Third Party Press

Just got an AC43 P38

ekafant

ekafant

Senior Member
Been wanting this one for a while. Bought if from a friend of mine, who has had it since 1956. Bought it when he was nine years old, at a gun show. "Paid the man $17.00" is what he said. How things have changed! Will post pictures later on.
 
Thanks for the link to the P38 forum. Good information there. Took a few pictures. Magazine is numbered, but to another pistol. That is the same magazine that it came with in 1956. Might get an unnumbered one in the future, but it has been there so long. Finish is not perfect, but is the same condition as when purchased long ago.
 

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Thought to update this thread. I have some firearms I shoot, some I do not. Well, I made the mistake of shooting this one. Just wanted to run a magazine thru it, just plain 115gn 9mm. Third shot the slide cracked on the left side. Really sucks, but it is what it is now. Just a weak point I guess. Not sure what to do with it now, but one does take a risk shooting collectibles. My sons plain ole P1 functioned just great!
 
Damn - that is too bad.

I shoot my stuff and will continue to do so but am always nervous doing so.
- also got a P1, to relieve the stress.
 
That Winchester ammo did that? That is the same white box stuff used at my friends gun store in Greenfield. Its main use is range target practice. Wow is all I can say. Maybe the frame already had a weak point in it years ago. Its possible.
 
Wartime P.38 pistols have a flaw in the slide that can lead to this (cracking). Sad to see a collectible taken out of the game like this. It's why I tell people not to shoot valuable K98k's, seen a few cracked wrists that were unnecessary, but as you say it is what it is...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Sorry to hear that, I shot a box through my first P 38 when I got it, then saw the thread on the P 38 forum about cracked slides. I have not shot it since, and wont shoot my other ww2 pistols either.
 
Oh man. sorry to hear this. Over the weekend I shot byf P38 over 25rounds, Same ammo. Win white box 115g no issues. The only thing is I couldn't hit barn door with it. shoots way to low at 15 yards, like 4-5 inches.
 
Very sorry to hear this happened. The Beretta 1952 had the same problems and our own US Beretta has some slide cracking problems early on. It was the nature of the slide design, which was gradually improved with the P1 and the US pistols making it almost a non-issue.

Even early M1911s without heat treating had an occasional slide fracture. Partial heat treating helped in WW2 and the full heat treated slide became available post war, although used to a small degree as the war was still in progress.

I am not a P-38 guy so I will let you guys that appreciate them do as you please. A valuable collectable P-38 should not be shot nor should a collectable M1911 and/or A1. Even if the chance of slide fracture is one in 100,000 or higher, the risk is likely not worth it.
 
Here are some pictures of the cracked slide. I have been inquiring on how to make a "silk purse out of a sows ear" at this point. Like MrFarb said, hate to see it taken out of the game. More than one person has suggested that micro welding the crack would be the way to go, and then spot finish the area with a rust blue, and give it a shot. If any of you guys know of a gunsmith you would trust for either of those jobs, let me know. No plans on shooting it again though.
 

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Dave Roberts knows a guy that micro welds, I've seen him fix a safety before that was excellent. I'll direct him to this thread so he can contact you.
 
This is my friend Andy , he is one of the Best in the business . He has done work for Me and other forum members and his work is Top Notch . He also has a Machine Shop . He is Very capable of almost any repair . For any others that may need a Micro Welder in future I am attaching his information . I just ask that You use my name as the referral . Thank You


NH Micro Welding LLC
Phone: (603) 759-4793
Email: aestonge@nhwelding.com
Web: www.nhwelding.com
Andy St. Onge
Owner/Welder
Phone | (603) 759-4793
Email | aestonge@nhwelding.com
 
Thought to update this here. I ended up talking to a few people, including Andy posted above. I wanted someone to do the entire job, the welding and spot re-finishing. Andy only did the welding and was a few weeks out. Ended up with a gunsmith that has welded and spot refinished many slides, including P38s. Says the hardest part is the spot-refinishing aspect to match the rest of the slide. So far, everything has gone well and should have it back in a couple of weeks. Will post pictures when it is back. I do appreciate the help on this forum.
 
Thanks for checking it out, may do this for a cyq which wasn't in nice shape to begin with (but matched) but I don't trust it enough to actually shoot it again.
 
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