Post by Garyforce well guys
heres the one thats been outstanding for some time !
.... i give you:
THE TANAKA WORKS' U.S. MODEL 1897 TRENCHGUN
Specs Length: 95.5 cms / 39 1/4" (muzzle to butt)
Barrel: 49cm / 19 1/4" (open)
Weight: 2.7 kg (approx)
Materials: heavyweight abs and metal parts.
Grip: Wood stocks
Comments originally used in the trenches of WW1 (hence the name) and a weapon whos use the germans wanted to have declared a war crime
! this gun has a menacing look to it !
If this was real .....you'd really feel sorry for the poor sod you were pointing it at !
the trenchgun has a suberb feel to it .... its length ... weight and solid construction give this a fantasic feel
Loading Now .... heres the bizarre part ! :? ...unlike the simple MGC shotgun carts .... the Tanaka works shotgun carts come in 3 pieces !
1) the outer shell
2) the 'pin' (i suppose you could call it that)
3) the clasp that holds the caps in.
ok .... so .. parts (2) & (3) are inside part (1) ..... so take them out and seperat parts (2) & (3)...insert 2 7mm caps face up inside part (2) ...and place part (3) back into its original position. ...... then insert the completeed (2) & (3) part into the shell (1)
clear as mud ??? : :? ...... yeah i thought so !
well anyway ... prime 6 carts this way and insert into the barrel as you would any shotgun and your ready to rock !
Firing Ok .... so ...pump a round through ..... (dont you just love that click-clack
)
then pull the trigger !
now heres were the trenchgun and i have a bit of a falling out !
the 'wacky' cart design seems to allow for a lot of misfires ! .... either the pin isnt striking the cart properly or what i dont know .... but if i put 6 rounds through.... i can expect 3 to not go off ! ..and that aint good kids !
Cleaning Ok to strip down the trenchgun first you need to remove the 3 screws from the bayonet grip at near the muzzel. ...this will allow you to remove the 'pump action' stock & barrel.
next a screw just above the trigger on the right ... and another just to the left of hammer allow the hammer mechanism to be removed out of the bottom of the gun infront of the trigger.
removing the screw on the pin mechanism allows for that to be removed out the back were the hammer was.
unlike other guns i have you can remove the bolt from within the barrel with the help of a very small allen key.
that is the basics ..... i wont go into the very fiddely details of dismantling the hammer / pin / trigger mechanism as this should NOT be attempted without a copy of the manual near to hand ...not even by those of us who are more experienced !
anyway.... now you can clean and oil the gun using whatever cleaning solution / oil you prefer. (i recommend marks cleaning technique of hot water, baking soda & vinegar)
Then once we are cleaned and oiled .... put it all back together ....and that’s that !
Over all The trenchgun looks good ... feels good .... and is impressive !
the down side ..... what the hell were Tanaka thinking when they come up with those carts !
...... i mean ..... as a designer i know the gold rule...the simpler the design... the better it works .... and these things just go about the same thing as MGC shotgun carts ...but in my opinion in a very stupid way ! :?
i am not a fan of the tanaka shotgun sytem incase you havent guessed and i do feel they ruin this gun....they are unesacerily complex .... fiddley ..and it would appear prone to malfunction !
as a result sometime in the future im going to endevour to create my own version of shell that i can use in my trenchgun that will resemble the more reliable MGC style.
so all in all .... excellent gun
.... crap shells
7/10