Field Marshal Steel DL-44 Parts List and Video of Assembly?

NathanM

Well-Known Member
Hey all. I recently picked up the FM Steel DL-44 Kit. I went through the process of prepping everything and started to try to assemble it today but I ran into a few snags. I watched Newmagrathea's video where he put his together but I still can't figure some things out. Is there a full assembly video anywhere? A parts list too, maybe? To make sure I'm not missing anything. I didn't see anything on the FM sight and Youtube was no help. Any ideas?
 
The knob at the top held in by two tiny pins. The pins won't settle no matter what I do so the interior upper parts can't slide to the back.

The 3-D printed part won't seat in the spot.

The charging handle is popping out of the top by the ejector port.

The upper receiver won't slide on the lower easily (that may be me as I painted the lower so maybe too much friction?).

I can't get the trigger to engage with the trigger assembly. Maybe I'm just not seating it correctly?

Also, is the grommet screw meant for the ammo plate lock and spring? Like it screws into the lower receiver to put tension on the spring?
 
Whelp I pin struck in the two small pins so that's done (and probably never being removed, so I'm glad I heat blued it).

3-D printed part just won't slide into place, so maybe trim it?

Charging handle no longer pops out after gluind down blued top bit.

Upper receiver slodes better after taking down the painted bits.

Trigger assembly is still a bitch. I just can't get it. Just a video on that would be helpful. WIth all parts disassembled and then assembled.
 
Sounds like fit and finish issues. There's a fair amount of deburring, chamfering, filing, etc. necessary in order to get this thing feeling like the real deal. It's a raw machined kit, so not like your denix or mgc. Also, I'd recommend using some legit gun grease on the internal mechanisms, in addition to oiling all of the non-painted steel parts.
 
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Either 39 or 6 spring. Hard to tell as I only have one and they are of similar size based on that diagram. That might actually be it, but I need to cross check my parts to be sure but with one of those springs missing, it definitely would make sense why my trigger assembly is mushy and non-responsive. I was actually using the one spring I do have in boith instances to see if it went in either spot before I saw that diagram, so I was on the right track, lol.
 
There's no spring in the trigger setup ... the action is supposed to be fairly "mushy" as you say. I've been told that it's the case with the real Mausers as well. 6 and 39 springs are accurately placed on the drawing ... one gets sandwiched between parts 19 and 26, fitting into the milled recess under part 19. The other spring goes under the lip on part 20, giving resistance to that lever (it releases the whole inner mechanism). The hammer has to be ****** back to insert or remove the mechanism, FYI.
 
I'd also be very surprised if the 3d printed part wasn't fitting properly. If it feels like it's more than just machining burrs that are keeping it from fitting properly, then it's likely not assembled correctly. This stuff is all CNC milled, 3d printed, etc. Don't anticipate much room for major error. Are you certain that you have all three of those pieces (the ones that go inside of the upper) inserted correctly?

Here's a BASIC outline of assembly. There's a lot of fit and finish before reaching this stage, as I mentioned (deburring, removing CNC machine lines, blending certain transitions that the CNC couldn't handle, adding slight chamfer to sharp edges to mimic hand-finished look, etc. Also, there's a fair amount of nuance to bluing/painting/staining/oiling/weathering these parts to achieve the desired finish. Not gonna go into that here.

First, FIRE BLUE the following parts: 13, 15, 20, 25, 27, 28, 29, 31

Attach bolt-stop to upper with 2 pins
Assemble/attach sight assembly to upper
Attach grips

First, hold the upper upside down and drop the bolt into place inside of it, then drop in the bolt spring. Then, slide piece #32 into place. Make sure you have it oriented the correct way, and it should slide right under the "rails" and all the way back to the rear of the upper. It should slide back and fit very well and snug against the rear of the bolt. Then, slide in the aluminum piece (#33) making sure it's oriented the right way. The 3d printed piece should then just drop right in. It has to be oriented correctly top to bottom, but I don't think the back-to-front orientation matters with this piece. Keep this whole assembly upside down on your bench so that the pieces don't fall out.

Next, assemble the mag plate with button, spring, set screw, etc.

Next, drop the trigger/pin into the lower so that it sits PROPERLY. You have to rock the trigger back and forth a bit in order to get the pin to sit fully in the milled recesses. I drop it in with some thin needle-nose pliers, then hold the trigger with my hand from the outside and guide it into place. Holding the lower upright so that the trigger doesn't fall out of place, slide the assembled upper onto the lower (also making sure that the upper's inner pieces don't fall out.) CAREFULLy rest the whole thing on your bench, on its side, so that nothing falls out.

Next, assemble the internal mechanism. I apply grease to all pins, springs, anywhere that has metal moving against metal. I also mocked up a super thin plastic washer (like the thinnest plastic you can find >1mm thick from a blister pack, etc.) to fit under the safety to tighten that up. Once that mechanism is assembled you'll have to hold it together tightly with your hands so that the springs don't pop out, shoot across your room and get lost forever. Cock the hammer back, then (at a slightly pitched-forward angle) insert the whole mechanism into the back of the lower (holding the mechanism together tightly with your hands for as long as you can, so that it doesn't pop apart inside of the gun). Once it's sunk mostly in, level it out and push HARD until you hear a subtle click/see the release lever snap downward into place.

A few pulls of the trigger/cocks of the hammer and the grease should disperse, leaving you with smooth snappy action.

A few things to note:

Attach the scope mount AFTER the Mauser is assembled. The rear bit of all-thread, when threaded all the way in, will put pressure against the firing mechanism and won't allow it to enter or exit the lower smoothly.

The bull barrel should be attached AFTER the Mauser is assembled / removed BEFORE it is disassembled. You won't be able to slide the upper on/off with the bull barrel attached.
 
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Where are you getting the idea that the lock frame stop (part #20) should be fire blued? On every real Mauser that I've ever seen, they're left "in the white" (unblued steel) just as the lock frame itself is.

If you look at more pristine C96s you can see that they were originally fire blued, I believe. Most have the blue worn off on the actual nub, but if you look at the depressed part, you can see the fire bluing at times. I believe I originally heard it from scottjua but I could be wrong.
 
If you look at more pristine C96s you can see that they were originally fire blued, I believe. Most have the blue worn off on the actual nub, but if you look at the depressed part, you can see the fire bluing at times. I believe I originally heard it from scottjua but I could be wrong.
Ehhh... I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on that.

I will concede that since there were variations throughout the entire production run that anything is possible.
 

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