LugerForum Discussion Forums my profile | register | faq | search
upload photo | donate | calendar

Go Back   LugerForum Discussion Forums > General Discussion Forums > Repairs, Restoration & Refinishing

Reply
Thread Tools Display Modes
Unread 05-28-2013, 09:34 AM   #1
Olle
User
 
Olle's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Tennessee
Posts: 1,149
Thanks: 159
Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts
Default Luger snubnose project

I found a Luger basket case a while back, and it included a spare barrel extension with a damaged .30 barrel. The muzzle had been whacked pretty good and the extension had a bent rail, so I sent it to Tinkerer Extraordinaire Gerald Tomek for straightening and barrel removal.

I hate to throw gun parts away, so once I received the parts back from GT, I started thinking about what to do with the damaged barrel. I could have welded and reshaped the sight base, lined the barrel etc, but looking at the cost for doing this I decided to simply cut the damaged section off:




This is the method I use when I want to get something done: I paint myself into a corner, then I just have to do something to get out of there. I found a piece of round bar that was the right size for a new sight base, so I started out by turning the basic shape:



After turning the blank, I chucked it in the index table. By milling in 5 degree increments (thanks for the tip, postino!), I got a surface that only took some light filing to make perfectly round:




Then I chucked it in the lathe again, bored it and parted it off to the right length:



Then on to the barrel. I had to turn it down a bit for the new sight base, and I also polished out some dings on the barrel while I was at it. After some turning, filing and dry fitting, it started to look like a Luger barrel again:




I used Brownells Hi-Force 44 to solder the sight base to the barrel, and I started by tinning the barrel. Then I put some flux inside the sight base, slipped it onto the barrel and heated it until the solder melted again. I had the barrel sitting upright in a vise, and I added a few dabs of solder around the seam to make sure that it was filled. It disappeared into the seam just as intended, so this sight base shouldn’t come off anytime soon. Or as the locals here say: "That ain't going nowhere!"




With the soldering done, I chucked it in the lathe again do crown it and round it off a bit. I usually make a big mess when I solder, so once I had it out of the lathe I put some cold blue on it to see how it turned out. I was actually surprised to see that there wasn’t much excess solder at all, just a few spots that were easily cleaned up with emery cloth. The seam around the muzzle shows just a little bit, but that was expected and there’s nothing much you can do about it:




And just for fun, I mocked it up on a frame to see how it would look:



The only thing left to do now is to cut the dovetail for the sight, but that will have to wait until I find a suitable end mill (or until I break down and let somebody else do it...). The sight base is not perfectly straight either, but I think it’s easier to align it after the barrel is installed on a receiver. All I need to do is to heat it so I can turn it a bit, so it’s really no biggie.
Olle is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 05-28-2013, 10:29 AM   #2
G.T.
Lifer
Lifetime Forum
Patron
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Chandler Arizona
Posts: 3,483
Thanks: 1,282
Thanked 3,579 Times in 988 Posts
Default Cool!

That is really cool Olle! I'm happy we could save it all! Now I see what you had in mind... nice work.. best to you, til...lat'r...GT
G.T. is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 05-28-2013, 10:55 AM   #3
Olle
User
 
Olle's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Tennessee
Posts: 1,149
Thanks: 159
Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by G.T. View Post
That is really cool Olle! I'm happy we could save it all! Now I see what you had in mind... nice work.. best to you, til...lat'r...GT
Yeah, I'm really glad that you got it off without relief cutting it!

Now I just have to figure out what to do with it. I just got wind of a Navy barrel and rear toggle, so my new "Gestapo barrel" might have to sit in the drawer until I find another project gun. Desicions, decisions...
Olle is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 05-28-2013, 12:31 PM   #4
Zorba
User
 
Zorba's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: Merritt Island, Fl
Posts: 951
Thanks: 776
Thanked 526 Times in 289 Posts
Default

That's some skilled, and beautiful work.
Zorba is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 05-28-2013, 01:39 PM   #5
Olle
User
 
Olle's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Tennessee
Posts: 1,149
Thanks: 159
Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts
Default

Looking at the mock-up, I'm thinking that a shortened grip frame would be kind of cool too. Shouldn't be too difficult really, just cut and weld it back, file it, shape it etc, send a mag to GT for modification, ask Hugh to make grip panels... On second thought, I might better wait until I find another frame, this one is too nice to cut up.
Olle is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 05-28-2013, 06:42 PM   #6
Hugh
RIP
 
Hugh's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Southeast Texas Swamp
Posts: 2,460
Thanks: 2
Thanked 165 Times in 64 Posts
Default

Nice job, Olle, but why didn't you just cut off the original sight band, ream it out for a press fit on the turned down bbl, and solder it on? Just asking???? That's what I did in making my babies.
__________________
TRUMP FOR PREZ IN '20!
Hugh is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 05-28-2013, 07:11 PM   #7
Olle
User
 
Olle's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Tennessee
Posts: 1,149
Thanks: 159
Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hugh View Post
Nice job, Olle, but why didn't you just cut off the original sight band, ream it out for a press fit on the turned down bbl, and solder it on? Just asking???? That's what I did in making my babies.
The reason for doing all this was that the band and the sight post were damaged, you can see some of it in the picture where it's cut off. The shortie conversion was simply an attempt to do something fun with an otherwise useless barrel.
Olle is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 05-29-2013, 09:02 AM   #8
Paladinpainter
User
 
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Vermont
Posts: 64
Thanks: 14
Thanked 45 Times in 15 Posts
Default

Olle, that worked out excellent! Congratulations .
John
Paladinpainter is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 05-29-2013, 09:27 AM   #9
Olle
User
 
Olle's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Tennessee
Posts: 1,149
Thanks: 159
Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Paladinpainter View Post
Olle, that worked out excellent! Congratulations .
John
Thanks, John!

My home PC is down, but I'll send you an e-mail once it's back in operation again.
Olle is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 11-17-2013, 07:51 PM   #10
Olle
User
 
Olle's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Tennessee
Posts: 1,149
Thanks: 159
Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts
Default

Resurrecting the thread with another one I just finished up. This belongs to a forum member who has been waiting on it for several months now, but he has been kind enough not to bug me about it.

It started out as an artillery barrel that had been cut and fitted with some kind of muzzle device. I did this one the same way as the first one, but this time I also made a jig that makes it easier to get everything plumb and level in the mill.

And Sheepherder: I owe you one, your barrel thread has been the inspiration for this.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG_9638.JPG
Views:	56
Size:	104.7 KB
ID:	37866  

Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG_9675.JPG
Views:	69
Size:	130.7 KB
ID:	37867  

Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG_9681.JPG
Views:	57
Size:	119.0 KB
ID:	37868  

Olle is offline   Reply With Quote
The following member says Thank You to Olle for your post:
Unread 11-17-2013, 08:02 PM   #11
Olle
User
 
Olle's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Tennessee
Posts: 1,149
Thanks: 159
Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts
Default

For those of you who want to try, this little fixture helped a lot. I used it when I milled the dovetail and the taper in the back, and it also made it easy to get the sight post soldered on straight.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG_9650.JPG
Views:	54
Size:	136.1 KB
ID:	37869  

Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG_9666.JPG
Views:	49
Size:	181.8 KB
ID:	37870  

Click image for larger version

Name:	IMG_9663.jpg
Views:	47
Size:	136.5 KB
ID:	37871  

Olle is offline   Reply With Quote
The following 3 members says Thank You to Olle for your post:
Unread 11-17-2013, 08:30 PM   #12
Edward Tinker
Super Moderator
Eternal Lifer
LugerForum
Patron
 
Edward Tinker's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: North of Spokane, WA
Posts: 15,902
Thanks: 1,981
Thanked 4,487 Times in 2,071 Posts
Default

Ollie, cool, just cool
__________________
Edward Tinker
************
Co-Author of Police Lugers - Co-Author of Simson Lugers
Author of Veteran Bring Backs Vol I, Vol II, Vol III and Vol IV

Edward Tinker is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 11-17-2013, 08:41 PM   #13
sheepherder
Lifer
Lifetime Forum
Patron
 
sheepherder's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: ...on the 'ol Erie Canal...
Posts: 8,181
Thanks: 1,394
Thanked 4,438 Times in 2,327 Posts
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Olle View Post
For those of you who want to try, this little fixture helped a lot. I used it when I milled the dovetail and the taper in the back, and it also made it easy to get the sight post soldered on straight.
Cool fixture!!!

That would make it easy to spirit level the front sight base.
__________________
I like my coffee the
way I like my women...
...Cold and bitter...
sheepherder is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 11-17-2013, 10:53 PM   #14
Olle
User
 
Olle's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Tennessee
Posts: 1,149
Thanks: 159
Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by sheepherder View Post
That would make it easy to spirit level the front sight base.
Exactly. One of the purposes of the fixture is to provide a straight and level surface to help me index the sight base correctly. I used my new Wixey digital angle finder ( http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/200...ge-wLevel.aspx ) for this, worked like a charm. I didn't even have to level the barrel, I just stuck the angle finder to the flat surface on the barrel, zeroed it and then moved it to the fixture. I might mount a steel plate to the fixture so the magnet will stick to it, that would make it even easier.
Olle is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 11-17-2013, 11:28 PM   #15
CAP Black
User
 
CAP Black's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Fairmont, WV Right here in Mountaineer country and God's country
Posts: 767
Thanks: 100
Thanked 168 Times in 96 Posts
Default

Man, Olle, you surely do seem to know some stuff.
Thanks for sharing
Jack
CAP Black is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 11-18-2013, 08:57 AM   #16
Neil Young
Lifer
Lifetime Forum
Patron
 
Neil Young's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Scottsboro, Alabama
Posts: 540
Thanks: 546
Thanked 438 Times in 165 Posts
Default

Impressive work Olle.
__________________
Neil The hurrier I go the behinder I get. Sometimes it takes me all day to get nothing done.
Neil Young is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 11-18-2013, 09:02 AM   #17
cirelaw
Lifer
Lifetime Forum
Patron
 
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: PORT ST LUCIE, FLORIDA
Posts: 12,216
Thanks: 6,209
Thanked 4,133 Times in 2,173 Posts
Default

I wondered how that was done!! Eric
cirelaw is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 11-18-2013, 10:24 AM   #18
Sergio Natali
User
 
Sergio Natali's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: Somewhere in Northern Italy
Posts: 2,646
Thanks: 1,082
Thanked 1,783 Times in 1,007 Posts
Default

Ollie,

Thanks for sharing, very interesting indeed.
__________________
"Originality can't be restored and should be at the top of any collector's priority list.
Sergio Natali is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 01-19-2014, 09:10 AM   #19
Paladinpainter
User
 
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Vermont
Posts: 64
Thanks: 14
Thanked 45 Times in 15 Posts
Default

Olle, thanks for the work on my Artillery barrel. The line where your muzzle band joins the existing barrel is invisible. Now, I just have to figure out what kind of project this wants to be.
John
Paladinpainter is offline   Reply With Quote
Unread 01-19-2014, 03:24 PM   #20
ithacaartist
Twice a Lifer
Lifetime Forum
Patron
 
ithacaartist's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Atop the highest hill in Schuyler County NY
Posts: 3,276
Thanks: 6,954
Thanked 2,461 Times in 1,315 Posts
Default

Masterful work, Ollie...!
__________________
"... Liberty is the seed and soil, the air and light, the dew and rain of progress, love and joy."-- Robert Greene Ingersoll 1894
ithacaartist is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
blivet

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 07:47 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright © 1998 - 2023, Lugerforum.com