Gene beggs on chambering

Mike, thank you so much for your response to my thread. I really value and respect your input on everything. I especially appreciate your open minded nature. You're a class act my friend.

Yes, I remember Bill Massey and was told he used this method of chambering.

Come back out to the tunnel when you can.

Gene Beggs
 
This is Gene's thread, but I thought I'd put my two cents in on how to fit the threads to an action that is glued in with no previous barrel to use for measurements. Look forward to reading how others would go about it.

The simple way to fit the thread for a glued in gun when you chamber in the steady rest is as follows:

1. Chuck up a piece of solid bar stock with about an inch or two sticking out past the chuck.
2. Turn the lathe compound and cut a 60 degree center on the piece of barstock.
3. Place the center cut in the muzzle end of the barrel onto the 60 degree center you just cut using a lathe dog to keep the barrel from turning.
4. Make sure the lathe dog always stops against the same chuck jaw #1, 2 or 3 it makes no difference which as long as it's the same one every time.
5. With the muzzle end on the center at the chuck and the chamber end running in a live center, turn the tenon and thread the tenon. (This is threading between centers.)
6. When you get the top of the thread thinned down to where it has a small flat on top of the thread, remove the barrel from the lathe and check to see if it will screw into the action. Hopefully, you still have a little farther to go.
7. Return the barrel to between centers and the lathe dog to stop on the same chuck jaw. Make sure you return the tailstock to the same graduation it was on when you started cutting your thread if you have a graduated tail stock. Don't take the lathe dog loose from the barrel at any time until you get the thread where you want it.
8. Go in another thousandth or two depending upon how close you are to having your thread fit. Take the barrel out between centers and try it in the receiver. Keep on taking a thousandth or two until the barrel will fit the receiver. I want a little shake on the thread when it almost bottoms out to the shoulder. If it screws to the shoulder with no wiggle, it's too tight in my opinion.
9. After you have your thread fit, then you can cut your cone clearance and finish your chamber to depth.

This is about the easiest way to fit a barrel to a glued in action if you don't have a previous barrel to get dimensions. A feeler gage and a good set of dial or digital calipers is all the measuring tools necessary. No need for $200 plus test indicators threading and chambering in the steady rest.

This isn't necessarily how I would do it now, but will work pretty easily. It's just a lot of taking the barrel in and out of the lathe to get the thread fit that you want.
 
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I'm assuming Gene isn't finished posting the final steps, but I think I see were he is going. At this point, the chamber *may* be off center with the barrel, but when he cuts and threads the tenon, it will not runout with respect to the chamber.

Column B: Suppose it did? Suppose further that the boltface was wide enough to put no pressure on the cartridge -- say, a .500 boltface for a .473 casehead? Or as often happens, a .473 boltface for a PPC? Way more than is needed for .002 of runout.

* * *

With Gene's method, he feels the bullet is perfectly aligned with the throat -- or put better, the throat is perfectly aligned with the bore.

I'd dispute that as a theoretical matter, but it may be true for all practical purposes. Where does the dispute come from? I believe reamers can bend, flex, whatever. Just a bit. If it is "following" a wandering hole and there is any flex, it could be off center. Easy enough to check with a long-stemmed indicator. After you've finished, dial in the barrel ahead of the throat and then compare that to the neck of the chamber. If there is no runout, no problem. Yeah, I know, if you move the indicator, how do you know . . .
 
Butch Lambert said:
Gene,
How do do a gluein when replacing the barrel?
Butch
Click to expand...



Hey Butch, there you are. I was hoping you would join the discussion. I'm also hoping Jackie Schmidt will join in soon.

You asked, "How do you do a glue-in when chambering in the steady rest?"

Easy! :) As I said earlier, once the muzzle end of the barrel is chucked and indicated, I never remove it until the chamber and tenon are finished. Here is how.

Let's say the chamber is reamed to about 90 percent depth and we're ready to cut the tenon and thread. After loosening the steady rest and sliding it out of the way toward the chuck, I put the live center in the aft end of the chamber and lock the tailstock spindle then turn the tenon to 1.062 and start threading. When the threads are ready for a trial fit in the receiver, I place the steady rest in a position where it will clear the stock forend and run the two lower fingers up against the barrel to give it some support. Then I loosen the tailstock, slide it off the end of the lathe and place it on a table nearby. This gives wide open access to the tenon even if the receiver is glued into a stock. If the action is not glued in, you don't have to slide the steady rest back as far.

Once satisfied with the thread fit, I take a light skim cut off the top of the threads leaving them flat and cencentric with the aft end of the chamber. I run the steady rest fingers on the flat tops of the threads when reaming the chamber to final depth. Some people cringe at the thought of running the steady rest on top of threads but I assure you it works beautifully. The threads hold lubricant and the top of the threads are flat and true. It works great! :cool:

Hope this explains it.

Later,,

Gene
 
Yes sir. As Mike said, not the way I do it, but there are several ways to skin a cat. One of these days I will visit again and it will be at the tunnel. Tell the wife hello.
Butch
 
Mike

Thanks for your description of how to thread between centers.

I have turned things between centers but never threaded between centers using a lathe dog to drive the work. That's a good suggestion; I'll try it.

When you turn a fresh 60 degree point with the compound you know it is running dead true; no need to dial in anything. I have a one inch brass bar I use for this operation. After freshening up the point, I spray the surfaces that make contact with brake cleaner and dry them with compressed air before placing the work between the centers. This usually prevents slippage when just turning but I can see how you would need to use the dog for threading. Thanks for the reminder.
 
Gene Beggs said:
Mike

Thanks for your description of how to thread between centers.

I have turned things between centers but never threaded between centers using a lathe dog to drive the work. That's a good suggestion; I'll try it.
Click to expand...


An additional comment here on thread fit. About Mike Bryants step #6 where the try fit takes place you can also use thread measurement wires if you have the necessary information. As in the Panda instance, they include the "over the wires" data. The basics for this data is described in Machinerys Handbook among other sources.

A caution on fitting barrels to commercial actions or actions that have had the threads remachined. You must have the old barrel or make a plug to get the over the wires measurement.

http://www.machinist-calculator.com/Thread-Measure-Eng.html
 
Gene, pretty simple way to test the thread fit by removing the tail stock. With Butch asking the question, makes you wonder :rolleyes: if he already knew the answer to how you did it as Butch could probably fit a barrel to a glued in action in his sleep.
 
I was fortunate to buy thread mics from Gene Bukys. If you do much barrel work at all this is a great investment. No guessing and you can get a near perfect fit.
Thanks Mike. My head is swelling.
Butch
 
Gene, sure happy to see this thread show up. Understand all the steps involved. Now the hard part for Me
is to put them to good use!! Thanks to all, and a great Thanksgiving.

John Stark
 
Gene.....
I just happened to find this thread. I am a novice when it comes to doing barrel work, so I have a basic question that I am sure everyone else knows, so I am ashamed to ask but here goes.....
Going back to your original post, you have the barrel set up in the lathe and you are ready to start reaming the chamber out.
At this point let's say the barrel bore is for a 6mm bullet. My question: Do you just start reaming the chamber with your piloted reamer or do you first 'drill out the chamber area' with a drill that is smaller diameter than the finished size of the chamber?
Since I have never done this it seems like without the drilling the reamer has got to do a lot of metal removing.
Boy, now I wish I had not asked!
pg
 
Gene, I purchased the grizzly chambering video and he does it through a short head stock lathe. I can not do it his way unless I had a 33" blank to start with. The lathe had a pointed block of steel that I would guess was inserted In the other end of the spindle and centered in the bore then colant was also ran through this block. I will post pics of what I have in hopes u guys can assist me. Thanks
 
piniongear said:
Gene.....
I just happened to find this thread. I am a novice when it comes to doing barrel work, so I have a basic question that I am sure everyone else knows, so I am ashamed to ask but here goes.....
Going back to your original post, you have the barrel set up in the lathe and you are ready to start reaming the chamber out.
At this point let's say the barrel bore is for a 6mm bullet. My question: Do you just start reaming the chamber with your piloted reamer or do you first 'drill out the chamber area' with a drill that is smaller diameter than the finished size of the chamber?
Since I have never done this it seems like without the drilling the reamer has got to do a lot of metal removing.
Boy, now I wish I had not asked!
pg
Click to expand...

piniongear..........

Allow me to get one thing STRAIGHT me' man..... on this forum there is only ONE question to be ashamed of.

The one you didn't ask.

NOBODY will get on your case here for asking a question. Now when you come on and start TELLING how it IS :rolleyes: then things will change. But in the meantime, please ask questions. The reason for this board to exist is for sharing information.

My answer to your question is that "yes, I drill out a lot of the excess material." And I'm really proud of my skills when I drill a hole that's within a thou of the drill bit size. :) (just a little thing to make it less boring. Yes I do actually snap out my drilled holes just to see....)

It looks as if Gene prefers to let the reamer do all the work.

I look forward to many more answers from folks who do this for real.

So guys.... "Drill? Or NO Drill?"

al
 
I drill short of the shoulder and I drill short of the end of the neck and then I bore the body short of the shoulder about 10 thou under size and at the rear bore it big enough the reamer will just enter about 1/2 an inch. Then it is time for the reamer... drilling the neck under size saves the throating part of the reamer a lot of work... I would hate to cut a chamber all the way with the finishing reamer...
 
piniongear said:
Gene.....
I just happened to find this thread. I am a novice when it comes to doing barrel work, so I have a basic question that I am sure everyone else knows, so I am ashamed to ask but here goes.....
Going back to your original post, you have the barrel set up in the lathe and you are ready to start reaming the chamber out.
At this point let's say the barrel bore is for a 6mm bullet. My question: Do you just start reaming the chamber with your piloted reamer or do you first 'drill out the chamber area' with a drill that is smaller diameter than the finished size of the chamber?
Since I have never done this it seems like without the drilling the reamer has got to do a lot of metal removing.
Boy, now I wish I had not asked!
pg
Click to expand...


Some drill and then taper bore to leave a minimum amount of work for the chamber reamer. Gonna try that on some scrap barrels.

By the way, my son-in-law took me to the gun show in Houston a couple of weekends ago. Lot of eye candy there. ;)
 
piniongear said:
Gene.....
I just happened to find this thread. I am a novice when it comes to doing barrel work, so I have a basic question that I am sure everyone else knows, so I am ashamed to ask but here goes.....
Going back to your original post, you have the barrel set up in the lathe and you are ready to start reaming the chamber out.
At this point let's say the barrel bore is for a 6mm bullet. My question: Do you just start reaming the chamber with your piloted reamer or do you first 'drill out the chamber area' with a drill that is smaller diameter than the finished size of the chamber?
Since I have never done this it seems like without the drilling the reamer has got to do a lot of metal removing.
Boy, now I wish I had not asked!
pg
Click to expand...




PG

Yours is an excellent question and one that needs to be discussed. Like Alinwa said, never be ashamed to ask a question. I wrote you a response last night but was so tired, I accidentally deleted it instead of posting it. I just called it a night a went to bed. Sorry.

Your question will be discussed and I'll add something in my post number one of this thread about it. My post number one was just an opener. It will be added to and revised many times after we get feedback from others. There's a lot of expertise here on BR Central. This will be an ongoing, informative thread, I assure you.
 
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