Finnish Suomi M-31 Range Report -

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Finnish Suomi M-31 Range Report - "Kaboom"

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Alexei	Finnish Suomi M-31 Range Report - "Kaboom"	Lead	[-]
Posts: 188 Feb 2 12 2:11 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Tags : None Well, it's really not much of a range report. After seeing glowing reports from many about this weapon, I had to get one for myself, and did so in late December. Today was my first outing. I should preface everything by saying that I was very impressesd by the weapon upon disassembly, as a considerable level of care had been taken in re-finishing and assembling the weapon. I duly loaded a stick and two drum mags, and headed off to do some function testing. As you may know, though in many ways a fine gun, the Suomi is very heavy, with an equally heavy trigger pull. I was therefore very surprised and pleased with the accuracy of the first 5 rounds, that were all within a 2" group at 25 yds. standing, unsupported, "offhand". The 6th round went "kaboom". Waiting a moment, to make sure all my body parts were hanging together, I did some post incident evaluation. The extractor was laying on the firing position stand, and the bolt was locked half-way back, with the empty, fired cartridge case still fully chambered, just missing its' primer. I'm guessing the Suomi just fired somewhat out of battery. I'm also assuming spring tension, or lack thereof, could be playing a part. J&B Sales referred me to the manufacturer: T&W. I will report on what they suggest.
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ballcap57		#1	[-]
Posts: 493 Feb 2 12 7:08 PM Veteran member Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Handloads or factory?
ParallaxBill		#2	[-]
Posts: 17214 Feb 3 12 6:25 AM Owner/operator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	How easy is yours to cock? You mention lack of spring tension. Did you get the recoil spring back on the guide rod properly? Parallax *Lee Enfield Collector's Society member #3* *Mauser Shooter's Association member #17* Forum administrator for the Carolina C&R Shooting & Collecting Club,
Alexei	some answers	#3	[-]
Posts: 188 Feb 3 12 9:07 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	1). Factory FMJ ammo 2). It was pretty easy to cock, and I reassembled and positioned the recoil spring correctly. (I wonder if an auxillary spring is in order, but I guess "they" know better than I do ). 3). I spoke to T&W after this initial posting, and I have to admit, they reacted very well, and asked if I could return the entire weapon. After establishing I wasn't a total moron, they decided just the bolt was enough. They basically told me the re-configuration of the bolt and its' relationship to the trigger group was more complex then the original design, and that though rare, problems in geometry do occur occasionally. I'm sending it off today, and I'm also sure we'll all be interested in their assessment.
ParallaxBill		#4	[-]
Posts: 17214 Feb 3 12 9:40 AM Owner/operator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Glad you weren't hurt. Parallax *Lee Enfield Collector's Society member #3* *Mauser Shooter's Association member #17* Forum administrator for the Carolina C&R Shooting & Collecting Club,
fn111557.texasmilitaryfo...		#5	[-]
Posts: 47 Feb 3 12 10:09 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Also glad you are OK! and am VERY INTERESTED in what you find out about this problem. I hope this hasn't soured you on this weapon, I too am amazed at its accuracy. Keep us informed and good luck! Fred
ParallaxBill		#6	[-]
Posts: 17214 Feb 3 12 5:12 PM Owner/operator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Winchester white box ammo? Guys on arfcom talking loose primers. Parallax *Lee Enfield Collector's Society member #3* *Mauser Shooter's Association member #17* Forum administrator for the Carolina C&R Shooting & Collecting Club,
Alexei	Suomi - 31	#7	[-]
Posts: 188 Feb 18 12 6:57 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Gentlemen. I have much to add. The manufacturer behaved quite well, and exchanged bolts with me. A trip to the range is in order, and I will report. In a unrelated development, I am now relatively sure that the Suomi WAS NOT at fault. I checked the assortment of ammo fired. It was a mixture of commercial 9mm: Fiocchi, Winchester, PMC and no-name Chinese. In the interim, I fired the same assemblage in my Beretta M-9. Post range inspection showed a blown primer on one of the cases ( but no rupture ). I compared that case to the ruptured case from the Suomi incident. Both were the same Chinese, 1993 manufacture. The blown, boxer primers revealed what to me looks like oblong primer pockets, and rather overly large flash holes, but that is a subjective evaluation. The evidence, though antecdotal, tends to indicate the ammo, rather than 2 different weapons is the cause. I regret my alarmist initial report, but nothing like that had ever happened to me before.
ParallaxBill		#8	[-]
Posts: 17214 Feb 19 12 7:27 AM Owner/operator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Thanks for the update. I have been reading numerous reports of bad Chinese ammo lately.. I finally have my front sight drifted to cure my windage issue so mine is good to go out to 100 yards with amazing accuracy, Parallax *Lee Enfield Collector's Society member #3* *Mauser Shooter's Association member #17* Forum administrator for the Carolina C&R Shooting & Collecting Club,
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Alexei	Suomi M-31`	#9	[-]
Posts: 188 Feb 23 12 11:16 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Went back to the range. Fired maybe 200 rds. The original problem was not replicated, probably because the Chinese ammo was indeed the culprit. The drum mags ( tried 2 ) responded as suspected. Lots of stoppages - simple failures to completely feed, but lots of fun, and I could often get runs of 10-15 rounds w/ no problems. The stick magazines refelected the general consensus of better reliabilty, with perhaps only one or two failures to feed, similar in nature to the drum mags' challenges. I can surmise that getting the right combo of spring and bolt re-adaptation was a real balancing act for the manufacturer (TNW), and they have done very well, all in all. I fired almost exclusively offhand, and gee the Suomi is heavy.
ParallaxBill		#10	[-]
Posts: 17214 Feb 23 12 5:59 PM Owner/operator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	It is a workout, but a fun workout! Are you wanting to SBR your's? I hope to SBR mine soon. Parallax *Lee Enfield Collector's Society member #3* *Mauser Shooter's Association member #17* Forum administrator for the Carolina C&R Shooting & Collecting Club,
Alexei	31 Suomi	#11	[-]
Posts: 188 Feb 24 12 8:50 AM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Your SBR question raises another one. Will the barrel from a dewated kit simply need to be switched to, or is there some sort of modication that has to be made ? I can't believe the Federales would allow a semi-auto to be made with such an omission on their part, but maybe it flew under the capricious bureaucratic radar ?
ParallaxBill		#12	[-]
Posts: 17214 Feb 24 12 6:35 PM Owner/operator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	It is a direct, no mod replacement. Parallax *Lee Enfield Collector's Society member #3* *Mauser Shooter's Association member #17* Forum administrator for the Carolina C&R Shooting & Collecting Club,
Carl Gustav		#13	[-]
Posts: 4249 Mar 8 12 10:31 PM Forum Site Moderator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	It takes about 15 seconds to convert it into an SBR! Mine is legit by the way. I need to drift the front sight(s), four barrels and shrouds, since they shoot to the left. Mine loves the cheap Wolf stuff which is locally available for a little over $8 a box when it's on sale. I'm sure I could have easily used it without getting it registered and without getting in trouble but there's no way I'd take the chance. The $200 tax stamp is cheap. By the way $200 in 1934 is equal to $3,800 today; glad they haven't kept the fee up with inflation. Carl
Alexei	Suomi M-31`	#14	[-]
Posts: 188 Mar 14 12 6:47 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I can't decide about the SBR route. Seems like a lot of trouble, for not much difference. With a Skorpion or Uzi, it seems more, well, "worth it". With the Suomi, you get a 1 pound ( and 2") reduction on a 15 pound gun. Convince me otherwise.
ParallaxBill		#15	[-]
Posts: 17214 Mar 14 12 7:25 PM Owner/operator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	With the slant cut shroud I think it would be worth the effort to have it look historically accurate. The slant cut shroud shortens the rifle 4". The weight doesn't concern me since the full auto guns weighed just as much. To me it would be like wanting a lighter semi-auto BAR. It might be easier to handle but not at all like the real thing. Parallax *Lee Enfield Collector's Society member #3* *Mauser Shooter's Association member #17* Forum administrator for the Carolina C&R Shooting & Collecting Club,
fn111557.texasmilitaryfo...		#16	[-]
Posts: 47 Mar 21 12 2:49 PM Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I want one of the "Pill Box" shrouds for the tanker version KP31. It looks like the end of a leaf blower. AWESOME!
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