The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Guns, Politics, Gunsmithing & Reloading Gunsmithing Chambering Questions, HelpGo | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
| Chambering Questions, Help | Login/Join |
| one of us |
Mark, I like your idea of how these barrel jobs are completed. Most of these guys have a different view on what is needed to make a fine rifle chamber. I have threaded and chambered a barrel on the Chinese 7X10 lathe a few years ago to see if it would hold within the tolerances. It will group under 3/4 in with a very thin barrel. Guess it is holding close enough. Now I have moved up to the 7X12 mini lathe and have fitted up and chambered a XX Douglas to a MkX action. I find that it is the person turning the knobs that must have the knowledge of what he is doing to be safe and cut a good chamber. Most lathes in older shops were about worns out, but could be used to cut a good chamber. You mentioned barrels not being true when centered in a lathe. I turned many barrels from military rifles in the '60's and it would warp while making the cuts. I had to understand how to check the barrel and bend it in the press before you could finish the cuts. This was a standard practice in the old days. A good floating reamer holder is the trick. Les | |||
|
| one of us |
I could chamber on a Bridgeport EZ-Path Lathe. The problem is that I can't feel how the reamer is cutting. On the Bridgeport Lathe, the carriage moves via electric mortor and you don't have the FEEL of the cutting rearmer that's important when cutting a chamber. You want to feel the reamer as it's cutting and watch the chips as you clear them, these are also the keys to a good chamber. Now the CNC lathe is great for cutting threads or turning a barrel. It's nice to program in a barrel taper and watch it run or cut threads in less than a minute. But for chambering I'll take my Chinese lathe and a JGS floating reamer holder. | |||
|
| one of us |
Just got back to this thread and found it very interesting. I was surprised to see the other discussions on using a plastic bushing to align the barrel. I have pretty much taught myself to run a lathe, and thought I was pretty sharp for dreaming this up! I didn't realize a lot of other people were doing it. Guess I should read more. As to the comment on the tap holder, I like it because I normally hold the handle off the beds and can really feel the cutting. However, I still believe it should reach the beds for safety. I completely agree that letting it swing through would sometimes save a chamber from getting chewed up. However, I work alone with no one around. Even neglecting the possibility of broken bones, having something that size spinning that could grab clothes etc is frightening. The same could be said of the chuck, obviously, but I believe in minimizing risk. In this instance, I am willing to have to rethread a barrel occasionally in exchange for reducing a chance of injury. | |||
|
One of Us |
As you know if you have read my posts above, I understand and pretty much agree with what you have said on this subject....in fact, I think I was mentioning the occurance of crooked bores, JGS floating reeamer holders, etc., fairly early on in this thread. (That's why I mentioned that I use a JGS reamer holder...and have done so for years). I do, however, believe that it never hurts and usually helps to get everything properly centered to start with. The less the equipment has to compensate for by way of operator error, the better the chances of a first class job of chambering, is my view. Murphy's law still applies, regardless what equipment/tools we bring to the job. It is the machine operator's function to apply his/her knowledge and skills (and work ethic) to do the job right. That's my view, and I'll stick to it at this point. My country gal's just a moonshiner's daughter, but I love her still. | |||
|
| one of us |
Isn't the JGS floating holder a great tool. They don't give them away, but if you do a lot of chambering its worth the money. Most floating reamer holder made by other manufactures are two harden steel plates that slide againist each other to correct for the non centered bore. Sometimes the bore is not only off center but off center at an angle. The JGS tool not only adjusts it self for off centered bores but it also is able the pitch and yawl and follow the bore no matter where it goes. Cliff LaBoundy at Precision Reboring used to do a lot of work for Holand & Holand reboring their double rifles. He cut new chambers in these rifles by hanging the barrels over the side of his Bridgeport mill using a JGS floating reamer holder. | |||
|
| Powered by Social Strata | Page 1 2 |
 | Please Wait. Your request is being processed... |
|
Visit our on-line store for AR Memorabilia