I just received an insert for my barrel vise to hold a P17 barrel but it doesn't seem to have nearly enough taper. My barrel measures 1.301 where it meets the front ring of the receiver and about 1-1/4 inches forward of that, just before it turns the shoulder, it measures 1.251 inches, a taper of .050 over the 1-1/4".

Does this sound correct? Does anyone have an original barrel they could meaure for comparison?


Thanks, Rob

Depending on how your barrel vise was made, it is likely that th einserts do not need to exactly match the contour of the barrel. I made my barrel vise with a big bottle jack and a movable plate. I started out using oak blocks with tapered grooves milled in them. No praticular taper-just set the blocks at an angle in the mill vise and cut a tapered groove with the milling head.

I now use micarta blocks, as they are nearly indestructable. Did the same thing and just milled a random sized tapered groove in them. Have pulled all manner and sizes of barrels with the vise and blocks with no problems.

So what I am saying is that if your blocks have a good bit of contact with the barrel, I would try them and see how it works. Liable to be just fine.

Marc, where'd you get the Micarta block material? I'm tired of making new blocks every week out of oak.

Thanks,

you cna buy it from most knife making catalogs. It is pretty expensive, so th eblocks sold for knifemakers are suually smaller and cheaper.

I have a lot of it that I got when I worked in a sawmill. It was used for wearplates on a piece of machinery we had. I cut it into blocks about 4"x4"x3/4". This fits the vise I made.

McMaster-Carr sells Garolite, which I believe is the same, or very similar material.

McMaster-Carr is a bit pricey, but always a good reference.

Garolite

Anyone have a chance to measure a barrel?

Rob

I never measured an Enfield barrel but you are correct in your observations, there is a heavy taper at the chamber section on all arsenal Enfield barrels. Unless you want to save it, I used to cut a relief groove right at the barrel/receiver junction to thread depth and used a pipe wrench with a "cheater bar" to take it off. A lot of the P-17 barrels had .311" groove barrels left over when the UK cancelled the contract on the P-14's. These are recognizeable by the 5 groove, left hand twist in the bore. At any rate, I was never tempted to use the original barrels.

don't have a barrel, but DeHaas gives the dimension over the chamber as 1.325 for P14/M17 Enfields.