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Well whatever you do don't put any wood in the barre! LOL
For those who have never done it: Make up a grease delivery system as shown. Its just a right angle hole in a piece of brass with a zerk fitting and a tapered plug at one end a few thousandths over groove diameter. Make up a copper piston .002 over groove diameter one caliber in length. Acquire a 20,000 PSI Alemite or the like high pressure grease gun. A ladies grease gun won't work. Neither will the one the pot grower down the block use's to grease his lawn mower. You will also need a full 3 foot stick of drill rod that fits the barrel as close as possible and lightly round one end and polish the end to matchless.
Oil the inside of the barrel and grab the chamber end of the barrel in a padded 3 jaw chuck in the lathe and clamp it tight so it can't slip.
Hold the grease delivery in a chuck or collet and use the tailstock to press in the grease delivery system into the muzzle of the barrel. The barrel will cut into the brass and seal the bore grease and air tight.
Attach the grease gun. These high pressure grease guns have a locking collar so they don't blow off and begin pumping. Air in the barrel will slip past the bullet but grease will not.
If the grease gun won't budge it "sometimes this happens" remove the grease gun and put the barrel in a padded vise and fill the remainder of the barrel with grease.
Hammer in the copper piston and get it started down the bore with a copper or brass punch. The grease is non-compressible like any other fluid and will not bind on the sides of the barrel like a rod will when you apply pressure.
lock the drill rod in the 3 jaw or even better an ER40 collet in the headstock with about an inch sticking out to push on the brass or copper piston, driving the barrel on a center with the tailstock. Move the bullet only one inch at a time so the drill rod is supported in the barrel until the bullet begins to move freely. Then you can take 3 inch bites until its free.
Most tailstocks will deliver 40,000 PSI to the back of the bullet. In rare case's I have had to make up a second piston when the rod begins to bend and bind in the barrel but only once or twice. I have removed probably one or two bullets a year over the last 31 years using this method. They ALWAYS come out and I have never damaged a barrel. Clean up is a pain in the ass and I charge $150 for 22 RF bullets and $200 for jacketed rifle bullets. It takes 2 - 3 hours to set up and complete. The brass delivery system has to be re-made every second time. The larger the diameter of bullet, the easier they come out.
ADD NOTE: You can re-thread a few zerk fittings to fit muzzle loader nipple holes and flinter flash hole sleeves. Stuck balls, maxie's and minnie's come out as fast as you can work the grease gun. Don't forget to charge for the tube of grease with muzzle loaders. It takes almost a half tube.
ADD NOTE: Always push the bullets backwards the way they went in from muzzle to chamber. They always seam to come out better. I know that does not make a lot of sense the barrel should be the same size all the way through, but they do seam to push easier following their path in.
This is one mighty fine system.
I have one in the shop right now to try it out on, a 1903-A3 with jacket bullet 1 inch into the throat, along with remnants of the ownwer's and his friends attempts to get it out. Sometimes that is worse than the stuck bullet.
A guy brought me one a while back that had what was left of a dime store segmented cleaning rod, and 3 nut picks ((!!??!) jammed in the bore.
Go figure.
Just to be clear, the way I read it, the first attemt is grease only? Also, have you tried brass barbed fittings (barbed on one end and male pipe thread on the other) for the barrel/tool interface? Seems they would be easier to replace rather than making a whole new tool every second use.
Ken
Like this.
View attachment 55311
Make the grease block with pipe threads and use/abuse fittings as needed and replace as required.
I am probably overthinking it and going to get fired, But thats OK I need the rest of the day off anyhow.
Don't sweat it Ken, Upchucker has fired me many times. Not trying to oversimplify things but I have used a cleaning rod (tipton) and the brass fitting thingy you screw on the end for stuck cases and have removed a few stuck bullets this way. True it is slow but if it isn't a tight bore may be worth trying first. I usually douse it in Kroil first. And never I mean never and never drive a wood dowel in there. More schtuff I have to get out to get at the problem. Reminds me of when a stuck case happens at the range and evryone scrambles for a hammer to beat on the bolt handle. I see a $100 bill. I usually try to stop them and use the above method. NO case ever too stuck for it to work. Patience pays
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