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Sleeving a barrel?

Grizzlypeg

Aluminum
Joined
Aug 20, 2012
Location
Canada
I want to be able to install an off the shelf muzzle brake onto a rifle that has a barrel of too small of a diameter for the threading of that brake. Is it a viable idea to press a sleeve onto the barrel, then thread the sleeve?
 
I want to be able to install an off the shelf muzzle brake onto a rifle that has a barrel of too small of a diameter for the threading of that brake. Is it a viable idea to press a sleeve onto the barrel, then thread the sleeve?

Where you press the sleeve on you will shrink the bore IMHO. Now this might make it shoot BETTER for all we know :-). Some 22 target rifles have a "choke" at the muzzle end for that reason, accuracy. if the gun will not be shot enough to get it really hot during the process you could probably glue the sleeve on with one of the loctite products, they make one that is as strong as a soft solder joint. You could also soft solder the sleeve on, or use lo-temp silver solder and the practices used to protect the bore from scaling when front sights and bases are soldered on.

Bill
 
I sleeve barrels fairly frequently for the purposes of shrinking a choke onto them. You need to work at it pretty hard to get 0.0007".

If you created a standard interference fit I don't think you would get any significant choke.
 
why dont you consider boring and sleeving the inside of your muzzle break.....thus leaving a cleaner machining job on the gun itself... the brake may stay or it may go......but having a non botched up barrel is something positive.

dvice
 
If I thread this 30 cal barrel at the 18.5" mark, the largest thread it will take is 1/2". Then I'd have to buy the 223 version of the brake and ream it out. Its an chinese M14 barrel, and worth much less than a quality brake.
 
I install brakes on minimum barrels all the time. 3/4 inch of thread at 32 TPI holds just fine. Make your brake first to the diameter needed and then cut and try as you thread the barrel. A class 3 fit is recommended for threads that fine. It will be a bastard thread but no one cares.
 
If I thread this 30 cal barrel at the 18.5" mark, the largest thread it will take is 1/2". Then I'd have to buy the 223 version of the brake and ream it out. Its an chinese M14 barrel, and worth much less than a quality brake.
IMHO it is probably not a "good" idea to put a 1/2-28 brake on a 30 caliber barrel. There are a variety of brakes avail in the "standard" 1/2-36 for 30 caliber.

Here is a sort of milspec looking one.

6.8mm/7.62mm/9mm 5M1 Comp/Brake [YHM-80-5M1] - $53.00 : YHM, Yankee Hill Machine Co., Inc. | Makers of High Quality Firearms, Accessories & Sound Suppressors, Makers of High Quality Firearms, Accessories & Sound Suppressors

I'm sure there are many others as well.
 
I can't even guess how many 300 Winchesters and 300 Weatherbys I have threaded to 1/2 x 28. Over 500 I am sure and probably double that. No problems. KDF has been making, selling brakes for almost 25 years and they recommend the 1/2 X 28 thread all the way up to 8MM. If they haven't had a problem in 25 years I expect there is nothing wrong with the thinking.
 
The difference between 28 TPI and 36 TPI in minor diameter is only .008" which hardly seems to justify a non-standard thread pitch. Sounds like a marketing gimmick to me.
 
I use 32 TPI cut straight on to .490 inch diameter barrels and they point up and don't blow off up to 30 caliber. I use a shoulder on the inside of the brake and it leaves about .065 wall thickness which is the barest of minimums I would go. I have never tried 36 TPI. I suppose I always assumed it would damage to easily. No one makes brakes in that format, I make them myself.
 
And all I'm gonna say is, when putting a sleeve or bushing or whatever, shrink fit anytime possible over press fit. Lots can be done with a fridge and hot water or a little propane torch.
 
And all I'm gonna say is, when putting a sleeve or bushing or whatever, shrink fit anytime possible over press fit. Lots can be done with a fridge and hot water or a little propane torch.

Cutting the parts to a press fit and then tinning both parts and blowing off the excess with an air compressor, then pressing the parts together and reheating until the tin silvers again will hold drunken, rampant equines who cheer for differing hockey teams together !
 
.0007" is a LOT :-).

Bill

In terms of a choke in a .22 match rifle that's just barely enough.

In terms of an olympic level 10m rifle that's about half

In terms of variation in a typical off the shelf sporter barrel..about average.:D

But in all seriousness if you had a sleeve that was tapered ID from 0 to 0.0018 and heated it in smoking hot oil and slid it on it would indeed require a team of drunken and rabid horses to pull it off and you would not get any measurable choking
 
I can't even guess how many 300 Winchesters and 300 Weatherbys I have threaded to 1/2 x 28. Over 500 I am sure and probably double that. No problems. KDF has been making, selling brakes for almost 25 years and they recommend the 1/2 X 28 thread all the way up to 8MM. If they haven't had a problem in 25 years I expect there is nothing wrong with the thinking.

Well the issue comes up more with guns which are typically used with suppressors, if a .224 suppressor (or muzzle brake) will screw onto a 30 caliber rifle (or a 9mm carbine), it just invites expensive mistakes ;-). Other than that interchange issue, there is nothing WRONG with the 1/2-28 thread.

Bill
 








 
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