Tech Topics

Single action fans, notably those into traditional cowboy-action events, don’t feel too kindly toward screwedon front sights. Real Old West shootin’ irons didn’t come with them as standard equipment. These same competitors, along with hunters, also seem to favor 5-1/2-inch barrels. Considering that, why they buy Ruger Blackhawks, Bisleys, and Vaqueros with longer barrels in the first place is a good question, but gunsmiths can be thankful they do.

Those lengthy barrels will need shortening, crowning, and anew frontsight. That sight should at least "look" like it has been silver-soldered permanently in place. These installations can be accomplished with skill, considerable practice, and the realization that a blued barrel will require rebluing. (Any visible solder seam between barrel and sight base tends to unsettle the owner.) Nowa custom pistolsmith who’s been soldering them on for years comes up with an easier way.

The sight now being offered by Alpha Precision, Inc., eliminates the complications of silver-soldering and the objections to screwed-on attachments. Heat is not required, rebluing is not necessary, the screws are invisible, and the skill level is no greater than with more common screw-on sights. In other words, the Alpha Sight looks as good and stays put as well as the best silver-solder job’with none of the drawbacks.

The sight base is attached to the barrel with three hidden cap screws and accepts interchangeable blades in a choice of four heights. Bases are available in either matte-blue carbon steel or brushed-stainless steel. Blades are matte-blue tool steel, serrated, either post or ramp shaped and can be The blade-retaining set screw can be seen extending from the sight base and four blade heights are available. exchanged at no charge.

In case your shop doesn’t include a mill equipped with a quill-depth gauge, these instructions are directed to a drill-press installation. First, makeup a drill-and-tap depth stop from 3/ 8-inch-diameter x 1/4-inch round stock in your choice of steel, aluminum, or brass. Drill a #31 hole dead center and another to accept a #6 setscrew. This second hole should be made from an outer arc of the stop and into the center cavity. Tap the setscrew hole to accept the selected screw threads, 6-32 for example.

Wrap the cut-off and crowned barrel in paper to protect the finish, and use a V-block to clamp it steady. A small piece of shim stock under the V-block screw will prevent the screw from tearing through the paper. Square the gun in

a vise using the grip frame as a reference, and establish top dead center on the barrel. Mark top dead center with a pencil, position the middle screw hole of the base over the dead-center mark, and retain the base in place with a small, spring clamp. Alpha’s transfer punch is recommended for locating the holes because there’s not enough material in the sight base to use it as a drill guide. Lacking the punch (a $17 optional extra), hole centers can be determined by using the base as a scribing guide.

If you wisely decide to purchase the punch’a precision instrument’ keep it perpendicular and center punch the middle screw location on the barrel. Attach the drill stop to a high speed #31 drill, and adjust it to stop drilling at .095 to .100 inch deep. Transfer the revolver to your machine and true it. Then drill the middle sight base screw hole. Don’t move your setup. You’re going to tap in the machine. Remove the #31 drill and switch the stop over to a 6-48 plug tap.

Use either a center for the tap wrench or a B-Square Tru- Taper and plenty of cutting oil to avoid a fractured tap. Adjust the stop to .090 to .095 inch. When you’re finished with the plug tap, change to a same size bottoming tap, adjust the stop to the same depth, and go back into complete the prep of the base center hole. Clean out any metal chips and oil with a pipe cleaner and acetone. Attach the base with one of the Torx-head screws (supplied) and a #10 Torx wrench (not supplied).

The center screw must bottom out on the base, not the barrel. With the center screw holding the sight in place, you can locate the front and rear holes, drill and tap them as before; make sure they’re bottoming on the base. Apply red Loc Tite to all threads prior to final tightening. But don’t overtighten; the wrench bit could strip the screw heads. And don’t fret over using the red stuff, either.

If the sight base ever has to be removed in the future, all you have to do is heat the screws (individually) to about 350 degrees. This amount of heat won’t change the temper of the barrel or discolor the finish, and will allow removal of the screws without stripping. (How do you heat each screw individually? Apply the tip of an electric soldering iron to them one at a time.) The Alpha front-sight blade slides into the base and is held there by turning in the base set screw.

If it proves to be the wrong height, swap it for a taller or shorter one. As long as you haven’t chewed up or altered the original sight blade, the trade-in cost is nil. The main man at Alpha Precision who came up with this sight is Jim Stroh. He’s been voted Pistolsmith of the Year by the Pistolsmiths Guild, is an NRA Gunsmithing School handgun instructor, and his creations have shown up more than once in these pages.

His headquarters is in Comer, Georg placed by We don’t know as much about the company’s present CEO and Chairman, Ron Coburn, who completed a buy-out of Savage Arms, Lakefield Arms (Canada), and Passive Bullet Traps, Inc., in 1995. According to an article that appeared in The Range Report, published by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the new CEO of Savage became very concerned about lead contamination in the factory resulting from test firing. The article quoted him as saying: "We right on your bench.

While Savage Arms is a name you’ve known for along time, Savage Range Systems may not be familiar to you. The arms company dates to 1894 when it was first set up in Utica, New York, by Arthur William Savage. A couple of years later, he invented the first hammerless lever-action rie web The blade is under a hundred bucks, plus shipping. The finished job should bring you more than enough to cover that.

How to Stop Bullets Safely In Your Shop If you don’t have a range next door, you can test fire the guns you work on The bullet will circle the deceleration chamber until its energy is spent. fle to have its entire mechanism enclosed in a steel receiver. One of the gun’s unique features was a rotary magazine with a counter that displayed the number of rounds remaining. The rifle is known as the M99. Through numerous acquisitions, including J.

Stevens Arms, Page Lewis Co. (Lewis machine guns), Davis- Warner Arms, Crescent Firearms, and A. H. Fox, Savage was the largest firearms company in the free world at one time. After converting its factories over to achieve a World War II production of 2.5 million fully automatic weapons, military rifles, and bomb fuses, the company moved its sporting arms division to Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, in 1947. In 1960, the company relocated to Westfield, Massachusetts.

By all accounts, Arthur Savage led quite an adventurous’ and romantic’life.

E A Dmake 550 guns a day and shoot one proof and two function rounds through each. Air-quality tests found we had airborne lead in the factory, and some employees were found to have lead particles in their bloodstreams. We, like other firearms manufacturers, were using steel smashplate systems in our range. I realized it would make much more sense to slowly decelerate the bullet, as there would be less damage to [the bullet], the steel plates, and far less lead contamination.

He concluded that a better system B Cwould begin with deflection. It would direct a bullet up an inclined steel entrance ramp installed at a precisely calculated angle. From there, the bullet would pass into a deceleration chamber (see the cutaway drawing above) where its energy works against it. During its travels, the bullet would be coated with a biodegradable, noncorrosive fluid to trap any lead dust.

Once the bullet completed its deceleration cycle, it would drop from the bottom of the unit in near pristine condition. That’s exactly what the system he thought up accomplishes. After it was patented, all it needed was a name to The circular vent (E) accepts the hose of a wet/dry shop vacuum, if desired, to eliminate smoke. The wavy line across the bottom indicates the fluid level. telegraph its capabilities.

The name of a lowly mollusk notorious for its torpid nature seemed most appropriate, and the Snail Range System was off and running. Today, the system comes in dozens of variations. The most ambitious among them is capable of digesting .50-caliber BMG projectiles generating 13,000 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle. These "big boys" are used in a full indoor range setup. Down the ladder from them, but accomplishing the same thing, is a Snail System small enough to sit on a gunsmith’s bench.

It is pictured here and called the Gunsmith Series Model GT. Its maximum foot pounds of muzzle energy is rated at 4,100. That’s high enough to handle function testing of handguns and most sporting rifles, although it should never be exposed to armor-piercing, steel-core, or ceramic-tipped ammo. Its recommended usage is up to 50 rounds per day, and we doubt your turnover goes above that. No, it’s not exactly cheap. But it can sure save you time, gasoline, range fees, and wear and tear on your vehicle.

In view of those costs, it shouldn’t take too many months to recover your investment. For more i Savage or visit I

AGARAD5 Amorer’s Course AMG ver., rev., DVD only (coming directly from Belvoir)

AGARAD5 Amorer’s Course AMG ver., rev., DVD only (coming directly from Belvoir)