Postwar used Lafettes

[bergflak]

I'm finally at it again, writing a new article about the Lafettes. Need some help though!
AA /MG34.com reportedly sold some MG34 Lafettes some years ago. Do anyone know where they originated from (country)? Any pictures of these?

I also need a good photo of a Lafette 53 optic block. The one in coalblack aluminum. Appreciate all help..

Bergflak.com

[JBaum]

I would think the most certain way to know what AA (MG34.com) was selling would be to ask Greg. He owns the place.

[Blanksguy]

bergflak,

You might also want to contact the owner of Omega-Weapon-Systems down in Arizona, USA. Several years ago, he had a few MG34 Lafettes for sale. Some were dated as early as 1937-?
If I recall correctly, they came out of old Russia...through one of the Surplus-Dealers (Ryton-Arms of the old "Firepower, Ltd." or "Firepower, Int.") in England.

This may be where SARCO, Inc. picked up all of their MG34/MG42 Lafette used spare-parts and assemblies they sold off in "bulk" to Allegany-Arsenal a few years ago.

If you go waaaaaaaay back, Bob Landies of Ohio-Ordnance-Works (Pre-1990) was one of the people selling large amounts of Norwegien surplus MG34 Lafettes, MGZ34 and MGZ Optic-sets with cans/accessories, MP40 and MP44 magazines in bulk, and some other items. He may have kept some of these items for his collection (?)....photos-?

Regards, RichardS in Bay City, MI 48706, USA
US Army, Retired
Blanksguy2001@charter.net
PS: Let me know if you locate an MGZ40 Collimator for sale.

[42rocker]

OOW is the one that sold a large group of mg34 lafette's to AA. As best I know Charlie rebuilt a lot of them for Greg at AA.

LOOKING FORWARD to seeing what you put out on the lafettes

Later 42rocker

[Blanksguy]

42rocker,

.......and here it was I thought that SARCO, Inc. had that large grouping of Lafette-Parts/Assemblies. So you say it was OOW that sold them to AA a couple years ago (?).

Regards, RichardS in Bay City, MI 48706, USA
US Army, Retired
Blanksguy2001@charter.net

[JBaum]

OOW sold the lafettes and parts to Allegheny Arsenal. I'm the one who called Greg Suchik (the owner of AA) and told him that Bob Landies had them for sale. I was thinking of buying them myself and decided I had too many things going at the time, so I told Greg about it.

Charlie Jones from Pegasus Ordnance in Avon, OH replaced damaged parts and rebuilt the lafettes that Greg bought. Charlie's a great guy who does some very fine work restoring and rebuilding guns.

Last time I was there he had a battered WWI MG08 that he desoldered the ends off the water jacket, took the dents out of the tube, and put it back together before he reblued the whole gun and put new grips on it that he made. What a beautiful gun. Couldn't even see where the dents were. A great machinist too. He makes the best reproduction MG08 flash suppressor to front bushing setup I've seen. A real artist when it comes to milling steel. He does some pretty fine repair work on the MP5 series too.

[42rocker]

John, I think that there are a couple of threads that you started about OOW trying to sell the tripods. Then 30 to 60 days after your thread was posted we found out that Greg, AA bought them and was going to build them. I spent some time talking with Charlie a few Knob Creeks ago about some of the internal part differences between the German and yugo lafettes. Very interesting. Most of the parts are the same.

Now Dave (Sarco) and I were talking at the last Knob Creek about the large group of yugo stuff that Sarco brought in. There have been several threads and posts about this. Seems that Sarco got in several trailers of yugo surplus in. I believe that I know the number of lafette's that Dave said that they received but not really able to detail the numbers. As a sub note I know that I can say that they only bought complete lafette's and no parts to speak of for the lafettes. Also unless something "shows up" in a warehouse someplace they are out of lafettes to sell.

Now the next group of lafettes (only a couple) showed up with Apex at Knob Creek. As they just got in the yugo m53 parts kits in I hope that they might get a few more lafettes in. If not, two Knob Creeks ago I filled up a mule trailer with 4 or 5 or 6 mg42/m53 lafettes and one mg34 mountain lafette and brought them back. So if no other major groups show up I hope that I made a good investment.
Also if you need mg34 lafette parts about the only major player in town is Greg at AA. From what I understand his supply is running low on the major parts and his boxes of small parts need to be sorted.

Later 42rocker

[bergflak]

Hmm. Still in the dark here.
The Yugo Lafettes are easy enough. Both the refurbs and the M53 has the tell tale signs, so I have them covered.

Has anyone ever seen a ex-Yugo Lafette 34? (I haven't, so I do not think they exist).

The joker in the dark here are the AA/OOW Lafette 34s. I haven't seen any pictures of them, so I am unable to ID them. I have heard rumours about ex-Ukraina and ex-Russia Lafette 34, but never seen any. The only "postwar" Lafette 34s in numbers I have seen are ex-norwegian or ex-portuguese. If they were indeed ex-norwegian I have them covered.

The rest is fairly easy. My "Postwar use" page will now be more of a "Lafette recognition handbook".....

[42rocker]

bergflak
The OOW/AA lot from what I know was a large group of boxes of parts that were from mg34 lafettes. I don't know if it was just bought and sold by OOW or if OOW initially had complete mg34 lafettes and lots of spare parts or what. I believe that there might be a few pics on this site of the parts group. John would have been the poster, I believe. Any rate Charlie rebuild and put together as many as possible and AA sold them. I bought one of them. I believe that they were German parts. Non yugo. Charlie had to make a few parts to finish off making a few of them, I have at least one or two parts on my lafette that I'm sure were not made in Germany. Small parts that is, spring clamp is one of the parts that comes to mind and a few small pins also.

Looking forward to seeing your new section. "Lafette recognition handbook"

Later 42rocker

[bergflak]

I vaguely remember the storehouse/crates of parts pictures on this forum. I suspect the parts came from the ex-Yugo hoard as well then. Anyway, if they were all "pieced" together from parts it is not a hithertho undescribed import from a former user-nation, missing from the big picture....

I hope to have the "Postwar use" section ready soon.
Also working on the "Evolution" page and "Construction" page at the same time, but those need plenty of more work to be near completion. As my wife and the kids' time permit, it will hopefully be finished by the summer (this year...)

[Blanksguy]

Bergflak,

Possibly you were remembering the photos that BRP-Corp. took of the MG42, etc. up at MARSTAR in Canada (?). "John" at MARSTAR would be the POC if you have questions concerning the Lafettes that he had and/or that are in their display collection.
........or maybe photos of the insides of the warhouses that Peter Kolikas (spelling) took while he was over in that area and several photos were published in "Small-Arms-Review".

Another "source" for information/photos might be "Bob" over at "Tank-Ride.Com" (you'll have to do a search for his web-page/contact information.). Bob goes to old Russia (and other Countries there about) a lot....and into the warehouses to view surplus and place "Bids" on items.

Regards, RichardS in Bay City, MI 48706, USA
US Army, Retired
Blanksguy2001@charter.net

[APEXgunparts]

In our shipment of Yugoslavian Lafette's there were a couple that started life as Mg34 mounts and were converted for the M53/MG42.
Some of our Lafette's have optics mounts and others do not.
Some have parts with German WWII markings.
We took one to Knob Creek due to a mix up.
We were supposed to take an Indian made tripod for the vehicle modded M240 GPMG:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCTg6btPQyU

Once we work out the details on how to box & ship Lafette's then they will be photographed and listed for sale on the web site.

Richard

[JBaum]

What Ohio Ordnance sold to AA were the remains of a large importation of lafettes. They sold all the undamaged/complete ones, and AA bought the remains which were repaired/rebuilt and sold. Ohio Ordnance sold lafettes for years, many of them for the MG34, and didn't want to spend time doing repairs, so they sold what was left. I have no information about where they were imported from. Bob Landies would be the one to ask that.

[42rocker]

I have been told by several folks that the lafettes with the sight mounts were all German and that the yugos never made a mg42 lafette with a sight mount.
Any thoughts on this?

Richard -- Apex
Thanks for your update on this.

Later 42rocker

[bergflak]

Pure BS I'm afraid.
I have got that covered in the new article. Watch for black alu sight blocks, those are 100% postwar and a tell tale sign of a Yugo M53 for sure.
It now seems to be 50/50 with and without being sold. Years ago you didn't see any Yugo M53 without the sight block at all. I guess they are reaching the bottom of the pile. The good thing about those is that they are impossible to push as German WW2 with faked markings.