Project 'gun'

[roddy]

I have to get my hands on some thin spring steel

'Banding' (strapping) steel makes excellent flat spring material.
I have Used it many times to make flat springs.

I'd 'like' that twice if I could...the thought never occurred to me. A possible solution did hit me out of the blue, though. While I was using a 'dollar store' multi-tool to retrieve a screw from the frame, it occurred to me that many such tools have a little pair of scissors in them that use a pressed in piece of flat springy steel to push the scissors open. Hmm...

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I just need to pin/stake it, and move on to issue #2

[roddy]

Issue #2...the stock will not stay tight. The threads on the screw look more like they were meant for sheet metal than wood. Any attempt at further tightening the screw only results in more wood being augered out of the hole. Solution? Drill the first 3/4" of stock to a larger size and install an insert. Then I can use a 1/4" brass machine screw to replace the one that was there...

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Polish up the brass, test fit, and move on...

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[JEBar]

Solution? Drill the first 3/4" of stock to a larger size and install an insert.

do you use any sort of glue on the outside of the insert

[roddy]

Solution? Drill the first 3/4" of stock to a larger size and install an insert.

do you use any sort of glue on the outside of the insert

I thought about using some JB woodweld, but was afraid of a couple of things...the mess I would have on my hands if this didn't work out and I had to remove it, and the possibility of epoxy building up behind the insert and getting into the threads, or permanently bonding the screw in.
I may end up going that way in the end, but for now, I'll try without.
All I did was lubricate the threads on the outside with some chopping block wax (to help them cut in more smoothly), put the stock in a vise (to lower the chance of a crack...these things go in tight), and gently (slowly) screw it in by hand.

[JEBar]

concerns understood .... I was surprised to see that the threads on the insert aren't backward .... any thoughts on that

[roddy]

concerns understood .... I was surprised to see that the threads on the insert aren't backward .... any thoughts on that

That's pretty much par for the course...I used to sell fasteners years ago, and as far as I recall, most (if not all) inserts had right hand threads. Whether they were for thread repair in metal (heli-coil, keen-sert, etc), or for wood, It didn't seem to matter. You'd think left hand threads might be a good idea, but I don't remember seeing any.
In this case, all it has to do is keep a bit of tension between the stock and grip frame. The fit between the two is pretty good, and the frame butts right up against the insert. The worst that could happen is the insert would thread out when trying to remove the screw, but I doubt that would happen...part of my reason for choosing brass was to avoid that. Brass, though not overly strong (it doesn't need to be in this case), has a high resistance to galling and getting stuck together.

[JEBar]

thanks for the response .... your comments on brass make sense to me

[roddy]

Issue #3...a seized, sticky, gritty ejector. Even after removing the forend wood, the ejector didn't want to move. A few light taps with a plastic hammer while pulling down on the rod freed it up, but that left it feeling pretty gritty and rough. Oh well, at least it comes apart now...

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The forestock must be removed to change between .22 LR and .22 WMR cylinders, and with years of on and off, loosen/tighten, 'dirt' has built up inside the block and the wood has compressed just enough for the end of the screw to contact the ejector rod. Someone has really tightened it at some time as well...there were some pretty good burrs in the rod from the screw jamming into it.
The solution here was to polish away the burrs on the rod, clean the threads and guide hole in the block with old .17 cal bore brushes and some solvent, then use a cut-down 1/4" neoprene (rubber) fender washer as a shim between the forestock and the block. I have used similar washers as problem-solvers in many applications over the years. This one in particular has a 1/4" I.D., a 2" O.D., and is 1/16" thick.

This is how it looks under the wood...the block slides into a dovetail in the barrel, the ejector glides (like it should) through the block, which also serves as a mounting point for the wood.

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[roddy]

Back in one piece...

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[Mags]

beautiful!