What to look for in a Sten?

[Traveler]

What's the hole and pin below the dimple for?

 

[Banshee]

What's the hole and pin below the dimple for?

It is just a hole punched through cover. One on each side, no clue why the Canadians did it. The dimples hold the cover on.

 

[Swampfoxoutdoors]

What’s yalls opinion of the C&R guns? Work the extra cash?

I just filed for my C&R license.

 

[GeneralPurpose]

What’s yalls opinion of the C&R guns? Work the extra cash?

I just filed for my C&R license.

Depends if you're a collector or a shooter. For me, a tube gun is where it's at...and probably better made, to boot. Right now, British Stens are about $11k with tube guns running $7k. If it was a $1k difference, I'd probably have gotten a British gun, but not for a $4k difference. That's half of an M11/9.

 

[AKDoc]

Im really tempted with Ruebens Pearl he has listed. I am definitely just wanting a shooter so a C&R sten isn't worth it for me. I also want to get a ported period style suppressor made for it as well.

 

[Battering ram NIB]

The suppressor is $1,000 from either of the makers. When a threaded barrel is $150 it’s hard to justify


Your over paying with Ruben. If its worth $700 extra for his service to you then it’s gtg


http://www.machinegunboards.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=22020&view=&hl=&fromsearch=1

 

[AKDoc]

Well that Pearl from reuben just sold. Dang I was gonna see about buying it tomorrow but its my fault for waiting. Guess I need to keep looking then. To me the extra money to get it from a reputable dealer is worth it to me. I was able to score my M11 for heck of deal locally a few years ago. Please IM me if you guys see anything pop up.

 

[GeneralPurpose]

The suppressor is $1,000 from either of the makers. When a threaded barrel is $150 it’s hard to justify

Integrally suppressed guns with a ported barrel are a completely different animal than a screw-on silencer. Shooting a silenced MP5 back-to-back with a MP5SD really made me appreciate the SD. The recoil impulse is half what it would otherwise be (which isn't a lot to begin with), and it runs very smoothly. A screw-on silencer makes the gun quieter, where an integral silencer changes the nature of the gun itself.

Stens enjoy being one of the few SMGs which can be truly integrally suppressed, and it's historically accurate as well. $7k for a Sten + $1k for an integral silencer, and you're in for $8k compared to $38k for an MP5SD. It's easy to justify when you make that comparison.

AKDoc, John Thedford has a DLO Sten for $7,395 that's been listed for a while. You might see if he would sell it for $7k flat.

 

[AKDoc]

John Thedford has a DLO Sten for $7,395 that's been listed for a while. You might see if he would sell it for $7k flat.

I asked for some better pictures. You think thats a good gun? Its has markings on the side of trigger and the rear sight looks bent forward at least in the 2 pics he has, so I don't know if that makes a difference. Also how wold i know if it was an actual DLO build? I just want a good solid well made shooter. I am flexible on price somewhat.

 

[Battering ram NIB]

John will often bargain on price. On a Ingram m6 he was brokering he dropped significantly. But in a m11a1 he wouldn’t budge

I bought my m6 from the same 2 blah pics. It had marks and scuffs you couldn’t see on the pics. So yes I wouldn’t buy from him wo more pics. He is a good guy w no known bad reviews I’ve ever heard.

I’d wait. See what else comes up. Or offer John $6500

$7,350 from Ruben is very high on a sten

I was told i paid too much at $6200,but then again everyone
Always tells me that no matter what I pay. Good luck hunting

 

[GeneralPurpose]

Yeah, it's tough to tell if it's a good gun based on the pictures. I don't like the engraving location, but things were done differently back in the day. In general, I think Wilson, Taylor, and Erb builds look better than the DLO builds I've seen.

 

[AKDoc]

Thanks guys. I will see what Reuben posts here soon and followup with NFA sales. Might be back to ask opinions soon. Im pretty set on sten now. I waffled on an M10 for long time. Those are all over the place now so I figure I can always wait for now.

 

[Battering ram NIB]

new one shows up every week or 2....in a couple of months a great one will show up for a correct price...the market is in the dumps...bargain time right now for buyers

dont over pay

 

[Traveler]

It is just a hole punched through cover. One on each side, no clue why the Canadians did it. The dimples hold the cover on.

Thanks. I am guessing the hole was drilled so a Mk2 cover could be used on a Mk1 trigger mechanism housing. You must have a Mk2 housing.

BTW. The cover is not Canadian. It was made by Lines Brothers in England. They made the Mk3 guns.

 

[Banshee]

Thanks. I am guessing the hole was drilled so a Mk2 cover could be used on a Mk1 trigger mechanism housing. You must have a Mk2 housing.

BTW. The cover is not Canadian. It was made by Lines Brothers in England. They made the Mk3 guns.

I assumed the LB was for Long Branch. Thanks,

 

[AKDoc]

Out of curiosity what do you guys think Lancasters go for these days?

 

[Battering ram NIB]

i think there was one recently somewhere...you may want to check sold items on GB and on sturm back a month....

funny how Germany copied the sten....and England copied the mp28

i find it goofy

my guess is your getting into Sterling money.....buy the best if your even close to $11-12k....

once you shoot a Sterling you will want to own a Sterling....to get the wife on board i let her shoot one....she asked for a 2nd mag!!!

 

[GeneralPurpose]

The one on Sturm was listed for much less than I expected, although I've now forgotten what that amount was. I would also skip the Lanchester entirely. If you have $7k, buy a Sten. If you have $14k, buy a Sterling or an Uzi.

Sterlings are incredibly well balanced, which makes transitioning from target to target really nice. Mags are great, sights are great, cycles really smoothly. Not much more you can ask for. On the only real downside, suppressing it is a completely different proposition from the Sten or Uzi.

 

[Battering ram NIB]

my first time shooting a sterling was after a subgun competition....i did a mag dump standing in 1 spot across the targets...i almost knocked down every target before i ran out of ammo....simply amazing control....weighs nothing..like a kids toy...no kick.....all this while wearing a Stormtrooper costume

i decided i had to have one and ordered one made that night

ive seen them sell a few times in the past year from $12-13.5k range....some were andrewski builds...just make sure its not a stenling if spending $13.5k

 

[Traveler]

Out of curiosity what do you guys think Lancasters go for these days?

It depends on the condition, tube gun or C&R, etc. I’d say the machinegun price guide numbers are pretty close.

http://www.machinegunpriceguide.com/html/rest_subguns_8.html

http://www.machinegunpriceguide.com/html/rest_subguns_9.html