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Post by melfin on Apr 7, 2011 8:30:42 GMT -5
So I've been getting rather bored during my lunch hour at work and though I might as well put all the available tools to good use. I figured a good gun to start would be the De Lisle carbine, mainly because there almost as rare in the airsoft world as they were in the real world and I fancied something a bit different. As I’m going to the trouble of producing one I thought I might as well make 3. The plan is to use a JG VSR-10 as the base gun, I have gotten hold of 3 lee enfield stocks to use and also printed of a full scale plan. The only modifications I’m going to make the VSR is to shorten the barrel and change the magwell area to use the smaller shotgun mags. This is because I already have lots of those mags to hand and also to decrease the hole I need to cut out of the hand guard. I’m only going to use steel and wood for all eternal parts and because I don’t think I can make a wooden body strong enough or with enough precision the main body of the gun is going made of steel and a bakelite material clad in wood. Here is the plan with the modified base gun and stock in place.  Next I will make the body base and fit the stock. |
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Post by melfin on Apr 11, 2011 5:54:18 GMT -5
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HornetWSO
Private 1st Class
"We may not have a history, but we have a rendezvous with destiny!"
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Post by HornetWSO on Apr 11, 2011 11:36:50 GMT -5
Your work looks very meticulous, nice job!
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Post by melfin on Apr 13, 2011 9:06:08 GMT -5
The cosmetic surgery began this week with the fitting of the wooden panels that hide the metal body. I bought some 5mm thick American walnut which once stained should match well with the stock. I cut out the pieces and fitted them to the body, I then shaped them the best I could. Apart from the screws to hold the pieces in place I’ve managed to get them close enough to the original gun for me to be happy.    At the moment it resembles something from the Wild West but once the other two guns have caught up I will begin on the metal work around the body. With a bit of welding, a lot of grinding and a whole heap of luck I am hoping to make the magwell trigger guard and ring between the body and stock as a single piece. |
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Post by melfin on Apr 15, 2011 6:12:55 GMT -5
Just a quick update showing all three guns are up to the same point now. Unfortunately I only have two VSR guns at the moment.   Next up is the silencer tube. If anybody has some tips or can point me in the direction of a good example of how to modify the VSR bolt to look a little more like an enfield it would be much appreciated. I at least want to change the cocking handle if nothing else. |
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Post by CharleyNovember on Apr 15, 2011 11:13:34 GMT -5
I take round stock drill it and dimple it to work with the VSR mechanism and weld in a new steel bolt handle. Takes some work but works out pretty well I think. Looks great by the way and a fine use of your spare time..lol
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Sgt_Tom
Technical Sgt.
Combat!
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Post by Sgt_Tom on Apr 15, 2011 11:14:46 GMT -5
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Post by melfin on Apr 19, 2011 3:53:55 GMT -5
I’m still waiting for the steel for the silencer tube to arrive so in the mean time I have made good progress on the steel parts for the body. I have used a real steel magazine to ensure the measurements are correct.    Sorry for the poorer quality photos I only had my phone with me today and not my camera. All I need to do is weld all the parts together and blend the welds. To simplify the build considerably the 1911 magazine will be welded in place and will not be removable. |
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HornetWSO
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"We may not have a history, but we have a rendezvous with destiny!"
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Post by HornetWSO on Apr 19, 2011 12:49:58 GMT -5
Very impressive, I'm getting excited to see the finished product!
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Post by melfin on Apr 26, 2011 3:14:24 GMT -5
Thanks for the Kind words Over the holidays I managed to find time to get out the welder and fit all the parts together. I have made a good start on finishing the metal but I am planning to wait to do the final finish and prep for bluing once all the parts are made. The other two guns are not far behind they just require a little more cleaning up of the welds.     The steel has arrived for the silencer tube and I have an idea about how to do the end caps without the need of a lathe. So hopefully in a few days it will begin to look like a De Lisle. |
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Post by melfin on May 3, 2011 11:04:37 GMT -5
I have made some progress with the silencers but am waiting on a few things to complete them. In the mean time I got cracking on the front sight. I decided not to make the sight adjustable and couldn’t find many helpful photos of what the original one looked like. I have based it on the few photos I did find.    Hopefully by the end of the week I will have the last things to finish the silencers. Next week I will be working on the rear sights and fitting the silencer to the body. |
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HornetWSO
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"We may not have a history, but we have a rendezvous with destiny!"
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Post by HornetWSO on May 3, 2011 16:18:38 GMT -5
Your metal skills are to be commended!
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Post by melfin on May 5, 2011 4:55:25 GMT -5
To make the silencers I used a section of steel welded pipe and made “end caps” which are welded on in such a way to hide the welds. I then drilled and tapped a pair of holes in the front and inserted two short bolts to look like the long bolts that hold the real silencer together. I have also mounted the front sight and rounded the front edge of the silencer. The photos I have been using as a reference both show the rounded front edge and a front sight that I think I have recreated fairly closely. So far I’m happy and surprised how well the project is going. It’s been a rather steep learning curve having never welded before or worked with much metal.      The front hand guard is really the only major piece missing now. There are a lot of smaller bits and bobs to do though and I have to make a complete new magwell and feed system to accommodate the smaller mags. “(Bad) Joke of the day” What’s the difference between a male deer and a short witch? Ones a hunted stag and the others a stunted hag. |
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Post by melfin on May 9, 2011 8:57:45 GMT -5
Just a quick update, the sling loops and butt plate have arrived. The butt plate fitted perfectly but the sling loops were a tad bigger than the pre routed slot on the stock. Simple fix with a dremel though.   |
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HornetWSO
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"We may not have a history, but we have a rendezvous with destiny!"
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Post by HornetWSO on May 10, 2011 19:46:40 GMT -5
So far that's the dogs bollocks!
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Post by melfin on May 11, 2011 9:03:01 GMT -5
The silencers are fitted and the whole gun is really solid with not wobble and I’m fairly certain it can handle the trauma of a skirmish or 50. Please excuse the rather awful looking metal work on the silencer after a good going over with the power file it will look much much better.   Also I would like to introduce the “The gun part that most resembles an animal of the day” Pigface  By melfin at 2011-05-11 The wood has arrived for the hand guard and I have begun carving out the channel for the silencer. Once they are shaped and fitted it will look almost complete. The rear sight unfortunately is going to be one of the areas that this gun differs from the original quite drastically, I couldn't get hold of parts to make one like the original nor do I have the skill to replicate one so I have had to go with constructing a rear sight using parts from a Mauser rifle. It might look different but I'm hoping it will still fit with the gun enough not to detract from the overall finish. One quick question, does anyone know if this gun would be used with the standard 37 pattern rifle sling as used on the 303 or did they use something different? |
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Post by melfin on May 16, 2011 8:29:40 GMT -5
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Post by melfin on May 18, 2011 8:26:17 GMT -5
I have stained the wood on the first gun which has turned out almost perfect. The match between the stock and the rest of the wood is great. I have also only given the wood a single coat of the stain so far, I plan to do at least another 2 coats to darken the wood a little more.   The wood is a lot darker in real life the lights in my office don’t play nice with the camera. Oh and the pig face is no more.... Its grown horns and turned in to a BULL  By melfin at 2011-05-18 |
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nkronsch
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Post by nkronsch on May 21, 2011 5:06:28 GMT -5
Nice work. This looks like it was time-consuming, yet fun.
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Post by melfin on May 26, 2011 5:55:29 GMT -5
It’s been rather busy at work and I've been out of the factory for a few days which means I haven't got as much done of the guns as I had hoped. Not a lot to show but I have completed the front sling loops. Nothing fancy I know but they will be mostly hidden by the sling anyway. The loops themselves were made from steel rod and welded to form the ring.     Hopefully I should finish the rear sight this week. |
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Post by melfin on May 31, 2011 10:26:35 GMT -5
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Post by melfin on Jun 9, 2011 9:54:47 GMT -5
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nkronsch
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There is no problem on Earth that can not be solved with the proper application of high explosives.
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Post by nkronsch on Jun 10, 2011 11:50:53 GMT -5
wow, very nice.
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daug
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Post by daug on Jun 21, 2011 5:53:16 GMT -5
This is a great job, very awesome.....congratulation!!!
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Post by melfin on Jun 21, 2011 8:58:36 GMT -5
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Post by melfin on Jul 6, 2011 5:12:40 GMT -5
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nkronsch
Private
There is no problem on Earth that can not be solved with the proper application of high explosives.
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Post by nkronsch on Jul 6, 2011 23:28:11 GMT -5
Very nice. So what's your asking price for one  |
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Post by melfin on Jul 14, 2011 9:59:02 GMT -5
Finally got the magwell working consistently. I know it’s not going to win any beauty contests but it works and that all it needs to do.    And the animal of the day is  ELEPHANT with hat on The bluing process is pretty much all done now. Next week I will be doing the final fitting and adjustments to the guns, and I should hopefully have 2 of them working by the end of the week. I am in need of a third donor gun, so if anyone has a VSR-10 they would like to get rid of please send me a PM. It doesn’t matter about the aesthetics of the guns as long as it works. |
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Post by melfin on Jul 19, 2011 5:00:17 GMT -5
I have fully finished the first of the guns!!!!!! I took it out for a few test shots and I was very pleased with the range and accuracy. I weighed the gun today and it came out at 3.7Kg which is about half a kilo heavier than the real thing but that’s not bad considering I haven’t concerned myself with weight at all and it did have its sling on. But enough blub lets have some pictures:      And one with my Thompson for size comparison  Hopefully the second gun will be finished today which will just leave the last one to finish when I get the donor gun. I am planning on selling at least one of them so if you’re interested in one let me know. |
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Post by jimmiroquai on Jul 19, 2011 21:07:37 GMT -5
It's beautiful. How does it perform? What did you do for the magcatch?
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