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MG3 tripod mount conversion for MG34


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Has anyone done this?  I have an MG3 tripod that I want to convert to use my MG34.  I bought the small QD mount that goes on the barrel jacket of the MG34 from Brian at BRP.  Evidently, my machinist skills suck because I tried to mount it yesterday and failed miserably.  It seems all I need to do is have that mount welded or drilled and tapped to the MG34 barrel jacket and then modify the MG3 trigger  mechanism by cutting it down a little.  If anyone has done this before let me know what you did and if I'm on the right track or about to derail.  I'd  post pictures but I'm ashamed to show what I did to an original MG34 barrel jacket, lol.  Slightly destroyed history a little.

ground-tripod3-sideview.jpeg

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Answer is Yes. I have.

So.. I believe you bought the adapter mount from BRP which was meant for their frankenstein MG34/AR XMG. You have to tap that which is the route I didn't want to do. I hope you didn't drill into your jacket.. (edit: Just read you did.  :()

I bought the TNW version. https://www.tnwfirearms.com/product-p/mg34-gnpt-xx08-bkxx-4031.htm
This is suppose to be replacing the bipod retaining spring. The design only uses one screw which is sufficient, but I'd rather they have designed it to use both screws.
I ended up making a channel in the adapter to allow to keep the spring.. since I wish to mount it on to a AA tripod.. well the adapter that allows me to mount it to a AA tripod which I got from BRP.

I remember talking to Mike Todd about this.. he said he made his own and sold like 50 of them back in the day. After getting it, it is so easy to make.  If I had access to a mill I could easily make a better one than TNW makes.

bxwonsO.jpg

 

LqpwMJ3.jpg

Edited by Ryo
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I forgot to mention about the trigger..

The trigger as is won't work since it won't fit in the place where the trigger is located. I was thinking of milling or bend some thick gauge metal.  Of which I don't have access to machinery to build either. So looking at it I got the brilliant idea of turning the trigger upside down. Then I added weather foam to move the small metal lever (which was meant to ride under the MG42 trigger) to be center on the trigger. Then I added foam in on that nub to take up the distance so it could pull the trigger. 

Hokey Pokey setup, but it was a proof of concept. I plan to 3D print a cover for the original trigger (inverted) to replace the foam I used. I haven't had a chance to really do the measurements and CAD it. I'll be more than willing to share it with you when I finish it. Finding time is the issue of not doing it yet.. but the hard weather foam seems to work fine for now.

 

BTW I turned the trigger upside down so I wouldn't lose it and still use it. It probably would be better if I milled a replacement, but I have a thing about keeping all original parts together.. I could probably have thrown it in the little compartment in the optics storage case..

 

Note that my mods have 0% damage to the original parts, and they work.

Edited by Ryo
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Ryo, fantastic information.  I ordered the TNW which fit perfectly.  I appreciate the fact that it is already contoured to the barrel as the BRP one wasn't. I agree that the adapter would be much better suited if it used both holes and had a channel for the spring.  Someone should fab these up as I'd buy one for  sure.

I don't intend on using this tripod for anything other than the MG34 so I cut down the trigger a little and bent the top tab up so it would work.  It works perfectly and I can toggle the trigger between full and semi.  This mount is perfectly suited for the MG34 as the AA G3 tripod (which I also have) has a tendency to come off the ground and it's almost impossible to keep a cone of fire at distance on a man sized target.  Of course the AA G3 tripod would allow you to shoot at drones and planes, neither of which I intend on having a need for lol.  Have you ever thought about an ammo feed for the belt?  Seems all the old pic's of using the Lafette always have a another man feeding ammo into the gun. I ran mine without feeding the ammo by hand and it seemed to work fine but I'm sure at some point the weight of a full belt will result in a misfeed.

Yesterday I took the time to time a new ejector on my bolt.  Wow what a difference in smooth operation as I would occasionally have stoppages due to poor ejection.  I'm going to order a few more ejectors from BRP as I have two MG34's.  Another strange anomaly I discovered yesterday was one of my MG's would run away.  I have a new sear, sear spring and good condition bolt body.  I switched out my complete  fire control group with the other one that was working on my other MG and the runaway gun worked perfectly.  I took a look at both FCG assemblies and the L shaped trigger disconnect piece appeared to be longer on one that was working.  I had a few disconnector spares and closely inspected them.  I discovered some are in fact longer than others!  Who would have thought there was a variation in those.  The operating clearances of the bolt and those trigger components are likely within the 100 thousand of an inch.  

I also found that the enlarged booster cone from BRP works much better with my .308 conversion as previously it was too fast.  It seemed like it was around 1000 + rpm and was very violent to shoot.  Now it seems to be a comfortable 700 to 800 rpm which is much better IMHO. 

The MG has been so mysterious to diagnose but I keep learning more about it and love this weapon.  I noticed the drum won't work with the MG3 tripod and I also discovered one of my charging handles rubs against the tripod as I couldn't fully retract the bolt.  Crazy how many variations on parts with these. 

Edited by Rebel Rifle Ordnance LLC
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Glad you got it working. It wasn't much of a change.  Though I'm interested in knowing what method you used to allow you to select either full auto and single shot. I only targeted full auto. For the part, I had CAD'd one up but never pulled the trigger to get them made due to cost. Wasn't sure if there was a market for them.. plus TNW's version would be cheaper.. though not as good as the one I would have built. I would have designed it so the spring could still be used, and have the part use both screws vs just one of the screws. Though one probably work because of the contour curve locking it in place.. well kind of.

Note that the 8mm booster and the 308 booster are different sizes. I have the BRP 308 conversion kit and it worked great in my MG34.

Definitely the AA tripod lifts. I even hung a ammo can on the hook to give it more weight but it still likes to move. It has some serious recoil.

Funny you mentioned about the MG34 runaway. I have that issue.  First time out no issues. However it broke my dust cover locking spring (not sure what the name of it is without looking it up but it holds the dust cover closed until the trigger is pulled) on that outing. Any case it snapped on me possibly due to the cover was closed and when I pulled the trigger it violently snapped the latch/spring. Note it looks like a upside down U with a loop in the center for teetertottering. 

So being the type of person I am, I bought a replacement and installed it.  It ran away when I took it out. Since I was on the AA tripod, just had to hold on for the ride. I could manually cycle and repeat the failure without shooting rounds. Since that was the only change, I decided to pull it apart and removed it. I tried hand cycling it again and now it seems like it is working fine.  The spring/latch was protruding in the trigger area.. but honestly I couldn't see how that would cause a runaway on the location it was in. I mean it looked like it would protrude (and possibly jam the trigger 1mm inwards). I suppose it could be possible I didn't put the trigger together right the first time I took it apart.. Any case I need to try it again.

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2 minutes ago, Ryo said:

Glad you got it working. It wasn't much of a change.  Though I'm interested in knowing what method you used to allow you to select either full auto and single shot. I only targeted full auto. For the part, I had CAD'd one up but never pulled the trigger to get them made due to cost. Wasn't sure if there was a market for them.. plus TNW's version would be cheaper.. though not as good as the one I would have built. I would have designed it so the spring could still be used, and have the part use both screws vs just one of the screws. Though one probably work because of the contour curve locking it in place.. well kind of.

Note that the 8mm booster and the 308 booster are different sizes. I have the BRP 308 conversion kit and it worked great in my MG34.

Definitely the AA tripod lifts. I even hung a ammo can on the hook to give it more weight but it still likes to move. It has some serious recoil.

Funny you mentioned about the MG34 runaway. I have that issue.  First time out no issues. However it broke my dust cover locking spring (not sure what the name of it is without looking it up but it holds the dust cover closed until the trigger is pulled) on that outing. Any case it snapped on me possibly due to the cover was closed and when I pulled the trigger it violently snapped the latch/spring. Note it looks like a upside down U with a loop in the center for teetertottering. 

So being the type of person I am, I bought a replacement and installed it.  It ran away when I took it out. Since I was on the AA tripod, just had to hold on for the ride. I could manually cycle and repeat the failure without shooting rounds. Since that was the only change, I decided to pull it apart and removed it. I tried hand cycling it again and now it seems like it is working fine.  The spring/latch was protruding in the trigger area.. but honestly I couldn't see how that would cause a runaway on the location it was in. I mean it looked like it would protrude (and possibly jam the trigger 1mm inwards). I suppose it could be possible I didn't put the trigger together right the first time I took it apart.. Any case I need to try it again.

On the G3 ground mount,  the trigger is activated by a flat piece of metal that can be toggled to either the top or bottom position on the trigger for semi or FA.  

Correct, 8mm and .308 boosters are different sizes.  Mine ran too fast with the .308 booster, little difference with the 8mm but the enlarged booster that BRP sells it slowed it down.

I can't see  how the dust cover has anything to do with a runaway.  In my experience, it's either the: Sear, sear catch on the bolt or in my case the disconnector not being activated. Obviously it could be other things but those are the things I've found to cause this with mine.   You can stop a run away by grabbing the ammo link and twisting it.

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I heard that part is a safety which prevents a certain condition happening.. I'll have to look that up. I know mine is missing those parts. 

Rate reducer trigger is for prewar if I remember correctly. Not many examples of that are available. It was designed to reduce rate of fire for normal usage and allow fast rate of fire for AA setup. Never seen one for sale but I bet collectors would pay crazy huge sums for it. 

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Yeah.. more likely I screwed up assembling the trigger. I had a hard time believing the spring was the issue.

It was a strange day when I found out about my runaway MG34.. My Thompson also was a runaway.. it has issues where it didn't engage the rocker in semi to popup the sear.. and even if it did, it has too much depth in the receiver that allows the bolt to slide above the sear..  Out of spec West Hurley. 100% reliable in full mag dumps whether you want to or not..  LOL.

 

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TO REBEL RIFLE ORDNANCE:

 

WOULD YOU PEASE SEND A PHOTO OF THE "TOGGLE SWITCH" THAT YOU FABRICATED TO ALLOW SEMI-fa FIRE FOR mg34 ON mg3 TRIPOD.  SEND TO:

dawandoa@earthlink.net

I'm sure there are many other out here wishing the same information.  Thanks!

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13 hours ago, OA/DAW said:

TO REBEL RIFLE ORDNANCE:

 

WOULD YOU PEASE SEND A PHOTO OF THE "TOGGLE SWITCH" THAT YOU FABRICATED TO ALLOW SEMI-fa FIRE FOR mg34 ON mg3 TRIPOD.  SEND TO:

dawandoa@earthlink.net

I'm sure there are many other out here wishing the same information.  Thanks!

Sure.  I'm headed to OFASTS but will snap a pic once I get it setup.  Everything is loaded up for my 12 hour drive today.

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Video showing some close up shots of the parts I used to adapt my MG34 to the MG3 tripod.  No modifications to the tripod or to the MG34 whatsoever.   Not a straight forward modification, but worth it to easily go back and forth between the MG3 and the MG34.  

 

 

Edited by zavrit
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What in the world.. That's a very interesting design.  Where did you get the parts?

 

What would be cool is if could swap out the barrel like the original. 

Edited by Ryo
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For the trigger mechanism, I milled a piece of steel to size and drilled it for a shaped piece of rod (tig welded together). 

The clamp mechanism was the real challenge.  I reshaped an aluminum truss light clamp and bolted it to a milled piece of steel that fits the tripod (parts refinished in Gun Kote). To protect the finish on the MG34, I attached a thin piece of high temp silicone gasket to the aluminum clamp mechanism and to the steel base that the clamp is bolted to.  It was a fun project.  

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You just added a new project to my list.  Really appreciate the sharing of it.

For the trigger I was thinking of what you made originally but discovered that if I flip the switch 180, it could enter the MG34 trigger guard.. but of course that prevents the use of the MG42 which I unfortunately don't own yet.. maybe one day.

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I made relief cuts into the base of the clamp mechanism for the flat spring and screw.  No modifications to the barrel jacket whatsoever.  

https://ibb.co/q7f5nqV
https://ibb.co/NytPtX5
https://ibb.co/hgK41YY
https://ibb.co/VMmgnM1
https://ibb.co/F7bSFrs
https://ibb.co/gtCt28Q
https://ibb.co/ChjWJQV
https://ibb.co/StNp19j

Edited by zavrit
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You're welcome.  Looking through my emails, I ordered one of each of the following:

https://www.fullcompass.com/prod/278778-global-truss-mini-360-15-light-duty-wrap-around-clamp-for-15-pipe-max-load-220-lbs

https://www.fullcompass.com/prod/245847-global-truss-mini-360-qr-light-duty-quick-release-clamp-for-2-pipe-max-load-220-lbs

Neither of those sizes will work as-is and I combined the 1.5 inch and 2.0 clamps to get close to the MG34 barrel shroud.  And, I had to bend the aluminum to get the final fit.  It's very tough aluminum and I used a dead blow hammer.  That's all I can remember as this was a few years ago.  

 

 

 

 

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