Time and TIG service is usually pretty straightforward. Especially after having performed a couple thousand of them. (literally) Occasionally though, you get one that takes a little more work. Bushing a bolt cylinder was a big deal 20 or so years ago. These days you don't see it as often. The trick is removing/replacing the handle (which requires some heat) without sweating out the solder on the bushings.
A can of "mud" comes in handy here.
As the tempering bands show, the paste did its job. Normally, these bands are a good 3rd of the way up the cylinder. Once the handle comes off I flash the solder with the torch and hit it with a SS brush to slough off the residual solder still stuck to the cylinder. Because I weld these, the surface has to be sterilized. Solder and TIG torches don't like each other.
OEM NOS 40x handle in SS. When Remington imploded a few years ago I was fortunate enough to be able to buy a bunch of stuff before the autopsy. A 5 gallon bucket full of takeoff SS and chromoly bolt handles made its way home with me. (SCORE!) Unfortunately, they are a bit rough. I spent a few minutes knocking off some of the casting flash on this one.
The bolt gets loaded on the drill press for a little fluff n buff. I really like doing it this way as it keeps abrasive belt fungus off the bedways of my Hardinge tool room lathe. Abrasive junk mixed with oil is basically lapping compound (parking lot grit, lol) and that is the last thing you want around any lathe that you care about.
Timing is set and now it's time to zap it. I smooshed some more mud around the cylinder and wrapped it in a damp towel to ensure the heat stays out of the bushings.
First weld completed. (I took this photo out of sequence. They never come "off the torch" this clean.
The 2nd weld is a small stitch where the strap attaches. The bigger weld always pulls the arc of the strap away from the bolt body, so it has to be pinched down. This is critical because if allowed to remain pulled away, it'll almost always fuss with how the cam/strap feature interacts with the opposing features on the receiver.
Handle is now ready for silver solder. Slather some flux on first, then pack it up with more mud.
FUEGO.
Here the flux tells you what to do. I run my torch a touch rich, so I don't scorch the steel. Just a smidge more gas than oxygen. The flux will boil off the water used as a carrier pretty quickly; then, it'll start to melt. It's at the right temp when it takes on a sugary glaze appearance, and the steel starts to look etched. It's tough to describe, but once you get a feel for it, soldering is really easy. The trick is heat management. Too hot, and things go to hell fast.
Solder is applied, so I wrap the body in a cold/wet rag again to ensure the heat stays at the handle. I can't cool the handle part off too fast for fear of creating a cold joint with the solder. It must be allowed to cool at its own pace. All I am after here is ensuring the bushings don't get too hot and fail. It looks horrifying at the moment. That'll change shortly.
All good. The hard part is over.
Finished piece. PE is spot on, and the presentation looks right again. The soldered joint is good to go and has a very small fillet at the parting lines. I look for this on both ends as it ensures the entire surface between the handle and the bolt has good saturation and adhesion.
A can of "mud" comes in handy here.
As the tempering bands show, the paste did its job. Normally, these bands are a good 3rd of the way up the cylinder. Once the handle comes off I flash the solder with the torch and hit it with a SS brush to slough off the residual solder still stuck to the cylinder. Because I weld these, the surface has to be sterilized. Solder and TIG torches don't like each other.
OEM NOS 40x handle in SS. When Remington imploded a few years ago I was fortunate enough to be able to buy a bunch of stuff before the autopsy. A 5 gallon bucket full of takeoff SS and chromoly bolt handles made its way home with me. (SCORE!) Unfortunately, they are a bit rough. I spent a few minutes knocking off some of the casting flash on this one.
The bolt gets loaded on the drill press for a little fluff n buff. I really like doing it this way as it keeps abrasive belt fungus off the bedways of my Hardinge tool room lathe. Abrasive junk mixed with oil is basically lapping compound (parking lot grit, lol) and that is the last thing you want around any lathe that you care about.
Timing is set and now it's time to zap it. I smooshed some more mud around the cylinder and wrapped it in a damp towel to ensure the heat stays out of the bushings.
First weld completed. (I took this photo out of sequence. They never come "off the torch" this clean.
The 2nd weld is a small stitch where the strap attaches. The bigger weld always pulls the arc of the strap away from the bolt body, so it has to be pinched down. This is critical because if allowed to remain pulled away, it'll almost always fuss with how the cam/strap feature interacts with the opposing features on the receiver.
Handle is now ready for silver solder. Slather some flux on first, then pack it up with more mud.
FUEGO.
Here the flux tells you what to do. I run my torch a touch rich, so I don't scorch the steel. Just a smidge more gas than oxygen. The flux will boil off the water used as a carrier pretty quickly; then, it'll start to melt. It's at the right temp when it takes on a sugary glaze appearance, and the steel starts to look etched. It's tough to describe, but once you get a feel for it, soldering is really easy. The trick is heat management. Too hot, and things go to hell fast.
Solder is applied, so I wrap the body in a cold/wet rag again to ensure the heat stays at the handle. I can't cool the handle part off too fast for fear of creating a cold joint with the solder. It must be allowed to cool at its own pace. All I am after here is ensuring the bushings don't get too hot and fail. It looks horrifying at the moment. That'll change shortly.
All good. The hard part is over.
Finished piece. PE is spot on, and the presentation looks right again. The soldered joint is good to go and has a very small fillet at the parting lines. I look for this on both ends as it ensures the entire surface between the handle and the bolt has good saturation and adhesion.
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