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China [s]Beach[/s] Lake


renegadecow

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The China Lake has long been buried in my pile of personal projects mostly because of the sheer size and impracticality of it all. But with all these doomsday cults popping up along with the popular 2012 deadline, I figured I ought to bump this up. Not that I believe in any of that hoopla, I'd just like to have this done and over with in case God/Buddha/the Flying Spaghetti Monster comes knocking at my door, demands an epic gun and sentences me to eternal damnation for having nothing to show.

I've thought up of three ways to make a China Lake replica: an M500 shotgun in disguise, a 40mm hammer fired, and a 40mm push-button fired. I initially leaned towards the first for the obvious reason of the other two involving broken expensive shells on the floor. But Vanaras has light weight POM shells that are pretty cheap and the new ones are self-resetting to boot. So now I'm focused in building the last one; push-button fired simply for the safety issue of not having a functional hammer (not that I could even get my hands on real 40mm HE in the first place).

As all projects must start with a sketch, here's a scaled schematic of the replica I will be building. Mind, as this is a personal build, it will likely be very slow moving. Think hibernating bear's bowel movement slow. Slower still if I try and dabble with 3D rendering like Google SketchUp or something.

IMG_1596.jpg

IMG_1597.jpg

 

How it works:

The firing pin/button will be a two-piece design, as is the bolt. As you begin to pump the gun, the inner part of the bolt slides 5mm back and unlocks the trigger end of the button. It is pushed down so the inner bolt is free to move all the way back pulling along the outer bolt with it. At the rearmost stroke of about 25mm, the lifter works up and carries a shell along with it. When you push the pump forward, the first 25mm of movement still has the lifter up and the bolt pushes the nose of the shell into the breech. When the pump goes forward enough, the lifter goes down but the shell is already half way chambered and cannot fall back down. Fully forward, the trigger end of the button goes back up to lock the action while the next shell in the magazine tube is pushed backwards into the lifter. With the two parts of the button lined up (the other half is inside the bolt) all one has to do is pull the trigger and off goes the nade.

A couple features I left out in the design is a working safety and the lever that locks the action bars after the gun is cocked. The safety lever is located above the grip and part of the action goes in between it and the trigger when pumped back. I could probably divert the mechanism on its side, but it's not really all important now because of the heavier DA-like trigger pull on my design. As for the action bar lock, I know the ones on shotguns work in tandem with an actual hammer being cocked. With the hammer pulled back, it activates the lever which will have to be pressed down to pump the weapon again unless the gun is shot. As I don't have a working hammer, and that safety feature isn't really all important either, I won't be burning brain cells incorporating one in.

 

edit:

Awww, the strikethrough doesn't work for titles?!? And it was a funny joke too.

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You don't need any CAD RC, just do it all on paper/ in your head, as with your other wonderful creations tongue.gif

 

Some of the best features of a project like this come from those moments when you're just making it up as you go along, 'thinking on your feet' as it were wink.gif

Some fixed plans, sizes, etc are alway going to be required obviously, but leave as much to 'the moment' as you can.

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Is there any way I can donate to the cause?

If you could find a top and bottom view of the gun, it would help a lot. Makes me regret not taking photos of the one at the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh when I was there last year. Was too busy dry humping the daisy cutter among other things.

 

You don't need any CAD RC, just do it all on paper/ in your head

You should see me when I try and do just that.

DP.jpg

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We will never see the completion of the BAGEL. I have come to that conclusion a long time ago.

 

 

Renegade: if anybody can deliver us something as awesome, nay more awesome, than the BAGEL, its you.

 

I so want to see this

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Is the surface area on the 'nose' parts of the 40 mils you're going to use the same size/smaller than the striker bases on said grenades? It depends on how tightly they're going to be compressed together in the magazine tube of course, just had visions of them randomly firing off during loading/cycling.

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but this may help.

Thanks, though already have it. Was hoping for a clear bottom shot for the gate cover detail.

 

Seriously, what about the BLOPS model?

Only ones off the net are of the side and partial top. I don't have it, so if you're feeling generous, could you take a screenshot?

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Thanks, though already have it. Was hoping for a clear bottom shot for the gate cover detail.

 

 

Only ones off the net are of the side and partial top. I don't have it, so if you're feeling generous, could you take a screenshot?

 

 

ill get pics, but it might be a bit as im not home

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It's hard to show it in the diagram I drew up, but the "rod" consists of two parts: one inside the working bolt and the other outside leading to the trigger. As you begin to pump the action, the bolt pushes the trigger-end of the rod downwards first, clearing the way for the bolt to go the rest of the way.

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