Must Have Tools

[ckyoursix]

For punches and screw drivers look at Grace USA. Michigan company near Traverse City. Very good quality and price.

 

[TheWabbit]

Who are some of the makers of good ones? Starting to shop around. There are alot of brands.

For the AK, all you need are the blue steel punches from Walmart or the yellow steel punches from Amazon with a BFH...or a rock...or a hydraulic press.

 

[Vigilant]

A Dremel tool and a six pack are all you need to do darn near ANY gunsmithing job. WECSOG Graduate Suma *** Laude.

 

[Tsssst]

AR-15 newbie build question... For 5.56 or perhaps all caliber go/no-go headspace gauges, aren't there two different standards of measurement or something? I might be using the wrong terminology but aren't there Sami or Saami or something class gauges, and then some other style or... Something? I swear i came across this somewhere as being an important factor when building but I guess I didn't save the article.

What is the American standard for headspace gauges?

 

[User 0]

There are Go/No-go/Field head space gauges. The Go gauge is the SAAMI spec for minimum chamber length, the Field gauge is the maximum chamber depth, and the No-go gauges are somewhere between minimum and maximum. A firearm action that closes on a No-go, but not on a Field gauge could have accuracy problems and reduced case life.

 

[User 0]

Also I didn't see anyone mention it, but if you're building an AR you're going to want an upper vise block. There are also vise blocks for lowers. I don't see any reason for using them though. It's just more money that could have been spent on parts.

 

[JeepHammer]

I guess my question is what are you trying to OBJECTIVELY accomplish?

A hammer, file & another hammer is a LONG WAY from being a trained & qualified gunsmith!
Most so called 'Gunsmiths' can't drill/tap correctly for sights, and shouldn't EVER work on anything internal...
I've seen them screw up mounting kits when it's firearm specific and no drilling was required.

There are three basic classifications of firearms for a gunsmith,
1. Antique. The older, the more equipment you will need.
I've been collecting screw turning & cutting machines & dies for 30 years, and I still can't make every screw you will run into on antique firearms.

2. Late Model, Non-Military based.
These are actual 'Sporting' firearms, mostly made since WWII where many things are standardized.
If you can't make & temper a flat spring, lathe turn parts (which not to put too fine a point on it requires a lathe) and refinish metals, you probably shouldn't take this kind of work on.

3. Late Model knock-offs of military based firearms.
There is a LOT of work here, but things like fit & finish aren't two of them, just paint it 'Tactical Black' and double the price.
It doesn't take much in the way of education but it's a good idea to understand basic function safety (and a lot don't).

The fourth category is 'Fine Firearms' but people with really fine firearms take them to actual experts that do nothing but fine firearms.
No one let's the local AR assembler or hammer-smith anywhere near a $30k and up firearm!

*IF* I were to start out another apprentice, I would start with a work station/bench first thing.
Your work will ONLY be as good as your tools, and a workstation is the most basic.
Top high enough you don't have to stop over,
Surrounded with 3 high sides, no cracks for small parts to hide in. Quarter round or trim to cover gaps/cracks.
High sides make a good place to hang tools where they are handy and well kept.

Actual, honest gun screw driver set, use it for NOTHING else.
If the driver doesn't fit the screw, the screw gets butchered.

You MUST have a torque 'Wrench' driver if you intend to mount anything in the way of optics/mounts.
Without one you WILL pull receivers out of square (preload), and you WILL crush/oval optics tubes.
You MUST have a set of 1", 30mm, and increasingly, a 34mm lapping bar set and lapping compound, or you will mount optics in rings that are not aligned. This leads to bent tubes.

SMALL hammer set, including a little ball-peen, a brass, a lead, rawhide or wood mallet, and a synthetic if you feel the need.
If you need a big hammer, you are doing it wrong or the part doesn't fit.

Leather, lead sheet stock, action & barrel blocks so you don't destroy finishes & parts.
More nice firearms have been destroyed by an idiot with a vice & pipe wrench than you could carry away in a lifetime in an 18 wheeler...

I would suggest buying a set of books, first the manuals with exploded view of firearms.
This is so you know where things go back, and when something is missing.
The second is a set of books called 'Gunsmithing Kinks', 3 or 4 volumes.
These will give you an idea how much stuff you don't know, and show you some really good things to know.

I'm not trying to be a jerk here, I've been a machinist & gunsmith for nearly 40 years, Marine Corps trained, and civilian certified.
This isn't something anyone should take lightly, it's REALLY easy to screw up, but unlike insurance sales or even auto mechanic, someones life/limb is on the line with every single trigger pull.

 

[churchmouse]

JeepHammer,

Well said sir. I do a lot of my own work but know my limits and stay inside them. I am well tooled for what I do. 1911's and a few things outside that as in AR's (kit guns at best) and other long guns that do require some skills to get together at times. I will mount my own optics but use the best parts I can get to do so. If something is not correct I have friends in the trade that can do these things for me. I have a mill/lathe and tooling for them but not specifically to work on firearms. I leave that mostly to those with the proper tooling/jigs etc.

 

[JeepHammer]

I'm honestly NOT trying to prang on anyone....

I got a REALLY nice 'Quigley' rifle in here not too long ago, in actual .45-120 Sharps and some idiot had drilled in the top of the barrel all the way through out the bottom. The sight screw protruded into the barrel just in front of the chamber.

A couple of years ago a local 'Gunsmith' brought me a 1917 military Colt, said it was 'Backfiring' and he couldn't figure it out.
It came with a box of .45 ACP steel jacketed military bullets, from 1931, and had THREE bullets lodged in the barrel.
Wanted to know if I could 'Drill It Out' so the owner didn't find out!
I can't take the snake swallowing a cat bulge out of the barrel, or the warp out of the frame... He's lucky those old Calvary pistols were so overbuilt.

Then there is the guy that 'Built' his own AR clone...
Complained it was smoking, not ejecting and throwing crap back in his face.
The mag was loaded with .222 instead of .223/5.56

If you own a lathe, then you probably know what centers (points) are.
I hang barrels between centers, and align on the BORE, not the outside profile of the barrel blank.
This makes bullets go straight through supressors, gets sights aligned with the bore, etc.
Nothing like the old, "Can you thread my muzzle on this (piece of farm store crap) so I can hang muzzle break or supressor on it?"
Bore hole 1/8" or more off center the outside profile of the barrel...

My all time favorites are the "Box-O-Parts" they have messed with for two years before finally giving up and bringing them in, and it's NEVER all there...
But they expect you to put it back together in 5 minutes, supply all missing parts AND do it all for $5.

IF you ever decide to 'Assemble' an AR clone, the one MUST HAVE tool is an upper receiver lapping/squaring bar.
The better quality uppers are forged aluminum, which means it was heated in hammered into general shape.
The barrel nut threads are usually die cut (NOT lathe cut), so the front face barrel face is NEVER square with the BORE of the upper.
Then they uppers are usually anodized, and a 'Drip Lip' forms on one side of that threaded barrel end because every anodizer I've ever seen hangs them by the rear lug.

The barrel goes in cocked off centerline 100% of the time.

Keep in mind, at least one sight is on the upper receiver, so the sights, iron or optics, will NEVER be directly aligned with the bore.

With the barrel/chamber nut cocked off center on that angled upper front, the BOLT has ZERO chance of 100% lug engagement.
The chamber nut lugs are more or less square with the bore, the bolt lugs are more or less square with the upper.

 

[JeepHammer]

In the Marines, we mounted the upper on an undercut mandrel between centers and faced the upper off square.

Then this little tool came along, it's tool steel bar in the photo.

http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag58/JeepHammer1/UppersTools_zpsy0zzgr9v.gif

If you look at the uppers (side by side) you will see one isn't touched, one is done.
Notice how uneven the lapped ring where anodizing is around the mouth?

It's square now, and the upper is lapped to remove excess anodizing that would eat into BCG, and create a crap load of friction. (STOPPAGES!)
This lapping bar does three jobs, 'Blueprints' the proper size bore for the BCG, it smooths out anodizing to reduce wear, and it faces off the front of the upper square so the chamber nut can seat squarely.

This allows BCG to line up (more or less) directly with the bore, so you at least have a chance of bolt lugs engaging fully.
Let's not forget that *IF* (and that's a BIG IF with lesser quality uppers) the optics mount/picatinny rail is aligned with the upper bore/barrel bore, you at least have a chance of the rifle shooting a stright line at all ranges.

Any idiot can get the bullet to cross line of sight at one given distance,
When someone complains about shooting 'Left' under 200 yards, zeroed at 200, then shooting 'Right' past 200, you can bet $100 bill the sights aren't aligned with the bore.
When you get it shooting dead on ballistic tables AT ANY RANGE then you have barrel aligned with receiver, sights/optics aligned with rifled bore.

Again, once barrel is mated with upper, then hang between centers on a milling machine table, use a pointer from muzzle to back of receiver.
This *Should* be a straight line.
Move your pointer over and run the picatinny rail length.
If that's straight, you have a 99% chance of getting sights/optics on it squarely & aligned.

If you find that picatinny rail is NOT square/true, the best advise I can give you is mill the rings/mounts to compensate.
The rail/rings will be a matched set, you can't guarantee any other mount/rings, buy YOUR rings will be square/true.

The next step is to witness mark the rings/saddles for front/rear, right/left.
This is as simple as one scratch/mark, punch dot on one side of the front ring cap, and one dot on the saddle.
The rear gets two dots/scratches on the same side.
Line the witness marks up and your corrected base/rings are in the correct position.

If you are building a shooter (match, utility, battle rifle) the witness marks are no deal at all and actually show the rifle had some actual gunsmithing done to it.
If you are building a 'Tacti-Cool' wall hanger, the customer might get crappy about the marks, so punch the mating faces (screw hole surfaces) of the cap/saddle. It's not like he's ever going to actually hit anything anyway, but if it comes back you know where things go.

I can't recommend the full length, full clamp version of one piece optics mounts on picatinny rails enough!
Actual field/battle rifles get the CRAP knocked out of them, protecting that picatinny rail is a HIGH priority.
Rings/optics are 'Consumables', eventually ALL will fail. Until it does fail, the picatinny rail is sacred so the sights drop into zero when installed.

This is a full length, one piece mount,

http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag58/JeepHammer1/ARmount_zpso8p5ctwl.gif

With the smaller, swoopie 'Tacti-Cool' mounts with little Crow feet for clamps, these are getting hard to find...

Notice the saddles in this mount have been lapped and were about 99% aligned from the factory.
You won't find that on any 2 piece mount/ring sets, when you lap you will see how much they were misaligned...
Misalignment, or out of round (common) WILL bend the optics tube 100% of the time.
Sometimes it's curved, sometimes it 'S' shaped, sometimes they are out of round and oval or tear drop shape the tube.

I pay WAY too much for my optics to have them spring or bent out of shape by $30 ring sets!

 

[JeepHammer]

Is any of this useable? Or am I up just annoying people?

 

[churchmouse]

Never took your statements in the negative.
Yes, I know what centers are and use them as needed.
I will admit that I need to get back over to those machines and blow off some rust.

 

[churchmouse]

Is any of this useable? Or am I up just annoying people?

Keep it up.I love this stuff.

 

[Leadeye]

A camera is a helpful tool for me so I can see how things looked before and after disassembly. It helps to see how parts function together as well like this Colt 1878.

 

[JeepHammer]

I have centers that aren't points.
I made a set that have different caliber cases for the chamber end.
Make sure there is no run-out so they turn the action/barrel true and you are off to the races.

Since you don't need a perfectly flat/rigid surface for centers, a healthy hunk of angle iron will do to hang barrels/actions between centers.
This will allow you a cheap easy shortcut, simply use a couple short optics mount bases, mounted to the angle iron, then clamp optics rings with centers the same size as the rings to the mounts.

With the usual cheap base mounts, set at the common barrel lengths, this makes a cheap/easy inspection station.
You can check for bore/profile run-out, run-out of chamber nut, even to see if action face is square if your chamber end center is long enough.

http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag58/JeepHammer1/IndicatorLip_zpsxpqpexde.gif

http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag58/JeepHammer1/IndicatorLocations_zpsbnwclqm7.gif

http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag58/JeepHammer1/BetweenCenters_zpswnsdybcx.gif

This keeps you from having to buy a milling machine or lathe with bed long enough to accommodate a barreled action.

 

[churchmouse]

I have centers that aren't points.
I made a set that have different caliber cases for the chamber end.
Make sure there is no run-out so they turn the action/barrel true and you are off to the races.

Since you don't need a perfectly flat/rigid surface for centers, a healthy hunk of angle iron will do to hang barrels/actions between centers.
This will allow you a cheap easy shortcut, simply use a couple short optics mount bases, mounted to the angle iron, then clamp optics rings with centers the same size as the rings to the mounts.

With the usual cheap base mounts, set at the common barrel lengths, this makes a cheap/easy inspection station.
You can check for bore/profile run-out, run-out of chamber nut, even to see if action face is square if your chamber end center is long enough.

http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag58/JeepHammer1/IndicatorLip_zpsxpqpexde.gif

http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag58/JeepHammer1/IndicatorLocations_zpsbnwclqm7.gif

http://i1298.photobucket.com/albums/ag58/JeepHammer1/BetweenCenters_zpswnsdybcx.gif

This keeps you from having to buy a milling machine or lathe with bed long enough to accommodate a barreled action.

That is a stellar idea.

 

[JeepHammer]

Long bed Mills aren't cheap! A music wire pulled tight gives you a NO LIE straight line for gauging and it's inexpensive.
It's also good for the guy doing sights/rings on a bench top.

This is an OLD 'Trick' I picked up from a gunsmith that was brilliant...
Want to check for cross hair optics vertical, directly over the bore, use a string & plumb-bob.

Clamp the action in a vice, forget the levels, depending on the clamp on the level and where it's clamped, it can lie.
Once action is in a vice or shooting cradle, hang a plumb-bob out about 15 yards off a sign or something, gravity never lies.

Plumb-bob, a vertical line every time, 100% of the time, your first point of reference.
Center the bore on the string, your second point of reference.
Rotate action, keeping bore on string, until the optics reticle cross is on the string.
Once reticle & bore are both centered on the string, rotate optics tube until the vertical line is directly inline with the string.
At this point, you CAREFULLY tighten the caps on the tube making sure you don't move anything, string line still centered in the bore, vertical line of the reticle still centered on the string.

Then add the Anti-Cant Device (Usually a bubble level) to the optics tube or rail, or where ever it goes.
This allows you to have an ACD that is precise to the optic/bore arrangement.
Tube clamps are the easiest to adjust since they rotate around the tube.
For the rail/mount clamp style, this is where you use a file or shimming to make the ACD show level when screwed on.

Keep in mind, the Marine Corps Sniper Manual says 1 minute of cant (1 minute mark on a clock face off 12:00/vertical) is 1/2" miss at 100 yards (giving Prairie Dogs a new lease on life), and at 1,000 yards it's a 55" miss!
Getting the optics square over the bore is important, and if you are going to precision shoot, an ACD THAT'S ACCURATE is a real good idea...
Keep in mind my manual is very old, that would have been the UNERTL 10x optic on the M40, and I don't remember how far over bore the rings were on it anymore. The taller the rings over bore, the more Cant is increased.

ACDs & bubble levels depend on the top of an optics turret cap being true, and they often aren't, the tops of receivers often aren't true with where the rings wind up.
Caps are often pressed instead of lathe turned, domed, have engraving/logos,
The rings can shift centerline, have quirks of there own.
This let's you get a directly vertical alignment of reticle & bore, then add the ACD so the shooter can see when optics & bore are directly vertical.

Since gravity never lies, it's a simple, cheap, easy and foolproof way to get it done.
I find that if I center the optics adjustments, run the adjustment knob all the way to one side, then count turns to the stop to the other side, then center (half turn count) on both windage & elevation, centering reticle, results are better.

I find the more obnoxious colored string helps... Mine is hot pink!

 

[Mark 1911]

If you're into AR-15s and/or AR-10s, a lower receiver vice block is an indispensable tool.

And a good vice to go along with it.

Of course a good vice presupposes a solid work bench / table.

A set of bench blocks are super nice to steady your firearm when working on them, keeps them from slipping, preventing scratches, etc

If you're into Remington 700s, you got to have a bolt disassembly tool. Kleinendorst makes a real nice one. Makes disassembly of the bolt easy and simple.

 

[JeepHammer]

The schizophrenic nature of the military...

Rem 700 Bolt disassembly, it was recommended we use a dime & shoe lace.
You don't carry loose change into combat!

The military wants higher velocity, more penetration.
They use heavier bullets and CHOP THE BARREL OFF!
That's sure going to increase velocity of heavier bullets!

JAG has run 14 investigations into why Marines in particular, and grunts in general are producing more precise shots, head shots, exactly center mass shots.
Keep in mind these shots started immedately after the common issue of magnified optics!
You take the best infantry shots in the world, add magnified optics, and then question the results.
Apparently the lawyers missed 'Marksmanship 101'...

Schizophrenic behavior to be sure!
--------

Upper & lower AR blocks are pretty well a necessity, not a huge deal because they are cheap...
Painters tape is also a REAL good idea.
Vairation in the castings & forgings keep blocks from being 100% tight, layers of tape will snug things up.
You REALLY don't want your workpiece moving around when you are trying to drill/mill/drive pins, etc.

AR clones are the 'Erector Sets' of firearms, nearly anyone can assemble the parts.
It takes a gunsmith to get parts fitting correctly.
I don't know how many people have shown up in the past 10-15 years with all sorts of issues all related to assembly without attention to fitment.

Gas tubes not reaching the BCG key, gas keys sticking on gas tubes, gas leaking around front gas block/sight, upper bores so over run with excess anodizing the BCG won't cycle from the friction, wrong or cheap buffer springs, the list goes on and on...

The clone makers aren't any better, instead of a friction fit gas block, they heap lock-tight in the gap between barrel & gas block, using roll pins instead of taper pins to secure gas block/sights, etc.
The fittment between upper & lower is stupid, rattles like rocks in a tin can, but you can buy it for $299 at the farm store so they bought it...

It's a challenge to make some of these clones actually function correctly sometimes, and the customer doesn't help things by constantly complaining about price or the fix isn't 'Tactical' Black...

 

[Grelber]

A camera is a helpful tool for me so I can see how things looked before and after disassembly.

Excellent point. A notebook would be another. I have both and do not take advantage often enough.
Correct size and length slave pins instead of the sloppy pin made from whatever you had that was close in diameter, sometimes buying a spare trigger or sear pin is worth it when dimensions are tight and springs are honery.