What do they do to a Contender Armor Alloy II barrel to make it fit a blue frame.

Paul

They ream the Armor Alloy plating out of the pin hole. I have converted two frames by using 600 grit sandpaper wrapped around a dowel and using it to carefully removing the plating.......just go slow, use some oil and check pin fit often......it's easier than you might think.

THank You GonHuntin

Mark, sand paper works, but is more likely to result in a tapered hole or an out of round hole, which while not totally flawed, is not as precise as reaming.

In some instances you also need to lower the tops of the locking bolts due to the fact that the thickness of the plating on the barrel where it seats in the frame effecively raises the locking bolts, which can make lockup too tight. You can also as needed order a set of UNDERSIZE locking bolts from TC, which is the way they fit barrels to frames when there are lockup problems. They have a range of locking bolt heights both below standard height and above standard height, the latter being for barrels with lockup that is too loose.

Mike

Also, for a standard fit with a standard blue or stainless hinge pin, ream at .375." Common 3/8" chucking reamer is used for this.

I like the spiral reamers better than straight, but sell only the straight fluted reamers..... with a "star" handle installed for hand use only.

I also like to stone a longer leade angle on the reamers for my own use, but do not modify the reamers I sell.

A 3/8" adjustable reamer would be good to use also and would let you get the degree of fit at the hinge you wanted when used carefully.

NEVER use a chucking reamer to ream the barrel and frame holes together unless you are a bonafide machinist and make the proper set up to assure alignment first. You can ruin a barrel hinge pin hole rather quickly trying to ream the three holes at one time. Don't do it. Reason is that the chucking reamer cuts on the end and will cut in whatever misalignment you impose on it by the adjacent holes. The reamer is guided by the radial lands behind the cutting edges, and one frame hole will force the reamer out of alignment with the barrel hole.

Mike

Paul,
I went the "chucking reamer" route as mentioned above by MB. The biggest problem I had was FINDING one..... Ended up finally finding one at an industrial tools supply house 60 miles away. (I live in a rural area...) Had I known MB had them available, I'd probably checked first w/ him. My reamer cost $14. Took about 15 minutes to ream the hinge pin by hand. Hinge pin/frame mates up very well, now. The barrel shoots VERY accurately. Gary T.