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Stock work

Working with Gunstocks

 

Working with gunstocks comes with the territory for the gunsmith. For some it is what they wish they could do all the time, others might be happier if guns didn’t have stocks. Personally I enjoy stock work but I don’t seem to make much money when I do. It just seems that there are not many shortcuts when it comes to quality stock work. Maybe having a business plan would be a good idea so you would know what to avoid and what to seek. Of course if you love the smell of walnut and the beauty of a feathered crotch (I’m speaking of a type of walnut!) you have found your place in life and will soon be famous for things of beauty. Let’s break our work down and look at the jobs that frequently come in the gun shop.

Fitting guns is a term used to explain changing the stock dimensions to fit a particular shooter. This line of work requires a thorough understanding of shotgun shooting as well as the gunsmithing skills involved in changing drop, length of pull, pitch and cast off. These specialist are usually in attendance at major shooting events and do a brisk business while there. Many times the fitter will have a try gun which is a shotgun with an adjustable stock so the shooter can adjust and try until he finds the perfect combination of drop, pull and cast. Then the dimensions are measured and recorded so the shooters personal gun can be modified. Attending one of these events is always beneficial and can open up opportunities for learning as well as future business.

Recoil pads and sling swivels are two of the jobs that show up frequently in the shop. While these two jobs seem simple they are high in nuisance value and anything but perfect work will show up and make you look like a novice or worse. Both of these jobs also carry the risk of damaging a fine stock so a little extra for insurance might be a good idea.

The sling swivels must be installed on center and secure but without any chance of splitting. Choose a drill that slightly smaller than the core of the screw you will be installing. Counter sink this hole at least 3/8” with a drill that matches the outside diameter of the screw. This helps prevent the screw from pulling up the wood as it tries to pull itself into the wood. Apply steady pressure downward while starting the screw for best results. For the swivels that have a nut on the back like on the forearm make sure it doesn’t contact the barrel. Also make sure to secure the swivel in the nut so it cannot possibly come out. This is a potential disaster when the swivel breaks and the rifle swings around while the shooter grabs to stop it. A drop of locktite or epoxy on the threads should do the trick.

Most of the time before you can fit a recoil pad you have to cut the stock to length or at least flatten the surface. Seems everybody has a different method for this and you will have to pick something you are comfortable with. For sure it is a lot easier to cut than put back so make certain of your measurements. Length of pull is measured from the trigger to the middle of the pad. Pitch is easier to determine by placing the gun butt down against the wall or vertical straight edge and measuring the muzzle deviation from the vertical. Most guns have a little negative pitch. This allows the butt to slide onto the shoulder without the top edge dragging and makes for more consistent gun mount. Measure other stocks and try them out on the customer. After all the idea is to fit the gun to the customer. I use masking tape and mark my cut with a marking scribe that holds a pencil and cut with a very fine cut hand saw. By letting the saw do the work with minimum pressure and holding both parts until the cut is done I get excellent results. Cutting through the tape help to minimize the saws effect on the finish and make for a smoother edge. Find the cutting method you prefer and practice on old stocks. You want to be confident before that customer comes in with the Superposed grade 12 and wants it 5/16 shorter with 1 3/8 pitch.

I cringe when I read some of the old instructions for installing recoil pads. Some of them actually recommend grinding the pad while it is on the stock. Never try this on a customer’s stock. There are several jigs that allow you to set the angle on the pad and hold it securely for grinding while the pad is attached to the jig. Practice on old stocks by cutting off the stock and refitting the old pad. The more pads you grind and fit the better your skills. This is a much safer way to learn as opposed to wrecking a customer’s stock. Don’t forget to seal the end of the freshly cut stock. The customer will thank you after he spends the day hunting in the rain. Just go slow and allow the sander to cut the pad. If you hurry heat will build and the pad will smear. The finished job should follow the lines of the stock and not have overhang or undercut. Most pad manufacturers have instruction for grinding their pads. They know what works best for their product and their instructions will help you get a great job. If the old screw holes in the stock interfere with alignment of the new pad then drill then out oversize and epoxy a hardwood dowel in the hole. After epoxy has hardened cut off flush and start over with new wood.

It seems that I am seeing more shooters lately seeking recoil reduction with the stock mounted recoil reducers. These are sealed units that have moveable weight inside that distributes the recoil force over a longer time period which takes the peak out of the recoil cycle. If the unit has mercury for the weight remember that the unit only works if the muzzle is pointed up so the mercury is in the back. Don’t put this type in a rifle that will be used from a tree stand. Some of these use the bolt hole already in the stock but you can also drill a hole for it if needed. These are large holes and require careful layout. Additional units can be installed in a recess routed into the forearm under the barrel. This can also balance out the gun but does add a little weight.

Glass bedding is very popular but not very well understood. While I don’t want to write another “how to” about bedding I think it might be more beneficial to go into why. For a rifle to shoot the same spot every time the receiver must rest in the same place in the stock every time. It should be a home without stress but secure enough maintain the gun in this perfect cradle. Before we had epoxy this was really hard to achieve with a wood to metal fit. Wood expands and contracts with the temperature and humidity. Epoxy to the rescue. While liquid it conforms perfectly and hardens to the mirror image of the receiver. Pop out the receiver, trim of the excess, reinstall the missing parts, and you are done. But does it shoot any better?

If the problem was wandering zero or the gun wouldn’t stay sighted in then maybe, but if it didn’t group at all it probably still won’t. For sure epoxy bedding will help and never hurt accuracy it won’t cure problem in other areas. If the problem is a bad barrel then all the epoxy in the world won’t help.

So you have decided to glass bed but which type is best? Do you want to pillar bed? Which type of epoxy? Which release agent? A lot of questions but with a little information you can make the best selection. Select the epoxy that is the easiest to use. I like Acra gel from Brownells. Mixes one to one with plenty of working time and stiff enough to stay put. Spray release from Brownells is the best release agent I ever used. No cleanup, easy to apply and fast. Just don’t forget to use it!

 

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Bedding Rifles

The Importance of Bedding Rifles

 

Some people know where the bedding is located, others have all sorts of ideas about what it does but rare is the person with a good working knowledge about bedding.

Maybe we should start with what it isn’t. It doesn’t cure any of the problems that are anywhere else. When you bed a rifle with a bad barrel, bad crown, crooked chamber or bolt it still has problems. As you will find out when you chase accuracy problems, accuracy doesn’t improve until you fix the last problem. Many customers come in the gun shop seeking miracles in the form of a bedding job. If the gun is shooting huge groups it probably won’t be bedding.

What a good bedding job will do is stabilize groups so that the gun will keep the same zero and sometimes tighten groups that are not round. An example might be the gun that shoots groups 1″ tall and 3″ wide. It might be the barrel settling in a different spot where it touches inside the forend. The real job we ask bedding to do is give the rifle action a perfect fit to the stock in the areas that bear the stress of recoil and attachment. This means behind recoil lugs and under the receiver especially around the guard screws or whatever holds the rifle in the stock. It should be a perfect mirror image of the receiver area and not allow any movement of the receiver but also not place any stress on the receiver. As tough as you might think this receiver is it still can be stressed in such a way that it will affect accuracy. When you consider that a small imperfection can be close to one guard screw, let’s say 1/4 inch behind the front screw. Now the front screw is tightened 50 inch pounds. This causes the rear of the receiver to raise. Now the rear screw is tightened and the receiver bends and flexes as the rear screw with the help of compound leverage from the position of the imperfection and the added effect of the inclined plane of the screw threads put tremendous pressure on the receiver. Don’t forget this was the receiver you labored over for many hours to make sure everything was square and in line. Okay, now you know why you need good bedding!

Let’s look at some of the things that go with synthetic bedding jobs before we start mixing the epoxy! One of the first things to decide will be is this a good idea. Plastic synthetic stocks that are made out of polyethylene plastic are not good candidates for epoxy bedding. This material will not bond with epoxy and the bedding will pop loose from the stock unless anchor holes are drilled in at an angle and these holes filled with the epoxy when applying the bedding. This is a tricky operation because it is hard to force the epoxy into a blind hole without air trapped in the bottom. Much better to discard this stock for a fiberglass or wood stock that will bond with the epoxy.

Next problem is what to do about the barrel and barrel channel. Do you want the barrel to float or touch with some upward pressure? Before you automatically say float the barrel have you ever considered why they build them with the barrel touching at the end of the forend? It isn’t because the factory doesn’t know better, it’s because on factory production type rifles they will group better with a little upward pressure to dampen barrel vibrations. Yes, target rifles have the barrel floated so nothing touches the barrel from the receiver forward but these guns have a lot of extra work done to them to minimize vibrations before they are put in the stock. You should inform the customer that there is no guarantee that the rifle will shoot better after the barrel has been floated and the receiver bedded, in fact it might shoot even shoot a little worse! If the decision is made to float the barrel because the barrel is pushing against one side understand that this correction should be made by properly centering the receiver and not by cutting away at the barrel channel until the barrel stops touching. This will result in an uneven gap on each side of the barrel or a gap big enough to “chase a cat around” if you try to event up.

Next problem is what type of epoxy bedding compound? While there are many types of epoxy out there to try the best advice I can give is stick to using something either well known to give great results or at least something built specifically for bedding rifle and guaranteed. It is too much work to try and save 3 dollars by using a cheap substitute. Remember, the customer is paying for the material and won’t be happy when the gun shoots loose in epoxy that broke or never hardened properly. You will also do better work when you use products that are easy to use with a longer working time. You will need a lot more than 5 minutes to properly apply and center the action in the epoxy. Compounds designed for bedding will have a generous working time. In the past I used Bisonite and Marine Tex with good results but for the last several years Brownell’s Acra Gel and Steel Bed have become my favorites. Generally I prefer the Acra Gel for most bolt gun beddings and use the steel bed for applications that require the maximum in compression strength like M1As and Garands. The Acra Gel seems to have a quality that allows it to absorb vibration. The Garands and similar service rifles don’t have a huge recoil area and I like to have something really hard to stand a lot of pounding. That’s where the Steel Bed excels. Building these rifles for match shooting is a specialty that has almost disappeared since the AR15 have taken over the sport but the occasional job still shows up.

Next question is do I need to pillar bed. The bedding process came about to replace the wood around the receiver with a better material. Wood will swell when it comes in contact with moisture and shrink when it dries out. Even when a receiver was bedded there was a lot of wood left under the bedding between the receiver and trigger guard that could react with moisture and cause changes. Pillar bedding consist of replacing the wood between the bottom of the receiver and the trigger guard around the guard screw. After pillar bedding the pressure from the guard screw will not bear on any wood that could compress or change with the humidity. The pillars can be made of aluminum or steel or any stable material that has sufficient strength. You could make your own on the lathe or purchase from any gunsmith supply business. One often overlooked option is to drill out around the guard screws like you would in a normal pillar installation and then pour in solid glass pillars. You would want to do this with something with great compression strength like Steel Bed. Aluminum Bed or Titanium work great too and save weight if that is a concern.

Bottom line is it has to be bedded to shoot to its full potential. The actual process isn’t rocket science but it does require a good working knowledge about accuracy, which areas bear recoil, strength of materials and most of all a careful workman. Remember, only good work has any value!

 

 

 

 

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The Second Tree

The Second Tree
I always wondered about the second tree. When God made Adam and Eve he had a plan. When they ate the fruit from the “Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil” they were banned from the Garden of Eden. But there was another tree called the “Tree of Everlasting Life.” Never heard much reference made about it but it must have been important.
Some things haven’t changed much since then. When God found them after they had disobeyed he asked Adam if had eaten of the tree the first thing he said was “the woman you made gave it to me”. Or to say “her fault and might even be your fault for making her!” She said “It was the serpent!” And the blame game goes on and on.
My practical side says if God made those two trees it was for a reason. One tree gave the knowledge of good and evil, the other gave immortality. My practical side also says there was no magic fruit except for the power of God. They must have been made for man so why was it wrong for them to eat? Obviously it wasn’t time!
Adam and Eve were in a test period. If they could have trusted God they may have been deemed worthy to eat from both trees. The trees were together in the center of the Garden so they must have been made to work together. Adam and Eve already believed in God. They even took walks with him in the Garden in the cool of the day. They failed when they didn’t trust God. It is a lot easier to believe than to trust. You believe when it is the logical thing to do. You trust when you put that belief into action and have something at stake. I believe the bridge will hold but I don’t trust it till I step out on it.
So what happened? God wasn’t mad and didn’t hate them. They failed and their sin separated them from God. God still loved them and made them coats out of animal skins (Gen 3.21). Then they had to leave the Garden and God and go into the world to make it sort of on their own. But what about the second tree?
God wanted to make sure they couldn’t get to the second tree so he put angels with flaming swords around the tree. Kind of seems like overkill. If they already had gotten thrown out of the Garden did they really need flaming swords?
Apparently God knows more about us than we know about ourselves. He knew they would eventually try to reach the tree. He obviously loved them so he must have wanted to protect them from a terrible fate. But what would be wrong with gaining everlasting life? If that life were to be spent separated from God it would be too terrible to contemplate. Eternity without God would be the cruelest sentence imaginable!
So what about us. Are we guilty and to be punished because they messed up? Not at all! God had a plan and it’s still working. We already have the knowledge of good and evil thanks to Adam and Eve. All we need is a way to remove the sin that separates us from God and we get to eat the fruit of the tree of everlasting life. Our savior Jesus made the sacrifice and paid our debt. If you accept Jesus there is nothing separating you from God. Then after trusting God you can freely eat and gain everlasting life.
I don’t know why it took me so long to figure out the second tree is Jesus!

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The Big Hammer

The Big Hammer

I went to church on Father’s day like so many others and listened to a Father’s Day sermon. It was a well-crafted sermon. The preacher used a small toolbox and related how a father needed some of the qualities of each tool. He explained how a father needs to be level headed as he held up the level. He needed to be able to measure out his love as he held the ruler. He went through every tool in the box and had a message for every tool.
As I sat and listened I naturally thought about working with my Dad. He was a mechanic and I spent my early years working in his outboard motor shop. He was a patient teacher and we worked together well. He would add in a few life lessons along with how metal parts work together as a motor. It was a simple time without things like cell phones or internet so distractions were few. I was blessed.
I inherited my love of unorganized life from my Pop. His work bench looked like a junk pile. Several jobs disassembled at one time and mixed together with broken parts and tools made it look like an impossible task to fix anything. People would look and shake their heads. Organized people would feel so uncomfortable they would leave after a few minutes. I can clean my workbench every morning and before lunch it looks like Pop’s.
My sister is a retired college professor and she explained to me how different people are the way they are. She explained that Pop and I are what researchers call a “random” personality. We don’t plan, we don’t do things the same way and we don’t organize things. We tend to be smart and adaptable. We also tend to drive organized people (called sequentials) to use strong drink and bad language.
In spite of Pop’s disorganized workbench there was something you could find. It was the big hammer. Maybe it was because it wasn’t used that often or maybe just because it was big but it was always there. I don’t exactly how big it was but it was big enough you didn’t use it for a regular hammer. You could tell it was old but it was solid. Pop joked and said it had belonged to George Washington. He would tell this to people and tell them he had replaced the head twice and the handle 6 times but it was still George Washington’s hammer.
I remember working on an outboard motor and having trouble removing the flywheel. Pop had already cautioned me about hitting the shaft with a hammer too hard and swelling the shaft. When I asked Pop what to do he studied the job for a few seconds and said “get the big hammer”. I went in the shop and retrieved it from its place of honor. I remember walking back to the job and wondering what was going to happen. Maybe we were just going to beat the motor apart. This wasn’t the type of hammer used for precision work.
Pop was waiting and took the big hammer when I got back. He put a pry bar under the flywheel and with one soft tap the flywheel was loose. I was surprised. I had already hit it as much as I dared and it hadn’t budged but one tap with big hammer had it loose and it wasn’t damaged.
When I asked Pop how come it had worked so well he had another life lesson. He explained how it wasn’t how hard you hit but how much you had backing you up when you applied yourself to a problem. The other hammer has to hit so hard it damages the part before it makes it move because it is a lightweight but the big hammer has momentum so it only takes a tap.
Like a lot of things he said I understand them better now than I did then back then. I have struggled with many things that would have been easier if I had a big hammer backing me up. Things like making a living are easier if you have a great education backing you up. Getting someone to believe you is easier if you have a reputation for telling the truth. Seems like almost anytime you set out on a task you need something backing you up to give you the momentum to succeed.
When I look around I see other people, businesses and even countries with the same problem. I watch as parents threaten children who scoff because they know they have never been punished before. I see a new business open with wild claims about what they can do with inexperienced employees. Sadly I also watch our leaders as they run for office make promises we know they will never keep. I call it magical thinking. We can borrow money to pay our bills and have enough left over to give money to everybody. If we borrow enough we can buy everything we want and live in paradise. This course of action isn’t backed up by anything but lies and fantasies. We know it won’t work but we want to believe in magic to solve our problems.
As I listened to the preacher’s sermon I thought about how much my Pop was like the big hammer. First he was always there. Not in the way but if I needed him he was close and ready to help me. Second he was a powerful tool. He had the experience of many years work and study backing him up. And third he didn’t overwhelm when I asked him. He could show me how to get it done with without screaming and flailing like a drowning person. He was a great Dad.
When I count my resources I see I have a few big hammers myself. A great family, a lifetime of experience and super friends. But my biggest hammer has to be my faith that it was God who put me here and all my “hammers” are on loan from him. When I have to give them back I want them to be in used condition.

 

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Concealed Weapon Class Sep 23rd 2017 8am

My next class will be Saturday the 23rd of September 2017. I supply the guns and ammo (even lunch!). You don’t need to get or do anything but show up ready to learn.

So why should you drive to Cove City and take my class? Because if you are going to have a gun you should know how to use it correctly and within the law.

As a gunsmith and firearms trainer for over 40 years I have witnessed countless people struggle with their firearms. Maybe they bought the wrong gun but usually its just a matter of training. Most people will lie about their past when it comes to guns. A lot will say “my Daddy taught me how to handle a gun” when in reality he put the gun in their hand and said be careful. You are getting a gun so you will be safer. What a shame if the gun you bought to make you safer does the opposite and now you are the biggest threat your family and friends will face! Safety is absolutely paramount in my class and will become second nature only through training.

There are over 20000 firearm laws in the US. Exactly when does the law allow you to point your firearm?. Exactly when can you shoot? My class will leave you with no doubts as to where you can carry, how to carry and when you can shoot.

No single class can make you proficient with a firearm but in one class you can learn the correct way to train and practice with your gun. You will learn how far away you can accurately hit a target. You will get instant feedback from reactive targets.  You will learn how to engage multiple targets and get to try different types of handguns. You will also get a demonstration of shotgun and rifle use as a they relate to home defense.

For years I shot as a member of several military teams in competition.  We competed with combat rifles and pistols as well as match weapons. Several times we won national competitions. When teams were not competing we were training ourselves and instructing new shooters.  In the process I became double distinguished and a double high master. When I wasn’t shooting or training I was gunsmithing. Put a lifetime of training to work for you and learn what you need to know to survive and protect the ones you love.

It may be the most important $100 you spend

Tim Whealton 2526357246

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freebore, throats and bullet jump

 

Freebore, Throats and Bullet Jump

 

Wow, you broke the bank and went all out to build that super gun and when you went to the range some old codger shot a smaller group than you with his lever gun! It happens all too often but why does one gun shoot better? It might be the first ¼ inch of the long trip to the target that’s the problem.

Even before shooting progressed to breech loading cartridge guns shooters had discovered how important it was to have the bullet enter the rifling straight. Early muzzle loading target rifles had false muzzles that attached to the barrel for loading. The false muzzle was bored and tapered to gently center the bullet and guide it into the rifling. Even after switching over to breech loaders most accuracy enthusiast would load the bullet from the muzzle and only have powder in the cartridge. Why did they go to so much trouble? Because it made a difference. The ones that didn’t load from the muzzle used special tools to seat the bullet in the rifling (called breech seaters) and then loaded the cartridge with powder and a paper card atop the powder to hold it in place.

After jacketed bullets became commonplace muzzle loading was no longer possible due to it being impossible to push the jacketed bullet down the barrel. Modern guns blow the bullet out of the case and it hits the rifling hopefully straight enough to enter and start spinning on center. If a bullet enters the rifling crooked it can’t straighten up. Since the average rifle bullet is spinning over 200,000 rpms you can imagine how much effect this has. The effect is more pronounced as the range increases.

 

So how do we get our bullets started straight? We reduce the tolerances as much as possible and make sure everything is straight. In benchrest rifles we make the neck portion of the chamber slightly undersize and turn our brass to just slide in with zero tolerance. This is good as long as experienced handloaders make the ammo. If such a gun has a standard round of ammo loaded in the chamber it acts like a clamp on the bullet and chamber pressure goes into the danger zone.

After doing the best we can with the neck we turn our attention to the throat. The throat is a short section of barrel at the end of the chamber where the rifling has been removed. The throat allows a bullet to be loaded into the bore. Without a throat the bullets would hit against the rifling and keep the round from going into the chamber. The throat doesn’t have to be the length of the entire bullet, only the length of the bearing section on the bullet that protrudes from the cartridge. In most rifles it is around ¼ of an inch. If the throat is longer the bullet will have more problems maintaining alignment coming from cartridge case to rifling. In most guns the bullet engages rifling before the base of the bearing section has exited the case. If the throat is not concentric and some rifling remains on one side the bullet will be pushed off center. This is a frequent problems and hard to detect unless you know how to look.

Figure 25The 155Palma bullet has a short bearing section. The throat can be shorter

My favorite way to check the throat is to make a casting of the throat with cerrosafe metal. It is a low temperature metal that looks like lead but melts at 180 degrees. I get mine at Brownells. Just plug the bore with a bit of paper towel in front of the throat and pour in a little metal through the breech. No need to fill the chamber. You are only interested in the throat. Tap it out from the muzzle and you have a faithful reproduction of the throat. You want to see that the rifling starts at the same distance from the chamber. This is also a good time to measure the neck diameter and bore diameter


Figure 26The throat is clearly visible on this Weatherby 7mm mag. This is what is called freebore.

 

 

If your throat looks uneven you might be able to cut the throat deeper and get it concentric. This is done with the throating reamer and can be done by hand however the best work will be placing the barrel in the lathe and using the tailstock to hold the reamer. Remember you are only cutting the rifling so it won’t take much effort to cut away too much. The cure for the deep throat is cutting off the chamber and setting the barrel back. A lot of work.

So what if you have a “deep throat” and just leave it. Depending on your objectives you might be happy with it. The famous Weatherby Magnums were designed with deep throats to get more velocity. It is called freebore. It works sort of like this: burning rate on powder goes up as pressure rises. When the pressure rises enough to push the bullet out of the case and into the rifling it has the same effect as making the case larger and this will drop the pressure. This allows rifles with deep throats to be loaded with more powder and achieve higher velocities. Accuracy is not enhanced but if you are shooting a deer you (or the deer) won’t know the difference. You can do this at any time with a throating reamer or the rifle will do it for you as you continue to shoot. A 243 Winchester will have the bullets fall out of the case before touching rifling around 2000 rounds. That’s a lot of deer to be skinned but only one moderate season for a highpower match shooter.

For the gunsmith you need to understand where the throat is, what effect it has on accuracy and velocity. How to repair or correct it. And how to explain it to your customer.

 

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Drill and tap

Drilling Holes in Firearms

 

 

The man comes into the gun shop and ask “How much to drill and tap a couple of holes in my rifle”. Ten dollars for the holes, fifteen for the threads and twenty for putting them in the right spot the first time! Then you need to smile and make sure you didn’t make him mad but you really told the truth. Like so many machine shop operations it is the setup that really eats up the time and requires the knowledge.

Normally we are talking scope mounts when drilling and tapping so it is like putting pistol sights on a 25 auto that will be sighted in at 200 yards. Huh? Look at the front and rear scope bases, now imagine they are a front and rear sight. Just like adjusting sights, the closer they are together the more the bullet impact is shifted. Most modern scope mounts will move the bullet one minute of angle when the base is moved .002″. A hair from your head will usually measure .005 so to center a scope on a rifle literally requires you to do better than splitting a hair!

Maybe the first job is to decide if the gun should be drilled and tapped at all. If the gun has true collector value it might be wise to leave it as is. Old Winchesters and such will lose value if modified in any way. Still some owner will insist on mounting a scope and after all it is their gun. Just do your best to let the owner know so they can make an informed decision.

Next is the actual layout and selection of mounts and bases. The cheapest is rarely the best and this applies to mounts as well. Try to select something that will look good and hold securely. Most of the time the owner preference will be the deciding factor but you might be able to guide him to a better choice if you are well informed. Most manufacturers supply charts to tell you which model base fits which firearm. Be aware that sometimes the are slight differences between models that can require a different mount. Sometimes you can modify bases for special applications or the correct things that went wrong from the past like a hole drilled off center.

Now you have the scope, bases, rings and barreled action. This would be a good time to center the reticule in the scope. Find a small cardboard box and notch the sides so the scope will rest in the notches with the adjustment knobs between the notches. Now slowly rotate the scope tube while looking through the scope at a distant object. When you have adjusted the scope so that the center of the reticule no longer moves as the body is rotated the reticule is centered. This is important because the scope performs best when you are looking through the center and it leaves plenty of adjustment for sighting in.

Now you can layout the bases on the receiver and make sure the bases look correct and the holes to be drilled will not be in bad locations like on the face of the bolt lug shoulder or through a working part attached to the top of the receiver. A lot of 22 rifles have bullet guides and such mounted in the top that can be avoided by moving the front or back a small amount. Just make sure the final location you select will work with the scope. Sometimes an extension ring can solve problems with base spacing. Using a pencil or tiny scribe marks go ahead and mark the locations of the bases for a reference.

If you have a Forster jig for drilling and tapping you can mount it on the drill press or milling machine and follow your directions for securing the barrel action and the jig to the machine. I can’t imagine doing this type work professionally without this jig. It make jobs that are difficult almost easy and saves so much time that it easily pays for itself in a few jobs. I have looked at other jigs through the years but have not found one that equals the Forster. Not saying there isn’t one but I haven’t seen it. It makes sure the holes are drilled in reference to the center of the barrel, makes sure the hole spacing is correct, makes sure the tap is held straight and serves as a depth stop for holes that can go all the way through. While holes that go through are preferred because broken taps can be removed a little better sometimes it isn’t possible and can be extremely dangerous to go through. A screw going into a chamber can turn a 6/48 base screw into a bullet that will go through a scope body and can injure a shooter. I have seen this more than once!

If you don’t have a jig of any type and are determined to drill and tap anyway I have a method for that too. Assemble the rings and bases to the scope you centered earlier. Now set the assembly on the receiver where you want it to go. A collimator or boresighter can should be used to make sure all is properly aligned. If you don’t have a bore sighting device you can look through the bore at a distant object and align the scope accordingly. Don’t forget if this is a long range target gun that you might want to allow for extreme drop. Many long range bases have 20 minutes of elevation built in the base. After making sure it will work in this location mix up a little five-minute epoxy. Now place a small dot of this epoxy between the receiver and base and don’t disturb until tomorrow. Yes, it said five minute but you want the maximum strength. Now remove the rings from the bases. Now select a drill the size of the screw heads and lightly turn this in the screw holes in the base. This will remove the extra epoxy and mark the center of the hole in the base on the receiver with a small start on the hole on the receiver. Now pop off the epoxied base with a plastic mallet and the receiver is ready to be drilled. The holes are started and it is fairly simple to keep the drill in the right location.

This jobs are high in nuisance value and eat up considerable time for the gunsmith. They also carry the threat of a lot of bad publicity if done poorly. Thankfully it has become a rare job for the gunsmith but it still shows up at the gunshop from time to time so a gunsmith will need to master getting holes in the right location. Remember it is less than splitting a hair! Do good work!

 

Timothy P. Whealton

 

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Barrel Setbacks

Barrel Setbacks

A lot of shooters may not be familiar with the term. I’m talking about removing a rifle barrel and cutting off the chamber and then cutting a new chamber and replacing. Sometimes it is done to correct headspace but usually as a way to give new life to a barrel that has fired enough rounds that accuracy has started to suffer. For the hunter it has little use. Most magnums will go over 1000 to 1500 rounds before groups start to open and normal calibers like the 308 might go 3000. That’s a lot of deer to skin. An active highpower competitor will shoot a match a month (200 rounds) and practice another 100. If the shooter can get another 3000 rounds it makes good sense to do a setback.
The portion of the barrel that wears out is the throat. The throat is a very short section of the barrel that has the rifling removed so the bullet can be loaded into the bore. In most rifles it is less than 3/8” long. When the cartridge is fired the burning and unburned powder erupt from the case like a hot sandblaster. This erodes the rifling and wears out the leading edge of the rifling. A casting made of the throat section or a careful inspection with a borescope will reveal the wear. When the bullet leaves the cartridge and jumps to the rifling it must contact all the lands at the same time or the bullet will enter the rifling crooked. If it enters crooked it stays crooked and exits spinning off center. When anything spinning 150,000 rpms is off center bad things happen!
Most target barrels are made with a large diameter so setting back will not be a problem. The amount to set back can be as short as one thread (.0625) to correct headspace or a couple inches. Normally I set back the length of the trunnion which will be around ¾ inch. That way I don’t have to worry with the existing threads and just cut new ones. ¾ inch will remove all the throat erosion and give a good job.
The pictures are from a job where I used a takeoff barrel from a tactical rifle and installed it on a Remington 700. The action was blueprinted and this called for rethreading .010 oversize so the threads on the barrel would be undersize. After cutting off the trunnion the barrel was centered in the 4 jaw chuck and the muzzle was centered on the cathead on the outside of the lathe.
Next the receiver was measured and recorded so I would know what size to make the trunnion (threaded portion). I measure twice to reduce errors!
From here on its just like installing a new barrel. Turn to size, thread, cut bolt recess, chamber, debur and reassemble.
If you are new to machine work practice threading till you can do it in your sleep. Use old barrels, cut off round stock and anything else. Take a course at the college and tell the teacher you just want to cut perfect threads. It will be time well spent.

Figure 1 centering in the cathead

Figure 2 centered in the 4 jaw

Figure 3 Cutting off the trunnion can be done with a cutoff tool but the saw is faster

Figure 4 Time to make a new trunnion


Figure 5Measure carefully

Figure 6record your measurements

Figure 7turning the trunnion to size

Figure 8finished and ready for threading

Figure 9Perfect threads!

Figure 10 The receiver is the go gauge for the threads

Figure 11 Chamber cut within .100 of final depth and go headspace gauge inserted

Figure 12 Action closed on go gauge and gap measured between barrel and receiver with feeler gauge. This tells you how much deeper to cut the chamber

Figure 13 With the tailstock ram locked the entire tailstock is pushed while watching the dial indicator and the final chamber depth can be cut within .001

 

 

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Sunday School @ Cedar Island 8/21/17

 

The Good Samaritan

 

The line of questioning was started by a lawyer. Not the kind of lawyer that gets you out off with a suspended sentence but an expert in interpreting Old Testament law. What the Jews called the Torah. It’s in Luke 10:25 if you are a Bible person. The question he asked Jesus was “master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus did what great teachers, psychiatrist and lawyers do. He answered with a question. Now this wasn’t strange or odd for Jesus.

Jesus was asked 183 questions in the bible. Anybody know how many he answered with a straight answer? That’s right! 3 times he gave a straight answer. He would either answer with a question or a parable. I can see the disciples start rolling their eyes at each other as if to say “not another story”! Jesus even apologized to them for speaking in parables and explained that later he wouldn’t have to speak in parables and he could just tell them. Ever wonder why? I think Jesus was speaking to all that would be hearing his word for thousands of years to come. The parable survives translation when the translated word changes meaning. In other words he did it for us and they just had to put up with it. Like when I was a phone man and my kids wanted money, first they had to listen to the “up the pole story” about how I had to climb that big pole to get my money. (They hated that story!)

So Jesus reply was “what does the law say and how do you read it”. He knew this man was a Pharisee and that he had years of study. He also knew this man wanted to show others how much he knew. The lawyers answer was straight out of the Old Testament. Love God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength and all your mind and love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus praised his answer and said do this and you will live.

The lawyer had it made but he had to ask one more question to justify himself. He asked “and who is my neighbor?”
It’s a valid question. Where do we draw that circle? If I’m willing to help others but I only have a little money and limited hours how do I draw that line and exactly where do I draw it? Around my family? (Sure!) Cousins? 2nd cousins? Friends I see every week or once a year? I want to be generous but I have to live within my means. (And sometimes mean is an accurate description). Jesus was ready with one of his most famous stories. Even if you didn’t grow up as a God Bible Jesus person you have heard this story or at least the name, The Good Samaritan.

So why did this story stick? A Samaritan was a person from Samaria. It was a country next to Israel. They never got along with the Jews and even had war and race riots. Samaritan was used as a term of slander and to degrade. Their name was used for dirty jokes and to suggest you were a Samaritan would be “fighting words.” So let’s fast forward 2000 years. The Samaritans are gone, absorbed into other cultures but the name has a wonderful connotation when used to describe a caring person. The Jews are still here but calling someone “the good Jew” just doesn’t work the same.

Jesus was the master at telling a story that would pull you out of your comfort zone (he still is!). He knew all about racial bias and discrimination. His parable of The Good Samaritan used this to full effect. It was told in the well-known version of three. The people listening in that day knew the third person would be the one to help. They were caught off guard when it was a person they would never have a conversation or a cup of coffee with. There are a few more things you need to know about their world to see this story like they did.

The Times- Times were bad! The wealth was not distributed. No middle class. All the wealth was in the hands of the wealthy 1%. Heavy tax burden led to farming communities having to sell their land and become tenant farmers on what had been their own land. Young men were not able to inherit and forced to work as field labor for subsistence wages. Nothing was working. In desperation many young men had left the work farms and joined outlaw bands living it the mountains. They robbed travelers and Romans. These outlaw bands were known as the Zealots but they were very disorganized. Most people listening to Jesus would have known someone who had turned to crime to survive or seen their children leave home to be robbers.

The Road- The road from Jerusalem to Jericho was 17 miles of rugged misery. Jerusalem is 2500 feet above sea level. Jericho is the lowest city on earth at 800 feet below sea level. The road was not much more than a foot path with switch backs, cliffs and caves. Perfect for ambush. They had a name for the road. It was known as “The Way of Blood.” Not a very appealing name. Imagine your GPS saying “turn right on blood road”.

The Priest- he was the first to see the injured naked man. Being a priest meant he was doing the “love God” thing. We hold our pastors to a higher level and they did too. Being a priest also meant he was a member of the Sadducees. They were basically pro Roman because that meant the wealth would stay where it was. They were in the top 1%. Jesus said he saw the man and moved to the other side of the road and passed by. What a disappointment.

The Levites- he was the second to see the man. Levites were experts on the law and most were Pharisees. They were basically not as well off as the Saducees or as pro Roman. They considered themselves very religious and entitled to God because they followed the law. They wanted anyone who didn’t obey the law to pay a price for being a sinner. The Levite passed by without helping. We don’t know why. Maybe he didn’t feel obligated because the injured man was a stranger. Maybe the victim was another race or he was in a hurry. Would he have helped if it had been someone in his family? Safe to say yes. How about someone that lived close by or someone he worshipped with? Probably he would have helped.

The Samaritan- Jesus knew all about the bias towards the Samaritans. As long as people have looked or sounded different we have had bias. It never came from God, it came from men. I’m sure Satan has enjoyed it. It is certainly still holding us back 2000 years later. The Samaritan looked on the injured man and felt compassion. Maybe he had suffered at the hands of others himself. It doesn’t sound like he was especially wealthy since he was traveling alone. No way had he had the resources to fix what was wrong with the world but he chose to act. He bandaged the man’s wounds. The people listening to this parable would have known what that meant. The Samaritan ripped off strips of his own clothing. He poured on oil and wine. This softened the wounds so they would heal and killed germs. He sat the injured man on his donkey and carried him to an inn. He stayed with him all night and fed him ice chips and pudding pops (just making sure you are listening). Next day he prepaid the innkeeper 2 days wages to take care of him. Then he told him if it required more he would pay him next time he was passing through.

When the story was over Jesus asked the lawyer which of the three was the man’s neighbor? The lawyer replied the one that showed mercy on him. Jesus didn’t need to elaborate so he closed with a simple “Go, and do likewise”.

You don’t have to know everything to know something so what does this demonstrate? We already know God wants us to love our neighbor but like the lawyer we have to draw a line. I’m going to take care of my family and do what I can for friends and distant relatives. Problem is that when I take care of those close to me I don’t show how great God is to anyone. When the love shown to another will never be “credited” or returned then you know it is plainly for God.

Notice that people will do something good just because it’s the right thing to do. This points to the existence of God. Nobody does something bad just because it’s the bad thing. They do bad things because they think it will bring them something they want. Either short term pleasure or money or power but not just because it’s the bad thing to do.

We have drawn our circles around who are willing to sacrifice our resources to help. That’s just a normal thing. Almighty God doesn’t have much use for normal. He will provide you with special opportunities to let the world see his love. You will know when it happens. His message will be loud and clear. When it happens you can almost hear God saying “Here is your chance, don’t pass it up!” It will be a neighbor completely outside your circle. There will be no payback in the life for loving this outside neighbor but you will be laying up fruit that will repay you forever. You will hear people say “you can’t take your wealth with you” but Jesus said you could. You just have to send ahead before you go!

 

Timothy P. Whealton

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Having God in your life

Presence of God

I’m not addicted to TV but not too long ago I watched the Olympics with interest. It was certainly better than standard TV but that doesn’t say much. I watched the opening ceremony just to see what they looked like and the outfits. Then each night we watched a different event. It took a while but I finally decided the end of the events were the most interesting part. Just to see the look on their faces as they realized their dream had come true. Even the ones that didn’t medal seemed to be happy. Some showed disappointment but all projected that they were glad to represent their country and be a part of a great competition. You would think our highly paid professional athletes would show even more appreciation but I guess money changes things.
There was no doubt about it, the outpouring of emotion by those athletes could be felt through the television. Seems we have the ability to pick up emotions even faster than the flu virus. Many cried, unable to handle the flood of feelings. Many spectators cried for the same reason (especially the parents!). Seems people really like to get emotional about something they can see. Maybe that was why God was so focused on keeping his people from worshiping idols. It was a hard task to keep people from idol worship. It still is.
Long before Indiana Jones I was fascinated by the stories of the Ark of the covenants. It was a box built to hold the stone tablets inscribed by God with the Ten Commandments. Ten rules for his people to live by that would make them different from the rest of the world. The rules have never changed. While we have never lived by them in earnest have you ever wondered what the world would be like if we could?
Incredible wealth- No need for armies, tanks, planes and missiles. No need for Police Departments, FBI, SBI, CIA, Homeland Security, IRS or any enforcement of a law. As a matter of fact if you could follow the 10 you wouldn’t need the millions of laws written by man.
Incredible Health- All STD diseases gone. When a virgin marries a virgin they don’t have STDs! With so much wealth other diseases would be wiped out by fantastic research.
Incredible peace- No locks needed. No alarms. You live without fear of your fellow man. There is nothing to fear, you won’t be hurt by anyone and when you die you will live with God forever.
Incredible happiness- With so much health, wealth and peace it would be hard to not be happy all the time.
These are not vague projections but facts of life. We all know it would work. We all know we can’t do it. What a shame.
The Ark was used as a symbol of the presence of God. The presence of God is a powerful thing and the Ark reflected that. It was so powerful that they never knew how to handle it. Of course when anything has power someone will want to use it as a weapon. It proved to be a double edge sword.
Joshua used it as the Lord instructed and stopped the waters of the river Jordan to cross into the Promised Land. He used it again to defeat Jericho.
Years later the Israelites were in battle with the Philistines. Israel had sinned greatly and lost the favor of God. They were defeated by the Philistines and fear was in their hearts. They didn’t turn to God but went and got the Ark to use in battle against the Philistines. The Philistines killed thousands and captured the Ark. It was a bad time!
When the Philistines carried the Ark home they got a nasty surprise. God sent a plague against them. Those that didn’t die were struck with hemorrhoids. Now I’m sure if almighty God gives you hemorrhoids they are not going to be little! No surgery, no preparation H, no ice cubes. Eventually the Philistines send the Ark back to the Israelites. They even sent it home with an offering attached. The offering was 5 golden hemorrhoids and 5 golden mice. You can’t make up stories that good!
When the Jews receive the Ark from the Philistines they were happy. So happy they opened it and looked inside. 50,000 died for this transgression. Then they took the Ark to the house of Abinadab. It stayed there 20 years.
After King Saul died David became king and wanted the Ark to have a resting place in Jerusalem. He goes with a military detachment to retrieve the Ark. They load it on an ox cart and parade in front of the Ark. When the oxen stumble Uzzah reaches to steady the Ark and is struck dead. Parade over! David is scared to go any farther and decides to leave the Ark and go back till he can decide what to do. He leaves the Ark with Obed Edom the Gittite.
Obed was a Gittite which meant he was from the Philistine city of Gath. It also means he would have known about the Ark. I can only imagine his feeling knowing the same Ark that had killed thousands and plagued his hometown with hemorrhoids was going to be left with him!
Obed means “worships God” and it must have been a name he earned. Our Bible only says Obed and his house were blessed. Sources outside the Bible say all the women of his house gave birth every two weeks for the 3 months he kept the Ark. That would have been a blessing then in a world that ran on child labor. Obed honored the presence of God and worshipped Him.
David hears Obed is being blessed and decides it is safe to go get the Ark. This time he dances his heart out while musicians play as the Ark is moved. They stop every 6 paces and offer sacrifices. The Bible says David was dressed in linen. Linen was underwear and David’s wife was not happy to see her husband dancing in public. She tells David with great sarcasm that he has exposed himself in public and is a disgrace. David is not impressed by her and explains that he was dancing before God and worshipping him.
David stands out as someone who really worshipped God. In the true sense of worship he put aside his life and honored God. His example of worship is still valid. Even though he was flawed he still worshipped. He maintained a wonderful connection to God. A worshiper puts aside the self-centered life and focuses on the true greatness of God.
But what happens when we worship God. It seems counter intuitive but we have improvement in our lives. It would make sense that if we get what we want we will be happy. It also makes sense that the more we get the happier we will be. Only problem is we aren’t wired that way so it doesn’t work. We are designed to connect and that connection we get with God when we worship far outshines anything the world can offer.
Need proof? Look at the most devout Christians you can find. You will have to look because they don’t stand up and wave but they are there. Usually working away in some church program or maybe a soup kitchen. You might find her working in the church nursery. You might find him painting the church or raising money to help someone. They will tell you the source of everything good in their life including their happiness is God. They will take no credit for their success. Their fruit will be abundant.
We don’t have the Ark but we have the Holy Spirit. It is the presence of God in our lives. If we take time to worship we will be blessed. It may not be with childbirth every 2 weeks but if it is from God you know it will be good!