Another Sten Mk11

[HARRY THE MOLE]

Suffering from incredible boredom whilst in lock down, and being unable to use my Walther high powered air rifle in the garden while my wife is around, I cast my eye over alternative forms of shooting which might be more neighbourhood friendly... and also offer some good fun as well. I decided that a good quality airsoft gun would probably fit the bill without braking the bank. Our gun laws are somewhat strange in this country... anyone over 18 can go out and purchase a 'Umarex legends Mp40' which fires 4.5 mm metal bb, because it is classed as an air weapon. But if you wish to purchase an airsoft version that fires 6 mm plastic balls, then you have to have the correct authority to own a 'realistic imitation gun' so that you do not fall fowl of the VCRA bill. But if you purchase the same gun in a colour which is predominantly orange, or green... or some other unrealistic colour... anyone over 18 can purchase it!

Anyway... after a search of what was available I stumbled across a gas blowback replica of a late version of the Sten Mk11... It is entirely made of good quality steel, indeed the only part that is not steel is the breech block... this being made of a light aluminium alloy and other components. The attention to detail is absolutely incredible, it weighs just over 7 lbs like the original, it functions exactly like the original... single shot and full auto, and even has the 'kick' of an original.





It also strips down exactly as the original. The magazine holds 32 X 6 mm plastic balls and takes a seven second charge of green gas to provide the power source. It really is something when you fire it off in short bursts... range is quoted as 40 yards, but I would think that a more realistic one would be about 20 yards. The gun was copied from an original, and all markings were faithfully copied... even down to a 2011 deactivation stamp. I actually managed to trace the gun they used to copy the markings.





The magazine housing rotates as per original, and as well as this being a useful dust cover for the ejection port, it also frees up the barrel nut for barrel removal. When in the correct position for firing there is a small lug that goes through the receiver wall and engages with the serrated edge of the barrel nut to stop it unwinding in use.




One last picture of it alongside my Model of 1928 Thompson... and a short video clip I lifted off the internet of the gun in action. Click on images to enlarge.

Cheers,
Steve.



Northeast Sten Mk.II GBB - YouTube

[mauser9]

I think it looks awesome Harry and must be fun to shoot. Shooting is a great sport to break the boredom too. You mentioned what I assume is a high powered pellet rifle which today are great entertainment also. Some are as quick as a .22 L.R. at 1200 F.P.S. I still own a Sheridan pellet gun from my youth that still gets a workout. Thanks for showing that realistic looking Sten.

[reneblacky]

Wish I could have one! looks fun as!!! Nice one Steve.

[Rescue190]

Wish I could have one! looks fun as!!! Nice one Steve.

Should not everyone everywhere be able to own an airsoft gun????
John

[Danmark]

Not here in the 'lucky' country .....................

[HARRY THE MOLE]

I think it looks awesome Harry and must be fun to shoot. Shooting is a great sport to break the boredom too. You mentioned what I assume is a high powered pellet rifle which today are great entertainment also. Some are as quick as a .22 L.R. at 1200 F.P.S. I still own a Sheridan pellet gun from my youth that still gets a workout. Thanks for showing that realistic looking Sten.

My rifle is a spring powered .177 Walther LGU which has had the internals tuned (by me). The exhaust port has been opened to 3.1 mm and a better quality spring was used in the tune up. I gradually cut back the coils until I got a consistent 11.8 ft lbs on the chrono... we are only allowed a maximum of 12 ft lbs, anything over that and you are entering the realms of a 'Section 1' firearms licence. So I keep it just a shade below the legal limit, and this gives me just under 800 fps.

At 60 yards I can achieve one hole groups with ease. For anyone not familiar with spring powered air rifles, this is bloody good shooting by anyone's standard... and I can give a good account of myself if pitted against the more popular PCP rifles - which just happen to be much less reliable - regardless of their popularity and all that is said about them. For me they lack soul, and there isn't even a hint that you have fired them when you squeeze that trigger. I use a much reduced figure 11 target (advancing soldier), and I put a 10 mm red dot just below his chin as an aiming point. Even at 60 yards range it can be more challenging than shooting full bore at greater distances. I would love to test the rifle out to 100 yds, but unfortunately the range does not extend that far (yet).

Cheers,
Steve.