Instantly a crescendo of visceral terror – no cash! I was lucky though, a good friend did have the money and said one had my name on it. Thank God. These rifles were produced by Smith & Wesson for the British Government early in the Second World War. Contrary to popular belief, this is a semi/automatic open bolt arm and not fully automatic. The barrel is only nine and three quarter inches long, which technically classified it as a “firearm” that required the two hundred dollar transfer tax and licensing in compliance with the National Firearms Act. A “Short Barreled Rifle”, but they were removed from the National Firearms Act and listed as Curios and Relics not requiring registration. Some states have laws on barrel lengths, so be careful on these. These guns have since left Hawaii to the “Free zones”.

The initial shipment was made to the British in April 1941. But, the rifle failed to pass British endurance tests. Smith & Wesson agreed to a British request to redesign the rifle to accommodate a two-grain increase in the powder charge of the 9mm cartridge. This new design was called the MARK II, and incorporated a heavy corrugated sleeve over the bolt operating handle. This sleeve functioned as additional support against the frame and served as a rotating safety. When used with the two grain overloads, the rifles again failed to pass firing tests set up by the British. This is really amazing to me after you handle these rifles, for you must agree they are built like the proverbial brick outhouse. We’re talking battleship quality, drop forged manganese steel, chrome nickel steel lock-work, nickel steel bolt, and chrome barrel. They weigh almost ten pounds when loaded.

Serial records show only one thousand and ten of the Mark I’s were produced and shipped to the British. Legend has it that at the close of World War II, all 9mm light rifles owned by Britain were destroyed by cutting them in half and disposing of them in the English Channel. Five units were preserved and these are located in the tower of London, British Military Museum, MOD Pattern Room, and the Enfield Arsenal. The one in the MOD Pattern Room has the experimental aluminum stock.

Now, this is what legends are made of. In 1974, Smith & Wesson discovered a limited quantity of crated unfired 1940 light rifles. These were classified as Curios and Relics, and sold as collector’s items. In the group were 173 Mark I’s and 80 Mark II’s. These were finished in the factory by Smith & Wesson personnel, and sold to a Georgia dealer, who helped obtain the exception to the NFA. From this legendary stash of two hundred and seventeen rifles, to my knowledge, these four are the only ones to make it to the 50th state, safe and sound in the old whaling town of Lahaina.

According to Smith & Wesson, under no circumstances should these rifles be loaded or fired. When they were sold to the dealer, there were stickers applied to the buttstocks that stated that. It is suggested that anyone who does fire them use downloaded ammunition. My friend was so excited after taking possession; he immediately made his way to the Ukumehame firing range. Determined to defy logic, he shot a box of ammo through it without incident. The gun ran great- a real pleasure to shoot.

Aloha from Maui!

Mr. Craig Newman, AKA Captain Craig, passed away on June 12, 1999 while taking his morning walk along Kaanapali Beach. He was 53 years old. Craig was a wealth of knowledge especially when it came to Smith & Wesson firearms. He is deeply missed in the gun community on Maui.

For starters, the 8×63 Swedish barrel is a larger diameter than the .30-06 1917 Browning barrel we would have to use, requiring a new design for the front water-packing gland. This was beautifully executed by machining an oversized brass doughnut, the male end threaded to the gun, the smaller female end threaded for a normal 1917 packing gland nut. The kit would also need a 1917 type top cover and ladder sight, very rare and hard to find. Thanks to our friend Mr. Bob Landies of Ohio Ordnance Works, Inc., Chardon, Ohio, who came through with flying colors and believe it or not, it was brand new in the box. Although the brass trunion would accept stock right and left Browning side plates, the original Kulspruta had no pintle bolthole. As noted above, it utilized a buffered cradle. The bottom of the trunion protruded into the area of the new pintle bolt requiring Valerie to drill through what she thought was a solid brass trunion. It turned out to be a hollow interior. To keep water from leaking through these holes, a tube was fitted and welded on both side plates. The complete front sight and the brass threaded filling port plug were missing as well and required manufacturing from scratch.

Since a 1919 left side plate was used, welding and dressing of the three original sight bracket holes would be mandatory. The remainder of the conversion was achieved with Valerie’s stock semi 1919 parts she’s so well known for. Her right side plate is thicker than a full-auto, requiring the bolt, barrel extension and lock frame to be extensively machined to fit the tighter tolerances. The real heart of her semi conversion is the trigger lock group – this is poetry in motion, pure and simple. Starting with a solid block of 4140, a new trigger lock is fashioned to accept a modified AR15 hammer, an unmodified AR15 disconnector and AR15 trigger. A new pivoting sear trip is also used. What you end up with is the exact trigger pull as your tried and true, run forever old friend the AR15.

This will be my third Valkyrie Arms gun. My 1919A6 in .308 has over 20,000 rounds through it. Twice, using a Pact timer, I fired in excess of 650 rounds per minute in semi auto, and never ever had a problem, period. It’s the same with my 1917A1 water-cooled – about 10,000 rounds without a glitch. Although Dave from Sarco Inc. has an original complete Kulspruta tripod and cradle, it is of no use to me, because with Browning side plates and pintle it no longer functions within the cradle. To get over this hurdle, I purchased one of the Stembridge 1917 tripods from the good folks at Long Mountain Outfitter, Harmony, Maine and a D37915 elevator for anti-aircraft use from Hayes Otoupalik in Missoula, Montana. The cherry on top would have to be the spade grip assembly from Ohio Ordnance Works, Inc.

The deep perfect engraving KULSPRUTA MODEL 36 on the upper rear of the right side plate, in my opinion is a work of art Aloha nui loa from upcountry Maui.