Sterling part kit question

[cboath]

How about persuading someone here who has built them to do it for you?

If that's an offer, color me interested

If not, I'd have to do research to find out who has done it before. Off the top of my head, i draw a blank.

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And wayne, i'd be more than happy to. Right now, i'm still in the planning stages, so you're ahead of me

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Will/would one of these type torches work?

PRODUCTS

 

[damon5973]

you can find some one to braze..i see signs in industrial parks near me looking for people to braze metals so they are out there...

you could also look for asahi..on ebay..its an airsoft replica that is basically the same thing..they run about 400..IIRC. just add the stormtrooper blaster parts..

 

[wcolton]

Could you clerify this "asahi..." not shure what you mean. I may be interested in this.

you can find some one to braze..i see signs in industrial parks near me looking for people to braze metals so they are out there...

you could also look for asahi..on ebay..its an airsoft replica that is basically the same thing..they run about 400..IIRC. just add the stormtrooper blaster parts..

 

[cheech9898]

Asahi is one of the original airsoft companies. Their Sterling SMG airsoft replicas are long out of production but they pop up for sale every now and then

 

[wcolton]

This is the link to the parts kit I just bought.
https://www.apexgunparts.com/product_info.php/cPath/51/products_id/876
Haven't received it yet, $125.00, seemed like a good price.

If that's an offer, color me interested

If not, I'd have to do research to find out who has done it before. Off the top of my head, i draw a blank.

-----------

And wayne, i'd be more than happy to. Right now, i'm still in the planning stages, so you're ahead of me

-----------

Will/would one of these type torches work?

PRODUCTS

 

[yodakiller1138]

This is the link to the parts kit I just bought.
https://www.apexgunparts.com/product_info.php/cPath/51/products_id/876
Haven't received it yet, $125.00, seemed like a good price.

Price seems too good to be true. Those kits are no longer allowed to be imported to the US and The price for those have been going up because of supply and demand. Wonder what's wrong with it. There has to be a catch.

 

[cheech9898]

What is left as far as kits for the most part is the 'bottom of the barrel'. They've problably thrown them together from remnants of other kits that they cherry picked the best components from to clean up and sell good clean parts from. They may be a complete parts kit but most of what's out there has been severely torch cut close to the desired components and in some cases may have nicked the needed parts requiring repair during cleanup too. By their own pic on that website, it looks like they may have gotten awfully close to the handle mount tabs and the rear spring cap locking lever.

 

[DARKSIDE72]

It's illegal to manufacture a whole sterling receiver or own one unless it's a semi-auto.
UNLESS the receiver is compromised itself so that it is rendered non-readily convertible. Which means the barrel has to be rendered inoperable and irremovable. This is done by drilling/boring out the breach of the barrel so that a 9mm round can't seat and fusing/welding the barrel and receiver together from the outside.

Back in the day it was possible to do this with the original parts kits with the aid of a jig to keep everything straight. But now the jacket (cooling hole part of the receiver) is destroyed.

Parts used to look like this, nice saw cuts:

I would suggest buying one of the semi-auto Wise-Lite Arms sterlings. Have a fake barrel and end cap machined to fit the new semi-auto
receiver.

Wise-Lite sterling:


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[Skully]

This is the link to the parts kit I just bought.
https://www.apexgunparts.com/product_info.php/cPath/51/products_id/876
Haven't received it yet, $125.00, seemed like a good price.

Please let us know the condition of the parts when you get them. Photos would be great. Even if not the best parts, if they can be cleaned up they could make for a good non-firing prop.

 

[exoray]

What is left as far as kits for the most part is the 'bottom of the barrel'. They've problably thrown them together from remnants of other kits that they cherry picked the best components from to clean up and sell good clean parts from. They may be a complete parts kit but most of what's out there has been severely torch cut close to the desired components and in some cases may have nicked the needed parts requiring repair during cleanup too. By their own pic on that website, it looks like they may have gotten awfully close to the handle mount tabs and the rear spring cap locking lever.

Pretty much what he said, the inflation of price a few years back was ARTIFICIAL it was a deliberate act of the importers... You have to understand how gun part imports like this work... First there are only a small handfull of companies the will negotiate and broker a large scale import of gun parts like this, the few companies work together and for the most part control the market... There are also big companies that work with the importers and purchase huge lots of parts before they hit the market and simply put them in storage for a later date... This whole system create and dictates the supply and demand and thus cost...

The early imports as has been said were nicely cut, how they got BATF approval for them is a question for another day, they honestly were way to easy to re-assemble... I believe from what you are seeing now, the BATF has changed their tune and now requires the more butchered parts kits... So what you have now is these importers that were hording and controlling the market stuck with tons of surplus bottom of the barrel parts kits now that they can't demand the premium price for, kits that no longer include the barrel, a part that nearly doubles the value of the kit...

 

[cboath]

Wise Lite may not be an option any more either...

From their website:

Wise Lite Arms is undergoing a restructuring of our business model. As a result of the current state of the industry, we are reevaluating our business model and the direction of our company. Until further notice, we will no longer be accepting orders through our website. All orders that have already been placed will be filled as soon as possible.

We are also no longer accepting build orders for any of our projects. If you already have a kit here, it will be completed and delivered as soon as possible. If you have placed an order but your kit is not here, your order has been cancelled

 

[Jennigirl]

Semi Auto Sterling sporters are still available, I am sure those can be modded.
Sterling 9mm Sporter Rifle Part #RIFLE-STERLING
I have dealt with this company and they are very reliable.

 

[exoray]

Wise Lite Arms flooded the market with Sterlings, there won't be a shortage of them anytime soon...

The reason Wise Lite Arms is probably doing a re-evaluation of their business is that that the parts kit into legal gun market simply isn't that profitable in the end... It's a small niche market, most of the general population wants an 'as new' firearm not a welded together bunch of cut up metal...

 

[cboath]

What's an FFL license? That site said you have to have one or they wouldn't ship it. I'm guessing some type of firearms license. I did see they sold non-functioning factory seconds, but, since they're offline at the moment, not now...

 

[cheech9898]

Federal Firearms License. 11 types with 3 special tax classes that may apply depending on the type of license and what your doing. Basic gun dealer & gunsmith is type 1, pawn shops are type 2, and antique gun collectors (like WW1 & 2 machine guns, etc) are type 3. Type 3 requires the firearm to be >50 years old and must be in original manufacturer configuration. So if your serious about buying one online from them you'd have to get it transferred to a local shop for pickup and they'll probably charge you between 50-100 dollars to do a transfer to you.

 

[exoray]

What's an FFL license? That site said you have to have one or they wouldn't ship it. I'm guessing some type of firearms license. I did see they sold non-functioning factory seconds, but, since they're offline at the moment, not now...

To transfer guns across state lines you need a Federal License, go to your local gun store most shops will charge $20-$40 to do the transfer for you... Or look in the local classified ads for that guy that runs a small "factory direct" gun price ad and see what he charges many of them will only charge $15-$20... And last but no least sites like GunsAmerica - Find An FFL Dealer - Guns For Sale & Gun Auctions B"H and the sorts have list of FFL guys in your area that are happy to help you out...

 

[Krull]

All one would have to do is make up a dummy receiver and hook it up,of course the SW mods would be up to someone who knows more about it.

And anytime you get a "live" receiver you have to fill out a form at the FFL for it.

Tell you what if you want I can look up some dummy Sterlings and tell you what I find,I deal with guns all the time so I'm almost sure I could set you up somehow.

 

[exoray]

All one would have to do is make up a dummy receiver and hook it up,of course the SW mods would be up to someone who knows more about it.

If you make a dummy receiver it has to be made in such a fashion or altered by some means to be made inoperative be it a solid receiver, welded together inoperative parts, welded in blocking, different ID or what not...

And anytime you get a "live" receiver you have to fill out a form at the FFL for it.

Since the Sterling is an open bolt full auto gun, you CAN'T register the receiver in that form, it has to be modified so it will no longer accept the open bolt full auto parts... You have to totally destroy the receiver's ability to be functional with the full auto parts...

Even having a partially finished receiver and a parts kit in your possession could potentially get you in trouble...

Tell you what if you want I can look up some dummy Sterlings and tell you what I find,I deal with guns all the time so I'm almost sure I could set you up somehow.

The commercially available dummy ones are crap, they were welded together by hacks... There were several built on this forum years ago, they will be your best bet at a nice looking rebuild, although there are some potential legal issues with one persons builds from back then as he just soldered the barrel plugs and sorts no welds, meaning they could potentially be restored with nothing more then a propane torch...

The receiver is the gun in the US, having a complete Sterling receiver that will accept the full auto parts is equivalent to having an illegal machine gun in the US...

 

[Krull]

I can see what one would have to go through but I have some ideas on a solution....

Receiver-wonderful ATF regs on this but where there's a will there is a way...

Since it's a SW replica no need for the bolt to move,nor any of the cocking lever/springs so building a sleeve of thin aluminum/steel with a plastic or resin insert that looks like a bolt/spring etc. would go around the "if a real bolt fits it's a real machinegun"

Further fixing the plastic/resin bolt and the cocking lever and springs permanently inside AND drilling a hole into the bolt itself and threading it for the fake barrel to screw into would REALLY make this a "non-gun"

The barrel is simple enough:a threaded bit of steel tubing that screws into the bolt and epoxied in place.

Now take the guts out of the fire control group and just hook a spring up to the trigger so it'll pop back if you squeeze it (plus the tube I describe above will have no provisions to let any of the fire control parts fit)

Make sense? if anyone wants to talk to me further about this I can make some crude drawings to help you along.

 

[exoray]

The barrel is simple enough:a threaded bit of steel tubing that screws into the bolt and epoxied in place.

Screws and epoxy are not going to pass BATF scrutiny... Welds or destroyed permanently, not epoxy and screws, that is readily convertible...

There are threads here that discuss in detail what possible steps should be taken, if you search...

Now take the guts out of the fire control group and just hook a spring up to the trigger so it'll pop back if you squeeze it (plus the tube I describe above will have no provisions to let any of the fire control parts fit)

The sterling will fire full auto without the trigger assembly in place just fine, in fact the trigger assembly is the only thing that prevents it from emptying the clip, in short yanking out the trigger mechanism has not effect on the ability to fire... FYI the tube is the receiver if you make a tube you just made a machine gun unless it's altered in a permanent fashion to no longer accept the full auto parts, if it accepts legal semi auto parts you need to fill out the forms and register it...

If you want to disable the rebuild and keep non-gun status here are the primary steps that should be taken...

1. Breech end of barrel should be plugged and welded shut or machined out so it will no longer accept a bullet...

2. Barrel itself should be plugged and said plug should be welded in place...

3. Barrel should be welded to receiver so it can't be swapped out...

4. Bolt if used should be destroyed, I suggest machining the business end flat... Or use a fake bolt...

5. End cap of receiver should be welded on as to prevent removal of fake bolt or barrel, and/or a plug should be welded welded into the back end of the receiver to prevent fake/destroyed bolt removal...

Some additional steps I would suggest

1. Destroy trigger group

2. Do not cut out the portion of the receiver where the clip would fit in, the E11 already uses a modified clip so just trim the lips off and let it bump up to a solid receiver body vs actually allowing a bullet to potentially chamber...

3. Weld a plug behind the barrel, if you machine the front surface of the bolt flat it will still seat properly against the plug...

Receiver-wonderful ATF regs on this but where there's a will there is a way...

Yeah and better safe then sorry when you potentially face federal felonies and prison time over a laser blaster toy...

There is a way but solder, screws and epoxy are not it... Real welds and destroying the parts is... And neither is just tack welding a few parts in place like they do in many European countries, that won't pass the BATF scrutiny...

The only 'official' way to know if your plans and what you intend to do to make it a non-gun is to detail them and send them to the BATF for approval... If they sign off you should be safe, although they do have a history of changing their minds...

To repeat what Darkside72 said, I believe he has been there and done this many times if my memory serves me right...

It's illegal to manufacture a whole sterling receiver or own one unless it's a semi-auto.
UNLESS the receiver is compromised itself so that it is rendered non-readily convertible. Which means the barrel has to be rendered inoperable and irremovable. This is done by drilling/boring out the breach of the barrel so that a 9mm round can't seat and fusing/welding the barrel and receiver together from the outside.