Which steel bends easily?

[LWaali]

Have you tried A2? It hardens more after heat treatment but I believe it to be slightly softer without treatment. It should still have the integrity for a lanyard loop.

I found a source for metric, but I have never used them so cannot vouch.
http://www.flat-stock.com/~store/Mer...ode=PM-A2DRMM3

I get materials from 'inventables' but did not see that they have a2 in metric.
https://www.inventables.com/technolo...-drill-rod-a-2
If you are interested the closest to 3mm are:
7/64 = 2.7781mm
1/8 = 3.1750mm

[Olle]

Originally Posted by LWaali

I found a source for metric, but I have never used them so cannot vouch.
http://www.flat-stock.com/~store/Mer...ode=PM-A2DRMM3

Bookmarked. You can never have enough sources for metric stuff.

[Olle]

Originally Posted by G.T.

Hi Olli, you may want to leave the ends square as they were a press fit into the holes, then slightly expanded to where they were flush to the inside of the frame mag well, i think the popular thought was that, if a few thousands upset will hold tons of force, anything at all would hold a couple of pounds of pistol... best to you, til...lat'r...GT...

No, it really doesn't take much. One way to do it (which I have used with great success on other projects) is to drill a tiny hole in the end, then stake it with a center punch. The end will look kinda like a short tube, and the wall will flare out easily by hitting it with the center punch. However, on a P.38 you'll have to stick the staking tool through holes on the opposite side of the frame, so it takes a pretty slim center punch to do it. I want this to be an easy DIY installation that doesn't require any special tools, so that's why I want to go with the Loctite. Still, it wouldn't be a problem at all to make another version for those who really want to stake it in one way or another.

Anywho, I spent some time in the shop last night, scrutinizing the loops on my P.38s to see if I could find any forensic evidence of the manufacturing process. One interesting observation is the presence of a mark on the straight part, it clearly shows that there was some kind of "stop" in the tool. It only makes sense, an industrial tool wouldn't have the cap I'm using so it needs to come to a stop somehow. Of course, this is no big surprise, but if I can use a similar arrangement I will not only be able to straighten the loop, I will also be adding an authentic tool mark.

I believe the next step will be to fabricate a die and a saddle that I can use for an additional straighening step, like what you described earlier. These tools will need a slight bend to compensate for springback, but I believe I can actually hand form that with a riffler file. Stay tuned.

[Olle]

It took a while to get around to it, but here’s “the rest of the story”: I already had a working tool to bend the loop, so I figured that the easiest way to adjust the top part was to make another tool:



I stuck the loop in the tool and tapped it in...



...and then I put it in the vise and pressed it:



I anticipated that the loop would stick in the tool, so I added a hole in the center to be able to tap it out with a punch. It worked like a charm, one firm tap and it came right out:



And here’s the finished product, nice, straight and square:



The greyish one was made from the material GT sent me (thanks again, I owe you one!). It wasn’t really easier to press, it may be softer but the surface isn’t polished so it didn’t slide through the tool as smoothly as the drill rod did. On the other hand, the duller material looks way more authentic than the shiny drill rod, so I think I’m going to ask my buddies in Sweden to look for something similar. It should hopefully be easier to find metric material over there, if not I can always etch the drill rod to make it less shiny.