The cast brass muzzle cap that came in my parts kit was good quality (no voids), but - to my eye - was not long enough or tall enough, so I decided to make my own. I used the two-part method - a "half moon" front, cut and filed to fit the barrel flats made from thick plate brass (1/16 to 1/8 or so), and a thinner (.035 or thereabouts) body that wraps around the stock (and the half moon) and meets the barrel about midpoint on the side flats. The half moon could also be made from thin stock, but it probably wouldn't be as sturdy. After filing and bending, the two pieces are sanded, fluxed, clamped and silver-soldered together.
I had some thick brass, but needed to buy some thinner stuff for the wraparound. Local hobby shop (yes, some still exist) carried only tubing and I didn't feel like ordering online, waiting a week, and also paying for shipping. I next contacted a local awards and plaques place thinking they might sell me a scrap piece, and he referred me to a local machine shop/metalworking shop. Bingo! Walked in and they were happy to sell me some brass sheet leftovers. For 5 bucks I got enough to make three or four caps. Good source to know.
Brass is easy to work using standard shop tools. A bandsaw or even a scrollsaw will cut it to shape and a disk or belt sander will clean it up. A bit of hand sanding with 220-400 grit gives a brushed look, or use a $10 cheapo buffing kit from Harbor Freight on your drill press or hand drill to get a gleaming finish.
The hardest part for me was cutting/filing that half moon front so it would mate up reasonably flush to the barrel flats. While not totally perfect, I was satisfied with the end result.
I used a thin, flat strip of silver solder and (very important!) silver solder flux pre-brushed on both sides of the joint. I had this stuff in a bandsaw blade repair kit, but it can be found at hardware stores or online. After clamping the parts together with the solder in the middle, I heated the joint with my propane torch until the solder melted and flowed. After air cooling, filing and sanding cleaned it up. I was surprised - after finishing, I couldn't even tell there was a joint. Tight clamping with no gaps probably helped.
My purpose here was to try and encourage other gun-making newbies to try their hand at a bit of brass work - take your time, think ahead, and you can build a muzzle cap that fits and looks better than what you might have been provided in your kit.
I'm sure the experienced builders out there can probably add some pointers or corrections, and i would love to hear how you manage to get a nice fit to your barrel flats
Will eventually post pics of the finished gun.
- Craig
I had some thick brass, but needed to buy some thinner stuff for the wraparound. Local hobby shop (yes, some still exist) carried only tubing and I didn't feel like ordering online, waiting a week, and also paying for shipping. I next contacted a local awards and plaques place thinking they might sell me a scrap piece, and he referred me to a local machine shop/metalworking shop. Bingo! Walked in and they were happy to sell me some brass sheet leftovers. For 5 bucks I got enough to make three or four caps. Good source to know.
Brass is easy to work using standard shop tools. A bandsaw or even a scrollsaw will cut it to shape and a disk or belt sander will clean it up. A bit of hand sanding with 220-400 grit gives a brushed look, or use a $10 cheapo buffing kit from Harbor Freight on your drill press or hand drill to get a gleaming finish.
The hardest part for me was cutting/filing that half moon front so it would mate up reasonably flush to the barrel flats. While not totally perfect, I was satisfied with the end result.
I used a thin, flat strip of silver solder and (very important!) silver solder flux pre-brushed on both sides of the joint. I had this stuff in a bandsaw blade repair kit, but it can be found at hardware stores or online. After clamping the parts together with the solder in the middle, I heated the joint with my propane torch until the solder melted and flowed. After air cooling, filing and sanding cleaned it up. I was surprised - after finishing, I couldn't even tell there was a joint. Tight clamping with no gaps probably helped.
My purpose here was to try and encourage other gun-making newbies to try their hand at a bit of brass work - take your time, think ahead, and you can build a muzzle cap that fits and looks better than what you might have been provided in your kit.
I'm sure the experienced builders out there can probably add some pointers or corrections, and i would love to hear how you manage to get a nice fit to your barrel flats
Will eventually post pics of the finished gun.
- Craig
