A 1800 Meter Luger !
 

A 1600 meter Luger???
What??? :eek: There ain't no such thing!!! :grr:

Well, in that case...We'll have to make one!!! :thumbup:

Here's a look down the barrel of the '1600 Meter Luger'... ;)

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...2&d=1540953530

It's been a while since I did a 'Fantasy Artillery' barrel, and I had some odds and ends lying around, so I whipped up a long-barrel Luger with an 1894 Swedish Mauser carbine sight on it. Here's an abbreviated pictorial of my mis-adventures (leaving out the mistakes)... :rolleyes:

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...9&d=1540953445

I'll start out with a pic of some of the tools and parts available, or that had to be made along the way.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...3&d=1540953557

The machine work starts with the Swedish Mauser 1600 meter rear sight, sourced from eBay some time back.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...0&d=1540953295

1. The rear sight had been rudely hammered off the barrel by some unknown hack, and had metal deformation that couldn't all be restored. So I milled off the excess.

2. A Green Mountain 9mm barrel blank being skim cut on the lathe for concentricity. 4140 steel, 1:10 twist.

3. Turning down one end to form the breech stub.

4. Threading the breech stub, 18mm x 20tpi.

Next up is fitting the barrel extension.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...1&d=1540953295

5. Receiver fitted to stub. nice snug fit.

6. Turning the relief at the breech face.

7. Turning down the base where the rear sight sits.

8. Fitting the Swedish Mauser rear sight.

Next up we turn to the muzzle end.

(Edit: Quick pic of what it looks like when turning down the barrel)... :D

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...4&d=1540953557

Ooh! Them chips gets hot! :evilgrin:

Proceeding to the muzzle end... :)

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...2&d=1540953295

9. Turning down the muzzle for the screw-on front sight band & blade.

10. Threading the muzzle to 1/2" x 28tpi.

11. A threaded block of steel fitted to the barrel muzzle.

12. Squaring the block to the bore.

Some more work to the barrel OD.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...3&d=1540953324

13. Cutting the taper to the exposed section of barrel.

14 & 15. Reaming the chamber. Clymer 9mm finishing chambering reamer, 1/32" at a time. Slow revolutions, oiling every 1/32", and blowing out the chips after every 1/32" cut.

16. Wups! A little out of sequence - Drilling the block of steel for the front sight band/blade.

More work on the front sight.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...7&d=1541016450

17. Tapping the front sight block 1/2" x 28tpi.

18. Relieving the sight block. Necessary because I can't thread right up against the barrel thread.

19. Milling down the sides of the sight.

20. Sight block is now mounted on a mandrel (old M16 barrel stub) and held in a 'superspacer' with a 4-jaw chuck. Circular milling the muzzle protrusion.

Still milling the front sight...

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...5&d=1540953394

21. Just about halfway done...

22. Circumference of sight band is 98% completed.

23. Finish milling the muzzle protrusion.

24. Finish milling the circumference.

Had to stop operations on the barrel and make up a new barrel vise insert.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...6&d=1540985498

A. Facing each end of a 1 1/2" 6061 aluminum rod, and cutting a groove in one end.

B. Boring out the correct taper to fit this barrel.

C. Cutting the finished bored vise insert in two, and filing all edges.

Next up is to cut the front sight blade.

Milling the front sight 'blade'.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...6&d=1540953394

25. Finished front sight fitted to barrel.

26. Squaring/shortening muzzle protrusion.

27. Milling sides of 'blade'; milling top to 1º angle.

28. Milling radius on front of 'blade'.

Had to break off barrel work again, to make a spanner for that front sight.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...7&d=1540986601

A. Boring the hole in a block of 5/8" x 1 1/2" 6061 aluminum.

B. Milling a clearance slot for the 'blade'.

Next will be finishing operations on the front sight.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...7&d=1540953394

29. Beveling the muzzle.

30. Crowning the muzzle bore.

31. Setup to mill the chamber ramp.

32. Milling the ramp, using a 10mm end mill.

Finishing operations at the breech end of the barrel.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...8&d=1540953425

33 & 34. Cutting the extractor notch with Woodruff keyway cutters.

35. Drill & tap the rear sight base retaining screw (#6 x 48tpi).

36. Setup to cut a Patridge notch in the rear sight to replace the 'V' notch: finished cut.

Getting near the end... :p

At this point, my machine work on this 'fantasy barrel' is done. It needs to be sent out for final finishing and bluing, and when it comes back I'll assemble it and check functioning.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...0&d=1540953530

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...1&d=1540953530

Couple of pics of my setups, using spirit levels. Mostly for my machine notes, as I forget how I did something unless I take pics for reference. :rolleyes:

Setup for cutting the extractor notch relative to the front sight.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...0&d=1540988864

Setup for leveling the front sight to cut the 'blade'.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...1&d=1540988864

Setting up to cut the feed ramp.
http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...2&d=1540989420

Interlude
 

When I have more than one project waiting for space & tooling on the mill table, I try to plan to do similar machine operations together. So if I'm using the rotary indexing head ['superspacer'] to mill the Luger front sight, I'll follow that with another comparable procedure. :)

Following the Luger front sight, while I had the 80+ pound superspacer on the table, I set up a jig to mill curved slots in 1911 triggers. The JT Masen Co used to offer a skeletonized long trigger for the 1911. It was similar to the Colt Gold Cup trigger, but with the narrower trigger blade in the 1911. (The Gold Cup blade is .350" wide; the 1911 is .250"). They no longer offer it, and other vendors offer other styles of skeletonized triggers but not with the Gold Cup profile.

But JT Masen does still sell the steel long 1911 trigger, so I decided to make my own skeletonized triggers. :D

But I needed to design a jig to hold the trigger, and revolve it while milling the curved slot. It took me a week of 3-4 hour workdays to turn out a satisfactory piece. Two of those days were trial & error with wood mockups, trying to figure out how to locate the piece in the jig and then rotate it. :rolleyes:

Here's the finished jig, with a 'raw' trigger in place. Looks simple, and it is, but it was a PITA to design. :banghead:

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...0&d=1541112813

It's only about 3 inches by 4 inches, aluminum, and clamps in a 4-jaw chuck mounted on the rotary indexing head. Here's how it works...

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...1&d=1541112813

1. The 'raw' steel trigger is clamped in the jig, resting against a Nylon disk with a dimple in the exact center. A steel pointer is chucked in the mill quill and centered on the dimple.

2. I want my slot to be 3/32" away from all three edges of the front of the trigger, so I chuck a 3/16" drill rod in the quill chuck and locate it 3/32" from the edges.

3. Now I center drill each end, just a shallow indentation.

4. I drill through each end with a 1/8" drill.

Moving to next pic...

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...2&d=1541112813

5. Next I enlarge the two holes to 3/16".

6. Finally I load the 3/16" 4-flute end mill and start rotating the indexing head along the curve. The centerline of the curve is ~.875" from the center dimple of the Nylon disk. I take .020" cuts, and rotate slowly, to eliminate or at least reduce the tendency of the thin end mill to 'wander'.

7. Completed slot. :thumbup:

8. The tooling used. The C-clamp has been ground to allow low mounting. The C-clamp actually secures the trigger between the two aluminum blocks; the socket head cap screw just holds the trigger flat against the base.

My next project will be to make up a 'plug' to allow quick centering of the indexing head under the quill. I've been just marking the table with a magic marker but the marks keep rubbing off. A plug in the center of the indexing head that can be centered under the quill with be a real time saver. :cool:

Neat project! I drool over all your tooling, wish I had a set up like that.
At 1600 meters, I would thick the 9mm bullet wouldn't have the velocity to punch holes in paper. Maybe just bounce off? 8-)

Thanks for sharing! Have you fired it and if so how far out?
dju

Rich,
super set of pictures and "how I did it" write up! :)

I'd like to know a couple "details":
-what angle to the bore do you cut the feed ramp?
-also the angle of the extractor cuts.

Great how to do it, too. ;)

The extractor cut is as specified in the blueprints; 53º.

Gerry has a post in a related thread outlining the feed ramp angle. :evilgrin:

http://forum.lugerforum.com/showthread.php?t=37697

I was curious of the angles on the feedramp and the extractor cut too. So I thought either John S's nicely done schematics or the appendix to the book, The Dutch Luger. I don't have John's redo's yet, but have the Dutch Luger book.

The appendix shows the two cuts, the extractor is 51 degrees I believe; appears that the other reference would suggest 53 degrees. I have not noticed that before, so learned something again.

The appendix dwg shows the feed ramp without an angle reference, although the angles visually look similar to me(says the guy with bad eyes). The area is referenced heavily to surfaces and bore line with Cartesian dimensions, so with a little trig, one could get there. For years, I did the crude garage version on such with Cartesian measurements and connect the dots carefully.

Obviously 2 degrees is not much to talk about in most cases. We all grow up in the awe of German craftsmanship here in the states, so we assume(that funny word again) that parts are made to a set of theoretical master documents. Well...........not quite everyone.......but have to reflect on the job done back then by those guys.

I think both cuts take a little discretion as too deep towards the muzzle will cause gap space to occur, and the case only has so much insurance at the web. Especially for the guys that shoot +++++++++++P ammo in their Lugers(not me.... :).

Thanks for the pictorial, always interesting to see technique. The front ramp was a new thing to me, appreciate especially seeing that.

Here's the print from TBLAP; red line points to extractor notch angle, yellow triangle is the ramp. 1.8mm on one side; 2.77mm on the other. It's a right triangle and the hypotenuse is not relevant - using trig table you can work out what the print says the angle is. :thumbup:

But in terms of case blowout, since the extractor cut is given as 53º, you really can't go too far wrong using that, if you don't like the trig answer. :cool:

I thought the difference in angles, however slight, was an oddity in these dwgs, just surprised me a little.

Angle is angle................but advancement of said angle up the bore is always blowout sensitive.

Rick,
I know what the drawing says, I just wondered what angle you actually used! :)

GT and I argue over the best ramp angle, he likes a steeper angle, I like a flatter angle. But not more than about 5 degrees different.

Just wondering what you actually set up to cut.:evilgrin:

GT and I had that same discussion some time back. I tend to err on the side of the blueprint. I only differ by 1º from the print. :)

But you can't fault success. If GT has had no complaints then that must work. More than one way to skin a cat. :thumbup:

I reckon another simplistic approach could be just to measure a few vintage takeoff barrels on the lathe. Looks like could do that within reason. Sometimes information can be right before us within reason.

Put the perceived vintage barrel of the day in the chuck and zero out to the chamber perimeter. Most of us have the 0.0001" test indicators and adjust true chucks to support that. Then twist the compound until the indicator reads zero again with the stylus on said ramp. My mind is interested, but my body right now.......is not; so just throwing out a concept.

Not a lot of run on the ramp or extractor cut, but oughta give some idea of the original thoughts. Probably just one of those curiosities, what is a degree between friends?, I doubt if I could cut two of them alike on the same setup anymore........:)

To some, steeper angle means less exposure. I suspect if G.T. does some of that, it was with some research and soul searching about being proper and the bottom line..........safe. Maybe he even(heavy conjecture inserted) that he now has the compound rotary cutter we visited about long ago to do the ejector slot in one swoop.............

If you want to be really confused, measure the ramps on "original" barrels. They are not all the same; though one never knows when or how they "got" different angles and widths.

When I cut ramps for GT, I cut to the 50 degrees he likes; when I do them for myself, I go closer to 47. I find they feed better- or at least I've convinced my self that they do ;). JMHO.

Extractor cut at spec is not a big issue. I don't use the two key cutters; but a Round over cutter.
I do start the cut with a normal end mill, no use wearing out the cutter removing the first "big" cut.

Olle called my attention to a special cutter from Harvey Tool that he uses. I have their catalog, I'll see if I can find it.

Here we go...Corner rounding end mills...

http://www.harveytool.com/cat/Corner...ducts_200.aspx

Maybe if Olle sees this, he can say which one works best. :)

I just use what I've got. The cutter from Harvey would cost more in postage than the cutter itself. Plus Harvey doesn't sell to the general public; you have to order from one of their distributors.

I have a couple of Harvey's keyseat cutters specifically for Luger front sight inserts, but they are fragile. :(

Old habits from behind the wall I guess, we were required to compare theoretical to actuals in my old real job.

I was not aware of that variation in Luger barrel ramps or top slots.
Might just spur me on to do some measurements out of morbid curiosity.

I dreamed once of having PTG on the west coast custom grind a tool for the top extractor slot, he at the time would do steel or carbide or the tipped stuff. I have not got there($$), but would be nice; carbide would last me my lifetime I can assure you. I still have some wildcat chambering to do on the Luger framework.

I try to minimize case non support at the top and bottom of the luger tenion, just the way I was taught and too old now to change. My first attempts were with two straight mills and a touch with a file; back in the older than dirt routines huh? Things change over time............some.

I have seen nice work done by a skilled guy with files for both operations, but he had tenure sorta speak..........and the touch which I never got figured out, he made it look so easy; he was really gifted.

I am one of the use what I got guys too, but there has been times when the right tool would have saved some grey.

Tis always neat to hear how folks approach a task with these pistols, there is always room to get better I think. I still have the curiosity about such things, so thanks a lot to everyone for their time to post.

Ollie gave me the number a couple years ago.
I bought two different ones, from China via Ebay, much cheaper.
You just have to do some searching and measuring.

Takes moving the cutter side to side to get the correct width with the correct radius.

The key cutters are fine , if you are not selling the barrels and want them to look like originals- as GT does.:thumbup:

I have a really small dovetail cutter for the sight base. They are really easy to break.:(

I just finished the barrel on Monday. It is already boxed up & ready to ship out; I have a small window of opportunity to get it smoothed out and refinished, I didn't want to miss it. In fact, I am missing three springs and a pin, which I hope Tom Heller has on hand. When it returns, I will post pics of the re-assembly (barrel vise, spanners, etc) and the finished product. I do have 9mm ammunition, but with shooting season upon us the range is only vacant at odd times. I have the stainless OFM Luger set to shoot, just need to get in to the range for an hour or two. Seems to be a lot of work going on as well as the pistol teams practicing and competition.

I'll get to it eventually. :rolleyes:
I use a triangular file to round off the sharp edge between the two keyway cuts. I'm more a function guy rather than form. But I do like a 'knobbly' machine vs a pretty one... :D

The round over cutter I thought was pretty clever idea. Guess just gotta find the right size or have it ground.

The cutter that I had dreamed of is similar to a wheel cutter like for the extractor cut in a pre64 Winchester 70 or similar to a fluting wheel for barrels. Pretty efficient cutter but expensive for the layman with only a few to do. No prework with a straight.....pretty durable too.

I am a little envious of pistol teams on the line, not seen that here locally for many years.

I added a machining operation for 1911 triggers in post # 5 on page 1, if anyone is interested. It took me a week, and I had pics of the finished jig, so I decided to throw it in here. :p

Rick,
that is a great deal of work and a fine, even amazing jig.:thumbup:

I'm not sure the end result(a slot in the trigger) is worth it.:evilgrin:

It's not the destination that is satisfying; it is the journey. :thumbup:

Here's the one I use: http://www.harveytool.com/ToolTechIn...olNumber=17062. I run it to the correct depth, then I widen the cut 10/1000" left/light (total 20/1000"). It's probably as close as you will get to the correct shape without custom ordering, and it gives you an original looking cut and the proper clearance for the extractor.... or at least I haven't heard otherwise from GT. :D

I'm sure you can find a cheaper tool from China, but the cool thing about Harvey's catalog (as opposed to eBay) is that they have a plethora of diameters and shapes to choose from and the tools are top quality. The 17062 cutter is very close to specs, and should last longer than the Chinese bits as well. Tiny bits like this (especially in carbide) chatter and break easily when they start going dull, and it normally happens A: Friday afternoon and B: When you have a deadline to meet. IMO it pays off to buy good quality if your'e planning to do several barrels.

Excellent! :thumbup: I had written it down when Olle told me about it but when I received Harvey's latest catalog, I tossed the old one - With the note about the cutter. :(

FWIW, the dovetail cutter I use for Luger front sights is Harvey's # 28512, 3/16" x 40º carbide 2-flute dovetail cutter -

http://www.harveytool.com/ToolTechIn...olNumber=28512

Rich, you never cease to amaze. Salute

Waiting to Exhale...
 

I'll be waiting four to six weeks for the 'Swedish Luger' to come back and I can start assembling it. Until then, I have a shelf full of projects.

One was a 1911 parts kit with an FN M1911 slide in 38ACP that was so tight it wouldn't slide on the receiver. I've lapped slides in in the far past [80's] and still have the three grades of 'lapping compound' left. So, I made up a handy slide attachment and a magazine well reinforcement and lapped the FN slide in. (In those halcyon years of yore I would use my bare hands. I still have the scars). First valve grinding compound, then polishing compound, then rubbing compound. You 'saw' the tool back & forth like sawing wood. Now the slide glides as slick as grubs through a goose. :D

(I've had to do this with a parts Luger too. Same principle).

I'll function test this one when I can get some range time again. :thumbup:

A 9mm bullet at 1600 yards? Well, if we assume a 115 grain FMJ, starting at 1,200 fps, by the time it wanders down to 1,600 yards, it has a mere 288 fps left to its name. And the trip took just shy of 11 seconds. It will go through paper, but not much more.

That 288 fps equates to about as much energy as a .25 auto at 10 ft or a .32 S&W at 50 yards or a .22 lr at 100 yards; more than enough energy to "hurt". I sure would not want to be hit by any of them. ;)

Times and concepts change over time, time marches on it seems... :)

Mary had a little watch - she swallowed it - its gone! Now every where that Mary goes, Time Marches On.

Of course there are 1800 meter Luger.

Attachment 74613

Interlude # 2
 

While doing another project, I remembered I needed a magazine for this fantasy barreled Luger. I visited Greg Cote's web site and ordered two more blued Muc-Gar Luger magazines. Unfortunately, they now come with plastic followers and bases. I don't like that look, so I emailed Gerry at G.T. Specialties. Gerry used to make some beautiful polished aluminum bases. He no longer makes them, which is a loss for us all, but he said he had an East German cast aluminum base, so I ordered one of those. They're undrilled blanks, as-cast, slightly oversized, and the casting seam is uneven. But they're 'good enough' for my amateur projects. Gerry once told me that he had various (and many) jigs for producing his excellent magazines and components, which produced uniform and correct pieces. I've only converted about a dozen Mec-Gar magazines so far, and I'm a firm opponent of 'production lines', so I only have the minimum of mandrels/jigs/fixtures to convert Mec-Gar magazines to all-metal items.

Here's what I do. Not as good as Gerry, but my customers (all one of me!) haven't complained. :D

Here's a blow-by-blow account of my base/follower modifications.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...8&d=1541954237

1. Some of the stock, parts, and mandrels I use.

2. Drifting out the base pins. Gerry has fantastic fixtures for doing this, but for my low-volume (two), my 1-ton press and some ground down drill rod blanks work just fine.

3. The disassembled Mec-Gar P08 magazine. Removing the button is always an annoyance, as the hole on the opposite side does not line up with the button hole. Argh!!! :grr: This seems to be typical of original Luger magazines as well.

4. I take a piece of brass bar stock for the follower and mill it to the approximate dimensions of the Mec-Gar follower, which is not the same as a P08 follower.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...9&d=1541954237

5. I start with drilling the button hole as my datum point.

6. Relieving the button hole with a 5mm end mill.

7. Milling the front edge to spec.

8. Half-round milling the front edge with a special end mill.

I like brass. I especially like it for magazine followers as its lead content adds to its lubricity. :)

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...5&d=1541999743http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...4&d=1542332686

9. Milling the step in the top of the follower.

10. Milling the base of the step in the follower. I'll break all sharp edges but other than that, this follower is finished.

Now I need to pay some attention to the aluminum base. :rolleyes:

11. The 'East German' magazine base blank is too thick, so I'm taking a skim cut off each side until it is a snug fit.

12. Drilling the base blank for the Mec-Gar pins.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...4&d=1542502762

13. Milling reliefs on both sides.

14. Milling spring pocket in bottom.

15. Finished parts awaiting assembly.

16. Assembled magazine with brass follower and aluminum base.

Not as nice as G.T.'s work, I'm afraid. Adequate but not pretty. :rolleyes:

Oh, well. It only has to work. :p

Pic of installed magazine. It locks in place and trips the hold-open. What more could you ask for??? :thumbup:

Working on some off-topic projects, but getting ready to test fire a newly acquired Luger and the 'ring base' Mec-Gar magazines really annoy me...I just don't like those rings...So I took a 5/8" ball end mill and made them scalloped... :p

I'd switch it over to a brass follower + aluminum base configuration but I don't have an aluminum base right now...I'll keep this around for testing. :thumbup:

I don't like those plastic "ring" bases either; the rings have been removed from mine too!
Only difference is I use a 1/2" ball end mill, 'cause that is what I have. ;)

I mentioned in another thread that Numrich had an aluminum base magazine listed. I had an order in to Numrich so I had them add the Luger magazine to it -

Magazine, 9mm/7.65 Para
(.30 Luger), 7 Round, Blued
New (w/ Aluminum Bottom)
Product #: 466090

It came in today. As you can see from the pics below, it has a metal follower, button, and base.
I set it up in my mill with the 5/8" ball end mill ('cause that is what I have :D ) and proceeded to mill the finger depressions in the base. It was a tough cut. I had to use fairly strong pressure to get the end mill to cut. After I was done, I noticed that the pins were roll pins [split pins]. I knew they would drift out easily so I removed them and inspected the internal parts. I couldn't figure out why an "aluminum" base was so hard to mill. Even Zamak isn't that hard. ...D'Oh!... It's not aluminum! It's stainless steel! Last pic shows the base hanging from a magnet. Not as magnetic as the steel tube but enough iron & nickel to make it magnetic. And it's hard stainless; not soft. :rolleyes:

No identifying marks anywhere. Flat checkered button. Round spring. Seems to function OK. Locks in place, button trips the hold-open. I still don't like the rings, but from now on, I'll stick to ball-milling plastic and aluminum, not these stainless magazines. :grr:

I received a call from Charles Danner last night that my Swedish sight equipped P08 would be finished later this week. Mr Danner had explained to me some time back that he painstakingly draw files, sands, and rust-blues the parts he refinishes. He also re-cuts any letters/numbers/graphics that the refinishing might diminish. His work removes pits, scratches, and blemishes. He did my Lahti and Nambu projects, as well as my Luger carbine and several 1911 builds. Excellent work, and Charles is a member here as well. :thumbup:

I don't want to tie up my lathe/mill table as I will be using it to install the parts removed from the P08 frame - mainspring, safety & pin, recoil lever & pin. So, in the meantime, rather than start a long project, I whipped up a 1911 recoil spring guide rod. I'll continue to polish it and shape the rear while waiting for the refinished P08 parts to come in. :)

I made a couple of these back in the 80's but I was never convinced that they did anything. Lately I have changed my mind. I had a 1911 that shot pretty well, so I dropped in a leftover JT Masen one-piece guide rod I had used as a pattern/master. With no other changes and the same ammunition, the point of impact changed dramatically. I'm still dialing that .45 in, but since I had some free time now I decided to make another. ;)

I used a Grade 8 1/2" bolt 4 1/2" long, turned down on the lathe. It will take some time to polish it with many grades of wet/dry sandpaper, and then I'll either drill & ream out a spare guide rod plug or make a new plug out of another bolt. Whichever looks better. :rolleyes:

Then I'll tackle the assembly of the 1600 Meter Luger. :D

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...3&d=1544327774

Pic 1. Turning down the 1/2" bolt.
2. Bolt/rod polished and flange turned down.

Update: I was expecting this post to be the last for the 1911 guiderod, but as it turns out, I screwed up. I wish I could say that it's a rare occurrence, but hey, I make mistakes too. In this case, I didn't go big enough in my choice of bolt size. When I set the turned-down bolt/rod in the rotary indexing head, I found I didn't have enough diameter in the bolt head to accommodate the 'ears' that prevent the guide rod (stock or aftermarket) from rotating. There is a cut in the head of any 1911 guide rod that allows the barrel to drop down fully under full recoil. If the guide rod were to rotate, then the barrel would hit the rod and jam the action. The ears prevent rotation.

So, back to the hardware store and a couple of 9/16" Grade 8 bolts. I turned down and polished the first this afternoon/evening. I'll set it up in the rotary indexing head tomorrow. Maybe. :rolleyes:

3.Turning down the 9/16" bolt.
4. Bolt.rod polished and flange partially turned down.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...4&d=1544327774

5 & 6. Rod chucked in the 4-jaw chuck on the indexing head. Pic shows head of guide rod being milled to include the 'ears'.
7. Cutoff tool being used in lathe to turn down the flange center.
8. Grinding wheel being used to extend the ears on each side to clear frame rails. (I didn't mill the circumference far enough). I just drilled a hole in a block of aluminum and turn the rod with a padded visegrip. Field expedient grinding jig. :rolleyes:

I had noticed that I had an original Colt 2-piece guide rod assembly in my parts box, and after looking at it I decided if Colt could make one, so could I. So, I'll cut that first guide rod made from the 1/2" bolt and thread it to screw into a cut-off Colt guide rod plug. :)

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...1&d=1544326572

9. End of rod has been threaded to 1/4" x 28tpi.
10 & 11. Guide rod plug is cut off ~3/8" from flange.
12. Guide nub is threaded 1/4" x 28tpi.

Threaded rod back in lathe chuck.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...2&d=1544326572http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...7&d=1549737700

13. Threaded nub fitted to rod.
14. Both 1-piece and 2-piece rods ready for final fitting to length of 5" slides. :thumbup:
15. Making a guide rod plug for a Colt Commander.
16. The completed guide rod plug, guide rod (shortened to Commander length), and recoil spring for a Colt Commander.

I'll show pics of the finished Colt Combat Commander (with a Bo-Mar rib!) on page 3. :D

Reassembly of 1600 Meter Luger !
 

All right!!! The reblued and refinished Luger parts arrived today from Danner Gunsmithing! Charles & Sons did their usual excellent job of removing pits, scratches, blemishes, and oxidation! :thumbup:

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...1&d=1543872704

Top pic shows parts as they were sent to Danner etc, bottom pic is as they came out of the box after refinishing. :)

Now to reassemble this Swedish sight-equipped long barreled Luger! :D

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...3&d=1543872704

1. Reviewing all the parts, I noticed that I had milled out the V-notch in the Swedish Mauser sight leaf to a squqre 'Patridge' style notch but had neglected the slider V. So, here is the slider being milled. I only milled down to the bottom of the original V.

2. The bare frame is clamped to a suitably stable table. I clamp on the inside of the magazine tunnel. First item to be installed was the recoil lever and its pin. These were pushed on and I went on to the mainspring and its guide. I 'threaded' the mainspring on to the guide to simplify installation.

3. Now the captive mainspring and guide are slid into the frame and a steel rod (red line) used to compress the spring while using a pick (or small screwdriver) to guide the hook on the mainspring guide onto the recoil lever. (Jim Solomon's mainspring tool could be used here, but I had used the knobbed-rod before and was familiar with it so that's what I used). That completes the mainspring installation. :cool:

4. Next I installed the safety bar, safety catch, and safety pin. Tapped the pin in place with a suitable drift.

Continuing reassembly.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...5&d=1543885229

5. The hold-open assembly is installed next. I use a razor blade to hold the spring while pushing down and forward on the hold-open latch. Next, the locking bolt spring and locking bolt were inserted, and the trigger and trigger spring and the magazine catch and its spring were also slid into place. All push-on pieces; no special tools or procedure needed.

6. This completes the reassembly of the Luger lower assembly. Danner & Associates strawed the magazine catch, locking bolt, safety catch, and trigger as part of their refinishing. Looks good!!! :thumbup:

Next up is the reassembly of the upper ('cannon') assembly. ;)

7. Reassembling the trigger lever in the trigger plate. Line up the lever and slide in the pin.

8. Using a drift to rotate the pin into the locked podition.

Moving on to the last of the reassemblies.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...6&d=1543885229

9. Using an undersize pin to line up the Swedish Mauser rear sight leaf, and tapping the sight pin in.

10. Torqueing the front sight base in place, using the aluminum spanner and a large Crescent wrench to line up my marks.

That pretty much completes the reassembly of the Swedish rear sight 1600 meter Luger. I have a set of new grips but they need fitting, which I really suck at. :(

I've attached a couple pics of the left/right/top for now. I'll try to get a set of pics with grips in a good light. :thumbup:

I dug through my box of odds & ends and came up with a pair of Numrich 'laser-cut' grips. They look like Walnut, they're darker than I like, but it gives a good idea what this Luger would look like. :)

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...6&d=1544040249

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...7&d=1544040249

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...8&d=1544040249

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...9&d=1544040249

It doesn't really look all that much different from a 'regular' artillery Luger. :(

I have a set of light color Sarco grips, coarser checkering and kind of chunky, but definitely a different look. :rolleyes:

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...0&d=1544044283

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...1&d=1544044283

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...2&d=1544044283

The Sarco coarse-checkered light color grips don't look as good as the dark Walnut. :(