www.MG42.us

hey guys, im new to this forum and im also a proud new owner of a yugo m53 parts kit. I am beginning to sort through all this mess and i am curious to know the differences between the m53 and the original mg42's. I know the 42's had a high cyclic rate and im planning on building this one full auto. Is it possible to mimic the 42's rate of fire/ performance capabilities with the yugo m53? If so how? Im also aware that you can interchange the parts and was considering buying some new old stock parts just to have in case something breaks. There is very little literature out there regarding the m53's quality. Can someone please answer the above questions and also give me some guidance with purchasing some extra parts?

Just a heads up ~ the BATFE frowns on that big time......could lead to a $10k fine and imprisonment + gun confiscation.

Ok, now we're through that, the M53 and MG42 are virtually identical in construction. The way I heard it was after WWII, Yugoslavia ended up with the German dies and tooling for MG-42's. They started re-manufacturing the same weapon (in 1953 ?)......hence it's an MG-42 with minor changes. I believe most parts are completely interchangeable between both versions.

Welcome to the forum !

Here's more background on the M53 guns :

The newly produced MG 1 guns went through a number of modifications, which resulted in the definitive MG 3 version, which still is rather close in design to the war-time MG 42, although made to much higher standards of fit and finish. The simplicity, low manufacturing cost and high effectiveness of the MG 3 attracted several other countries, which either bought the guns from Rheinmetall (such as Denmark), or obtained manufacturing licenses and build (or at least have built in the past) the same guns domestically (such as Italy, Iran, Turkey, Pakistan and Yugoslavia). In total, at least twenty armies have used or still are using the MG 3 and its versions. It must be noted that in some countries these guns were used under their "commercial" Rheinmetall designation MG 42/59.

Source >> http://world.guns.ru/machine/mg33-e.htm

Also to note from the same link above :

On MG 3 machine guns, two types of bolts are available, with standard weight (about 650 gram) for fast rate of fire and with heavy weight (about 900 gram) for slow rate of fire. It must be noted that those bolts also are used along with different return springs.

RedRiverTactical

The making of a fully auto M53, or any parts kit, is a big NO/NO, unless you can build a time machine and go back to May of 1986 when all fully automatic firearms had to be registered; or unless you are a duly qualified (by the BATF) manufacturer who has a contract for the military, law enforcement, etc. If you are not clear on all this you should edify yourself with that LONG before you seek to build.

As for semi-auto construction and operation of your M53, you will not find a better site with more skilled and friendly members. Sit down and start reading through the Mg42 build section and you will quickly learn the ins and outs.

If you are still hellbent on a fully automatic Mg42, and you live in a state that allows them, they have dropped in price some since a few years ago and are around $30K-$40K.

sorry guys and thx for the concern...but i am an 07 ffl holder and i am working on getting the NECESSARY paperwork in order to have this built up. I am planning on having tony at wiselite arms help me through the majority of the build. I am lucky to be right here in the center of texas and im only a stones throw from people that can help with most anything that is firearm related. should i start collecting as many additional parts as i can right now? im planning on getting extra rails-buffers-bolts-rollers-etc. im also torn on my decision between .308 and 8mm mauser....any ideas? keep all your input coming guys...im a sponge...thanks in advance

As an 07, the only requirement, per BATFE, is to file the proper form within 24 hours of actually finishing the receiver, not the complete gun. Be sure to keep a tag on the receiver, noting the model, serial #, your company name as well as the words "NOT FINISHED" until the gun is complete. If you are in with Tony, you picked a good crew to help you out. Tell him I said hey, I may be down there visiting towards the end of the year, maybe for awhile. If you want to stock up on parts, I can help you out.
Dan

RedRiverTactical,

So you are indeed an 07, glad we cleared that up. To be honest unless you are really pushing for the historical aspect of the 8mm, 308 may be the way to go at the current moment. The topcovers are reasonably priced, feedtrays are easy to find, and barrels are a plenty, and post-war 308 belts are practically free compared to WW2 belts.

Of course there are still some more M53 kits due in by the end of the year, Centerfire Systems claims some day soon (after nearly 18 months of waiting) they expect theirs may be in with barrels intact, but Interordnance who have been promising M53s AND Mg42 parts kits for even longer talk of getting in a bunch but with de-milled barrels. That means 8mm parts may briefly drop in price (except barrels) making 308 parts more exotic and expensive. So it really all has to come down to individual choice as the ebb tide of parts availability runs its course.

The links from this site under the "board index" have some great sources for parts.

thanks so much guys....this is another great forum that has outstanding members who take care of the "noobs". Yes, i will definitely be picking tony's brain on this one. For some reason i understand that you can switch the 42 from .308 to 8mm fairly easily no? I am planning on buying the extra parts to make the conversion at will. Being an 07 ffl holder, what is the process for building one of these babys back to mil/spec. I have not done it yet and tony is telling me that he is going to get me through it but he's currently out of the country and i cant wait......

one other thing guys.....has anybody done business on the robertrtg.com website....they look like theyve got all new old stock items. I was thinking about handing them about $500 of my hard earned dollars for spare parts and i wanted to get feedback. thanks

Allow me to extend my welcome to the MG42 board. You are now among some of the finest MG-series wrenches in the USA. Be sure to keep us updated with text and lots of pics as you rebuild your M53 to full-auto. As far as I know, your's will be the first rebuild of an M53 to full-auto that we've had here. It'll make extremely interesting reading.

As to your question about robertrtg.com, we have a section that reviews some of our most popular (and, sometimes, unpopular ) vendors:

viewforum.php?f=41

Along with the replies you will get here, the reviews section should give you the scoop.

GeeDeeEmm

RedRiverTactical,

For 8mm verse 308 and what parts need to be changed try this sticky:
viewtopic.php?f=39&t=5583

You are correct in that if you desire you can do both as long as you have the spare parts.

Thank you so much. excellent reference....this gives me a helluva lot more reading material for my lunch breaks. I cant begin to tell you how excited i am to be getting this baby up and running. This is, hands down my favorite gun and im just honored to currently own the pieces to one. Im thinking long and hard about the f/a because i know that i would be devastated if i ever had to turn it over because i elected to do away with my sot. Im having serious second thoughts, but all i have ever wanted was a f/a mg42. Any feedback?

by the way fellow mg'ers heres what i bought... im fairly certain that i did good here. feel free to look at it and comment because im not 100% sure how i did
http://gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.a ... =106053656

redrivertactical wrote:by the way fellow mg'ers heres what i bought... im fairly certain that i did good here. feel free to look at it and comment because im not 100% sure how i did

Looks to be in really good shape for the price. That muzzle brake looks new !
Congrats -

i talked to the dude and he basically told me that it didnt get any better than that parts kit. you never know with some of these folks but he seemed like a reputable dude.

It looks like the ones that were sold last year-you can get the bearing repair part from wiselite,the kit looks good.I have seen them go for a bit more and also a bit less,so you are in the ballpark.I have had very good luck with Robertrtg.I don't know if you built a fa if you could later convert to sa,or if it would be a hassle.I think it would be worth building fa just to have one for a while . ---bil

I agree, looks good. The rear receiver cut will mate up nicely with a Wiselite rear.
BTW, post sample mg's are MUCH eaiser to build than semi conversions.
Bil, Sorry to correct you, but I'm aware of quite a few post sample guns that were/are being built by members here. My guess is that they keep their business to themselves, or maybe they are just shy, LOL!
Dan

I think I got my point across wrong,what I meant was that if you can build a FA,do it even if you only have it a while ie: 'rules' change.I would rather have a FA for a while than a SA for a long time! I agree,I know of several postsamples that are being built,but in these times silence if a prudent course! ---bil

ok,so how bout the 8mm ammo? all the fmj i can find is corrosive and i dont wanna fire that through my new build. Call it a pointless phobia Is there any company that makes 8mm fmj ammo that isnt corrosive? This is one of the reasons im considering making this m53 a dual purpose....(8mm & .308)