M.Kb.42(H) for sale in USA

Noticed this ad from November, maybe it's still available:
http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=46592

These models do not seem to come up very often.

Hi Smootik.

Is the US$1800 (+shipping) a good price?
I can buy one here for NZ$2000

Kiwigunner

From my perspective:
- MKb(42)H was made in a limited number of pieces. Shoei planned to produce only 300 pieces, and they did, in three runs of 200 (1996?), 50 (2004) and 50 (2006).
- original sale price was 128 000 yen, which is about 1500$. Price of an imported model (Shoei Germany, so including taxes and customs) was about 1300 EUR = about 1700$ today.
- this price is more or less inline with what other Shoei pieces sell for. Recent run of a much more available MP44 was around 1500$ (@Shoei Germany).
- given all of that I would not hesitate long to buy this model, if it were available locally (within EU, with proper shipping), in very good shape (preferably w/original box) at the price level you mentioned,.

2000NZD (~1500$) seems a very good price to me, especially that you would not need to go through import hooplas.

1800$ seems a not-too-bad price within US, but too much for importing. Shipping would be around 100$, taxes almost 500$, making total price 2400$. Not to mention potential import problems - I would hate to see this one damaged during inspection.

So is the Mkb 42 the cap firing version?

Unfortunately this is a dummy as well - unless there's a cap firing conversion kit (availability unknown)...

I don't think there was ever such a kit made by Shoei. Unless someone did custom work with conversion, this is a dummy only model.

But - can the MP44 pfc firing system somehow fitted into the MKb42?

Depends on details I guess. You could probably fit detonator chamber, but other internals were fairly different in those two weapons. MKb(42)H fires from open bolt, MP44 from a closed bolt. I'd risk (without seeing the mechanism) saying that system might need serious tweaking to get it working.

With scarcity of any cap-firing Shoei model it's probably easier to just start from scratch

I thought both models share similar internals as both looked relatively similar (don't know MKb42 fired in open-bolt before)...so maybe better to forget making this as cap-firing (leave it as it is)...

Hmm, on a second thought I might be wrong. While initial MKb was open-bolt design (the major difference from later MP44), after the trials it was determined to be a problem, and the next prototype (which became MP43) was already a closed-bolt design.
Looking at photos Shoei model has a cover on ejection port and scope rails on rear sight though, so it could be the later, improved design with closed-bolt internals. This would have made production easier for Shoei, too, with almost common internals with Stg44. Model has a safety notch in receiver (like MP40) for securing handle in open position, like the early models.

That's what I reckon at first - the ejection port cover...I think I need to get one as well in order to make sure (tough though)...