Luger snubnose project

Olle · 05-28-2013, 09:34 AM

I found a Luger basket case a while back, and it included a spare barrel extension with a damaged .30 barrel. The muzzle had been whacked pretty good and the extension had a bent rail, so I sent it to Tinkerer Extraordinaire Gerald Tomek for straightening and barrel removal.

I hate to throw gun parts away, so once I received the parts back from GT, I started thinking about what to do with the damaged barrel. I could have welded and reshaped the sight base, lined the barrel etc, but looking at the cost for doing this I decided to simply cut the damaged section off:

This is the method I use when I want to get something done: I paint myself into a corner, then I just have to do something to get out of there. I found a piece of round bar that was the right size for a new sight base, so I started out by turning the basic shape:

After turning the blank, I chucked it in the index table. By milling in 5 degree increments (thanks for the tip, postino!), I got a surface that only took some light filing to make perfectly round:

Then I chucked it in the lathe again, bored it and parted it off to the right length:

Then on to the barrel. I had to turn it down a bit for the new sight base, and I also polished out some dings on the barrel while I was at it. After some turning, filing and dry fitting, it started to look like a Luger barrel again:

I used Brownells Hi-Force 44 to solder the sight base to the barrel, and I started by tinning the barrel. Then I put some flux inside the sight base, slipped it onto the barrel and heated it until the solder melted again. I had the barrel sitting upright in a vise, and I added a few dabs of solder around the seam to make sure that it was filled. It disappeared into the seam just as intended, so this sight base shouldn’t come off anytime soon. Or as the locals here say: "That ain't going nowhere!"

With the soldering done, I chucked it in the lathe again do crown it and round it off a bit. I usually make a big mess when I solder, so once I had it out of the lathe I put some cold blue on it to see how it turned out. I was actually surprised to see that there wasn’t much excess solder at all, just a few spots that were easily cleaned up with emery cloth. The seam around the muzzle shows just a little bit, but that was expected and there’s nothing much you can do about it:

And just for fun, I mocked it up on a frame to see how it would look:

The only thing left to do now is to cut the dovetail for the sight, but that will have to wait until I find a suitable end mill (or until I break down and let somebody else do it...). The sight base is not perfectly straight either, but I think it’s easier to align it after the barrel is installed on a receiver. All I need to do is to heat it so I can turn it a bit, so it’s really no biggie.

G.T. · 05-28-2013, 10:29 AM

That is really cool Olle! I'm happy we could save it all! Now I see what you had in mind... nice work..

best to you, til...lat'r...GT

Olle · 05-28-2013, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by G.T.

That is really cool Olle! I'm happy we could save it all! Now I see what you had in mind... nice work..

best to you, til...lat'r...GT

Yeah, I'm really glad that you got it off without relief cutting it!

Now I just have to figure out what to do with it. I just got wind of a Navy barrel and rear toggle, so my new "Gestapo barrel" might have to sit in the drawer until I find another project gun. Desicions, decisions...

Zorba · 05-28-2013, 12:31 PM

That's some skilled, and beautiful work.

Olle · 05-28-2013, 01:39 PM

Looking at the mock-up, I'm thinking that a shortened grip frame would be kind of cool too. Shouldn't be too difficult really, just cut and weld it back, file it, shape it etc, send a mag to GT for modification, ask Hugh to make grip panels... On second thought, I might better wait until I find another frame, this one is too nice to cut up.

Hugh · 05-28-2013, 06:42 PM

Nice job, Olle, but why didn't you just cut off the original sight band, ream it out for a press fit on the turned down bbl, and solder it on? Just asking???? That's what I did in making my babies.

Olle · 05-28-2013, 07:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hugh

Nice job, Olle, but why didn't you just cut off the original sight band, ream it out for a press fit on the turned down bbl, and solder it on? Just asking???? That's what I did in making my babies.

The reason for doing all this was that the band and the sight post were damaged, you can see some of it in the picture where it's cut off. The shortie conversion was simply an attempt to do something fun with an otherwise useless barrel.

Paladinpainter · 05-29-2013, 09:02 AM

Olle, that worked out excellent! Congratulations .
John

Olle · 05-29-2013, 09:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paladinpainter

Olle, that worked out excellent! Congratulations .
John

Thanks, John!

My home PC is down, but I'll send you an e-mail once it's back in operation again.

Olle · 11-17-2013, 07:51 PM

Resurrecting the thread with another one I just finished up. This belongs to a forum member who has been waiting on it for several months now, but he has been kind enough not to bug me about it.

It started out as an artillery barrel that had been cut and fitted with some kind of muzzle device. I did this one the same way as the first one, but this time I also made a jig that makes it easier to get everything plumb and level in the mill.

And Sheepherder: I owe you one, your barrel thread has been the inspiration for this.

Edward Tinker · 11-17-2013, 08:30 PM

Ollie, cool, just cool

CAP Black · 11-17-2013, 11:28 PM

Man, Olle, you surely do seem to know some stuff.
Thanks for sharing
Jack

Neil Young · 11-18-2013, 08:57 AM

Impressive work Olle.

cirelaw · 11-18-2013, 09:02 AM

I wondered how that was done!! Eric

Sergio Natali · 11-18-2013, 10:24 AM

Ollie,

Thanks for sharing, very interesting indeed.

ithacaartist · 01-19-2014, 03:24 PM

Masterful work, Ollie...!

pors12 · 01-22-2014, 04:33 AM

Hi,

Nice work.
Would be interesting how it performs ....

By the way, your EMCO machine tool was produced
right here in my hometown .

best regards

Otto

Olle · 01-22-2014, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pors12

Hi,

Nice work.
Would be interesting how it performs ....

By the way, your EMCO machine tool was produced
right here in my hometown .

best regards

Otto

Otto,

The Emco Compact 8 is a wonderful piece of equipment, and I hate that they don't sell them here in the US anymore. It really leaves the Chinese machines in the dust, I can't even get the dial indicator to read the runout in the chuck (probably less than 1/4 thousands of an inch). I just need to convert it to variable speed and reversible lead screw, then it will be perfect. Say hello to the Emco guys and tell them to keep up the good work!

As far as the barrels go, I have no idea if the accuracy is affected or not. It's kind of irrelevant to me though, I came up this as an attempt to save an otherwise useless barrel. I'm thinking that it could be used if someone has a numbered barrel with a damaged sight post, wants to build a shortie, or (as the artillery barrel) if a previous owner has modified a barrel. I don't know if there's a need for this kind of service, but the tinkerer in me said that I just had to try it.

oldphardt · 02-02-2014, 04:39 PM

Got a question, as I have never done a front sight job like yours, - Why not mill the front sight dovetail and ramp while the blank is in the indexing head in a known angular position? Seems like it would have saved having to making that beautifully done fixture.

Olle · 02-02-2014, 05:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldphardt

Got a question, as I have never done a front sight job like yours, - Why not mill the front sight dovetail and ramp while the blank is in the indexing head in a known angular position? Seems like it would have saved having to making that beautifully done fixture.

The reason why I made the block in the first place was actually to index the sight. I could have done the final milling the way you suggest, but I figured that I could just as well use the block.

05-28-2013, 09:34 AM	#1
Olle User Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Tennessee Posts: 1,149 Thanks: 159 Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts	Luger snubnose project I found a Luger basket case a while back, and it included a spare barrel extension with a damaged .30 barrel. The muzzle had been whacked pretty good and the extension had a bent rail, so I sent it to Tinkerer Extraordinaire Gerald Tomek for straightening and barrel removal. I hate to throw gun parts away, so once I received the parts back from GT, I started thinking about what to do with the damaged barrel. I could have welded and reshaped the sight base, lined the barrel etc, but looking at the cost for doing this I decided to simply cut the damaged section off: This is the method I use when I want to get something done: I paint myself into a corner, then I just have to do something to get out of there. I found a piece of round bar that was the right size for a new sight base, so I started out by turning the basic shape: After turning the blank, I chucked it in the index table. By milling in 5 degree increments (thanks for the tip, postino!), I got a surface that only took some light filing to make perfectly round: Then I chucked it in the lathe again, bored it and parted it off to the right length: Then on to the barrel. I had to turn it down a bit for the new sight base, and I also polished out some dings on the barrel while I was at it. After some turning, filing and dry fitting, it started to look like a Luger barrel again: I used Brownells Hi-Force 44 to solder the sight base to the barrel, and I started by tinning the barrel. Then I put some flux inside the sight base, slipped it onto the barrel and heated it until the solder melted again. I had the barrel sitting upright in a vise, and I added a few dabs of solder around the seam to make sure that it was filled. It disappeared into the seam just as intended, so this sight base shouldn’t come off anytime soon. Or as the locals here say: "That ain't going nowhere!" With the soldering done, I chucked it in the lathe again do crown it and round it off a bit. I usually make a big mess when I solder, so once I had it out of the lathe I put some cold blue on it to see how it turned out. I was actually surprised to see that there wasn’t much excess solder at all, just a few spots that were easily cleaned up with emery cloth. The seam around the muzzle shows just a little bit, but that was expected and there’s nothing much you can do about it: And just for fun, I mocked it up on a frame to see how it would look: The only thing left to do now is to cut the dovetail for the sight, but that will have to wait until I find a suitable end mill (or until I break down and let somebody else do it...). The sight base is not perfectly straight either, but I think it’s easier to align it after the barrel is installed on a receiver. All I need to do is to heat it so I can turn it a bit, so it’s really no biggie.

05-28-2013, 10:29 AM	#2
G.T. Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Chandler Arizona Posts: 3,507 Thanks: 1,318 Thanked 3,653 Times in 1,004 Posts	Cool! That is really cool Olle! I'm happy we could save it all! Now I see what you had in mind... nice work.. best to you, til...lat'r...GT

05-28-2013, 06:42 PM	#6
Hugh RIP Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Southeast Texas Swamp Posts: 2,460 Thanks: 2 Thanked 165 Times in 64 Posts	Nice job, Olle, but why didn't you just cut off the original sight band, ream it out for a press fit on the turned down bbl, and solder it on? Just asking???? That's what I did in making my babies. __________________ *TRUMP FOR PREZ IN '20!*

11-17-2013, 07:51 PM	#10
Olle User Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Tennessee Posts: 1,149 Thanks: 159 Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts	Resurrecting the thread with another one I just finished up. This belongs to a forum member who has been waiting on it for several months now, but he has been kind enough not to bug me about it. It started out as an artillery barrel that had been cut and fitted with some kind of muzzle device. I did this one the same way as the first one, but this time I also made a jig that makes it easier to get everything plumb and level in the mill. And Sheepherder: I owe you one, your barrel thread has been the inspiration for this. Attached Thumbnails

11-17-2013, 08:30 PM	#11
Edward Tinker Super Moderator Eternal Lifer LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: North of Spokane, WA Posts: 15,935 Thanks: 2,033 Thanked 4,533 Times in 2,093 Posts	Ollie, cool, just cool __________________ Edward Tinker ************ Co-Author of Police Lugers - Co-Author of Simson Lugers Author of Veteran Bring Backs Vol I, Vol II, Vol III and Vol IV

05-28-2013, 12:31 PM	#4
Zorba User Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Merritt Island, Fl Posts: 952 Thanks: 777 Thanked 527 Times in 290 Posts	That's some skilled, and beautiful work.

05-28-2013, 01:39 PM	#5
Olle User Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Tennessee Posts: 1,149 Thanks: 159 Thanked 663 Times in 318 Posts	Looking at the mock-up, I'm thinking that a shortened grip frame would be kind of cool too. Shouldn't be too difficult really, just cut and weld it back, file it, shape it etc, send a mag to GT for modification, ask Hugh to make grip panels... On second thought, I might better wait until I find another frame, this one is too nice to cut up.

05-29-2013, 09:02 AM	#8
Paladinpainter User Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Vermont Posts: 64 Thanks: 14 Thanked 45 Times in 15 Posts	Olle, that worked out excellent! Congratulations . John

11-17-2013, 11:28 PM	#12
CAP Black User Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Fairmont, WV Right here in Mountaineer country and God's country Posts: 767 Thanks: 100 Thanked 168 Times in 96 Posts	Man, Olle, you surely do seem to know some stuff. Thanks for sharing Jack

11-18-2013, 08:57 AM	#13
Neil Young Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Scottsboro, Alabama Posts: 546 Thanks: 559 Thanked 442 Times in 168 Posts	Impressive work Olle. __________________ Neil The hurrier I go the behinder I get. Sometimes it takes me all day to get nothing done.

11-18-2013, 09:02 AM	#14
cirelaw Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: PORT ST LUCIE, FLORIDA Posts: 12,216 Thanks: 6,209 Thanked 4,133 Times in 2,173 Posts	I wondered how that was done!! Eric

11-18-2013, 10:24 AM	#15
Sergio Natali User Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Somewhere in Northern Italy Posts: 2,646 Thanks: 1,082 Thanked 1,783 Times in 1,007 Posts	Ollie, Thanks for sharing, very interesting indeed. __________________ "Originality can't be restored and should be at the top of any collector's priority list.

01-19-2014, 03:24 PM	#16
ithacaartist Twice a Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Atop the highest hill in Schuyler County NY Posts: 3,347 Thanks: 7,285 Thanked 2,579 Times in 1,366 Posts	Masterful work, Ollie...! __________________ "... Liberty is the seed and soil, the air and light, the dew and rain of progress, love and joy."-- Robert Greene Ingersoll 1894

01-22-2014, 04:33 AM	#17
pors12 User Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Austria Posts: 115 Thanks: 24 Thanked 59 Times in 21 Posts	Hi, Nice work. Would be interesting how it performs .... By the way, your EMCO machine tool was produced right here in my hometown . best regards Otto

02-02-2014, 04:39 PM	#19
oldphardt User Join Date: Sep 2013 Posts: 11 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Got a question, as I have never done a front sight job like yours, - Why not mill the front sight dovetail and ramp while the blank is in the indexing head in a known angular position? Seems like it would have saved having to making that beautifully done fixture.