Shooting a "Red 9"

alvin · 09-01-2008, 01:54 PM

As collectors pointed out, risk of breaking parts exists in shooting original all matching pieces. However, finding a good shooter costs extra. I struggled a little bit and decided to take the risk and shoot 50 rounds from a "Red 9". Unlike later guns, a few fragile parts are numbered on this variation in partial 4 digit s/n. If any of them broke, it's almost sure I would not be able to another matching replacement.

The first round was shot from hip level to test it..... in case of something flying out, it would not hit my eye. Bang! It worked. Inspected, everything looked normal except the target paper was still intact with no hole.

Then, shot at eye level. Bang, bang, bang.... it jammed at 27th round. The empty case had been thrown out, but the bolt failed to push the next round into the chamber. Cleared the failure and it returned to normal.

The last 20 rounds were shot from lower level again, roughly pointing to a coke can 25 meters away on the back hill, pushed the trigger as fast as I could. 10 rounds fired in 4 seconds, no hitting. Shot another 10 rounds this way even faster, dirt flied up on the hill, still no hitting

Walmart Winchester ammo. 15 meters.

close-up

Performer.... before throwing "exciting" 20 rounds out.

Summary -- Accuracy is good, but not as good as my BDM though. Malfunction once. No other issues.

Tobruk42 · 09-04-2008, 06:53 PM

Just to be on the safe side....have you inspected the slide stop? back when I first got the C96 bug I didn't know how dangerous one could be if the stop was in bad shape. When I did find out I was genuinely stunned to find that one of mine was chipped nearly in two and ready to fail. The stop is all there is between you and the bolt assembly so it's worth taking a look at it if you haven't already.

lugerholsterrepair · 09-04-2008, 07:50 PM

have you inspected the slide stop? Really good advice!

Nice shooting area! Looks like a real pleasure to shoot there. Good places to shoot are getting scarce...

Jerry Burney

alvin · 09-04-2008, 08:08 PM

Thanks for reminding me. I did check everything, including the fragile bolt stop. This gun was not bought for shooting, but I was a little crazy these days. By shooting those things, I have broken the sear spring of a FN 1906 .25ACP pistol, and the sear arm of a Mauser Modell 1930

Found a replacement sear arm for the 1930 (thanks Tom H). It worked again. So this 9m/m returned back to safe. The tiny FN pistol is still in broken mode. Those are unnumbered parts, but finding them still take some effort. Fun came with cost.

Karl · 09-05-2008, 08:51 PM

Alvin,

I occasionally shoot a Red 9 as well (matching except for floor plate). Like Lugers they shoot high at "normal" distances (Luger fixed sight and C96 minimum adjustable sight 50 meters I think). If you continue shooting this gun I suggest that you get a newly made bolt stop from Lugerdoc (Tom Heller) and examine the thin area on the receiver behind the bolt stop for damage. I also recommend getting a repro shoulder stock. Enjoy. KFS

alvin · 09-06-2008, 08:57 AM

Luger balances and points well in single hand. C96 does not. It takes a while to get used to it.

C96 is a very "right hand oriented" gun and shooting by left hand has some issues. First, it's hard to push the last round from the clip into the magazine well by right thumb -- left hand shooter have to hold the grip by right hand, and load ammo by left hand. The 2nd issue is 1930 Universal Safety related -- the left hand easily touches the Universal Safety knob and disable the sear during the firing, not a problem on earlier guns.

The 1930 that I tried shoots high. With shoulder stock attached and by aiming at 6 o'clock of a 8" circular target at 50m, the bullets could hit the area above the center. At 100m 18"(H) x 12"(W) target, the sight slide still stays at 50, but I could aim at the center.

This Red 9 shoots low. I have to set the sight slide to 100.... even at 15m or 25m shooting range. The 50 mark on the slide was actually useless on this particular gun.

=====

It's interesting to notice that most people in range call it "a Luger". So, there is a formula -- exposed barrel equals Luger

Obviously, most people heard of "Luger" but they are not sure how a Luger should roughly look like.

09-01-2008, 01:54 PM	#1
alvin User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: US Posts: 3,843 Thanks: 132 Thanked 729 Times in 438 Posts	Shooting a "Red 9" As collectors pointed out, risk of breaking parts exists in shooting original all matching pieces. However, finding a good shooter costs extra. I struggled a little bit and decided to take the risk and shoot 50 rounds from a "Red 9". Unlike later guns, a few fragile parts are numbered on this variation in partial 4 digit s/n. If any of them broke, it's almost sure I would not be able to another matching replacement. The first round was shot from hip level to test it..... in case of something flying out, it would not hit my eye. Bang! It worked. Inspected, everything looked normal except the target paper was still intact with no hole. Then, shot at eye level. Bang, bang, bang.... it jammed at 27th round. The empty case had been thrown out, but the bolt failed to push the next round into the chamber. Cleared the failure and it returned to normal. The last 20 rounds were shot from lower level again, roughly pointing to a coke can 25 meters away on the back hill, pushed the trigger as fast as I could. 10 rounds fired in 4 seconds, no hitting. Shot another 10 rounds this way even faster, dirt flied up on the hill, still no hitting Walmart Winchester ammo. 15 meters. close-up Performer.... before throwing "exciting" 20 rounds out. Summary -- Accuracy is good, but not as good as my BDM though. Malfunction once. No other issues.

09-04-2008, 07:50 PM	#3
lugerholsterrepair Moderator Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Arizona/Colorado Posts: 7,760 Thanks: 4,848 Thanked 3,099 Times in 1,426 Posts	have you inspected the slide stop? Really good advice! Nice shooting area! Looks like a real pleasure to shoot there. Good places to shoot are getting scarce... Jerry Burney __________________ Jerry Burney 11491 S. Guadalupe Drive Yuma AZ 85367-6182 lugerholsterrepair@earthlink.net 928 342-7583 (CO & AZ) Year Round 719 207-3331 (cell) "For those who Fight For It, Life has a flavor the protected will never know."

09-04-2008, 06:53 PM	#2
Tobruk42 User Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 25 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Just to be on the safe side....have you inspected the slide stop? back when I first got the C96 bug I didn't know how dangerous one could be if the stop was in bad shape. When I did find out I was genuinely stunned to find that one of mine was chipped nearly in two and ready to fail. The stop is all there is between you and the bolt assembly so it's worth taking a look at it if you haven't already.

09-04-2008, 08:08 PM	#4
alvin User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: US Posts: 3,843 Thanks: 132 Thanked 729 Times in 438 Posts	Thanks for reminding me. I did check everything, including the fragile bolt stop. This gun was not bought for shooting, but I was a little crazy these days. By shooting those things, I have broken the sear spring of a FN 1906 .25ACP pistol, and the sear arm of a Mauser Modell 1930 Found a replacement sear arm for the 1930 (thanks Tom H). It worked again. So this 9m/m returned back to safe. The tiny FN pistol is still in broken mode. Those are unnumbered parts, but finding them still take some effort. Fun came with cost.

09-05-2008, 08:51 PM	#5
Karl Lifer - Twice Over Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Savannah Posts: 514 Thanks: 0 Thanked 239 Times in 111 Posts	Alvin, I occasionally shoot a Red 9 as well (matching except for floor plate). Like Lugers they shoot high at "normal" distances (Luger fixed sight and C96 minimum adjustable sight 50 meters I think). If you continue shooting this gun I suggest that you get a newly made bolt stop from Lugerdoc (Tom Heller) and examine the thin area on the receiver behind the bolt stop for damage. I also recommend getting a repro shoulder stock. Enjoy. KFS

09-06-2008, 08:57 AM	#6
alvin User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: US Posts: 3,843 Thanks: 132 Thanked 729 Times in 438 Posts	Luger balances and points well in single hand. C96 does not. It takes a while to get used to it. C96 is a very "right hand oriented" gun and shooting by left hand has some issues. First, it's hard to push the last round from the clip into the magazine well by right thumb -- left hand shooter have to hold the grip by right hand, and load ammo by left hand. The 2nd issue is 1930 Universal Safety related -- the left hand easily touches the Universal Safety knob and disable the sear during the firing, not a problem on earlier guns. The 1930 that I tried shoots high. With shoulder stock attached and by aiming at 6 o'clock of a 8" circular target at 50m, the bullets could hit the area above the center. At 100m 18"(H) x 12"(W) target, the sight slide still stays at 50, but I could aim at the center. This Red 9 shoots low. I have to set the sight slide to 100.... even at 15m or 25m shooting range. The 50 mark on the slide was actually useless on this particular gun. ===== It's interesting to notice that most people in range call it "a Luger". So, there is a formula -- exposed barrel equals Luger Obviously, most people heard of "Luger" but they are not sure how a Luger should roughly look like.