Reader Forum

Unfiberglassing a Mag Box I have an old Bishop stock that has the mag box fiberglassed in. Any suggestions on how to remove it without wrecking the stock? There are no magic elixirs for dissolving firmly set up fiberglass. After speaking with a couple of stockmaking firms, we can suggest a few possibilities’all of which assume your old stock is not plastic. You could apply heat to the inner sides and bottom of the mag box to soften the fiberglass.

Be aware that fiberglass (the resin, not the glass) will burn like most other petroleum derivatives. You might also try to work a small hobby saw between the stock and the sides of the mag. This won’t accomplish much in the way of freeing the base of the mag from the stock. For this, you may have to fashion a "minichisel" from drill rod, sharpen and harden it, and chip away at the bonded area the best you can.

For this proposed "cure," we recommend that the area of the existing stock around the mag base be taped to prevent any splitting. Our final suggestion is to throttle the character who used the fiberglass in the first place. Noble Action I have a Noble Model 67X Deerfield 12-gauge pump with a 3-inch chamber. It appears to have been made in January 1968 (my guess because there is a star followed by a 1 followed by a 68, and was ordered around that time).

My problem is that I haven’t been able to find a replacement handlebar tube assembly. The closest I came was Numrich Gun Parts item #11520. The diameter and length were fine, but theirs is a one-piece welded unit that slides in from the front. The one I have is two-piece. The bar slides in through the back of the receiver, and the tube is tapped on the end. I don’t see repairing the tube collar as an option, since previous attempts only worsened it.

I realize that the gun has no real monetary value, but it has an extreme amount of sentimental value. I am attaching a photo. Any help would be greatly appreciated. We think you have a Model 66X but that would be difficult to confirm, since Noble went out of business in 1971. You might try other parts sources’Jack First is one’but the "parts- Technical Assistance Hotline To access AGA’s Technical-Assistance Hotline, call between 1 and 3 p.m. ET, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday only.

For assistance at all source list’ from Brownells, which is dedicated to obsolete and out-of-production guns, could provide your best chance of finding an action assembly. There is no charge for the list, but you’ll run up your phone bill checking out the possibilities on the list. Gold-Bead Sights I have a question about the front sight on a 1911A1. I’ve been looking for information on how to install a gold bead on the front sights of pistols and revolvers.

From what I’ve found, this was the choice of many a gunman in the 1930s through the 50s. There are some shops that still do this type of work. I’d like to learn how it’s done. Most people would say to replace the sight with a night sight, but, for me, "old school" still works in 2006. Thanks for your time. After quick consults with Pistolsmiths Guild members and a reread of the section on sight enhancement on the M1911 in George Nonte’s Pistolsmithing, we’ve come up with the following suggestions: 1. While Mr.

Nonte doesn’t specifically mention gold beads, you can grind the existing front sight perfectly flat, then drill and tap the slide to accept a shotgun bead with a smalldiameter stem. The stem must not drag the barrel or bushing after installation, and red Lok Tite is recommended to secure the threads. You then have a choice of opening up the rear sight notch to accommodate the bead width or installing anew rear adjustable, such as a Millett, with a rear notch already wide enough.

If you elect the latter, be certain the height of the new rear and revised front sight correspond. 2. Few revolvers have front blades dan email to Chick Blood, Technical Editor, at

(continued from previous page) thick enough to drill and tap. For these, you’ll have to add soldered-on pieces, file the result to conform to the original shape of the front sight, then drill and tap for a bead as described for the M1911. However, placement of the bead on the thicker sight can present point-of-impact problems unless the revolver is equipped with an adjustable rear sight’and even then the height of the rear and positioning of the bead might not complement each other.

On the other hand, "Fast Fix Freddie," last name omitted by request, has a couple of ideas whereby you can avoid the drilling, grinding, and tapping. He suggests you affix a gold wire, flattened and formed as you wish, to the rear of the front sight with steel-reinforced epoxy. Either that or first paint the rear of the front sight with yellow paint, cover the dried yellow with gold metallic paint, and then paint over both with clear nail polish. Double Trouble I have a Model 70 in .30-06, manufactured in 1973.

The problem is the safety will not move from the fire position. I took the rifle to a full-time gunsmith in January. He took the bolt apart and everything seemed okay, put it back together and it worked. I then fired two or three rounds and it’s back stuck again. This has the gunsmith scratching his head. The original owner had fallen with the gun and stuck the barrel in the mud. Everything was cleared out and cleaned before firing.

I found the stock broken and fixed it, along with glass bedding and fully floating the barrel. Any ideas or suggestions? I have a second problem with an S&W 4506 semi-auto. I bought it used, and it’s a very clean and smooth piece. In single-action with the hammer cocked, the trigger has a small "glitch," but otherwise is okay. I’ve only fired nine rounds of factory ball.

My duty 5906, my personal 5904, and my friend’s 1006 or 4506 didn’t have this "glitch." The "glitch" is like the trigger is slipping by something rather than hanging. Letters and emails to Smith & Wesson about this piece have gone unanswered, although they had the piece back before they shipped it to CDNN in Abeline, Texas, for resale. (That’s who I bought it from.) What’s up with Colt? A posting on Numrich’s forum says they are now owned by an Iraqi, their website says as much.

In the Model 70, the safety is supposed to raise the firing pin off the sear. More precisely, it’s supposed to raise it 40 to 60 thousandths. When it fails to do so, it usually means someone, perhaps the original owner who sounds to be a somewhat awkward fellow, has "overqualified" the firing pin’which is a fancy word for reducing its diameter excessively. Install a fresh firing pin in the rifle. If this doesn’t resolve the problem, we suggest you send the gun to Browning-WInchester (Utah) for anew bolt.

The safety system will be requalified according to factory specifications in that process. We can’t be certain what you mean by "glitch" regarding the S&W. Usually the term is employed as a synonym for "hitch." But your description of "slipping by something" would seem to eliminate hitching, snagging, or dragging. This makes us suspect the problem could be related to an improperly installed sear or searspring, or possibly a damaged SA notch on the hammer.

Silver Pigeon Safety Please tell me how to change the safety on a Beretta 687 Silver Pigeon so that it doesn’t automatically go on "safe" when the gun is closed. This makes it difficult to shoot skeet with the gun. Also, can you tell me where I can get a shop/service manual for this gun? Jr. There are two types of Silver Pigeon shotguns made by Beretta. One is afield gun; the other is a sporting-clays gun. The field gun features a safety that goes "on" when the gun is closed.

The sporting clays gun has no such safety, since it was never intended to be carried afield where an accidental discharge is more likely to occur. Beretta will not alter the safety in the field version of the Silver Pigeon to serve as a skeet gun. Nor do we advise it. A local gunsmith might tackle the job if he’s willing to accept liability for any possible injury resulting from the modification.

If no such individual can be found, you or your customer will simply have to remember a Silver Pigeon field shotgun has a safety that must be disengaged prior to bringing the gun to shoulder. There is no shop or service manual available to the public, but drawings and an owner’s manual can be found at