Barrel shortening

[Mark Terry]

I read it somewhere here but can't seem to find the thread - something in reference to shortening a single action barrel.

Is this a 'homesmith' project? Does anyone have practical experience in shortening a barrel? While I can see cutting the barrel, I have to be concerned about the crown and re-attaching the front sight.

Yep, I used to have a 7 1/2" preference but have been influenced by members here toward shorter barrels (read "perfect packing").

[Lee Martin]

I use a high-speed cold saw for the intial cut. Then everything gets trued in a lathe and the crown is set.

I've seen a few home-grown chops....some look good, some don't. Your safest bet is to send it off to a gunsmith.

-Lee
www.singleactions.com

[Tx Gun Runner]

I did mine with a hacksaw from 7 1/2 to 3 1/2
Use a tubing cutter and scribe a mark around barrel , take a fine blade hacksaw and go around the line going deeper and deeper till you cut it half . Then take coarse sandpaper , use your thumb and keep rotate back and forth and turning the barrel till you get it smooth . Take a brass round head screw and chuck it in a drill and going in a circle to get the recessed crown . Shoot it and look at the star pattern on the muzzle and see if it is even . If not buy $100 tool or take to a gunsmith and have it crowned

[Mark Terry]

I was thinking acetylene torch.......

But seriously. I'm a little surprised there weren't / aren't more responses. This wouldn't seem to be a big job and something one would have to employ one of the name 'smiths. I've talked to several local gunsmiths, none of whom have convinced me they'd do a better job than me.

Tngunrunner - your job looks good and it shoots good, too. What was the source of the front sight? Is it true it's attached by a single screw? Thanks for the pictures and information.

I'm thinking an older, NMSBH 7.5" to 5.5". The factory front sight appears to be soldered on and I suspect that there is a cut in the top of the barrel into which seats a pin on the bottom of the sight base. Anyone have knowlege of this? Can the factory front sight be removed and re-used. I looked in Kuhnhausen and did find much on the subject.

[Aggie01]

I'm a DIY guy if i can be. I have a few barrel shortening projects running around.

I looked into and seriously considered trying to buy all the stuff I would need to do it myself, and talked to THE local gunsmith.
Since his solution involved sticking a 2x2 thru my frame window to remove the barrel, he no longer gets my SA queries.

Then I sent them to Alan Harton. Luckily I don't get robbed by fedex on instate shippping, so it was the cost/time effective choice.

TN gunrunner has more gumption than I do on doing it by hand. Kudos to him. I decided it was out of my comfort zone. The major cost of most barrel shortening is re soldering the front sight. TN gunrunner's solution of screwing one on is cheap, fast and simple. IIRC, Mr. Bowen in his book says something to the effect that the labor is so much on putting on a new front sight, you might as well get a custom front sight.
I have a "big name" smith signed up to do a $300 caliber conversion if he is allowed to screw a factory sight onto a shortened ruger factory barrel. That should tell yoou where the labor costs are. And thats turning the barrel down to remove the ruger warning and remarking the frame too.
(PM me if you need more info on this conversion - I cannot guarantee his price and won't release his info without talking to him first - .41 mag on an .357 anny. And I already have a "big" project in works with him, and the time frame is "whenever you can")

TN gunrunner's front sight looks like a Single Six, Mark I, II, III or Maximum sight blade rounded off a bit. I'll delete this line if he lets me know I'm wrong.

[AxeHandle]

So long as it is a stainless gun looks like the front sight is the money pit... FWIW my favorite is the FA base just because of the option of easily changing blades... Makes it easy to remove those express blades and slap in one of the Kewl patridge blades that Ken O'Neill sends me! ;D

[maxcactus]

Aug 12, 2009 22:02:36 GMT -5 Aggie01 said:

I looked into and seriously considered trying to buy all the stuff I would need to do it myself, and talked to THE local gunsmith.
Since his solution involved sticking a 2x2 thru my frame window to remove the barrel, he no longer gets my SA queries.

Not trying to be argumentative here, but didn't Mr. Hamilton Bowen himself mention just such a technique in regard to barrel removal in a recent edition of Guns/AH magazine? Surprised me a bit too, but makes sense given the amount of leverage/torque needed to unscrew a bbl. IIRC, the premise of his article was "you can do it too!" Gave some very specific information and cautions for those souls intrepid enough to give it a try.

Max.

[mellonhead]

I was thinking the same thing Max. I believe the article I read said that Bowen uses a hardwood board to loosen the frame from the barrel. I belive the article was writen by Bowen also.

Toby

[mellonhead]

Found it.

bowenclassicarms.com/GunsMag0706.pdf

[Shakey]

Mark, I have done a little 'homesmithing' but hesitated to post because my methods are pretty crude and I was hoping to learn some better techniques myself.

I'll PM you some stuff when I get a chance to write it up but am kind of busy right now with a brand new granddaughter (baby is doing fine but mom is having a little trouble and needing help with the other kids).

[Mark Terry]

Thanks, Shakey.

I understand completely. We were blessed about 16 months ago with our first grand daughter and I'm not afraid to say that if she or her Mom need me, that's exactly where I'll be. Good luck, hope everything goes well.

Thanks,

[carl]

Aug 5, 2009 14:04:11 GMT -5 Tx Gun Runner said:

Take a brass round head screw and chuck it in a drill and going in a circle to get the recessed crown.

How can a brass "tool" crown a stainless steel barrel?

I'm really confused.

Carl

[klhill]

Carl, he was probably referring to the use of valve lapping compound on the brass head to polish/smooth the crown.

[Aggie01]

Aug 15, 2009 10:06:41 GMT -5 carl said:

Aug 5, 2009 14:04:11 GMT -5 Tx Gun Runner said:

Take a brass round head screw and chuck it in a drill and going in a circle to get the recessed crown.

How can a brass "tool" crown a stainless steel barrel?

I'm really confused.

Carl

Brass cutting steel is no harder to believe than one man "fixing" the country's problems, but a lot of people seem to be sold on that.

[Gary @ R&G]

Carl, Larry Potterfield of Midway demos the brass screw method on one of their video segments. They use a brass screw with lapping compund. I use a crowning bit then follow it up with a Brownells brass muzzle crowning lap with polishing compound.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=OorpZlG28fI