ATI STG44 any thoughts?

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StukaJU87

New member
I have an opportunity to purchase an ATI STG44 in 22lr for $500 from a LGS. I handled one yesterday and it felt pretty good. Didn't think to ask if it came with the box or not.

The only thing that bothered me was the butt stock had some wobble to it, don't know if that's normal or not.

Are there any other issues I should be aware of?

The LGS has 3 on the shelf, (maybe more in back?), so I should be able to cherry pick. I just need to know what I'm looking for.

Been wanting one of these since heard about it at SHOT, so any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
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RickB

New member
I've had mine for over six months, but due to ammo shortages, have only about 300 rounds through it.
The stock on mine does wobble a bit, but I know some have tightened it up by merely wrapping some tape around the end of the receiver.
I had a spate of unreliability. Sight-in required 30 rounds, and that went without a hitch, but I then had about a dozen failures, of just about every kind you can imagine - failure to feed, failure to extract, failure to eject, double-feed - over the next hundred rounds, followed by a faultless 150 rounds.
The only complaint that I have is that the gun will not consistently extract/eject live rounds. While that's not an issue for a plinker, I was using my gun in a competition requiring that the chamber be shown clear to a range officer, and it's a hassle to get in there with a finger nail or implement to clear the chamber. The bolt and spring assembly is very similar to that seen in some AR rimfire conversions, and a buddy said those don't always extract, either.
Taking the gun apart and examining the bolt and extractor shows that the extractor hook does not contact the case rim, so maybe it's no surprise that it won't extract. A lot of blowback rimfires will run without an extractor, but that doesn't help clear the gun.
While not recommending that anyone else do so, I disassembled the bolt and filed on the extractor until the hook exerted at least a little tension on the case rim, and that improved the live-round extraction, but it's still less than 50%.
I discuss the gun, and show some shooting (and malfunction clearing) here (skip to about the 9:00 mark):
http://www.powerfactorshow.com/2013/01/28/episode-110-fun-steel-match/
 
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bamaranger

New member
cool

I think that STG44 -.22 is a fun gun, and if you can afford it, and don't need a "practical .22", why not. Hope you can find some ammo.
 
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StukaJU87

New member
RickB: thanks for the feed back and heads up.

Bamaranger: ammo isn't an issue for me currently. I was fortunate enough to stock up before things went bad. Now I only buy ammo if I find it at pre-panic prices. As for "practical", I have a 10/22 for that.

No, this would just be for fun and about as close to fulfilling a childhood dream as I'll ever come. Just wanted to see if there were any serious issues I should watch out for. I just like to know what I'm getting into before it's too late. All the reviews I've read point to people really enjoying it and being pleased. Which is good to hear.
 
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tulsamal

New member
I love mine. It has been 100% so far. Well, except I bought two extra mags before I got the gun. When it arrived, I discovered the mag that shipped with the gun was cracked in the back. Well, not exactly cracked... not fully assembled? Like however they glued the two halves together, it didn't work on the top back part and it spread apart. ATI replaced that one with a phone call. The two extra mags I bought have worked perfectly.

Haven't tried extracting a live round. Have to give that a whirl next time I'm out.

Still looking for a quick and easy way to mount a little red dot on it. Then I could use it at rimfire steel challenges. Would be fun and different. But I want some kind of QD mount so that I can remove it when I get home. I like the original look. But I'm 51 and my eyes have trouble shooting well with iron sights. (It will happen to you!)

Gregg
 
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RickB

New member
ATI makes a scope mount that slides on the existing rear sight base, as early STG44 scope mounts did, but it results in a scope that's about 2" above the receiver, with little chance for a cheek weld. Scope mounts made to attach to the receiver "tube" of the HK93 will fit, and there's one that's only $10 that will clamp right on, and hold the scope low enough that you will probably have to remove the factory rear sight so it's not in your sight picture.
 
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tahunua001

New member
the stg44s I've played with have been solid. they sure look like the real deal and they sure are heavy like the real thing(so I've heard, never actually handled a real one) and with 22lr it would be much easier to keep it fed. if you have the money I say go for it but try to find one with a more solid stock.
 
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StukaJU87

New member
Armed with as much info as I could digest from here and elsewhere, I went back to see if I could pick out the best one in stock. Upon arrival, I noticed that the display model, the one they had hanging on the wall, was GONE! :eek:

Of course I got that sinking feeling that I had missed my chance. Defeated I decided to look around. Since I was there, why not? As I was looking at all the ARs they had lined up I saw something, the other two Stg44s mixed in with the ARs. YES!

Unfortunately, they both had wobbly stocks and someone had smeared white paint on the receivers in an attempt to make the lettering and marks stand out better. Also no crates, just cardboard boxes.

Oh well, I guess I'll have to think about it harder or just wait to see if I can find a better example.
 
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RickB

New member
When you can get an AK for $500, who'd pay $5000 for bastardized StG? 7.62x39 won't fit, so you'd have to completely redesign it to save a few bucks on ammo.
There was a German-made StG replica for sale for a short time, imported by PTR, and they are quite valuable, now (as if the $5000 asking price at the time didn't qualify as "quite valuable"). :)
 
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