finger on the trigger in jus' about every one of them pictures. even a purty gal jus' ain' worth the trouble if ya' gotta keep repairin' them bullet holes in the roof every time it rains.... :D
 
Ad Astra said:
The M-14/M1A is the top of the food chain.Always wanted but cannot justify the cost of the M1A. They're like $1200-1800, I think or more. THE American combat rifle.

Ad Astra
Click to expand...

AA- I didn't want to mention the M1A. You didn't ask about it. ;)

Keep your eye on pawn shops. I found mine last month for 415.00. Pre-ban, SN's 062112. Gotta love it. :D

I'd still go with the M1.

Now with the lifting the ban on USGI reimports, we may see more soon. Hopefully, more 1911s too.

Brian
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top