Steyr Solothurn MP34 dewat at RIA this December

[StrangeRanger]

Finally was able to walk RIA through the process to figure out which 9mm caliber (Para, Steyr or Mauser) the gun was originally.  They only listed it as a 9mm. The bad news is that it's a 9mm Mauser so rewatting it as anything but 7.62 Tokarev is going to be pretty impractical.  The parts to build it in 7.62 Tok are available but the ammo is not as economical as it once was

So a little "Caveat Emptor" is in order for anyone thinking it's a 9 Para

Edited November 12, 2024 by StrangeRanger

[APEXgunparts]

Interesting, the gun is actually an MP-30.
The "Fishtail" stock is one of identifying features, as is the safety on the front of the trigger guard.
That gun was made in 1934, mine was made in 1937 and is marked as Austrian Police issue.

Here is a good web site article by Peter Kokalis about those guns.
Part I Austrian MP.30 SMG. - Free Online Library

Austrian MP.30 SMG: Part 2. - Free Online Library

Richard

[StrangeRanger]

Mine is a Luftwaffe gun made in 1939. It was originally a 9 Mauser but it's now 7.62 Tokarev

[Lewisfan]

Mill out the barrel weld (assume on chamber side). Then unscrew the dewat barrel. Screw in a Centerfire-import 9mm Luger barrel. Swap the bolt for same Centerfire-imported (back when they brought in a number of parts kits) "short" bolt.  That assumes that the long bolt is also welded up as part of the dewat. Long bolts are harder to find. You can shim the 9mm Luger MP34 mags to fit the wide magwell or just run the wide mags with 9mm Luger swimming in them.  It will run fine as long as you hold it steady.  MP30 will have the different stock and trigger guard (includes a lever safety) compared to the MP34.  "Cadillac of submachineguns"...

[StrangeRanger]

The barrel and bolt are not issues.  They'd need to be replaced in any rewat.  For me the magazines would be a major issue.  The Mauser mags do not feed 9 Para with 100% reliability; the feed lips do not always properly retain and feed the shorter cartridge.  A spacer with a notch for the mag catch can be brazed onto the back of the Para mags like those below.  Fine for modifying one or two mags but it becomes less practical if you have a pile of them

[huggytree]

I’ve owned 2 mp30’s.  I’ve had 16+ mags and have never had a mag feeding issue with the longer mags.  They run perfectly with 9mm Luger.  If you’ve got a gun that won’t run 9mm Luger out of the long mags it may mean you have a chamber issue. Most/all of these are dewats and everyone’s got chambers that were redone by different smiths.  Both of mine do not have perfect looking Chambers but still run 100%.

 

convert to 9mm Luger 

 

Edited November 15, 2024 by huggytree