LugerForum Discussion Forums - View Single Post - Reproduction Snail Drum

PhilOhio · 03-21-2017, 08:14 PM

I hope the results of my first shot at snail drum use might be of value to some of you also, as my self education proceeds.

I have to say I was skeptical. This is an original 1917 drum, but the loader is my own, made based on pictures I found on the Internet. I've never handled one. But mine is more heavy duty than the originals, machined from solids and bar stock, with pins and links held by C-clips. I'll post a picture sometime if anybody is interested. After Parkerizing, it looked pretty good.

I generously greased the internals with G.E. electric motor grease, which is long lasting and medium light weight.

I have some fairly valuable guns, and a personal rule is to never run a jacketed bullet through the bore of any of a Luger or Thompson, and hold the power down to what is necessary to operate the action reliably. And start low.

Although I cast a number of 9mm bullets, I use only the correct German WW-II shape for the Lugers. It is nominally 125 grains and comes from Lee's double cavity #356-125-2R mold. I size them to .357", for use in both 9mm and .357 bores. This works just fine, and there is no chance of getting a bulge in an in-spec 9mm case. Accuracy is also just about perfect, from a good Luger bore.

One of my favorite range loads, for target shooting in other 9mm pistols like the SIG P-210, is 3.5 gr. W-231 behind this bullet, but the energy is minimal for reliable action cycling. I wanted to see how this would work in my 1917 DWM Artillery Luger. I doubted that it would fully cycle.

And I have found over the years that it is good to load rounds to the full overall length (OAL) of 1.169" for Lugers.

So I may have been trying more variables at one time than is best, but I did, and was happily surprised.

Using an original holster and stock rig, I shot paper from a bench at 50 feet. Wow! It worked. And I had one big ragged hole, with 40 rounds through it in the end.

But a little honesty here. I had 3 - 4 failures to feed, all the same, and all caused by exactly what I expected. 3.5 gr. of W-231 was not quite enough for the Luger. The failures all resulted when the empty did not fully eject, but a new round was picked up...the important point being that the drum was feeding.

One thing I did notice was lead bullet nose drag, while loading. This convinced me more than ever that good recoil is important to keep these drums running. Jacketed bullets would not drag that way, but they are a little bit harder on bores...not much, but enough to make me not use them.

So I loaded up 50 more rounds of the same bullet, but with my Harbor Freight Red powder coating and a light Alox coating on top of that; ain't nothing slicker. And I boosted the charge to 4.0 gr. of W-231, which is still Sierra's minimal recommendation for the 125 gr. bullet.

I also loaded these a bit shorter, to 1.090" OAL, to see if that would help minimize nose drag friction on the upper part of the straight mag.

I wouldn't be surprised if the thing runs 100% when I have the time to try again in a few days.

03-21-2017, 08:14 PM	#3
PhilOhio User Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Ohio Posts: 145 Thanks: 5 Thanked 17 Times in 14 Posts	First Drum Range Test I hope the results of my first shot at snail drum use might be of value to some of you also, as my self education proceeds. I have to say I was skeptical. This is an original 1917 drum, but the loader is my own, made based on pictures I found on the Internet. I've never handled one. But mine is more heavy duty than the originals, machined from solids and bar stock, with pins and links held by C-clips. I'll post a picture sometime if anybody is interested. After Parkerizing, it looked pretty good. I generously greased the internals with G.E. electric motor grease, which is long lasting and medium light weight. I have some fairly valuable guns, and a personal rule is to never run a jacketed bullet through the bore of any of a Luger or Thompson, and hold the power down to what is necessary to operate the action reliably. And start low. Although I cast a number of 9mm bullets, I use only the correct German WW-II shape for the Lugers. It is nominally 125 grains and comes from Lee's double cavity #356-125-2R mold. I size them to .357", for use in both 9mm and .357 bores. This works just fine, and there is no chance of getting a bulge in an in-spec 9mm case. Accuracy is also just about perfect, from a good Luger bore. One of my favorite range loads, for target shooting in other 9mm pistols like the SIG P-210, is 3.5 gr. W-231 behind this bullet, but the energy is minimal for reliable action cycling. I wanted to see how this would work in my 1917 DWM Artillery Luger. I doubted that it would fully cycle. And I have found over the years that it is good to load rounds to the full overall length (OAL) of 1.169" for Lugers. So I may have been trying more variables at one time than is best, but I did, and was happily surprised. Using an original holster and stock rig, I shot paper from a bench at 50 feet. Wow! It worked. And I had one big ragged hole, with 40 rounds through it in the end. But a little honesty here. I had 3 - 4 failures to feed, all the same, and all caused by exactly what I expected. 3.5 gr. of W-231 was not quite enough for the Luger. The failures all resulted when the empty did not fully eject, but a new round was picked up...the important point being that the drum was feeding. One thing I did notice was lead bullet nose drag, while loading. This convinced me more than ever that good recoil is important to keep these drums running. Jacketed bullets would not drag that way, but they are a little bit harder on bores...not much, but enough to make me not use them. So I loaded up 50 more rounds of the same bullet, but with my Harbor Freight Red powder coating and a light Alox coating on top of that; ain't nothing slicker. And I boosted the charge to 4.0 gr. of W-231, which is still Sierra's minimal recommendation for the 125 gr. bullet. I also loaded these a bit shorter, to 1.090" OAL, to see if that would help minimize nose drag friction on the upper part of the straight mag. I wouldn't be surprised if the thing runs 100% when I have the time to try again in a few days.