Finally Got Heat Shield for my Semi-Automatic UZI Carbine

It took me about 10 months, but I finally got the Heat Shield that I wanted for my UZI build through Title Arms.  It is worth every penny. I still plan to get the SBR so I can put the original sized UZI barrel on it. But until then I have this.

At the gun range with the UZI with Heat Shield in it’s violin case

I wrote an article here about building your own semi automatic UZI.  It has the 16inch barrel, because I have yet to SBR it and use the full auto length barrel. It looks strange. So I found the Title Arms page around a year ago.  It took me several emails and 10 months before it was finally in stock. I ordered it and it arrived a few days later.  It looks like a real silencer.  It is not. It is only a heat shield. It gives the UZI a much better look. Price is around $140 plus shipping. They have several other types of heat shields and also metal folding stock at http://www.titleiiarms.com.

Gun of the Week #15: Semi Automatic Uzi Carbine that you can built yourself

UZI Carbine with stock fully opened

Freddy’s Note:
Every week I feature a gun from my collection. This week it is a semiautomatic UZI carbine that I built myself from a new receiver and bolt and a parts kit. .  You can see all the previous gun of the week posts here.

It was amazing easy to assemble this gun. This is the first gun that I ever built. I have a 10 parts series on this website on how to get the parts your need and how to build it. The first of the 10 parts is here. It continues to 10 other posts. You will get the links to the parts vendors and all the instructions necessary to build it.  Make sure it is legal to have a semi-automatic UZI in your state before you order the parts.

All the Parts before you build it

The short version is that you buy a fully welded receiver and a new bolt from Mckay Enterprises. Then buy a parts kit and a barrel. Then you assemble it. It takes a little sanding or filing some of the metal, but it this project can be done by anyone with a little hand tool experience.  The receiver will be have to be sent to a local gun store, while you will have to go through the standard background check. But all the other parts can be sent straight to your home.

Here is the completed uzi carbine in action at a local indoor gun range

History
The Uzi (Hebrew: עוזי‎, officially cased as UZI) is a family of Israeli open-bolt, blowback-operated submachine guns. Smaller variants are considered to be machine pistols. The Uzi was one of the first weapons to use a telescoping bolt design which allows the magazine to be housed in the pistol grip for a shorter weapon.

The first Uzi submachine gun was designed by Major Uziel Gal in the late 1940s. The prototype was finished in 1950. First introduced to IDF special forces in 1954, the weapon was placed into general issue two years later. The Uzi has found use as a personal defense weapon by rear-echelon troops, officers, artillery troops and tankers, as well as a frontline weapon by elite light infantry assault forces.

My Uzi in it’s specially fitted violin case

The Uzi has been exported to over 90 countries. Over its service lifetime, it has been manufactured by Israel Military Industries, FN Herstal, and other manufacturers. From the 1960s through the 1980s, more Uzi submachine guns were sold to more military, law enforcement and security markets than any other submachine gun ever made.

Design
The Uzi uses an open-bolt, blowback-operated design quite similar to the Jaroslav Holeček-designed Czech ZK 476 (prototype only) and the production Sa 23, Sa 24, Sa 25, and Sa 26 series of submachineguns, from which it was inspired. The open bolt design exposes the breech end of the barrel, and improves cooling during periods of continuous fire. However, it means that since the bolt is held to the rear when cocked, the receiver is more susceptible to contamination from sand and dirt. It uses a telescoping bolt design, in which the bolt wraps around the breech end of the barrelThis allows the barrel to be moved far back into the receiver and the magazine to be housed in the pistol grip, allowing for a heavier, slower-firing bolt in a shorter, better-balanced weapon.

Uzi with Fixed wooded Stock

The weapon is constructed primarily from stamped sheet metal, making it less expensive per unit to manufacture than an equivalent design machined from forgings. With relatively few moving parts, the Uzi is easy to strip for maintenance or repair. The magazine is housed within the pistol grip, allowing for intuitive and easy reloading in dark or difficult conditions, under the principle of “hand finds hand”. The pistol grip is fitted with a grip safety, making it difficult to fire accidentally. However, the protruding vertical magazine makes the gun awkward to fire when prone. The Uzi features a bayonet lug.

Operational use
The Uzi submachine gun was designed by Captain (later Major) Uziel Gal of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. The weapon was submitted to the Israeli Army for evaluation and won out over more conventional designs due to its simplicity and economy of manufacture. Gal did not want the weapon to be named after him, but his request was ignored. The Uzi was officially adopted in 1951. First introduced to IDF special forces in 1954, the weapon was placed into general issue two years later. The first Uzis were equipped with a short, fixed wooden buttstock, and this is the version that initially saw combat during the 1956 Suez Campaign. Later models would be equipped with a folding metal stock.

The Uzi was used as a personal defense weapon by rear-echelon troops, officers, artillery troops and tankers, as well as a frontline weapon by elite light infantry assault forces. The Uzi’s compact size and firepower proved instrumental in clearing Syrian bunkers and Jordanian defensive positions during the 1967 Six-Day War. Though the weapon was phased out of frontline IDF service in the 1980s, some Uzis and Uzi variants were still used by a few IDF units until December 2003, when the IDF announced that it was retiring the Uzi from all IDF forces.  It was subsequently replaced by the fully automatic Micro Tavor.

In general, the Uzi was a reliable weapon in military service. However, even the Uzi fell victim to extreme conditions of sand and dust. During the Sinai Campaign of the Yom Kippur War, IDF Army units reaching the Suez Canal reported that of all their small arms, only the 7.62 mm FN MAG machine gun was still in operation.

The Uzi has been used in various conflicts outside Israel and the Middle East during the 1960s and 1970s. Quantities of 9 mm Uzi submachine guns were used by Portuguese cavalry, police, and security forces during the Portuguese Colonial Wars in Africa.

I received the UZI violin case

For new people to the blog, I did a series on how to built your own fully legal UZI carbine.  You can see the complete instructions here.

I found a series of cases from AKcases, and ordered one off their ebay site for $175. They are normally $245 and they have them for many different styles of guns. I just received the case. Here is the violin case closed:

Here is the case open. The case comes with either a red or blue interior. I chose blue.

And finally here the case with the UZI carbine, I made during the build:

The Velcro strips hold both the gun and up to 8 magazines. The interior and exterior is very good quality.

I highly recommend this case. The only problem is this case, looks just like my kid’s actual violin case, it

pretty embarrassing ( and highly illegal) if he took the wrong case to school. So I can’t leave this outside the gun room.

Related articles

• Build your self a fully legal, semi automatic Uzi Carbine (crypticpunk.wordpress.com)

Complete Instructions all 7 post: Building the Fully Legal Semi-Automatic UZI Carbine.

I have moved the instructions to their own separate page here on the website.   They are here

Building the Semi Automatic Uzi : Extra

Indoor Range

This is the 7th post of 7 posts about Building an Semi automatic UZI carbine.  See Posts 1 to 6 on thjis site buy choosing the category. Building the UZI from the category menu.

I took the UZI shooting again today, for it’s second time at the range.  It worked really fine again and I still pleased with the build.

Here’s a video of my associate firing it

Cool Case for the UZI

I have been carrying the UZI in a CMP case, above, I got from the Civilian Marksman Program for one of my M1 carbines.  But then I found this great violin case:

uzi case red

uzi case blue

uzi case empty

I found these violin case online from http://shop.akases.com for $245.00 and I ordered one immediately.

I will update this post when I receive it.

Building the Semi-Automatic UZI -Part 6 of 6 Test firing the UZI

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See parts 1-5 for instructions to source the parts and built your own Fully Legal semi-automatic UZI carbine.  I was delayed almost two weeks because of bad weather and a one week business trip, before I could take my new fun toy to the outdoor range and test it.

Above of pictures taken during the first firing of the finished Semi Automatic Uzi Carbine at the local gun range.

So my son and I took the completed UZI to the local gun range and we finally got to see if it would work. The UZI takes a little while to get used to, because of the grip safety.  This is the only gun I own that has a grip safety. So you have to push in the grip safety completely while you pull the trigger or nothing will happen.

I loaded the magazine, engaged the safety and the gun fired perfectly. This video below is a video of the actual first time, the gun has been fired.

There are 5 posts under the category Building the Uzi that explain where to get the receiver and parts and how to put them together. It has been a fun build and it did not take much skill other than to figure out how the parts went together.  I am completely happy with the build and I might even do it again and build a UZI pistol next time.

If you build yourself one from these directions, let me know if I missed anything.

Thanks and enjoy  Freddy

Building the Semi Automatic Uzi – Part 5 of 6 : Bolt and Final Assembly

See Parts 1 through 4 for the steps that need to be done, before you finish the build in this post.

Install the Folding Stock and Retaining Bolt.

The stock needs to be installed now before you install the bolt. Because the retaining bolt sits behind bolt and buffer block.

The round part of the retainer nut, hangs out the back of upper receiver.

Here is the stock I used. There several types of metal and wooden stocks available. You may have to use a wooden stock with this gun, depending on gun laws in your state.  In my state, I can use anything.e an

Look at the back of the Uzi upper receiver. This is a round hole.  You put the retainer inside the upper receiver and it will stick out a little bit. You now take the stock and align it with the back of the receiver and you can insert the bolt and screw through the hole at the back of the receiver into the retainer bolt.  You need to keep pressure on the retainer nut, while you screw in the bolt.

Once hand tightened, you need a allen/hex bit or driver to completely tighten the stock.  Once the bolt has been completely tightened, you can fold the stock under the receiver.

Assemble the Striker

The 3 holes in the different pieces must line up.

Take the black cylinder with a ridge on the end of it and insert it to the striker as shown above.  Not the holes in the black cylinder, the striker assembly and the firing pin itself. You must line up those holds and then inert the pin through all three items in order to hold it in place. Then insert the firing pin spring on the black cylinder.  The spring slides over the black cylinder.

Here is what the Striker looks like when it is finished.

assembled striker

Recoil Spring

The recoil spring is a large spring that will push the bolt back forward again to load another bullet and cock the action.

When you buy it separately or in a parts kit, it comes with a hard cardboard tab at the end of the spring. Very carefully cut the cardboard off without damaging the spring.

Here it is before

And after you cut off the orange brown tab.

Install Extractor into the bolt assembly

Here are the extractor and the pin that holds in in the bolt

extractor and pin

bolt and pin alignment

You can tell which end of bolt that the extractor is installed into but located the hole on the side of the bolt for extractor retaining pin. Then slide the bolt into the bolt assembly. Line up the notch in the extra to the hold and push the retaining pin in.

After the extractor is installed the inside of the bolt should look like this:

extractor position

Installing the Blocking Latch

The blocking latch prevents (or at least reduces) the possibility of having a round go off out of battery. If the round doesn’t chamber properly for any reason (bad ammo, dirty gun,…).  the a small spring and a small pin hold it in place. The spring and latch look like this:

latch and spring

It is inserted into the rear of the bolt assembly into a next to where the extractor was inserted.  Here is a diagram of the locations where the extractor and the blocking latch are inserted into the bolt.

Bolt assembly

Striker and Bolt

Put the striker spring on the opposite side of the firing pin on the black clyinder. Then insert the  large recoil spring in the round hold in the rear center of the bolt.  It will look like this:

striker into bolt

Twist the striker assembly so the black lever fits into the groove on the right side of the bolt.

Here is a closeup of the two components fitting together.

closeup striker into bolt

Take the black buffer block and position it so the recoil spring goes in the hold at the top and the striker spring does into the larger hole at the bottom.

completely assembled bolt, striker, and buffer

Be careful with the whole assembly, it is not fixed together. The components will fall apart if you are not careful.

Now you take the whole assembly and insert it ,buffer block first into the back of the receiver.  You will have to compress the spring by compressing the bolt towards the buffer block.  The buffer block will slip mostly out of site under the top cover catch and rear site assembly.  It will look like this.

bolt in gun

Once the buffer block is in place under the rear site/top latch, keep compressing the spring until the whole block fits into the receiver.

Now you can put the top cover on.  You will have to push the top cover latch back to put the top cover on. Then release it and it should spring forward and hold the top cover on.

top cover

Joining the top Receiver and the Bottom receiver

The bottom of the top receiver has a hole with a tab on the front of the bottom receiver will fit into.  Here’s the bottom of the receiver. I have circled in red the areas where the bottom receiver/pistol stick will attach to:

where lower attaches

So take the bottom  receiver/pistol grip stick and a angle and try to get the tab to fut into the opening (red circled).

lower into upper

Once you have the bottom part inserted into the tab of the upperpart, then push the bottom towards the upper until it touches.

Then a pin mm is inserted through one side of upper, through the lower and out of the other side of the upper. Use a rubber hammer to push the pin through The hole win the pin is inserted is circled in red in the picture below.

Here’s the pin

Try to Dry Fire it

Once the pin is installed, you are done, the built is complete. You can now test to see if the components are properly installed by pulling back on the cocking handle on the top cover, then releasing it.

Now try to dry fire it by simultaneously holding the grip safety and pulling the trigger.  If it goes click, then you are mostly likely ready to test it with blanks or real bullets.  If it does not dry fire, you may have to take the upper and lowers apart and the top cover off to inspect the fit of the parts, or to see if there is something impeding the bolt or the trigger.

Here is my finished semi-automatic UZI Carbine. In my final post, I am taking the gun to the range and will have pictures and video of the first time we shoot it.

UZI Build Complete

Building semi automatic Uzi – Part 4 of 6: Assembling the new receiver

Both Sites, top catch, and barrel catch instructions

In the first three posts, we took a brand new semi automatic Uzi receiver and some Uzi parts from a parts kit and painted some of the parts. We also changed out the fully automatic sear for a semi automatic one, and we had a piece of mental welded into the Pistol stick grip to satisfy the ATF rules on converting a fully auto pistol grip/receiver to a semi auto one.

Putting together the Rear Site/Top cover

Before you can install the rear site, you must put the top cover latch and spring in place in the rear part of the Uzi receiver. They go right under where the rear site will be assembled.

These are the parts.  Nut for the real site screw is not shown.

Parts that make up the top cover latch and rear site.

The latch I got in the parts kit and the spring are shown in the picture below.  They were a little beat up, and I ended up replacing them with new parts.  Also, the surface of the receiver got scratched up when I had to bend the tabs that hold the top catch in place.  Since this area is covered when everything is installed, I didn’t feel I needed to touch it up.

Top cover catch and spring

Do not push the latch in all the way yet, there is a metal piece that goes over the spring and the latch and snaps on to the ends of the metal tabs.  It keeps the spring and latch under press and keeps it from shooting out from the end of the gun. This is what it looks like:

This part holds the top cover latch and spring to the receiver and acts as a base for the rear site

The front is at the right. The rear as at the left. Push the catch and the spring in and this snaps over both of them on to the tabs on the receiver.  The little rising area in the top of it is used to give the rear site some pressure and hold it in either of two positions.

Once this piece is in, you can put the rear site into place. There is two holes on the sides of the area where the site goes.  The screw goes through one side, and through the rear site and out the other side. A special nut is then put on the bolt to hold it in place.

rear site assembled above the top cover latch assembly

The parts that make up the front site

This is three pieces. A washer, the front site , and the front site nut.

This is a hole at the top front of the receiver.Put washers, then nut, then screw in the front site. You can use your fingers to twist it in, or you can buy a uzi front site adjusting tool for fine tuning the site after the gun build is finished.

Barrel and Barrel Catch

If you look at the front of the receiver. Look to the left where the barrel goes. This is a small opening in the receiver, right above the  barrel.  This will hold a Spring and the Barrel Catch.  This device holds the barrel in place.  When installed press the Barrel Catch and then you can unscrew the barrel nut

Barrel Catch and Spring

barrel catch installed above barrel

Installing the Barrel and Nut

Since this is a semi auto receiver, you can only use semi auto barrels. This receiver has been designed that full auto barrels do not fit. This a a half moon ridge on the top of barrel and there is a similar half moon ridge on the receiver. When place together it fits perfectly. Full auto barrel would not fit.  Once you have the half moons put in the correct positions the barrel snaps into the trunnion with a perfect fit.  You then screw on the barrel nut.  When the barrel nut is almost in place, you may have to press the barrel catch down for the last few turns. When you release the barrel catch, it firmly holds the barrel nut in place.  To remove barrel, you will have to hold the barrel catch down for the first few turns as well

Top Cover alternation to Full Auto Cover

If you are using a semi auto Uzi top cover, then you need to make no alternations.
But if you are using a cover from a full auto Uzi parts kit, then you need to make one change to make it legal.

How can you tell which Uzi top oover that you own. It’s very easy. Pull the cocking handle on the top. Then let go. It should  slide back when you release it.  That’s semi auto.
Do you hear a ratcheting noise and when you stop pulling the cocking, level does it stop without going all the way back, well then you got the full auto top cover.

Some people suggest taking the cocking knob and corresponding assembly on the other side apart. I have a much easier way.

This is what the cocking lug looks like when it take it apart from the top cover (Don’t do it)

Under normal conditions you could just unscrew the screw in the cocking knob that goes though the top cover and attaches to this cocking lug.  Unfortunately, most of these screws have been staked. They will not easily come out without drilling or ruining the screw.

Look closely at this assembly. There is a wire tab sticking out the front of the assembly. Just take some pliers grab it and pull it off. This is what it looks like:

Once this wire has been removed, the cocking level should pull back without any pressure, when you release it, it should slide all the way forward.

Here’s a diagram with an arrow pointing to the wire that should be removed.

Top cCover Wire Removal

You are finished with the Uzi top cover modification and the exterior parts on the Uzi Receive.

In the next and final post, we will assemble and install the bolt and finish the build.  I also have pictures and video from the range, where we fired it for the first time.

Building the Semi Automatic Uzi : Part 3 of 6 : Painting

See Part1 and Part 2 Painting the Receivers In previous steps, I gave you the links on where to buy the fully welded and ready to go receiver and a completion kit that contained the parts you needed to build the Uzi.  In this part, I go into surface prep for the receiver and pistol grip.

The McKay Receiver came unfinished and looked like this:

receiver in natural steel

And the Pistol Grip lower receiver was used and looked beat up:

So I found some NITROCELLULOUSE GUN COATING: at D+D Sales for $14 a can. One can would do several complete uzis. Here are the specs:

1. Bonds to aluminum or steel
2. No baking required:
3. Ready for assembly in 1 (one) hour.
4. 1 hr – Very High Resistance to gasoline and oil.
5. Paint Receiver, individual parts, and barrel. Thin coating allows painting inside the receiver and all other gun parts. Use single coat on internal parts or 2 light  coats to allow free operation of parts. Use multiple thin coats for best results, where binding of parts is not a concern.
6. Post application temperature tolerance 250 degrees.
7. For optimum bonding sand blast before painting or sand and clean with course steel wool and clean with lacquer thinner before painting.
8. IF SAND BLASTING IS NOT POSSIBLE: CLEAN WITH course steel wool and Acid wash with DILUTE muratic acid (HCL hydrochloric acid), (Pool acid). Dilute to 1/5; (Some bubbling will occur; remove after 15 minutes.
9. CAUTION:Do not breath fumes and use Rubber Gloves. Very hazardous if inhaled and it smells pretty bad.

Here is the receiver after several light coats. Here is the pistol grip/lower receiver with the paint still wet. I had to take all the parts off  to paint it. If your Uzi Cover is beat up, you probably want to take that apart and paint that as well. Magazine Catch, Semi Automatic Sear, Trigger and grip safety Assembly This diagram should help you assemble the rest of the internals and grip safety. Put the mag catch on first. The order you assemble the rest of the components have to be in this order, otherwise they don’t fit.

1. Grip Safety, and spring. Attaches in the rear.
2. Selector button and lever and spring. on the side of the stick
3. Sear and pin. Inside the front of the receiver part.
4. Trigger and pins. Near the front
5. Grip and screws. On the outside of the stick.
6. Now you have a completed lower receiver pistol stick.

The next chapter will cover assembly the upper Uzi receiver.

Uzi has been finished

Hey I am off this week and the final parts came in yesterday. So I built the Uzi today. I plan to bring it to the range tomorrow for testing.  And the next parts of the series should be showing up by the end of the week.