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Dakota Tactical "D34 9mm Carbine". . . an HK MP5/94 high-end c


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In spite of the belief that the majority of the forum members here are knuckle-draggers and/or don't appreciate let alone fully understand the adage, "You get what you pay for" (uhhh. . . gee, I must have forgotten to either take my vitamin B or my Prozac pill this morning laugh.png), I figured I share with you my latest and last firearm procurement, which inevitably became a Birthday gift to my wife this past weekend (cuz. . . she's just that special to me!).

 

Below are photos of my wife's new Dakota Tactical D34 9mm Carbine. . . order placed approximately fifteen months ago. The journey involved with this particular build was a little different than what I experienced with my Saiga IZ-240 Rifle conversion. But I'll get into all that (for those that give a shit) after posting the below pics:

 

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And the above photos wouldn't be complete, without the final one. . . the wifey happily presenting her Birthday gift:

 

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Here are the firearm's relevant component parts/specs:

 

-- LSC MP5/94 Receiver Flat

-- HK91 Triple Frame front sight tower

-- Trijicon HK trit front sight post

-- HK93 Rear Sight Assembly

-- MKE AT94P barrel, cut down to 12.7"

-- HK long 4-prong flash hider, pinned (brings the o/a barrel length out beyond 16 inches; Title 1 requirement)

-- HK94 metal trigger grip housing

-- Extended HK safety/fire selector lever

-- Brugger & Thomet MP5K Folding Stock

-- MKE 93 slimline handguard

-- Leupold Tactical Prismatic optic

 

All the other minutia component parts to this carbine are HK MP5 or HK94.

 

Overall Cost/Price: A little over $2K in total parts. . . and then $1.3K for gunsmithing/assembly/final product. (Like, do I really need to convey that higher-end HK clones cost a pretty-penny?)

 

Here's the brief back-story:

 

When having one of these American made HK clones built, typically (my experience anyway) the customer acquires ALL of the firearm's component parts and ships the lot to the builder. He in turn folds and welds the receiver flat and then does all the other precision fitting and assembly of the firearm. . . test fires. . . then paints 'n bakes. Below is a photo of the parts that I am referring to, minus the barrel, rear stock and HK trigger/grip housing:

 

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Where challenges in the above process tend to arise is when certain specific small HK parts are not readily available or in stock for purchase from vendors (such as a HK MP5/94 cocking tube, or MP5/94 complete magazine catch/release paddle set). Then it becomes a friggen "searching for a needle in a haystack" sort of quest, which if your gunsmith/builder is reasonably connected, doesn't take terribly long or require too many telephone calls or emails. Nonetheless, a few of the items for this D34 Carbine build were a major pain in the ass to locate and procure. Case in point: the Brugger & Thomet (B&T) MP5K folding stock. B&T ceased production of this particular version of the stock a couple of years ago, so to acquire one I had to place a "special order" with B&T (located in Switzerland), through a Canadian-based firearm accessories vendor (Wolverine Supplies). Anyway, the point being is that one seemingly insignificant component part can put the 'kibosh' on your firearm's build.

 

Oh, and I'd be remiss if I didn't share my opinion (which is not unique) of how outrageously expensive I found some of these HK firearm parts to be. But, for now and the foreseeable future, such is the requisite price to pay if one wants to "play in the world of Heckler & Koch".

 

Hoped you liked the pics.

 

~Gary

Edited by Gary
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That thing is nice and looks like a very high quality professional build. I gotta ask tho if you spent that much money and waited so long on it why not spend another 200 for a tax stamp and build an SBR one?

 

Reasonable question.

 

My answer: Because I didn't want to. From the start, my goal was to procure a Title 1 HK clone firearm; I have no interest with SBRs.

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FWIW, I found a guy that knew a guy (who was some brother's cousin or whatever 021.gif) that makes custom burlwood furniture for HK and CETME rifles. I contacted him and had him make the below handguard and grip for the D34 Carbine. Since this is my wife's rifle and all. . . I figured it could use a slight "dressing up" versus going with the standard tac black furniture. Anyway, after receiving the below furniture set a week ago I was disappointed to discover that the handguard didn't quite fit the carbine as it should; the handguard retaining pin hole didn't quite line-up; the handguard was a scoatch too long. According to the guy that fabricated the handguard, this sort of thing sometimes happens. So. . . the handguard is going back for correction at no additional cost.

 

I think the 9mm carbine will look nice and be a bit of an eye-turner once I get this burlwood furniture on her.

 

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couple of quick things

there are only 2 machine guns I've ever wanted one is a M-3 grease gun and the other is a MP5 this is based on a full auto shoot I was at years ago and at the end of the day the only guns still running were those two. so nice build.

and if the young girl in the photo is your wife, you sir are a cradle robber.

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couple of quick things

there are only 2 machine guns I've ever wanted one is a M-3 grease gun and the other is a MP5 this is based on a full auto shoot I was at years ago and at the end of the day the only guns still running were those two. so nice build.

and if the young girl in the photo is your wife, you sir are a cradle robber.

 

You Sir, are a funny, funny man (but I appreciate the kind words). Actually, it was she who was the cradle robber; I'm 3 1/2 years younger than her. . . but (now) she can run circles around me. 021.gif

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Gary,

Did you keep or have the FA bolt carrier, if you do, have you ever thought about getting a registered sear? Most HK sears or packs are registered in 9mm, .223, and .308, a simple change of the ejector and swap from one gun to the other. It's kind of like getting 3 for the price of one, but that one will rip you a new one, and not to mention the ammo once you get going. :)

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Gary,

Did you keep or have the FA bolt carrier, if you do, have you ever thought about getting a registered sear? Most HK sears or packs are registered in 9mm, .223, and .308, a simple change of the ejector and swap from one gun to the other. It's kind of like getting 3 for the price of one, but that one will rip you a new one, and not to mention the ammo once you get going. smile.png

 

I'm not exactly sure whether I have the FA bolt carrier with this build. The "parts build list" that Dakota Tactical provided and which I purchased, listed "US made (RCM) & German HK MP5,94 bolt group complete". Having said that, upon reviewing the bolt group's advertisement listing from the vendor, it states: "Ideal to replace out of spec bolt groups or to keep as spares. Each bolt group will work with semi or full auto 9mm's pistol or rifles. Each bolt group is made from the best US & German HK parts available with the current and new Action 3 & "F" upgrades and enhanced materials."

 

So, apparently my D34 is capable of being converted to FA. . . with the correct sear pack and authorization paperwork of course. Yet to be completely honest, I've never really considered going through that nightmare pertaining to cost and paperwork. . . AND, I live in a state that makes it pretty much impossible to do so.

 

Nope, I'm just simplistically happy with my Title 1 carbine. Frankly, unless I am mistaken, this D34 carbine is more uncommon, considering the numbers of FA MP5 clones being assembled and made available on the market.

 

Anyway, I guess when I'm dead and buried and providing the missus is savvy enough, apparently should could get a very good price for this gun due to its apparent 'versatility' toward reconfiguration. wink.png

.

.

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That rifle is outstanding, well worth the wait I would say.

 

And your wife looks very happy with it also.......tell her happy birthday from the forum....

 

a range report would be nice if you could please....

Thanks for the kind words.

 

Rest assured I'll report back how she shoots. My expectations regarding the 9mm carbine's target performance are not high. . . I doubt its POI will remain consistent much beyond 50 yards, but we shall see. I just wanted to get my wife something fun and enjoyable to shoot during our range firing outings. . . while also providing her a firearm that most folks would be proud to own.

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It sure appears you made her happy with such a great gift. The burl must look wonderful on it. Care to share who the maker is?

 

The guy's name is John Downey. He goes by "jdowney" over on MilitaryFirearm.com forum, which is how I got a hold of him and coordinated my order.

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It sure appears you made her happy with such a great gift. The burl must look wonderful on it. Care to share who the maker is?

 

The guy's name is John Downey. He goes by "jdowney" over on MilitaryFirearm.com forum, which is how I got a hold of him and coordinated my order.

 

Thanks for the info.

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Took the D34 9mm Carbine out to the firing range yesterday and put approximately 60 rounds through her (the purpose of the shooting session was to zero-in the new Leupold Prismatic optic). Not a single problem or hiccup throughout. I fired at targets from 25 yards to 50 yards. I'd say she shot a 5 inch grouping at 50 and I'm pretty darned happy with that; a 9mm bullet out of a 12.7" barrel. Now I need to try different grain weights to see what ammo she likes best.

 

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  • 2 months later...

Well, it took many weeks. . . but the adjusted burlwood furniture finally arrived back to me from the custom maker, and it looks incredible on the D34 Carbine. He had to ship the wood off to get it stabilized (since I live in the Pacific Northwest with all the friggen moisture), but the wait I believe was well worth it. You can decide for yourself (the wife absolutely loves it!).

 

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That's like a hand crafted wood dash inside of a Rolls Royce. Just a great finishing touch to an awesome piece. I also have to comment on your prowess with taking pictures. The quality is exceptional!

Thank you for the kind words.

 

Still life photography is relatively easy.  Just use a tripod and figure out what the hades the light is doing on your subject.  wink.png  Having photo editing software on one's computer is also a huge advantage as well.

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That is one very nice rifle! Congrats to you both for the way it came out.

 

Does the flash hider have any noticeable "tone" when you shoot it?

Yes it does!  Kind of like a tuning fork I suppose. . . but just barely noticeable and definitely not annoying.

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