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Finishing nails for barrel pins

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I would not use them. Nails, welding rod and such are soft and can bend. If the nail rusts it may bend when you try to drive it out. That will damage your stock.

I use K&S music wire. It is well worth the trouble to get. It will not bend under normal use. It is spring temper, very hard, and smooth.

For range rods, the thick K&S music wire is indestructible. Cut it with carbide and use brass outserts. IF you want to be really fancy cover it with sticky shrink tubing.

Hobby shops, Ace, on line...
 
Compare the finishing nails to music wire or drill rod, it's a pretty easy call for me. I tossed the finish nails and got the music wire. The music wire doesn't take a set when flexed, it's perfectly round and all pieces are the same size. You can get 3/32" pins from Track and others also that are inexpensive and to me much better than nails.
 
Perhaps NASA has something ultra round and impervious to bending and rusting with the added benefit of being heat resistant and able to reflect atmospheric UV waves.

When it comes to sticking a waxed one inch long steel pin in a hole all avenues of possible degradation should be considered.

The OP said he has an old rifle and wants to use a nail. His comment suggests that he doesn't want to beat the bushes for anything other than a common finishing nail. A .100/.125 diameter nail will do everything he needs that nail to do.
 
Compare the finishing nails to music wire or drill rod, it's a pretty easy call for me. I tossed the finish nails and got the music wire. The music wire doesn't take a set when flexed, it's perfectly round and all pieces are the same size. You can get 3/32" pins from Track and others also that are inexpensive and to me much better than nails.
Music wire & drill rod are without a doubt a stronger, straighter material. Is it necessary to go that route? I will let others chime in on that🍿
Larry
 
The only job of the barrel pins is to hold that light, skinny forearm to the barrel. That's it.

Recoil happens at the breech, where a good wood to metal fit is extremely important. And when recoil happens at the breech, the whole stock moves in turn. So the pins aren't absorbing the recoil.

They are supported in their whole length by wood, a barrel lug, and wood again... So it's not like they're supported only on the ends, and have to absorb recoil in the middle. If they were subject to a lot of recoil, it would be the wood (being the weakest link) that would fail.

The pins on my twenty eight year old .58 caliber longrifle are still as good as ever. Come to think of it, I've never heard of a barrel pin breaking or bending. I've heard of them falling out, but never compromised.
 
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