Reproduction Snail Drum - progress

[lugerholsterrepair]

it weighs in at exactly 950 pounds! Gerald, Did you get any air conditioning in your garage or are you working at the kitchen table? Crazy man...Sposed to be 115 in Yuma tomorrow. 90 degrees is as chilly as it gets at night! 90 degrees at 4AM! Now that's what I call tropical!

[G.T.]

Hi Jer, yes, crazy is a prerequisite for working in the Phoenix area in the summer! Lucky for me, I have plenty of bedroom bench work to do with the drums, as well as the garage stuff.... And, to look at things in an optimistic light... I'm already at 100 degrees or better, ahead, every time I need to heat something up?... ... I did manage to get the steel pre cut into the proper lengths.... Hugh time saving step... right now, I feel like a miniature Taiwan! ...... I wonder what the hourly rate is over there? BTW, I think I should form my own union, I could take all my complaints right to the very top! I'd show him a thing or two.... Anyway, work goes on.... best to all, til...lat'r....GT
... BTW, GTS/T barrels are being turned as we speak!

[Classicgunsofamerica]

Hi GT,
Numrich has a new batch of them drums out for delivery, are those reworked by you as well?
They just became available the other day.

Or do I get something that I may not like because of all the technical issues?

Just curious.

[G.T.]

Hi John, The drums listed for sale are, as far as I know, revised by me?... They won't even fit if not reworked? So, the GT Edition is the only show in town so to speak?... The drums are very problematic, as in the drums have to be as good as they can be, and the Lugers have to be top notch as well... 100% function is spotty, but it can be achieved... some will be better than others, but regardless, every thing needed will be there? Fit, strength of parts, and correct springs... The only variable is internal polish? I have polished them and bench tested them, but it isn't really a good test until you run them in your Luger...
But, here's the good part... if you have trouble, I'm here and will stand behind all the drums with the GT proof mark on the side... ... I will do my best to make all as good as we can expect... I will recommend loading them to 25 rounds to start with, and oiling or applying lube to the ammo will help as well.. But, keep in mind, that commercial ammo doesn't have sealed primers and prolonged exposure to lube will kill the primers or cause faulty loads...
Some are going to work great, some not... let me know how you turn out and we will go from there... best to you John, til...lat'r....GT... BTW, contact Don Voigt on the forum if you want another view point on the drum function, he knows as much as me, or more on the tuning of these items... best to you, til...lat'r...GT...

[DavidJayUden]

I just got mine back and the only issue was that the loader would not lock onto the drum, so it just slid off under pressure. Just a bit of filing and that was fixed. Like G. T. says, they are problematic and I wouldn't want to bet my life on one, but they are way cool at the range.
Thanks for your help, G. T!
dju

[DonVoigt]

GT is being kind, I have helped with some of the early work and testing and have 4 of these drums myself. I needed them to fill up my P Kasten that holds 5 mags and the loader! Picture below shows an original Bing type 2 on the left and four of the Numrich/GT repros.

Some do work better than others, and it is a little tough to understand- but any given drum may work better in one luger than another!

The initial "problems" with Numrich's drums, though they are a close copy, was final quality control and a several faults when copying the original.
They were rougher inside, not always in alignment, the mainspring weak, the follower too long and flimsy, the mag tube too large to fit many pistols, and the mag catch slot in the wrong place!

All of these must be "right" and in sync with your luger for the drum, or for an 8 round mag, to function correctly.

The GT reworked drum you receive may work perfectly in your luger when received, or it may be need a tweek; or it may be the pistol that needs attention.

I've said before, the pistol must run 100% with 8 round mags and your ammo. If not, don't even start with the drum. Get the pistol up to snuff first.

Then be sure the drum fits the mag well, it may need a little filing and/or polishing to slide in easily, as many lugers have smaller than average mag wells- especially earlier models and the occasional Mauser.

Don't be afraid to take the drum apart, following the instructions. You will need to re-lube the inside from time to time. I use Dupont teflon suspension lube, it is in a blue bottle with a red top.
This is the best one I have found, you can experiment with what you have though. I believe the Germans used "grease" back in WWI.; that would work too, but sure is messy. Most any oil will do, but won't last long and will need re-applying. Don't leave the magazine loaded or the spring under compression with the lever for more than loading and taking to the range(a few days).

When the drum is loaded, and the spring released; a light tap is needed to "settle" the ammo column in place. This can be done on a soft surface, your hand, or a tap with a rubber hammer. The more the drum is used the easier it becomes to load and use.

As GT said, starting with fewer than 32 rounds and working up is smart and will help you get a feel for the process. I start with 12 or 15 and work up. You don't have to shoot them out, just use a flat dowel to push the ammo out (into a box, or it will hide from you) and reload again.

I'm making this sound harder than it really is, but the result is sure worth it. Nothing like "dumping" 32 rounds from a luger with a trommel mag!

[DonVoigt]

Originally Posted by DavidJayUden

I just got mine back and the only issue was that the loader would not lock onto the drum, so it just slid off under pressure. Just a bit of filing and that was fixed. Like G. T. says, they are problematic and I wouldn't want to bet my life on one, but they are way cool at the range.
Thanks for your help, G. T!
dju

GT makes a special loading/holding tool holder to be sure the loader stays on the drum. It is worth having if you are going to use the loading tool frequently.

[DavidJayUden]

Anyone make sleeves to go over the business end of a loaded magazine or drum? Surely the Germans didn't use a zip-loc bag like I do...
dju

[G.T.]

Hi David and all! Don has it covered, as mentioned, he is as well versed on drums as I am..... David, a (very little!!!!) little filing on the notch makes a world of difference.. also, while on the drum, you can lightly tap the loader button with a hammer to see what is needed, but, if your loader is NOT GT revised, you have to bend the top stop lips up until the loader fits the newly revised drum, as the catch notch has been lowered at least .80" to .100" of an inch... .. If you end up going to far up, it, the drum will set too low, and not assist in ejection and stovepipe jams will result.... But, if that occurs, I will re-weld the notch and we'll run it back thru the black oxide, I'm here! ... best to all, til...lat'r....GT

[DavidJayUden]

G. T.
You are exactly correct on the fixes. I lightly filed away any burrs on the mag AND on the magazine catch button on the loader, then I bent to lips of the loader up just a bit, now it fits correctly.
dju

[G.T.]

Another point in which Don is right on, is in taking the drum apart!!!! Better get used to it and while you're staring at it... ... get out some 400 W/D and 3M blending pads, and POLISH the "S*#&" out of every spot of interior blue you can find!!!!!! Especially the transition from drum to vertical and the inside walls... When it's right, and fully loaded, you can "settle" the column just by squeezing the lever a bit more... ... Remember, the first 17 rounds are on the mainspring, the next 15 are on the coil spring... if you have a problem, track where in the string it happens... I know for a fact you'll know a lot more about drums when you're through with this project!!! ... best to all, til...lat'r....GT.....

[cirelaw]

Why would you even try as long as you my savior is available!! Deadly but nice!! I love our family!! Eric

[Classicgunsofamerica]

OK,
so Numrich is not selling ANY drums anymore that are not tuned by GT.
I did actually read all 8 pages here but since it was silent for 9 months and NUmrich just shipped my drum, I thought I might better ask.

I will for sure do a drum surgery and polish a bit.

[Classicgunsofamerica]

Dust cover for the drum....what solution is out there?
Replicas anywhere?

[DonVoigt]

Originally Posted by Classicgunsofamerica

Dust cover for the drum....what solution is out there?
Replicas anywhere?

I'm not sure why you need one?
Originally they were used in the field/trenches, and probably had a reason.

An original will cost about $100.

You could for sure improvise one from a nylon mag pouch.

[cirelaw]

Don, I bought mine with my 2 drums from George~ Its like a picture frame, it completes the set! Its amazing any survived!!