TargetTalk

I have aquired a GPO Rapid Fire pistol in 22 short. It appears to be in great shape but after a closer look, I may have a barrel chamber issue?

You can see by the photo that there is a "ridge" along the top half of the chamber opening and the chamber appears to be slightly "oval" in shape.

Anyone have ideas as to how I would locate a replacement barrel for a Pardini GPO 22 Short??

OR can my barrel be repaired???

Not sure I can repair the barrel I have, but it would be nice to have a source for a new one.

Tom

Just post the pics on here, host them on photobucket or similar and post the link.

Otherwise its probably not too hard for an average gunsmith to make and fit a new barrel.

Larry's guns in Maine may be of help.

I think Dave Wilson can make a 22 barrel for you.

How would I contact Dave?
Tom
tomgraham@verizon.net

robertemory wrote:Larry's guns in Maine may be of help.

Thanks, I emailed Larry's yesterday....no response yet.
Still would appreciate other options.
Tom

I am not a Pardini expert but it looks possible that most of that should be like that to make it feed well.
check your spent brass for bulged brass towards the rim and an oval shape there... if it appears round and not bulged check the accuracy of the barrel. If it shoots well you may be chasing a problem that may not realy be a problem.

little_doodie wrote:I am not a Pardini expert but it looks possible that most of that should be like that to make it feed well.
check your spent brass for bulged brass towards the rim and an oval shape there... if it appears round and not bulged check the accuracy of the barrel. If it shoots well you may be chasing a problem that may not realy be a problem.

Thanks for the reply.....
Actually, that was my thought as well. I have not checked the brass, but it seemed to be very accurate when I shot it yesterday.

Since the barrel does not have a feed ramp, I was thinking that possibly it was manufactured with this shape to aid in feeding as you mentioned.

But why the "Ridge" along the top edge of the chamber opening? Was this intentional to aid in primer ignition? Or formed by lot's of rounds being fired through the pistol?

As I have never seen another GPO 22 short around, I have nothing to compare it to???

Tom

Here is a shot of the barrel with the cartridge in the chamber....notice the ridge at the front creates a space under the cartridge rim on the lower have of the chamber opening.

Being a 22 short chamber, I have not idea if this is intentional.

Tom

The "feed ramp" is the follower in the magazine---remember .22 RF guns that shot the short ammo are notoriously a swift pain the arse, to say the least. The guns are extremely picky as to the ammunition they will digest as well. The event used to be notorious for the continuous frustrations due to multitudinous malfunctions (failures to feed, extract & doubling)followed by lots of "alibi" rounds. From your pictures of the round in magazine I personally see nothing amiss, your barrel picture were of no value in making any type of decision. Now I know .22 short ammo isn't easy to find and there are lots of brands out there---but, I think you ought to try a few before you through in the towel. This is an "old" version of the Pardini RF pistol. I would say, use the gun for Indoor Bullseye, except the grips and the trigger won't pass muster. "Doc"

I have four Pardini .22 short pistols, and all barrels have always had that lip. Don't ask me what it's good for, but it works.

Tycho wrote:I have four Pardini .22 short pistols, and all barrels have always had that lip. Don't ask me what it's good for, but it works.

Thanks Tycho for posting.....I was hoping a guy like you would come along and verify that the "lip" on the chamber mouth was part of the design.

The pistol is deadly accurate......had a string of 5 shots off-hand at 25 yards this morning....all 5 in the 10X!!!!

So the problem I am having now is misfires.....no matter what ammo, I get at least 3-4 out of 10 shots not going off.
Primer hits appear very light.
I just installed a new firing pin and the pistol is extra clean.

I know this one had been stored a long time so I am wondering if the first thing to do is try a new hammer spring?? It could have been stored under tension for a while OR it was used a fair amount at some point....but this thing really looks like new as far as condition goes.

Would Larry's have a spring??

Tom

THREEDFLYER wrote:

Tycho wrote:

Would Larry's have a spring??

Tom

Larry is the Pardini agent for the USA. If he doesn't have it, likely no one does:-(

I'd load a magazine, drop the bolt, check that the bolt has completely gone into battery & fire the shot, collect the brass, and examine (and check for complete return to battery after subsequent shots.

If the gun returns to battery you may have a firing pin or spring issue. If the bolt isn't quite returning to battery, the hammer will cam it shut and generate light strikes.

My SP has light strikes with Eley sport (the Mexican stuff) but has nice solid hits with everything else. I didn't check the return to battery however, since I don't regularly ise the Eley sport.

Steve.

The Pardini's in 22 Short were somewhat fussy with regards to ammo choice. In contrast my Walther OSP 2000 function reliably with everything from CCI CB caps to Aguilla, Eley and Fiochi match ammo.

Light firing pin strikes are typically due to two things. First, the ammo you use must drop into the chamber without requiring any force to seat the rim against the barrel. I used a .25 caliber brush to make sure the chamber of the barrel was spotless, and some ammo needed to be wiped down round by round to remove excess lube/wax so that it would drop fully into the chamber without effort. There are some bullets that seem to extend into the rifling a bit, and the engraving force needed to do this keeps the round from seating. Then the firing pin energy is used up seating the round rather than crushing the primer.
Second, there needs to be a minimum of friction on the slide during it's travel. Lubrication is important but overdoing it can cause this problem too. Also make sure that there are no burrs anywhere and that the slide does not drag on an empty magazine when cycled. Other than the effort to cock the hammer, there should be very little resistance to the slide moving back and forth. I have even gone to the extent of removing the hammer to find what was dragging when diagnosing a problem. There is so little energy in a .22 short match round that you can't afford to waste any of it and still have reliable functioning.

GOVTMODEL wrote:

THREEDFLYER wrote:

Tycho wrote:

Would Larry's have a spring??

Tom

Larry is the Pardini agent for the USA. If he doesn't have it, likely no one does:-(

PardiniUSA in Florida will be having their Grand Opening August 1st. Their Phone number is 1-813-748-3378 and web address www.PardiniGuns.com.