sten

[muzzleblastm38]

Worst thing of shooting sten,my finger hurt of reloading thé mag
Any trick to load them with out bying sten loader
Thanks

[timspawn]

I just load 20 rounds in the mag.

[Scharfschuetze]

Might have to spring for a loader. I have a couple of 9mm pistol loaders that look like they would work for the STEN gun. I haven't shot a STEN for many years, but the Glock or the Beretta M9 magazine loaders might work.

Link: http://www.midwayusa.com/find?userSe...agazine+loader

The M3 Grease Gun was also pretty hard on your thumb, but the stock had a built in mag loading tool which worked pretty well.

[Hardcast416taylor]

I don`t think the idea when shooting a sten is to see how quickly you can empty the mag.Robert

[Tackleberry41]

Theres no way around buying some sort of loader.

[nicholst55]

Theres no way around buying some sort of loader.

^^^This^^^ Buy one of the WWII surplus 'spoon' loaders; they work well.

[Tackleberry41]

I bought one, a metal one, I want to say it was made to go with an ingram or those cobray mags. Works like the glock mag loaders. $5 or so at a gun show. I have the regular 32 rd and the 'improved' 20rd mags, its really the only way to get the mags full without requiring a thumb replacement afterwards.

[Bulldogger]

Make a bet with someone you can't lose and make HIM load them...

[Adam Helmer]

As an old SMG Instructor, let me say there was a REASON Magazine Loaders were developed. If there was a "trick to loading them without buying a loader", there would have been no need for the mag loading tool.

Adam

[Hardcast416taylor]

If you believe the sten is difficult, take a try at the Lanchester larger capacity (50 rounds I believe) magazine for difficult.Robert

[BruceB]

Yes, and very much to the contrary, the Sterling SMG which replaced the STEN and similar SMGs has a magazine with rollers on the follower.

It's easily loaded to the full 32-round capacity using just one's fingers. Having had experience with both STEN and Sterling, I found this to be a HUGE improvement and a benefit to the soldier.

(One of the most-used Sterling accessories during my service was the TEN-round magazine, which allows far easier handling for entering or leaving vehicles, for example, while still retaining enough capacity for two or three bursts.)

[Tackleberry41]

I have never seen a 10rd Sten mag, would like one, even considered trying to cut one down. Just so it would be a bit more handy at times. The 20rd modded mags werent any shorter, just held less.

I would think rollers in a mag would be an issue, seems like they could lead to jams if to much crud got inside.

It is funny tho, that theres a reason mag loaders were invented. It wasnt because we wanted another piece of equipment to keep track of.

[Tackleberry41]

Sorry didnt see that a 10 rd STERLING mag not a sten.

[BruceB]

[QUOTE=Tackleberry41;3174901]I

I would think rollers in a mag would be an issue, seems like they could lead to jams if to much crud got inside. QUOTE

We used the Sterling in many different sorts of terrain and weather. Magazine reliability was never an issue.

Even with blanks on exercises, the guns functioned perfectly, and working with heavy tanks in sandy terrain offered plenty of opportunity for crud to work its evil ways. No problem.

Sterling mags are also pretty easy to disassemble and clean, so that helped as well.

It's a mature and well-tried SMG, and I had great confidence in it.... but I still preferred my FN C1A1.

[Tackleberry41]

I remember seeing Sterlings in Kuwait during desert storm, the British had withdrawn that bullpup rifle since they apparently had a habit of going off if banged into something to hard. So the British had to find guns to issue out.

I had a semi auto sterling years ago that was stolen, PAWS was the company that made then, but used the regular sten mags.

[Stoats]

I remember seeing Sterlings in Kuwait during desert storm, the British had withdrawn that bullpup rifle since they apparently had a habit of going off if banged into something to hard. So the British had to find guns to issue out.

Sorry, but that's just not true - there was never a discharge problem with the L85 as you describe. Of its many, many, many faults, that was not one of them (it's worth buying Steve Raw's book on the subject).

Desert Storm happened at the end of the transition period - there were non-front-line bods who still had the previous issue of wps - there were REMF guys deploying with SLR and SMG, although the teeth arms all had the L85 by that point.

That's why you saw SMG's there.

[smkummer]

If you can get the loop loader, its the best, then the spoon loader. I paid the $25 for a loop loader and never looked back. As others have said, you may find another double stack 9mm loader that could work.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

Try bumping the bottom of the magazine against a solid surface just as you push in the next cartridge. Inertia/ momentum of cartridges in magazine should relieve spring pressure.

[jrap]

You could probably use a maglula loader

[Tackleberry41]

Okay reading up on the L85 it wasnt because they went off if dropped but for being unreliable. So those who could choose, chose something else. Guess they were good enough that usually the common wealth nations usually adopt whatever England does, yet nobody else wanted them.