I don't know about the mag hold open idea, but I do like the way the mag buttons are dished and grooved... that's about the only thing I do like about Nambu's... :D

They would be fatherless step-children without you guys... I would have melted them down to make something useful :D

They wake up your fatherly instincts, that's for sure. Kind of the same feeling you get when you find a three legged dog, a blind cat or a Dreyse 1907. They just can't help that they're not normal. :p

I guess my Nambu magazine buttons are different from yours...My buttons are grooved, but convex, not concave... :confused:

Anyway, I found the trick for the locking magazine follower...After locking it down, loading the 8 rounds, and inserting it in the pistol, press down on the magazine retaining spring [front gripstrap] and the follower releases... :)

That's the way it works... or should work anyway. I have had two Nambus, and none of them would release the follower without extensive pushing, wiggling and cussing. If you could even get the follower locked down first, that is. No wonder the japs lost the war.

Olle, is that something you discovered from trial & error or did you have a reference for it??? If a reference, do you recall where (book, magazine article, Japanese Army manual)??? :)

None of the articles I've read mention the rear sight on the Type 14. To my mind, it is several orders of magnitude better than the Luger. To those who don't have one, the front sight is similar to the Luger (a pyramid) but unlike the Luger V-notch rear sight, it is a dovetail...So you see space around the entire front sight when sighting it...

I'll try to get a pic, if I can... :rolleyes: Here we go - :D

I can't even remember what I had for breakfast, but I believe I read about it in one of those surplus gun magazines (Surplus Firearms, Surplus Guns or whatever they're called) a few years back. I'll dig through my piles and see if I can find it.

Thanx for the scans and info, Sheep. My mags are on their way back, I'll be interested to see if they have this feature...

Gerry can probably tell you...He must have noticed it. If you have a Colt takedown tool ["L" shaped, screwdriver on one end, pin drive on the other] you can use it to pull/push the follower down but you'll have to push it the final 1/8" with your thumb...

I know what you are saying about the Dreyse 1907!! I have owned mine since the early 1970s, and still can not find any hidden beauty in it......sort of a red headed step child so to speak.

Welcome to NambuForum.com!!!
 

I browse through Nonte's Pistolsmithing book frequently, and he had this to say about caliber conversions on the 8mm Nambu...(scan attached)...

No mention about boltface or extractor modifications...So I stripped my bolt down [removed firing pin], stuck a couple Fiocchi 7.65 Luger cartridges in the mag, and cycled it a couple times...Fed & extracted OK... :thumbup:

Further examination convinced me that if the extractor was removed, I could measure headspace from the ejection port...

I'm not contemplating converting to 7.65mm or 9mm in the near future, but barrel replacement looks do-able...For caliber change purposes...

You mean cutting the barrel off and boring/threading the receiver for a new one? Makes me wonder if a Luger barrel can be retrofitted, an artillery Nambu would make a very interesting conversation piece, or maybe even a carbine... :cool:

Here's a pic showing the external barrels, the Luger is the 120mm 'pencil' 7.65 cal barrel...Almost exactly alike...The flange/shoulder could be turned off or left...

OK, I took some Q&D measurements...The Luger receiver is .941" minor dia; the Nambu is .858"; the Luger barrel thread is .714" OD...That leaves a .113" wall on the Luger receiver, and if you were to tap the Nambu receiver to Luger barrel thread size you'd get a .072" wall...That's kind of thin, I think...

The Luger barrel/breechface is .628", I'd re-thread the Luger barrel (or make a new barrel) to 5/8" x 18 and saw/tap the Nambu receiver to the same thread...The Nambu has almost no feed ramp, so that wouldn't be a problem...

I'm thinking 7.65 cal...If you did 9mm and wanted a similar profile, you'd need to thin it down quite a bit...Like Ithacaartist did with his 120mm barrel...

An Artillery Nambu??? I dunno... :rolleyes:

OK, tell you what...There was a Type 14 barrel on GB last week for $76 start; nobody bid on it...It's relisted; I put in a bid today; if I win, I'll sacrifice it for a longer/different caliber barrel... :thumbup:

Hi,

Oh, come on, the Type 14 is, essentially, a Luger bottom with a C-96 Mauser top (with slight improvements).

It's not all that bad of an execution, though it certainly is not a Luger!


Sieger

Rich,

That picture is exactly what I had envisioned. The ultimate bastard that will turn both heads and stomachs. :thumbup:

It sure sounds like the Nambu receiver will be a bit thin, but you might be able to get away with it if you re-tread it like you described. Just keep in mind that the steel quality in the late war versions is said to be a bit iffy. I don't know if that's true, but I wouldn't take any chances.

You sure??? I'm thinking, maybe we can get Eugene to shelve Ed's Luger carbine and do a Nambu carbine instead... :D

Bu, bu, bu, but I thought the Nambu was a copy of the Ruger Mk 1!! :roflmao::eek::evilgrin::evilgrin::p

(note to the humor impaired: Yes, I know its the opposite!)

Great discussion on the Nambu!:thumbup:
Here is a couple of pics of a real stocked Nambu
Its the early Papa Nambu. Notice the holder in the wood stock for a spare magazine! Never realized that before.:eek: Pretty cool and very rare. Wish I had one.
Bob

The Japanese have always been good at coming up with clever stuff like that!

ADMIN - SHORTENING THE NAME TO JAPS IS CONSIDERED A RACIAL SLUR!
:soapbox:

Or someone might think they were talking about Jewish American Princesses! :D

Do-it-yourself Nambu Artillery Kit in 30 cal...Some assembly required... :D

(Assembled 9mm kit shown on Luger receiver) ;)

Give me a break - this is Liberal PCBS.

However, it won't happen again...

It was at my request...Some of my best friends are Asian...as is a valued member of this Forum...Whom I have never met but have known for many years and consider a friend... :mad:

...getting back to the matter at hand... :mad:

Nambu pistols...Type 14 specifically...

Just heard from Hugh - my Nambu grips are on their way back - and G.T. shipped the mags back last week. Soon all will be together again.

Olle, some time ago [years] I recall someone retipping the broken Nambu firing pin with a SHCS drilled/tapped/threaded into the end of the firing pin and then turned to shape. It also had two flats so it could be replaced easily. I kind of stuck that away in my chamberpot of a memory, for a 'rainy day'. :thumbup:

Haven't had to try it, but I thought it was an interesting idea...I can't recall where I read it...

I'm not really into silver-soldering or brazing...I've done/do both, it's just not my thing... :rolleyes:

I was able to resist those MOP grips, but I did get a spare barrel+extension for a caliber change [probably 7.65 Parabellum]...I won't bother with a full-profile pic, as it looks like any other Type 14 barrel...With one small exception...

If you look at the first pic, you'll see 'receiver' rear ends with the locking block 'ears'...689 is my T14; 203 is a used pull...Look at the red circles...The 689 'receiver' is relieved to let the locking block rotate up to clear the 'receiver' recess...The 203/spare isn't...

The spare won't let the locking block move up into battery...It won't even go into the 'receiver'...The red lines show the locking block in full retracted position; the spare is stopped by the rounded edge shown in the red circle... :eek:

Now, removing this metal to let the locking block retract is easily done...But...Looking close [see the second pic], I noticed an awful lot of *filework* in this area...Not just the edge of the 'receiver', but the inside edges of the locking block 'ears'...Crude, coarse filework...Hasty...Unskilled...

It's present on both of my 'receivers'...And is really mind boggling to think that this is part of the Nambu assembly line...Some slave labor peasant girl, squatting down on her clogs, 16 or 18 hours a day, filing the sharp edges of just each 'receiver' ear...I don't see any other obvious filing anywhere else...

The sides of the locking block that rotates are cut with a radius-ended end mill, and presumably filing/chamfering the edges of the 'ears' is the easiest way to make them clear the radiused cut...Without any complicated milling...A peasant girl with a file being cheaper than a milling operation... :rolleyes:

I would be interested to see other T14 'receiver ear' pics...Does yours show crude filing???

Lugers have just as much intricate cavities/sliding parts, and they don't show file marks this crude... :mad:

There are many different engineers involved in a manufacturing process...This would be comical if it was Khyber Arms...But this is an Imperial Arsenal...In 1943...Not even yet the height of the war... :mad:

I finally got mine reassembled - mags back from G.T., grips back from Hugh; and intend to make a range trip in the next week or so. I'll take a looksee upon post shooting cleaning/inspection.

They do get more interesting the more we look at 'em!

Here's an interesting item on eBay...A .22 cal Nambu T14 conversion...

NAMBU TYPE 14 BARREL BOLT 22 CONVERSION T-14 Japanese pistol WW2 .22 LR 22LR gun

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NAMBU-TYPE-1...-/261413426371

My backordered Wolfe 'Extra Power' recoil springs [and firing pin spring] came today. I whipped up a comparison with my original (as the gun came) recoil springs, and the Wolfe 'standard' spring pack.

Because my spring gauge only reads up to 20#, and the two spring sets I compared last time both came in at 19# at full recoil, I marked off a line one inch into the recoil (approximately at halfway position) to make my comparison. Pics show no load and load at one inch.

I also measured my springs. The way I did it was to slide a razor blade into the first coil and count the number of turns. I counted the ground compressed coil at each end as one coil (or the fraction). I didn't bother measuring free length.

Here's my results. They are only valid for my own setup. It is apparent that the Wolfe 'Xtra Power' spring set is a higher pull weight than their 'standard' set. I can't make any assumption for the original springs, as I have no idea if they are WW II vintage or not.

Why have both sets of Wolfe springs??? Because I tailor my loads to my pistol. I'll load up an 8mm Nambu 'target' load and fire it with the stronger of the two spring sets. If it won't cycle, I'll reduce the load. If it still won't cycle, then I'll go to the standard spring set and the reduced load and work from there.

I don't trust the Wolfe 'standard' spring set. If my old original spring set is of WW II vintage, then it should be substantially weaker than the new Wolfe 'standard' set. My observations are that the Wolfe is the same pull weight as the original. That just does not seem right. Unless my original springs are replacements. :rolleyes: