Reader Forum

Hints for Gunsmiths When I retired from the Army, I had the task of finding anew job. As most retirees know, after your time in service, starting out in the civilian world can give one fits. I finally landed a job in a family owned machine shop. There I started learning about lathes, presses, drills, and many other equipment used in making parts and pieces. I only stayed there for a short time, but the knowledge and experience gained was valuable. One thing many gunsmiths love finding is scrap!

Pins, unfinished parts, and pieces. Scrap stock pieces, assorted steels, brass, bronze, aluminum, and what not. Sometimes broken drill bits, saw blades, and old tools. All this can be had for pennies on the pound. I’ve made a few brass hammers with scrap with brass heads, steel handles, and apiece of old air hose slipped onto the handle for a better grip. Also, shops sometimes sell off their old multiple drawer parts cabinets very cheap.

If you work there, or have a friend who does, they sometimes have deals on micrometers, calipers, and assorted gages. All you need to do is ask. The worse they can say is no. If you do get permission to dig through their scrap bins or drums, wear an apron if you have one, and definitely wear gloves. Metal slivers can be annoying and painful. There will be times you’ll need a weird size pin, a small plate to make apart, or even apiece of brass to construct and replace a brass piece on a muzzleloader.

All this can be had for pennies rather

than spending dollars on apart you can make. There is the enjoyment of the hunt and the surprise when you find unexpected treasures. Frederick ‘Ski’ Ludwikowski Suppressors Letter In the July 2020 Reader Forum about suppressors, David Allen Dumeah seems to be describing the distortion of the barrel OD resulting from supporting the ends of the barrel during turning. To see if the bore is reasonably straight, insert a rod through the barrel as one would while checking alignment of the installed suppressor.

The rod should be 0.006-0.010" smaller than the land diameter of the barrel. Precision-ground, polished, hardened-steel rods in suitable diameters can be purchased from Mc Master-Carr (McMaster.com, SAAMI specs for the caliber under consideration can also be found online to help in determining what sizes of rods to order. Be sure to round off and polish the ends of the rods before using them.

While the undersize dimension may sound too loose, think about what happens when the direction of the bore changes, even very slightly. The rod will tell the truth! The rod should drop all the way through the bore without the least resistance. If the rod will not pass the barrel, I would not cut it or recommend its use. Cut/crown/thread jobs are one of the mainstays of my business, so I do a lot of them. I see many bores that are not concentric with the outside of the barrel, some not even at the ends.

Clarksville, TN I use several methods to achieve alignment to the bore, including turning between centers when possible, and am not interested in how concentric the bore is to the OD of the tube. I also encourage customers to bring the gun back when they get their suppressors so that we can check alignment (a free service to my customers) before they fire the first shot through it.

A few strokes of a file on the back side of the suppressor or it mounting adapter is usually all that is necessary to center the rod in the suppressor on those few that do not center up at first installation. Most fit without issue the first time they are threaded up. Gene Hall Precision Technical Services, LLC 10mm 1911 Troubleshooting After reading RK Campbell’s June 2020 article I must consider myself lucky.

I have and shoot two Colt Deltas (an old and anew one), a Colt Double Eagle, two Kimber 1911s, and a SIG P220, all in 10mm. To date, I have had no functioning problems with any of them only using ammunition that I have reloaded myself. Accuracy has come down to my aging eyes. I have heard others complain, but I have been lucky. Of course, now that I have expounded on the matter I just might end up having an issue! Thanks to that article I’ve now gained some tips should I encounter a problem with a 10mm.

Thank you for your informative magazine! Robert P. Smith Kingston, PA Ruger 1911 I have a Ruger 1911 in my shop and I’m trying to remove the rear Nova sight. I removed the screw and put in a drop of Kroil, allowed it to soak, then tried to tap it out. No luck. I got a bigger hammer but still no luck. Heating it with a heat gun also did not help. Kenneth W. Wright From RK Campbell. Are you trying to move the sight left to right? Direction may make a difference.

Also consider that just because a slide is stainless does not mean that it can not rust. Stainless steel can pit. There many grades of stainless steel and some are more susceptible to corrosion than others. If that fails you, more force may be needed. A big arbor press can do the business if nothing else will. This last one sounds odd but I have used this before and it worked. Put the slide in the freezer for at least 12 hours. Cold contracts and heat expands.

The slide may shrink just enough off of the sights to let tapping work! AG