The latest with the Nambu: Range Report.

Zorba · 11-29-2014, 11:54 PM

When I first acquired my Nambu T14, I replaced all springs (including G.T. doing the mag springs), and took it to the range. It wasn't a stellar performance, basically it was a Jam-O-Matic with more stovepipes than a 3 story cabin. At the time, I didn't have any Nambu snap caps to play with it and try to figure it out.

Eventually, I found some snap caps, tried cycling them through the pistol with identical results. 1 in 3 or 4 would cycle correctly, otherwise stovepipe city. Set the gun aside until now. Dove into it yesterday, did a little bit of tuning on 1 of the 2 mags to where I could feed the snap caps out of the mag by hand with much smoother results than previously. Tried cycling the snap caps through the gun - Jam-O-Matic again. After a bunch of fiddling, I came to the conclusion that something was "up" with the extractor.

I'd never removed it, it's kinda weird how it goes in and stays there - much like the rest of the gun. Got it out, it LOOKED just fine to my eye, but I cleaned some crud out from under its lip, as well as cleaning the channel it lays in on the bolt. Added oil and re-assembled.

Much to my amazement, the gun then ran the snap caps through it just fine! So today, I took it to the range, along with my Ruger MK III and my little NAA .22 short revolver.

The range trip was a success. The Nambu had exactly zero misfeeds and/or stovepipes, both mags ran fine. A substantial improvement indeed! With that said, I had a couple or three instances of the bolt not quite returning to battery - a tap on same fixed the problem each time. I also experienced my first hangfire - about a second and a half. I'm going to blame the ammo for both, it *is* non-commercial reloaded. And I have to say that the gun is dead nuts accurate, I did pretty darn good with it if I say so myself.

I'll leave out the flat tire adventure I had on the way home (in the rain) - I'm just glad I was wearing a heavy canvas skirt instead of some Chiffon number!

NSA Alert! The Grenade is an inert fake - which anyone who knows grenades can tell you just by looking at it without even seeing the hole in the bottom!

Zorba · 11-30-2014, 12:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sheepherder

Cool story!

Except about the skirt...

The pic doesn't show up for me...I tried direct viewing it,...

Should be fixed now...

As for the skirt, I could have just as easily been on the way to a dance performance/class/rehearsal. Would have had to call AAA and wait, changing a tire in the rain in a Belly Dance costume isn't my idea of fun. Fortunately, that wasn't the case!

Ron Wood · 11-30-2014, 01:49 AM

Sounds like the old Paul Lynde answer on Hollywood Squares to the question "why do bikers wear leather"..."because chiffon wrinkles too easily"

alvin · 11-30-2014, 07:26 AM

Read a story on Nambu in a recent combat (relatively recent, much more recent than WWII).

July, 1979, Manchuria, two man and one woman stole three Type 63 assault rifles (its appearance is more or less like a SKS, but can fire full-auto) and 1500 rounds of ammo from a local militia storage, killed one truck driver. While chasing them, police lost six men. Police used light machine guns and grenades and even demanded tank support... finally, two men were killed, the woman was captured alive.

One police KIA was a court police. Nambu T14 was associated with him. He's not on duty, his wife was sick that day, so they visited a hospital. On the way home, they encountered this gun fight. The guy's brave, "holding his pistol, a vintage Japanese T14, he rushed towards and fired. Unfortunately, the pistol jammed after firing out the first round. While he turned around checking what's wrong, he was hit and lost his life"..

Of course, T14 vs assault rifles, this was a fair "duel"... but that jamming was definitely a factor in his death.

DavidJayUden · 11-30-2014, 08:16 AM

Z:
So is the .22 short a "garter belt" gun? Just kidding. Sort of...
What brand of reloads are you using? I used some custom loads from, maybe, Mr. Nambu (?), and they worked perfectly.
At $1.00 per shot I've not shot a lot of rounds thru my Nambu, but they have all been flawless. So I'm not certain that the jam-a-matic label is deserved.
dju

alvin · 11-30-2014, 09:19 AM

Nowadays, Nambu, of course, has exited from active service, and usually becomes part of police collection. On this table, there are quite a few kinds of C&Rs...a T14 on far left, even a Luger, a 1911A1, etc. All those were used by this police station in the past.

Edward Tinker · 11-30-2014, 11:38 AM

I like the Nambu - he few times I have shot mine, it was reliable. The nambu, I used to own, not at all. Lugers are temperamental. The 1911 is one of the few, as is the PPK / PP

Zorba · 11-30-2014, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidJayUden

Z:
So is the .22 short a "garter belt" gun? Just kidding. Sort of...
What brand of reloads are you using? I used some custom loads from, maybe, Mr. Nambu (?), and they worked perfectly.
At $1.00 per shot I've not shot a lot of rounds thru my Nambu, but they have all been flawless. So I'm not certain that the jam-a-matic label is deserved.
dju

Fortunately, its no longer a Jam-O-Matic! It ran just fine, with the exception of a couple of times when the bolt didn't quite return to battery and I needed to give it a slight tap - and the hangfire, of course; which could have happened with ANY brand of ammo.

They're Mr. Nambu reloads. When I have a moment, I want to mic the remaining ones to see if there are any "fat" ones. Like you, I haven't shot many for the same reason!

I was successful in recovering about half my brass, which will help some when it comes time to get more ammo.

If we were allowed conceal carry here in the People's Republic, I'd give a thigh holster a try - but probably with a slightly bigger gun than the NAA. Apparently there was a situation where an armed robber broke into a guy's house and the homeowner took three hits from a .38 - but returned fire with a NAA .22 short (like mine), hit the perp in the belly causing him to flee. The cops caught him shortly thereafter! Definitely proves the first law of gunfighting!

DavidJayUden · 11-30-2014, 07:23 PM

Alvin:
That is an interesting photo. In the cop's hand, a tangent HiPower? The front doesn't look beveled like a Browning but definitely a tangent rear sight.
And on the table, a box magazine full auto Schnellenfurher?
dju

sheepherder · 11-30-2014, 09:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alvin

All those were used by this police station in the past.

Used? Or confiscated & kept for ballistic, comparison, and training purposes?

Is that Chinese police? Are they regional or national?

alvin · 12-01-2014, 01:51 AM

It's police unit of an eastern province in China, equivalent of New Hampshire's "state trooper", so it's a regional level unit. Those pistols were their service pistols in the past, and have been in storage for more than two decades. The initial plan was to destroy them, but the officer in picture happens to be a firearm enthusiast, he made a request to keep this pistols "in memorial of man and woman's service in the unit". The request was approved, so he kept those C&R.

With all those different calibers, ammo supply could be an issue,,, he did show a picture of large number boxes of DWM and FN ammo, but I lost the picture. If I remembered right, the pistols of this police unit were almost all foreign-made guns, but they don't have any genuine FN 1900 -- all 1900 were copies. I guess the reason being original FN 1900 must be submitted to higher level (higher rank officials' favorite, a smaller gun), they could not keep them. But they do have quite a few copies, large and small variations.

Olle · 12-01-2014, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alvin

The initial plan was to destroy them, but the officer in picture happens to be a firearm enthusiast, he made a request to keep this pistols "in memorial of man and woman's service in the unit". The request was approved, so he kept those C&R.

Who would have thought that a guy with a comb-over like that would make such a good judgement call?

alanint · 12-01-2014, 08:38 AM

Even has the daintiness to use white gloves....

alvin · 12-01-2014, 09:38 PM

The best part -- after saving these guns, he got an assignment to clean and classify them, setup a display room in the bureau, write short description on each one, find each gun's service history if still possible, etc. Well paid job, without any business pressure. Many viewer asked, "do you need an assistant? I am willing to help without payment"

11-29-2014, 11:54 PM	#1
Zorba User Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Merritt Island, Fl Posts: 952 Thanks: 777 Thanked 528 Times in 290 Posts	The latest with the Nambu: Range Report. When I first acquired my Nambu T14, I replaced all springs (including G.T. doing the mag springs), and took it to the range. It wasn't a stellar performance, basically it was a Jam-O-Matic with more stovepipes than a 3 story cabin. At the time, I didn't have any Nambu snap caps to play with it and try to figure it out. Eventually, I found some snap caps, tried cycling them through the pistol with identical results. 1 in 3 or 4 would cycle correctly, otherwise stovepipe city. Set the gun aside until now. Dove into it yesterday, did a little bit of tuning on 1 of the 2 mags to where I could feed the snap caps out of the mag by hand with much smoother results than previously. Tried cycling the snap caps through the gun - Jam-O-Matic again. After a bunch of fiddling, I came to the conclusion that something was "up" with the extractor. I'd never removed it, it's kinda weird how it goes in and stays there - much like the rest of the gun. Got it out, it LOOKED just fine to my eye, but I cleaned some crud out from under its lip, as well as cleaning the channel it lays in on the bolt. Added oil and re-assembled. Much to my amazement, the gun then ran the snap caps through it just fine! So today, I took it to the range, along with my Ruger MK III and my little NAA .22 short revolver. The range trip was a success. The Nambu had exactly zero misfeeds and/or stovepipes, both mags ran fine. A substantial improvement indeed! With that said, I had a couple or three instances of the bolt not quite returning to battery - a tap on same fixed the problem each time. I also experienced my first hangfire - about a second and a half. I'm going to blame the ammo for both, it is non-commercial reloaded. And I have to say that the gun is dead nuts accurate, I did pretty darn good with it if I say so myself. I'll leave out the flat tire adventure I had on the way home (in the rain) - I'm just glad I was wearing a heavy canvas skirt instead of some Chiffon number! NSA Alert! The Grenade is an inert fake - which anyone who knows grenades can tell you just by looking at it without even seeing the hole in the bottom!

11-30-2014, 01:49 AM	#3
Ron Wood Moderator 2010 LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Santa Teresa New Mexico just outside of the West Texas town of El Paso Posts: 7,040 Thanks: 1,106 Thanked 5,257 Times in 1,724 Posts	Sounds like the old Paul Lynde answer on Hollywood Squares to the question "why do bikers wear leather"..."because chiffon wrinkles too easily" __________________ If it's made after 1918...it's a reproduction Last edited by Ron Wood; 11-30-2014 at 02:47 AM.

11-30-2014, 09:19 AM	#6
alvin User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: US Posts: 3,843 Thanks: 132 Thanked 729 Times in 438 Posts	Nowadays, Nambu, of course, has exited from active service, and usually becomes part of police collection. On this table, there are quite a few kinds of C&Rs...a T14 on far left, even a Luger, a 1911A1, etc. All those were used by this police station in the past. Attached Images

11-30-2014, 07:26 AM	#4
alvin User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: US Posts: 3,843 Thanks: 132 Thanked 729 Times in 438 Posts	Read a story on Nambu in a recent combat (relatively recent, much more recent than WWII). July, 1979, Manchuria, two man and one woman stole three Type 63 assault rifles (its appearance is more or less like a SKS, but can fire full-auto) and 1500 rounds of ammo from a local militia storage, killed one truck driver. While chasing them, police lost six men. Police used light machine guns and grenades and even demanded tank support... finally, two men were killed, the woman was captured alive. One police KIA was a court police. Nambu T14 was associated with him. He's not on duty, his wife was sick that day, so they visited a hospital. On the way home, they encountered this gun fight. The guy's brave, "holding his pistol, a vintage Japanese T14, he rushed towards and fired. Unfortunately, the pistol jammed after firing out the first round. While he turned around checking what's wrong, he was hit and lost his life".. Of course, T14 vs assault rifles, this was a fair "duel"... but that jamming was definitely a factor in his death.

11-30-2014, 08:16 AM	#5
DavidJayUden Patron LugerForum Patron Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 4,047 Thanks: 578 Thanked 1,414 Times in 887 Posts	Z: So is the .22 short a "garter belt" gun? Just kidding. Sort of... What brand of reloads are you using? I used some custom loads from, maybe, Mr. Nambu (?), and they worked perfectly. At $1.00 per shot I've not shot a lot of rounds thru my Nambu, but they have all been flawless. So I'm not certain that the jam-a-matic label is deserved. dju

11-30-2014, 11:38 AM	#7
Edward Tinker Super Moderator Eternal Lifer LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: North of Spokane, WA Posts: 15,966 Thanks: 2,066 Thanked 4,595 Times in 2,116 Posts	I like the Nambu - he few times I have shot mine, it was reliable. The nambu, I used to own, not at all. Lugers are temperamental. The 1911 is one of the few, as is the PPK / PP

11-30-2014, 07:23 PM	#9
DavidJayUden Patron LugerForum Patron Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 4,047 Thanks: 578 Thanked 1,414 Times in 887 Posts	Alvin: That is an interesting photo. In the cop's hand, a tangent HiPower? The front doesn't look beveled like a Browning but definitely a tangent rear sight. And on the table, a box magazine full auto Schnellenfurher? dju

12-01-2014, 01:51 AM	#11
alvin User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: US Posts: 3,843 Thanks: 132 Thanked 729 Times in 438 Posts	It's police unit of an eastern province in China, equivalent of New Hampshire's "state trooper", so it's a regional level unit. Those pistols were their service pistols in the past, and have been in storage for more than two decades. The initial plan was to destroy them, but the officer in picture happens to be a firearm enthusiast, he made a request to keep this pistols "in memorial of man and woman's service in the unit". The request was approved, so he kept those C&R. With all those different calibers, ammo supply could be an issue,,, he did show a picture of large number boxes of DWM and FN ammo, but I lost the picture. If I remembered right, the pistols of this police unit were almost all foreign-made guns, but they don't have any genuine FN 1900 -- all 1900 were copies. I guess the reason being original FN 1900 must be submitted to higher level (higher rank officials' favorite, a smaller gun), they could not keep them. But they do have quite a few copies, large and small variations.

12-01-2014, 08:38 AM	#13
alanint User Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Marco Island, Florida Posts: 4,867 Thanks: 1,685 Thanked 1,917 Times in 1,193 Posts	Even has the daintiness to use white gloves....

12-01-2014, 09:38 PM	#14
alvin User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: US Posts: 3,843 Thanks: 132 Thanked 729 Times in 438 Posts	The best part -- after saving these guns, he got an assignment to clean and classify them, setup a display room in the bureau, write short description on each one, find each gun's service history if still possible, etc. Well paid job, without any business pressure. Many viewer asked, "do you need an assistant? I am willing to help without payment"