B3 Barrel Cutting or Muzzle

[CharTech]

I scoped one of my B3s and was thinking about removing the front and rear sight.  If I remove the front sight then I'll need to cut or install a muzzle on the barrel.  What is the best option?  I was thinking about making the PVC muzzle.  Is there a readymade muzzle you guys have used on the B3?  If I cut and re-crown the barrel can I do it with common tools like a dremel or demo saw, how hard is it to re-crown the barrel?  Thanks for any info.

[70GTvert]

I did the same thing. I used a piece of a Crosman 2100 outer barrel to make the the muzzle brake, using a 2 part epoxy in stick form to taper down to the barrel. After dry, I lightly sanded then painted the thing with Dupli-color bed liner. Yes, places like Beeman sell them and they will work, but at more than the rifle cost, I could not justify it. PVC may not hold a finish well, it is very slick. Perhaps a piece of brass tube or pipe instead?

[tjk]

If you don't want to purchase a 'ready-made' MB for your rifle,...drop RCinMO an EM. He makes custom MB's at a very affordable cost. I've got two of his creations mounted on a pair of rifles, and they look, shoot, and feel great. As for chopping your barrel,...I could tell you how I'd do it,...but some may not think my method the best. I don't think re-crowning is very difficult either,...but you may EM Timmy1959 about how he does it. I've seen his choppers, and they are top-notch weapons!!!! tjk

[airgunandy]

Check out this thread....

http://www.gatewaytoairguns.com/airguns/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=7533&posts=23&highlight=iron%20pipe&highlightmode=1#M54549

[CharTech]

airgunandy - 1/22/2009  6:48 PM

Check out this thread....

http://www.gatewaytoairguns.com/airguns/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=7533&posts=23&highlight=iron%20pipe&highlightmode=1#M54549

That is the coolest thing I've seen in a long time!  Amazing!

[davee1]

When I took the front sight off of my 350M .22, I was left with an "unsightly" dovetail. I just used a piece of garden hose and slipped it over the barrel. It went on hard and doesn't come off unless I really want it off. It protects the end of the barrel and other types of hose or tubing could be used I'm sure.

Muzzle brakes are cooler though...but just food for thought.

[70GTvert]

That was just the type of stuff I love to see, ingenuity at work and $ saving ideas. To bad the author did not know spell check, but it did provide some humor, what with visualizing all those little mussels on the ocean floor with brakes on them, kinda looks like they all made a trip through Midas.....

[CharTech]

My bigger problem then what to do about the barrel is the bracket that is welded to the receiver that holds the rear sight.  My rear sight is located in front of the breach.  It looks like it's going to be a real pain to remove the bracket.  Any tips?

[70GTvert]

It is tack-welded on, so it will leave 2 small spots you will need to finish. I ground it down with my Dremel and as the bluing was not all that great, I ended up painting the whole gun in a satin finish black. If anything not metal is removed, you can bake the air dried rifle in the oven at about 150 degrees for 30 minutes or so to make the paint more durable. It won't be bulletproof, but it will be easy to touch up.

[CharTech]

I cut off what I could with the Dremel and it looked like my only option was going to be to grind it off, just didn't know what kind of a mess I was going to have once I did get it off.  Glad to know painting it worked for you.  Did you fill the holes, if so how?

[70GTvert]

Mine did not have much of a hole, more of a divit. As I am into auto restoration, I had some 2 part glazing putty sitting around (it does not shrink like that red  ready to use stuff does) which I used. It dries hard as rock in minutes and can be wet sanded to a feather edge which, once hit with a shot of sand able hi-build primer in a can (the same stuff you can get at auto zone- oh, and they carry some of that glazing putty I mentioned too) won't show up under the paint. Wet sand with 300 to 600 grit for best results.

IF you paint it, make sure you degrease it completely, otherwise you may have adhesion problems with the paint.

[CharTech]

Thanks John.  I am going to grind it down and see what I am dealing with.  I'll let you know how it comes out.

[airgunandy]

On one I had I used a hacksaw and cut the sides of the bracket off nearly level with the bottom of the bracket. Then filed the whole thing smooth, sanded the surface with 400 grit paper and cold blued it. Looked like some kind of cover plate when done.

[CharTech]

I grinded it off with my Dremel, (thank god for Dremels) and it worked great.  I had a threaded hole in the receiver that happen to be the same size screw as the piston screw for the leather seals, screwed a screw in and cut it off and sanded it down.  Looks great, I think I can get away with bluing it.  Now I just need to deal with the barrel, I am thinking I will just cut it off and re-crown it.  Looks like you can get a even cut with a hacksaw using the larger OD of the barrel as a guide, if that makes sense.  Re-crowing I’m not sure.

[CharTech]

I cut the barrel and re-crowned it.  To re-crown I used something close to this method. http://www272.pair.com/stevewag/muzzle/mz.html  Next I think I'll sand the entire top of the receiver using 600 paper and re-blue it.