NEWS

Updated December 24, 2009

Gentlemen,

I have some Great News to share with you! Though, this news is bitter sweet for me personally.

As you all know I have been having trouble finishing the FG project because of financial set backs in this deal wrecking economy. Because of these problems and my word to you all to do what ever it takes to finish this project, I have made a deal with Estes Adams and his partners, who have the machining ability and financial resources to finish the FGs in a timely manor.

I have now transferred all the parts and files to them so that they can go forward. All of the sales files and records of payments and deposits have been transferred as well and they will of course honor all preexisting orders and payments so you have nothing to fear as far as your orders go and you could not be in better hands.

I would also like you all to know that I have made this transfer with no monetary gain to myself and at this point it is a total loss for me personally and financially, the only reward I will receive is 6 complete guns, AFTER you have all received your orders and been satisfied.

Estes is very well equipped to finish the project and has the backing of some other friends in the industry. He has been working on the FGs from the start so he knows them well and will finish them to the same high standards I would have.

I will continue to be available by phone if any of you would like to discuss technical aspects of the FGs, however, I am in no way connected to the new group that has been formed to complete the project and I can not answer any questions about their production time or schedules. All e-mails that are sent through this web site will automatically be forwarded to them. I am only providing technical support to them on an as needed basis if they need it. Other than that I have no knowledge of their business. 

It is with great sadness and disappointment that I have come to this but I am committed to the satisfaction of each and every one of you who put your trust in me and the FG42 project. I know that in the end I will still feel the pride of seeing my design become a successful well enjoyed rifle in the gun world.

You all have My very best Regards and wishes of Happiness and Grace for the Holiday season. 

David  

Updated Jul 27th, 2009

Greetings all fellow FG42 enthusiasts,

In the 2 odd years since the FG42 design was approved by the ATF you and I have come a long way together with this project and all your patience has been greatly appreciated. However, I now find myself at a great crossroad with the project and I ask you all to please read the following letter, think long and hard, then respond with your comments.

As some of you know, my main business interest other than the FG42 project is the WaveWalker pedal powered kayak of which I am the co~inventor and main partner. I had started and run this company for a number of years before starting the FG42 project and it had grown and become a nice small business so much so that we were courted by several larger manufacturers to sell out to them and after awhile entered into negotiations and a contract with a larger plastics manufacturer by the name of Ameriform. We then turned over all our tooling, manufacturing rights, and distribution for the WaveWalker to them. I thought this would be a very good thing to do as I needed to devote much more time and energy to the FG42 and the income from the sale of the WaveWalker Company would insure success of the FG42 project. Then, the economy collapsed and Ameriform, being a huge manufacturer for the auto industry, wound up slipping into receivership several months ago and then, holding true to the domino effect, stopped paying me and it wound up for all practical purposes destroying the WaveWalker project and greatly limiting the funds that I can devote to the FG42 project. Though we have now recovered the tooling and molds it was too far down the tubes and too much money owed to be resurrected and so I have had to file the WaveWalker Company into Chapter 13. Having said this, and although it is not directly related to the FG42 project, I must look hard and fast at the FG project as it has been and always will be a true labor of love even though it makes little economic sense at this point. This brings me to the huge crossroad mentioned above and this is where I need help from all of you. Some of you have become impatient and started demanding the return of your deposits and even though I can understand this because it has been a long time there must be a simple choice made. If I have to return deposits at this point or enter into legal battles with a few of you then I will have to file the project into reorganization because I will not waste another dollar on ridiculous attorney fees, this way it will stand some chance of success for the rest of us. The only other option is liquidation, which will kill the project making us all lose. This last option is certainly not the one I would choose as I have 100’s of thousands of dollars and several years tied up in this project and it is so close to fruition. I have always looked at this project as a partnership between you buyers/enthusiasts and myself to make this project feasible and possible, infact; it can be done no other way. After stating all of the above, let me say that I am willing to take on a financial partner or two if any of you have the remaining 350-450K I need to complete the project. At this point I am willing to do almost anything to see the project be successful. If any of you have constructive ideas or can help, let me know asap. I will talk to any of you on my phone but please if you are going to be angry or belligerent I will not accept those types of calls as it will not get us anywhere and will waste both our time. So let’s all work together to make this a very successful project for us all.

If after the FG’s are out the few of you still want a refund instead of following through on your purchase I will gladly refund your deposits in full at that time.

Once again thank you all. Also look at the photos of all the new parts that are being made even with the budget constraints. You see it is happening and the project will be completed even if it takes me another year.

P.S. I was out of pocket for the past few weeks and was not available by phone but am back now.

Update for April 22, 2009

Update for January 7, 2009

Hello to all of you and Happy New Year!

It was a pleasure to see some of you at the SARS show at the beginning of December.

The project is coming along nicely as you can see from the recently added photos. Just look at the incredible forward hand guards, they are identical to the originals and Estes has outdone himself again. Estes picked up the gauntlet when our vender for them conceded he could not manufacture them after all. Once again Estes THANK YOU for pulling the FG fanny out of the fire. You’re a Saint and scholar.

We are continuing to work on the small parts and sub-assemblies and getting them all ready for the glorious day when we finally have the receivers to assemble the complete rifle. 

Best regards to you all and I hope that you all have a very prosperous and very happy New Year in spite of all of the BS going on in the world.

David

November 12, 2008 *HOT!

Update for November 2008

Gentlemen,

The dust has now settled from the election and boy howdy did the country make a left hand turn. To alleviate my concerns regarding the new president elect and the time it will take for me to complete the project, I contacted the legislative organization of the NRA regarding the ability of the new president to resurrect the old assault weapons ban or cause new problems with an executive order. They agreed with me that there’s no way an executive order can resurrect the old assault weapons ban that sunset 4 years ago. However, he can limit or stop importation of all guns or gun parts with an executive order which would not affect me or my FG project at all. Having laid my fears to rest we’re obviously going ahead full steam to complete the project. The only thing we must watch for is if they bring new legislation calling for gun bans of any kind but I think  it cost them so dearly before the mid-term elections in 1994 after the original assault weapons ban that they will not try any new legislation until after the mid-term elections in 2012. But I do expect an executive order banning importation of guns and/or parts fairly quickly after the new administration takes office.

It has also come to my attention from one of my customers and strong supporters that there is some scuttlebutt going around on gunboards and discussion forums that somehow I have been sued and lost possession of my prototypes. All I can say is whoever is saying this is full of BS, as all of my prototypes are safe and sound right here with me and I have not been engaged in any lawsuit whatsoever. It seems people just like to make up things to hear themselves talk or seem important.

Once again thank you all for your continued support and faith in the project.

My highest and best regards to you all,

David

October 12, 2008

Gentlemen,

Right now I’m anxiously waiting for the first 3 receivers to be completed in 3 different alloys of steel. As soon as this is done they will be sent to the test facility to determine which alloy will provide the toughest most durable rifle possible. This is the only way I can increase the life of the rifle. When this is complete I will have the first production receivers within 3 months and the total production completed within 6 months.

The website is under the management of a new fellow (Eric) who does an outstanding job for several other gun sites as well. With his help the website will be updated and added to on a much more frequent basis so please watch for the updates as some will be awesome. I have even thought of having a blog section added to the site so that many of you can talk, buy, sell and trade amongst yourselves. So let me know if this is of interest to you and I will have Eric put one up if several of you let me know that you would like to see it.

(Note from Eric: "Hey all...it is a pleasure to work on this site...over the next few weeks you will see some amazing updates, so stay tuned")

I truly apologize for how long it is taking to complete the FG project. But as you know I have to manufacture each and every part and cannot rely on cobbling together parts kits to make this rifle. The receiver has given me the most trouble because I chose to not only make it identical to the original but to make it in the same way as the original so that every tool mark and finish would be identical. I could have chosen to make it on a 5-axis milling machine and though it would have looked similar, you simply cannot reproduce the tooling and cutter marks that the original has with this process.  My receivers start as a hammer forging and then are broached through the center axis for the bolt and op-rod and then milled on copy mills with the same type of tooling and cutters that were used on the original. This is the ONLY way I’ve found to capture the unique tooling marks and soul of the original rifle. After this the receiver is case hardened to minimize stress, friction and also improve service life. Even the stamped butt stock and pistol grip are case hardened. All in all I am sparing no time or expense to give you the finest possible rifle money can buy.

I have heard all the rumors that there is someone in Europe who is also making a copy of the FG42 and will try to import it into the US. Let me tell you that I have seen his work and his rifle and even though it looks similar to an original FG42 it is missing many small details that assure it does not have the spirit of the original FG42. Also, his semi automatic conversion will not pass the ATF in its present form and I will not allow him to violate my design patent so that it will pass. As with several of his other works, he has cut every corner possible in trying to get his FG out before mine and in my opinion he is making a very dangerous firearm.

To all of you who have reserved rifles and been so patient I humbly thank you and your patience will be rewarded with a rifle that will be an extremely fine collector item from the moment you receive it.

Highest and best regards to you all,
David

• FINALLY! The ATF approval has arrived for the receiver blanks. (See letter) We are now pulling out all the stops and should have the first blanks by December or January 2008. Shipment of the first completed rifles will be coming shortly after. “We’re getting close now folks! I am so excited I can hardly stand it!” says David Wilcoxen, FG42 President.
• The final planned price increase is now in effect from Oct 1, 2007. So, all of you who took advantage of the pre-production savings can slap yourselves on the back for having the foresight to order when you did and save money.
• Check out the most recent photo of the Unfinished FG42-Semi Receiver Forging.

• David Wilcoxen, FG42 President, has returned from a European visit to our partners, LuxDefTec (Luxemburg Defense Technology) from July 24 - July 27.
• During this European trip, final approval was made on the stamp dies for the: butt stock, pistol grip, magazine and bi-pod legs. The stamp dies will ensure that each part is precisely identical for every FG42 produced and that they are identical to original FG42s.
• Also, during the European trip, he signed off on the receiver blanks as discussed with the BATF but the final, final will depend on the approval letter.
• Look at the photos of the Rapid Prototype receivers and see if you can tell the differences between the finished receiver and the 70% receiver.
• Please check back regularly for more updates on the much anticipated limited edition FG42 rifle.

• The FG42 is very close to receiving ATF approval of the receiver blanks. FG42 President, David Wilcoxen, says... “Even though the first pattern was turned down I am fairly confident the second one will pass with flying colors”.
• Update on C&R (Curios and Relics) status: Unfortunately, the FG42 has been declined for C&R status, but we have been asked to re-submit after being on the market for 6-months.
• The first FG42 receiver has been turned down for import into the United States. But, we were able to discuss revisions to the receiver and sent another “rapid prototype” after making the necessary changes to it, we should gain the necessary approval for import soon now.