An old dancing partner since the 80's

Bill Calfee

Gun Fool
An old dancing partner since the 80's


CYA gun fool friends:


Taper lapping a rimfire bore.


It's the one part of a contraption, that MUST be done by dedicated artists.........


Who are willing to work their hind ends off, while creating their Art.


_______________________________________


An old dancing partner since the 80's




CYA friends, when I set out to learn barrel lapping back in the 80's, or maybe the late 70's, I quickly found out that one of the most necessary tools required to properly lap the bore of a barrel, is the lapping rod handle.



So I set out to make one....



The handle must be robust, man sized, so you can put your muscles into it, while at the same time maintaining complete control of the rod, itself.


So this is what I finally came up with.


DSC00449 - Copy (2).jpg


I tool a piece of iron pipe, set it up in the lathe, then faced one end and counter bored it to fit a roller thrust bearing.


The roller bearing needed a ledge inside the pipe to purchase against.


Then I turned it around and did the same to the other end.


I then welded two lag bolts to the bearing holder, 180 degrees apart.


I obtained two, man sized wooden handles, then drilled them and screwed them to the lag bolts.


These are banded handles......and have never loosened up over the past 40 years.



I then added a Jacobs chuck......


And I've danced with this old friend for the past 40 years.....


Your friend, Bill Calfee
 
The Jacobs chuck??

Bill
Does the Jacobs chuck just hold the bare rod? It never comes loose?
Im kinda surprised it never loosens!
Thanks for any insight
Your friend
Jerry Halcomb
 
Friend JH

Bill
Does the Jacobs chuck just hold the bare rod? It never comes loose?
Im kinda surprised it never loosens!

Thanks for any insight
Your friend
Jerry Halcomb

________________________________


Friend JH:


My comment on looseness pertained to the wooden handles loosening on the lag bolts.



But, in regard to the Jacobs chuck being clamped to the lapping rod, and never coming loose:


Yes, it's clamped directly to the rod...


And, I don't ever remember it coming loose.........although it may have happened, over the last 40 years, a time or two.



The push stroke, in lapping, is the hard stroke.......


The pull stroke is the easier, especially once you start developing the taper.


Your friend, BC



DSC00449 - Copy (2).jpg
 
Friend JH

Gotcha, that sound was me slapping my forehead. LOL.
THANKS for the insight.

Jerry Halcomb



__________________________________


Friend JH:

I understand....


JH:


The world of rimfire accuracy does need a "full on", "totally dedicated" taper lapping specialists.


But who?


Your friend, BC
 
Jeff Patterson

Jeff Patterson


CYA gun fool friends:


I've been putting a lot of pressure on Jeff with all this talk about his SPEC guns....


I even mentioned it to him yesterday when we talked.....and he just said, "Well, if I can't stand the heat I need to get out of the kitchen".


Jeff's lapping progress:



Besides Jeff's work ethic, the one thing that's going to make him stand out as a RFBR schmidt, is his taper lapping ability.



I've worked with Jeff for the past few years showing him what little I know about being a RFBR schmidt.


A teacher knows when the student is ready to graduate, when the student catches mistakes the teacher makes.



This teaching thing is interesting.....


When I first started working with Jeff, he'd simply absorb.........


I could tell his brain was taking every word in, of course expecting what I told him to be gospel.



Now when I work with Jeff, sometimes I'll catch him staring at whatever I'm showing him with a puzzled look on his face.


When I see that look I stop and ask him what's on his mind.


And usually he's caught me leaving out some important part of whatever we're working on.



Jeff Patterson has evolved to the point that he's developing his own ways of doing things.



When the student starts showing the teacher new stuff, it's time for the student to graduate to the next level.



But............................



Jeff's lapping ability will set him apart in the world of RFBR schmidts.


Along with the fact that Jeff understands how to very accurately measure the progress of his taper lapping.


And....................


He's becoming quite good at lap bumping.........which is truly an art........and must be done if one want's to properly taper lap a bore without washing out the breech end.


Your friend, BC
 
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