New P.08, 1939 "42", currently not firing!
 

Hello Everyone,


Yesterday I just got my new P.08 in the mail. I never had a hands on inspection so when it arrived there were a few surprises. One was that the grip was broken in the corner :grumble: and the other was that the gun doesn't fire :1scream:

I think the sideplate is the issue, when you pull the trigger the trigger bar isn't pushed in far enough to actually release the striker... As soon as I got the gun I stripped it down and cleaned everything. And after I assembled it I figured out it didn't fire.

Has anyone had a similar problem?

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u...1939P08421.jpg
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u...1939P08422.jpg
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u...1939P08423.jpg
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u.../1939P0842.jpg
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u...deplate001.jpg
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u...deplate004.jpg
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u...deplate006.jpg

Gun won't fire!
 

Rylan,
You're probably in the right area thinking it is a sideplate issue, but there are other factors. You might want to do a search in the forum, there have been many articles concerning this problem. I have found that trigger levers that have been over worked are sometimes the problem. Yours looks to have been filed on somewhat. Of course a mismatched sideplate could be the culprit, but yours looks to be numbered to the gun.
I had a BYF 42, that had an odd sideplate, that wouldn't fire and I made all kinds of changes on it and never could get it to fire.
So, I would check out all of the forum threads and maybe post in the area of mechanical issues or repairs or whatever.
Unfortunately I'm not anywhere close to being an expert in these areas, so hopefully someone with more knowledge will offer some sage advice or perhaps you will find the answer elsewhere in the forum. Good luck, and happy hunting. It does look like a nice P-08, hope you get it working, they are fun to shoot.
Just searching some of the information on this forum is a great and informative way to spend some time. Enjoy it and learn.
Barry

Thank you for your reply Barry.

I really hope to get this one working, because since it has so little finish left, I may as well use it as my shooter. I plan to put some reproduction grips on it so I don't further damage the ones I have on them.

Since all the parts match, I would rather not have to buy more and replace them.

I will try a search and see what I come up with.

Cheers,
Rylan

A fix I have found that works, short of ordering a new trigger lever is to mix up a bit of JB Weld and apply about a milimeter to the top paddle of the trigger bar. After allowing the JB Weld to completely dry, shape it to match the original lever paddle profile. Assemble the gun and see if the lever now connects with the sear. You may have to file down or add to the coat of Weld, but I've solved several trigger lever problems on shooters this way.