UPDATE 3: Merle .22LR Conversion Kits

[Outsider]

Rescued mine today from the PO. Simply beautiful.

[ppgcowboy]

So I played with it a little more. I have an ap the clocks rpm and it says 795rpm

[SP Sarge]

Cool ap, what's it called?

[ppgcowboy]

It's called myRPMpro. These guys out of Serbia designed and now it's not available anymore. The had videos of them with all kinds of cool fa toys, then they vanished. Not sure what happened.

[SP Sarge]

Bummer 😞

[Merry Ploughboy]

On 12/23/2023 at 1:08 PM, TSMG28 said:

TD. and mgvince,

Not sure that I qualify yet as the Drum Doctor. If I ever get Merle’s spring repair going, then I will be the new Drum Doctor.  The PPS drums are finicky, but nothing like real C and L drums.

On the other hand, Conversion Kit Doctor is appropriate. I now know more about these kits than I ever expected to (or wanted to), and I’m still learning. Just wish I had Merle’s machining experience and tools so that I could move things along more quickly.

Perhaps it would be accurate to say that you have successfully completed your Internship, and are now a Resident?

[ppgcowboy]

The nurses get it done. The Dr practices and get the glory. How about Wizard. One of the things I do for a weekend gig in the summer is run a Neapolitan wood fired food trailer.  I make over 6400 on weekends over a 10 week period. I am called the pizza wizard when operating it. Wizards make magic happen.

Edited January 20, 2024 by ppgcowboy

[Mikenmick]

Good Day gentlemen, 

Received one of the kit's (beautiful), do have a question and thought I'd throw it out,  I'm stuck on step 7, I've no issues getting it to this point and rotation counterclockwise,  it's getting to step 8 can't get it to rotate and seat in chamber, don't want to force,  I'm sure a trick or step missing,

 

Want to get some ideas or insights from the pros

Thanks

Mike

Ps it's a 28ac from ww2

[TSMG28]

Mike, 

The barrel insert does not appear to be rotated 30 degrees. The .45 ejector is at the back of the top groove in the barrel. Rotating the insert counterclockwise allows the .45 ejector to line up with the lower groove so that the barrel can be moved forward into the chamber. Once the insert clears the .45 ejector, you rotate it back so that the .22 feed ramp is at the top (bottom of the receiver). 

Edited January 22, 2024 by TSMG28

[pstidan]

I know everyone is referring to these kits as "Merle Conversions", but weren't they all made by Black Dog Machine?  When I got my kit from PK back in 2010, Paul bought it directly from Black Dog Machine.  He then told me that Merle was now selling them, and Black Dog wasn't selling them directly any longer.

[TSMG28]

Pstidan,

Merle made all of the design changes to the Ciener .22 adapter, and did all of the engineering. As far as I know, all of the components of all of the kits were actually made or subcontracted by Merle.

He needed box and drum mags for the kit, and contacted Black Dog to work with him. His first box mag was a modified Black Dog AR-15 mag. He also came up with the changes necessary to the PPS50 drum to be used with the Thompson.  As I understand, PK is the one who came up with the way to cut the slot for the .45 ejector, but I know that Merle is the person who cut the slot in my original barrel.  He created special jigs to allow him to make the cuts on his mill.  I recovered that jig.

 
Black Dog used his box mag example to design their own box mag, but they never offered the modified PPS50 drum or mounting adapter. As part of Merle’s work with them, Black Dog also sold his early kits. Merle later sold the kits directly. He handled everything for the later kits. All of the parts in the current kits came from Merle’s basement. 

Edited January 22, 2024 by TSMG28

[pstidan]

10 hours ago, TSMG28 said:

Pstidan,

Merle made all of the design changes to the Ciener .22 adapter, and did all of the engineering. As far as I know, all of the components of all of the kits were actually made or subcontracted by Merle.
He needed box and drum mags for the kit, and contacted Black Dog to work with him. His first box mag was a modified Black Dog AR-15 mag. He also came up with the changes necessary to the PPS50 drum to be used with the Thompson. 
Black Dog used his box mag example to design their own box mag, but they never offered the modified PPS50 drum or mounting adapter. As part of Merle’s work with them, Black Dog also sold his early kits. Merle later sold the kits directly. He handled everything for the later kits. All of the parts in the current kits came from Merle’s basement. 

Thank you for that information.

[john]

On 1/17/2024 at 3:44 PM, TSMG28 said:

One thing I forgot to tell everyone that has bought the kits - the plexiglass cover on your kits has protective film on the front and back.  Feel free to remove that once you receive your kit.  I chose to leave it in place to protect everything during shipping.

You will also note that the cutout in the kit box does not easily fit the 1928 actuator when installed in the bolt.  I believe Merle had these cases routed out before he came up with his improved actuator design, and the improved design moved the actuator knob back a bit on the bolt.  If you want to be able to leave your 1928 actuator in place in the bolt when storing it in the kit, you need to open up that wood cutout a little bit toward the rear of the bolt.  I was not set up to do that mod.

Roger, after pondering this cutout and removing/replacing the bolt numerous times, I believe Merle may have left it like that to make the bolt easy to pluck out if the tray.....a finger inserted into that can easily grip the bolt and pull it out.

Also saw the film but will leave it in place to protect the surface.

One other thing:

I have a Ceiner kit and spoke with Merle many years ago as to fit/function of his modified Black Dog mags. Spare Ceiner mags were $100 each and my budget was too poor for many of those!!

He assured me they worked fine with the Ceiner kit and I ordered several. Black dog AR-15 mags, the front notched out and a genuine surplus TSMG stick mag spine screwed to the plastic mag back with four tiny screws.

Too much work, but they do run!

 

John

Edited January 22, 2024 by john

[Ryo]

I requested to be on the list.. Do you think you have enough to reach me? 

[TSMG28]

Ryo,

The best I can offer is hopefully yes. You are on my second list, waiting on some parts. Once those parts are completed, I will match the bolts to existing barrels. If I can find or engineer enough matches, I will be able to supply kits to the names remaining on my second list.  As I have mentioned before, I have found that everything needs to be custom fit and matched.  At this point, matching bolts and barrels is the key determining factor. 
 

Stay tuned. I will contact everyone via Email as things progress. 

[TSMG28]

A few people are encountering failure-to-fire/light firing pin strikes with the lighter Merle springs sent with the kits. I tested those springs successfully in several guns, but every gun responds to these kits differently. 
If you get FTFire or light FP strikes, try a standard .45ACP spring. It should fire each round, but will likely be too strong to allow the bolt to extract that round and feed another. As listed in the instructions, clip ~1/4 inch at a time off that spring until the gun runs reliably. 
Feel free to reach out to me concerning this or other issues. 
 

Roger

[ppgcowboy]

I gave the bolt a good coat of oil. My Thompson runs on mobile 1 synthetic. What I also did was was add another buffer. I even added a third and it loved that. My ftf I attribute to the coldness so I warmed it up too. This worked for me.

[I Young]

Good Morning TSMG28 Can I get on the List ? 

[Ryo]

Can't wait.. Hope I'm in the next batch

[DrMike]

Any updates on the 22 conversion units for Thompson’s

[TSMG28]

The remaining barrel inserts are proving to be a challenge. Most will not fit into a gun, and those that do fit have alignment problems with the bolts. I am working to identify what needs to be changed to solve both problems. 
 

Apologies to those on the waiting list for the delays, but I am still trying to get as many kits completed as I can.  Given the challenges, I cannot yet provide an anticipated completion date for any of the second list kits. 

Roger

[ZK383]

Roger, I am interested in a kit. I sent you a message, thank you.