Project BSA P-14 rebuild-Update- new barrel

Brithunter · May 30, 2010, 02:12:52 PM

Ahhh Gitano,

It would appear that Lee no longer list a 0.318" mould, or at least I cannot find them listed

. it seems they have rationalised their line of bullet moulds :cry: they don't offer the correct size size and lube kit either (0.317") both would have to be custom options which puts them out of my reach finacially as the mould would be just under $200 then the lube and size kit add to that the export licence fee and we have a BIG bill.

I'll have to look elsewhere

Heck LBT is cheaper than that ........................... much cheaper.

Paul Hoskins · May 30, 2010, 03:07:31 PM

BH, why not make your own bullet mold & sizing die & punch? .....Paul H

Brithunter · May 31, 2010, 12:34:35 AM

Quote from: Paul Hoskins;106390BH, why not make your own bullet mold & sizing die & punch? .....Paul H

Paul,

That's a very good question and one I have pondered

but we have some issues in the workshop. The 6" Colchester Student needs a new lead screw nut and the bigger Holbrooke needs a new switch but the wiring in the whole place needs looking at. Dad for some reason took one of the bench drills apart and god only knows where the bits are now. The Pallas Mill broke it's flat leather drive belt, seems dad didn't think it needed any attention so it dried out and cracked then broke. Darn thing was one from WW2 .................................. They just don't make em to last

.

Then as he keeps moving stuff around I have no idea where anything is now so a simple 10 minute job turns into hours as you spend hours trying to find the stuff to do it. I am sure he did it deliberately as he has got just bloody minded and as awkward as can be

.

I will just have to ignore him and get in there and pull everything out and sort it out find what we have and what has gone missing. I am sure he has been selling bits off :undecided: or giving it away and I had quite a bit of tooling I had brought but cannot find it in there now.

The bottom line is that until I can really sort the workshop out and get rid on a machine or two the workshop is not really usable. You have to shuffle sideways between the cyclindrical grinder and the Capstan lathe as he has crammed 4 more machines in since we extended the workshop to make room for what we already had some 20 years ago. Oh I didn't mention where the water pours in due to him stupidly knocking a hole through into the coal store to put two lathes in there. Despite there not being the headroom to stand up in it and the walls not meeting in the corner

he did this after buying the big Holbrooke and Cyclindrical grinder and I don't think he has every used the grinder. The leak has rotted the timber frame of the workshop away yet he won't let us get the roof fixed and repair it

so I sort of washed my hands of the whole affair you can only bang your head against the wall for so long.

So for now it's easier and quicker to buy a mould and punches. Before I start casting I have to knock a bench up and fit it up in the shed, no room in the workshop and electricity will have to come via an extension lead as the shed is not wired up, another job on the to get done list

. Although I acquired the Lyman 450 with the intention of casting some dozen or so years ago I have never gotten around to it. In the one bedroomed apartment there was not really the room and there is NO ROOM in the workshop nor enough light in there so a shed it will have to be. I have not told Mother yet

as I'll have to kick a ride on mower out to do so. I also acquired a Saeco lubsizer in a trade that too has also never been used and I picked up and old electric lead pot god only knows whos make it is..................... Hmmm I don't even know where it is right now

. First I'll have to learn how to cast and use the lubsizer or lubesizers

I don't think I have ever even seen the dies or top punch and I am not sure either of them have any punches or dies in them.

I used the lead pot to melt some soft lead and cast some 0.358" bullets which I played at patching with for the 9.3x57 but that was oh about 8 years ago now

.

Jamie.270 · May 31, 2010, 04:44:57 AM

Hey BH,
These guys will make whatever sizing die you want. $62.32 USD

http://www.ch4d.com/

Brithunter · June 19, 2010, 03:38:41 PM

Yesterday morning I started on the P-H Sporter/Target stock. First job was to tidy up the inletting ready for the bedding compound which took longer that i thought but by going slow and careful I have managed to even up the barrel gap in the firestock. the compound was allowed to cure overnight .

This morning I started on the cosmetics :D as it's a converted P-14 stock there was the inleted bit for the but plate tang to deal with. After lots of thought over a period of time i have cut and inleted a opice of Horn into it and now it's polished it does not look bad at all. The tip of the forestock needed something and I intended to use more of the horn but with a tapered tang to cover the old sling loop hole. that was the plan :frown however I messed it up and when cutting the horn on the small band saw forgot to allow for the tang. Concentrated on working around a flaw in the horn and cut it too short.

Back to the drawing board.

So after much head scratching (and splinters

) and have a search around I decided to cut up an old hammer gun stock and use it for a tip. It's slightly better figured that the main stock and i will inlet a tapered wedge of the horn through the new tip into the tang recess I had cut so carefully this afternoon. Am waiting on the resin settign now to hold in it place. it has a brass wood screw turned into the new tip and the head set in resin in the forestock so with the resin smeared on the joint as well it should be strongly bonded in place. if onl it were warmer right now :frown.

Once I shape the new tip and inlet the Horn i can steam the marks, dents etc out and re-finish the stock after i get a new but plate/pad that is of course.. Will take some photos in the morning.

Oh i have this crazy idea of making a drop on cheek piece for the but out of the comb of that shotgun stock. thought if I made a steel strip with two pegs on it they could slip into two brass lined holes for when the scope is in use. Slip it off for using the irons.

Alboy · June 19, 2010, 07:15:28 PM

Sounds nice really primed for the pics. I like the slip in cheek piece idea a lot

Brithunter · June 20, 2010, 06:49:10 AM

Well Alboy seems I am prone to mistakes on this one. Like a lemon I shaped the tip BEFORE INLETING FOR THE BARREL of course made it slim and graceful and yep it's too narrow or the barrel channel :frown.

Am trying to finish it and see if it's going to be presentable if not it's cut it off and start again

Mean while I managed to put a couple more dents in the stock to steam out

...................................................................................... so it's not been a good weekend as such.

Next is cut and shape the horn insert for the underside of the fire stock and tip.

Brithunter · June 22, 2010, 01:55:12 AM

Well here is the first inly. one to fill the butt plate tang on the P-14 stock:-

And yes after filing down and sanding then polishing a flaw became apparant in the piece of Horn........................... Oh well. The stock has to be steamed and sanded then re-finished to it should end up perfectly flush. Not too bad for my first attempt at anyhting like this.

gitano · June 22, 2010, 07:16:12 AM

Very good work there, BH. Of course I especially like things made of animal "parts".

Paul

Brithunter · June 22, 2010, 08:02:08 AM

Thanks. I am wondering about boiling some of it to flatten it out so i can cut the profile easier for the fore tip insert.. Once I have made and attach the new tip that is to replace the one I messed up. it will have a horn insert under it. may eve try for a tiny schnnabel? will see if I can work it out with the horn and all.

Now the butt pad/plate is the next issue. Due to the butt shape most modern sporting pads will not fit so either I re-shape the butt in the toe area of I search and find a suitable pad............................................ or try and make one. The choice is a bit of walnut or try and get another piece of horn and make a horn one. It needs to be about 1/4" thick really. After that it's sort the sling loops/studs then the re-bluing.

What the photo does not show is that the Horn polished up like marble and not being dead black like Buffalo Horn it does not stand out glaringly. It's sort of subtle

sakorick · July 09, 2010, 05:20:49 AM

BH....I very nice touch. What bullet did you finally settle on? Regards, Rick.