Gunboards Forums banner

my first new cetme

4K views 24 replies 9 participants last post by  Deadheadmatt 
#1 ·
After 7 years of pining for a g3 / cetme, it has finally happened. for the longest time i have never been able to afford one even when they were 200 bucks less, however now I have a better paying job.

purchased via person to person sale, it is a CAI but evertyhing on all the sticky's in this forum checked out perfect. no ground bolt no cracks in the welding bolt closes when charging handle is released. front sight is milled with no visable canting, and rear sight functions properly and is mounted correctly. furniture is synthetic and shows little wear. picatany rail on top of reciever seems well mounted(unfortunately came with nothing on the rail. muzzle brake seems to be installed well no protruding marks on the inside of barrel nothing but nice shinny bore.

broke it down cleaned the barrel out reall good. the guy i bought it from showed me some ammo he had put through it it had marks from the fluting in the barrel, which i recall reading somewhere meant that your flutes were dirty.

came with soft case, integral cleaning kit, 16 magazines (mostly g3, all of which seated easily with a light tap on the bottom of the mag), a bayonet, and an emense sense of self gratification.
all for $675
here is the add where i found it
http://floridaguntrader.com/index.php?a=2&b=1697

will be posting pics of the parts for review if anyone has the time.

seller said his only issue ever was with some i believe austrian ammo in which the primer was slightly recessed resulting in a few FTF.

cant wait to put a few hundred rounds through it.
 
See less See more
#3 ·
Congrats, sounds like you found a good one! With regard to the flutes in the chamber, one thing I've found is certain ammo (in particular, South African) burns pretty dirty, so don't be surprised if you start seeing marks on the cases after a few magazines. Once those flutes get fouled really bad, that thing turns into a single shot main battle rifle. :D

Welcome to the CETME family! We've got alot of knowledgable people here, always willing to lend a hand if you've got questions.
 
#4 ·
i used to log in as p0x years ago but lost my info and never got my account back. Ive been researching the cetme for almost 7 years, most of my info comes from this board.
thanx to everyone over the years who post here, without you guys i would have prob bought a lemon a while ago.
 
#7 · (Edited)
seer

Bolt Gap---a few things you need to know.

HK91/G3 and Cetme all operate on the same Blow Back System.
The Bolt Gap requirement is 0.1mm [.00397"] to 0.5mm [.019685"].
or .004'-.020". Highest being the best

As the gun wears the bolt gap diminishes. Many Century Built Cetme and HK guns were assembled with the incorrect Gap [too small].
To share some of the blame "home builders' also used all of the known company made receivers as personal builds. And as such they would have that Company's name on it. But Century was and still is the largest contributor to poor Bolt Gap do to poor Gunsmithing.

As far as low Bolt Gap and trying to fix it- there are oversized rollers for your bolt which will increase the Bolt Gap.
Std Rollers are 8mm [.3149"]
+2 Rollers are 8.02mm [.3157"] approx. .002" increase in Gap
+4 rollers are 8.04mm [.3165"] approx. .004" increase in Gap

You should measure the Rollers and see where you actually stand.

.006" is getting to be close to the end of the guns life as currently configured.
You should still have many thousands of rounds left in it.

But you really need to do what we do.
#1- Make sure the bolt is the correct length [if it has been ground you may have a large problem]
#2- Check for a worn Locking piece
#3- Make sure of the bolt roller size
#4- Make sure there is a gap of up to .015" [some people say .020"] between the Cocking handle Support and the Bolt Carrier Tube [front].
If your Carrier is Locked forward [let it fly forward] with the cocking handle down try and Slide the Handle to the rear. Is it loose or tight? Tight means you may not have enough gap and your Carrier is slamming into the Cocking Tube stop [inner "rounded" tube] every time the gun fires. This can give you a misleading Bolt Gap measurement. [Holding the Bolt from completely locking] Loose may show that you do have a Gap. But it should still be measured.

Not tring to be a pain, but these things need to be in check.

Good luck and Have a Great New Years!

gw11
 
#21 ·
gw11- When you say the bolt gap gets smaller as the rifle wears, how many rounds fired from the rifle are you talking about?
 
#9 ·
well took my bolt carrier apart and it seems the locking piece shows at least a good polish on the on both shoulders. the bolt face does not appear to be ground(i dont see any grinding marks).

the cocking lever does have a bit of play after beeing properl slapped shut, it the tube itself wiggles a bit backwards and frowads(1/8" maybey). it also has a bit of spin play but not a lot. the charging handle itself pulls out with a pinch of effort, and then pulls back with a bit more effort.

do i just measure my rollers in diameter?

also thinking about going to the autostore to get the gap feelers to measure my gap myself.
 
#11 ·
Cetme

well took my bolt carrier apart and it seems the locking piece shows at least a good polish on the on both shoulders. the bolt face does not appear to be ground(i dont see any grinding marks).

the cocking lever does have a bit of play after beeing properl slapped shut, it the tube itself wiggles a bit backwards and frowads(1/8" maybey). it also has a bit of spin play but not a lot. the charging handle itself pulls out with a pinch of effort, and then pulls back with a bit more effort.

do i just measure my rollers in diameter?

also thinking about going to the autostore to get the gap feelers to measure my gap myself.
As long as you don't have a ground bolt head, just use the feelers to get a bolt gap. .004 to .020 is good. New locking piece, bolt head, or those two together can get your bolt gap up. +2 or +4 rollers will bump the BG up too. Get em at Robertrtg. Good luck.
 
#13 · (Edited)
seer

Your Locking Piece is most likely fine. Your bolt [if it were Ground by Century] wound be Milled not ground by hand. [not all of their Dept's are run by Monkey's].
You need to measure the length of the bolt. Going by the 6 I have left, It should be 1.834" to 1.837" long.

You might also check the total length of the Carrier [it should be close to 10.9065"- 10 29/32" this dimention does very on New Carriers], if it is a lot shorter, the previous owner may have ground on the Forward Tube to give more clearance at the Cocking Handle Support [as mentioned before]. While this info means little, it can help you understand what has been done to correct possible problems.



I would expect that the bolt is correct and New parts have been already installed by the previous owner. [including over sized rollers].
As long as there is no contact of the Carrier Tube to the Cocking Handle Support and the Handle is fine to pull back /and .006" Gap you should be fine
for many many thousands of rounds.

And if you have an imagination and want to return the gun to the correct Bolt Gap spec, it can be done but it is sometimes hard to do. I've been there!
If you need a couple of tips just ask.

gw11
 
#17 ·
http://picasaweb.google.com/RonWayneOwens/CetmeFolder?authkey=ptWNAdUyAUE&feat=directlink

yeah so it wasn't anywhere near my best day at the range...

45 rounds, many fte and ftc. chalking most of those up to one mag in particular that doesn't seat fully and can be pulled right out.

the other problem was most likely the cheap .308 win i put through it. it chewed that stuff up like bubble gum.

the venezulan nato didn't have any issues (even though i only used 5 ish.)

also I think i was way up on the sights which made my accuracuy substandard.

the link at the top should have pics. gave a more thorough cleaning and found it was rediculously dirty, especially in and around the chamber.

so aside from beeing an idiot and a few stovepipes etc I had a good time.
considerably light on the recoil. muzzle climb seemed very light.

the gap does seem a bit tight and am going to get some gap feelers before i go next time. however a piece of 20 lb bond printer paper fit between the gap and it should be close to .0038 and since it slid right it with some room to play sideways along the gap I imagine its slightly larger. I'm not really sure how relliable this is but two pieces (.0072) would not go in . im sure this all not reliable and i certainly am not going to relly on it.
 
#18 · (Edited)
seer

Stovepipe
#1 Make sure your Chamber Flutes are cleaned out. [I prefer a tool to go in and scrape the flutes clean/ then swab the chamber fully clean]. The chamber brushes that are made for the HK/Cetme can be abused and harm the chamber Bore! And keeping the flutes clean are the most important thing. Also carefully clean the inside of the Trunion [completely] and remove all oil from the Trunion/ Complete Bolt/rollers and Locking Piece- then let the Carrier fly forward and check Bolt Gap! [with a Feeler gage] [one point when using a feeler gage is that you want it to go in Loose/Snug not tight, for tight means the gap is opening from the force you are applying to get it in there. Redue the Fly forward if in doubt and recheck.
#2 Is your Lower Grip Frame seated fully up? [From the side are the lines of the top of the Grip Frame parallel with the lines of the receiver?][ Is there any play "looseness" in the lower?] Usually the front is down or the unit has too much movement. It should be tight/ parallel and Straight"Vertical from the Rear View"
#3 With the Stock removed or viewing from the ejection port, [With the lower Grip frame on, looking down the rear with a light, is the Ejector in the center of the Bolt slot? or is it off side? It should also be almost touching the top of the slot.
#4 Go to my "Build" thread in the sticky's and compare the Ejector Pic with yours as far as wear.
#5 What kind of mag do you have. Buy a Cetme Mag and see if it is still loose? Mostly the first 4 items need to be checked and or repaired first.

gw11
 
#19 ·
seer

One other thing you can check.
It is possible to install the Extractor Spring incorrectly. If there is a "Flat" end to the spring, place that end up to seat with the extractor.
If both ends of the Spring are irregular, Place the best end Up [Don't Grind on it to flatten] the End of the Coil needs to be "to the rear and Centered on the extractor". If installed with the irregular end ["to the side" which makes it easier to install] it is possible for the spring to bind and not hold the casing correctly.

gw11
 
#20 ·
CETME recoil buffers.

Hello,
First I wanted to say hello to all and thanks for allowing me to join. I just bought a CAI CETME form a local gun shop here and after reading all the input in this forum and all the information that's out there, I'm looking forward to letting it run!! I was going to invest in an AR-10 but I'm glad I made this decision....I was wondering if any body in the forum has used this buffer and does it protect the rifle? Are those other buffers (ex. from buffer tech.) that are out there have any benefit. Are they worth it? :confused: Also I plan on reloading for it. Anybody have a recipie that seem to perform well? Thanks for your time..
 
#22 ·
Do not get a buffer I have heard the buffer can crack the receiver .

After you get the rifle broke in you should check the gap at least every 1k rounds .

My G3 clone is not picky about my handloads and it seems to shoot 147-180gr good enough for what I use it for ??? Oh wait , I havent shot it in over 2 years :D
 
#23 ·
I can understand the one from Buffer Tech could crack the receiver. This one that's listed in GunBriker repalces a part in the buffer assembly in the stock. here's the link:

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=122207167

Thanks for the info. I was going to use 150gr bullets because of the 1-12" twist. I heard that faster burning powders is recommended as well.
 
#24 ·
shaping up

with a new double rail mount and a couple trips to the range it seems to be coming in quite nicely. nice groupings at 75 yards. luckily my supervisor at work is a marine who's mos was sniper. he has talked me through alot. my mount was 35 bucks from cheaper than dirt.
i have found however that she does prefer surplus nato to .308 win. its amazing the differince.

my next project is to replace plastic stock with wood. any ideas on how to get the rod n spring off the one and on to the other.

seer
 
#25 ·
922r Count

You need to be careful swapping out parts on these CETME's. On this particular rifle, you need 7 US parts. It is most likely that your plastic buttstock is US made and as a result, if you take it off, you need to either replace it with another us made part or swap out some other part.

Matt
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top