German FG 42 Type II Museum Quality Replica Non-Firing Automatic Rifle by Shoei of Japan with Sling – Serial 00187 Original Items

Replica Item: The FG 42 (Fallschirmjägergewehr 42, “paratrooper rifle 42”) is a selective-fire 7.92×57mm Mauser automatic rifle produced in Germany during World War II. The weapon was developed specifically for the use of the Fallschirmjäger airborne infantry in 1942 and was used in very limited numbers until the end of the war.

It combined the characteristics and firepower of a light machine gun in a lightweight form slightly shorter (but considerably bulkier and heavier) than the standard-issue Karabiner 98k bolt-action infantry rifle. Considered one of the most advanced weapon designs of World War II, the FG 42 influenced post-war small arms development, and many features of its design, such as general shape, stock style, gas-rotating bolt operation (itself copied from the Lewis gun) and sheet metal and plastic construction were copied by the US Army when they developed the M60 machine gun.

Japanese company Shoei manufactures the highest quality, most accurate machine gun replicas on the market today. However, their FG42 has been out of production for many years. When it originally came to the market the retail value was $2500. Now that no more are available these have become nearly impossible to find and deactivated original FG42 are never encountered and the one that did emerge in the UK in the early 2000s sold for over $30,000.

This example is Serial #00187, with a 20 1/2″ barrel. This replica is not capable of being fired. The rifle is made of metal parts which are in excellent condition and have very little to no handling wear. The top of the receiver plate is marked “fzs/u“, similar to the original German markings. The laminate wood forearm and buttstock are in great shape, though there is cracking around the pins that secure the center portion in place. The rifle features a brown plastic pistol grip, which is in great shape.. Other features include flip-up front and rear sights, a folding bipod and a spike bayonet. It includes one original magazine, correctly marked “MADE IN JAPAN”.

This is a quality 1:1 scale copy of the FG42 paratrooper machine gun popular with modern re-enactors. Shoei manufactured these replica guns to be an exact copy and to be disassembled and operated the same as the original. These are all steel, everything moving as needed, fully cocking when the charging handle is pulled back, and trigger to fire the bolt forward. The best of the best in replica dummy Firearms which has now become a collectible in its own right.