Han Solo - Star Wars- A New Hope Laser Blaster - Hyper Accurate DL-44 Replica
- Thread starter kpax
- Start date
mptachenko
Active Member
I studied many of Scottjua's posts before I ever got started. I opened a new thread here several months back when I began and I was quite appreciative when he found my posting and interjected along the way. My DL-44 is up and running now and I am just waiting for Todd's Costumes to finish their run of scopes. It has turned out quite good and I figured I would start weathering while wait. Thanks for your help.
kpax
Sr Member
What mount do you have? I don't know what Todd's are like or made of. You should email Scott about the mounts and function. When full loaded with the parts, FH and bull barrel, the extra weight throws off the cycle and the mounts can break if you don't have a steel one.
mptachenko
Active Member
Todd's scope mount is all steel. Scott concurred that mount is one of the strongest out there. So far while waiting for the scope, I have run over 50 rounds through my gun with the bull barrel and flash hider mounted with no reliability issues. I went with DEC steel bull barrel and the aluminum flash hider. Here is a link to the thread I started if you are interested.
http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=263703
http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=263703
The harmonic and balance change with the mount and scope one, and the recoil changes. It does effect cycling... or at least it has on a couple of the ones I've done.
mptachenko
Active Member
Argh! Then it looks like I might have more "fun" to look forward to. I was thinking that since the scope mounted on the receiver it would not mess with how the upper mechanically cycled during firing. If I got it reliable with the bull barrel and flash hider I would have thought it would be reliable with scope mounted but that makes sense about the harmonics being disturbed when the scope is mounted. Harmonic frequencies are a factor in accuracy in many cases. I have done a lot of Bullseye shooting and worked up certain loads taking barrel vibrations into effect. There is even one gun that I have a device mounted that puts adjustable pressure on the barrel so as to tune the frequency of the vibrations to increase accuracy. This project has been full of twists and turns and roadblocks. As I looked ahead at the build I imagined it more straight forward and already tried to avoid and solve certain problems in advance. This process has turned out to be more enigmatic than expected and I am not even done yet. This gun never actually existed as a working firearm so I guess I should not be too surprised. Old metal, metal to thin to tap or weld, not enough room internally to mount things, cycling issues, bending or breaking parts that cant take the strain, things blowing off and not holding, a barrel sleeve that wont stay in place and seems intent on destroying itself, uncommon outdated ammo, trying not to destroy an existing pistol while turning it into a plasma blaster that runs on tibanna gas. What other problems have I forgotten from mine and other builds? Now I am just rambling because it is 3AM. Anyway, it has been and will undoubtedly continue to be a wonderful adventure of discovery! We will see what happens next in the journey.
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H0llyw00d
Sr Member
I know it's rarely able to be a consideration, but I would highly recommend converting a 9mm rather than 7.63 x 25mm pistol. Much lower compression and hence recoil to factor, which I believe causes the majority of issues with a DL-44 conversion. The 7.63 x 25mm is a very hot load. Essentially a necked-down rifle cartridge.
mptachenko
Active Member
I wonder if hand loading the 7.63 with a lighter powder charge and heavier bullet would increase reliability? The 9mm Luger typically runs a 115gr-147gr bullet where as the 7.63 runs around 88gr. You could maybe find a sweet spot in the harmonic frequency of the cycling. As if the project is not complex enough! Ha!!
mptachenko
Active Member
Important safety note!
Since we have been discussing ammo and pressures of cartridges I thought I would throw this out here for all the Live Fire guys and anyone who has an old Broom Handle...
7.62x25 Tokarev looks identical to 7.63x25 Mauser (.30 Mauser) but for all intensive purposes they are not really the same round! The outer dimensions are the same and the bullet is the same. Tokarev ammo will work in a C96 without issues until something breaks! The 7.62 Tokarev is often loaded to much higher pressures than the original Mauser cartridge. Historically speaking the Broom Handle was released in 1896 hence the designation of C96. The Tokarev cartridge was released sometime in the late 1920's or early 1930's and was basically a 7.63 Mauser with Soviet headstamps for use in the PPD-40 submachine gun. Some people say the rounds are the same, and to some degree they are correct but here is where the problem arises -> The guns that shoot the Tokarev ammo are much heavier built and subsequently many manufactures have loaded much hotter ammo!
Years ago .30 Mauser was even harder to come by and some companies would take Tokarev military surplus ammo and brand them .30 Mauser. I have a box of Interarms ammo from the 1970's that is labeled .30 Mauser but is full of Tokarev cartridges.
I have heard of people giving their C96 a steady diet of Tokarev ammo without issues but I have also seen my fair share of broken Broom Handles from the same ammo. Also, I am sure metallurgy has changed throughout the years. A pre-war commercial C96 is most likely not as tough as a post war Bolo, much less a PPD-40 or a TT-33.
The overall point to this diatribe is to shell out the extra money and get some new Fiocchi .30 Mauser ammo or hand load some nice gentle rounds. You can buy brass or can make it out of 38 Super or something like that. You can take apart Tokarev ammo and reload it with a different powder charge. There are many options. I am sure these guns wont get shot much so just do yourselves a favor and be kind to your Broomie or DL-44. They are special.
Tokarev Head Stamps vary but they are usually something like this. Also note the dimples in the neck. I have never seen those on a .30 Mauser. The box is labeled 7.63mm but it is full of Tokarev
Since we have been discussing ammo and pressures of cartridges I thought I would throw this out here for all the Live Fire guys and anyone who has an old Broom Handle...
7.62x25 Tokarev looks identical to 7.63x25 Mauser (.30 Mauser) but for all intensive purposes they are not really the same round! The outer dimensions are the same and the bullet is the same. Tokarev ammo will work in a C96 without issues until something breaks! The 7.62 Tokarev is often loaded to much higher pressures than the original Mauser cartridge. Historically speaking the Broom Handle was released in 1896 hence the designation of C96. The Tokarev cartridge was released sometime in the late 1920's or early 1930's and was basically a 7.63 Mauser with Soviet headstamps for use in the PPD-40 submachine gun. Some people say the rounds are the same, and to some degree they are correct but here is where the problem arises -> The guns that shoot the Tokarev ammo are much heavier built and subsequently many manufactures have loaded much hotter ammo!
Years ago .30 Mauser was even harder to come by and some companies would take Tokarev military surplus ammo and brand them .30 Mauser. I have a box of Interarms ammo from the 1970's that is labeled .30 Mauser but is full of Tokarev cartridges.
I have heard of people giving their C96 a steady diet of Tokarev ammo without issues but I have also seen my fair share of broken Broom Handles from the same ammo. Also, I am sure metallurgy has changed throughout the years. A pre-war commercial C96 is most likely not as tough as a post war Bolo, much less a PPD-40 or a TT-33.
The overall point to this diatribe is to shell out the extra money and get some new Fiocchi .30 Mauser ammo or hand load some nice gentle rounds. You can buy brass or can make it out of 38 Super or something like that. You can take apart Tokarev ammo and reload it with a different powder charge. There are many options. I am sure these guns wont get shot much so just do yourselves a favor and be kind to your Broomie or DL-44. They are special.
Tokarev Head Stamps vary but they are usually something like this. Also note the dimples in the neck. I have never seen those on a .30 Mauser. The box is labeled 7.63mm but it is full of Tokarev
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When speaking of vintage and surplus ammo you are correct to a degree. However, original Mauser 7.63 loads were higher pressure than today's newly manufactured by PPU/Prvi Partisan and Fiocchi. Those new loads are below what the original German spec was for the 7.63 Mauser. PPU currently makes their Tokarev ammo at about what the original spec Mauser WAS. Now I wouldn't trust anything but newly made 7.63 Tok from PPU or Fiocchi in a Mauser, and avoid the surplus and Sub gun ammo at all costs, but the pressure for the new brass is pretty much in line with what the original Mauser ammo was. These days the new 7.63 Mauser is loaded lighter than it used to be.
The problem is the new lighter loads and hand loads you'll find will cycle a Mauser action just fine, until you start adding Han Solo parts to it. Then you are dealing with springs wear on the original parts, tolerances, etc. Each of those guns is completely different. The lighter loads just won't do it with any extra weight with 100% reliability.
Anyway, I still haven't found a single real documented account of a Mauser blowing up due to ammo, that wasn't already in iffy condition or a mix match of parts.
The biggest thing to look for are the locking block lug (make sure there are no cracks or wear), the bolt stop (best to use a newly made one if firing regularly), and the upper receiver frame wear around where the bolt stop sits.
The problem is the new lighter loads and hand loads you'll find will cycle a Mauser action just fine, until you start adding Han Solo parts to it. Then you are dealing with springs wear on the original parts, tolerances, etc. Each of those guns is completely different. The lighter loads just won't do it with any extra weight with 100% reliability.
Anyway, I still haven't found a single real documented account of a Mauser blowing up due to ammo, that wasn't already in iffy condition or a mix match of parts.
The biggest thing to look for are the locking block lug (make sure there are no cracks or wear), the bolt stop (best to use a newly made one if firing regularly), and the upper receiver frame wear around where the bolt stop sits.
mptachenko
Active Member
I agree, the biggest thing is to inspect the individual gun and be sure it is up to regular shooting. Some of these guns are 100 years old +/-. I just wanted to be sure everyone is being careful and vigilant!
kpax
Sr Member
I think the original HERO prop was damaged at some point in the rear bolt stop area. The HERO has the "welded-up" Carson's lump as we call it, which no other Mauser I have seen has.
I think they maybe used hot loads OR light spring and cracked the frame and then to save the prop, they welded the area.
Very jealous of you live fire guys! ; ) ....one day...
mptachenko
Active Member
I have been thinking about trying to put the correct serial number on the DL-44 that I am building. How did you go about doing it?
kpax
Sr Member
If yours already has ser numbers it could be difficult. Not sure of the laws where you are but changing ser numbers could be ilegal.
I elecrto etched mine. I made a homemade electro etch machine and etching stencils from the actual prop to get the off line stamping and aged worn character to the numbers.
If legal, you may need to weld over the originals, file smooth and re etch or stamp.j
mptachenko
Active Member
My numbers have almost been worn off completely by time so that spot is already blank. Also that part of the gun is not considered a controlled part so it does not even need a serial number. The receiver/frame is the only controlled part that is kept up with. Maybe I will just take it to an engraver if/when the time comes. Thanks
BeastMaster
Well-Known Member
I'd rather own this then that blaster that went for over a million at auction. At least this looks like the real thing in every detail. Great job!
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