crown cutting tool

[howie1a]

Here is the picture of the crown cutting tool I use it's called a C-5 cutter for countersinking and making the hole for plugs too but it works fine as a crown cutter I put a wood or brass rod in place of the drill. howie

[Timmyj1959@yahoo.com]

This is so ironic,, I was just looking for your ph.# to call you!! I was wanting you to post exactly what you just did to back me up!!! Especially as I learned this from YOU!!!Only thing I do differant from what you taught me is I just wrap the bit with just enough masking tape for a snug fit instead of the wood dowel you use. I want to thank you for teaching me such a simple but VERY efective way of crowning!!I have been using #6 for 177 & #8 for 22 cal. What size do you use?? (I forgot) This new De Walt 4 cutter head sure makes a smooth cut!! Thanks Buddy,,, Tim.

[waynejitsu]

Where do you buy this tool and what is the cost?
Thanks!!!

[waynejitsu]

Another question-
How do you cut the barrel perfectly straight like you show in the pic?

[Bogey]

Very clever, Very clever.  You gentlemen never fail to impress with your ingenuity and your willingness to share knowledge with others.
Good going.   The Tips and Tricks  alone is enough of a reason for people to use this site.

[Timmyj1959@yahoo.com]

I keep meaning to ask Ya,,,, in your signature you refer to POGO. What is that?? Some here call me Pogo!!Tim.

[howie1a]

I cut the barrel off with a plain old hacksaw but I dress the cut on my disk sander you could use a grinder using the side of the stone I know this is not the way to use a grinder but it works and you can get a nice smooth face, this way. And I do wrap the bit with some masking tape to protect the rifling, and I have gotten my cutters when I worked in the boat shops and boat yards they will work on aluminum and fiber glass but you need to resharpen them up after It's easy just put the bit in backwards and you have a handle to use when resharpening them. You will have to look in a woodworkers  supply to find the countersinks timmiyj1959 has a place to get them. The idea is not mine I did see this tool in a gunsmith supply catalog made for each cal.You couls also use a dremel tool useing a round grinding stone and wobbling the dremel as you grind the end of the barrel it works too ,since it is round like a ball on the end of your dremel it works the same as using a ball bearing with grinding powder but easer . howie

[Bogey]

Well Tim , I don't know if your friends calling you POGO is a compliment or an off-hand poke at you.

POGO was/is a cartoon character.  I think he was supposed to be a POSSUM.  He and his friends lived in a swamp in the south.  The made observations/and comments on the world around them in  a  usually pithy sort of way.  POGO was the main character, a spokesman for the group, and I suppose the wisest.  "We have met the enemy and He is US" , is one of his quotes, and IMO one of his best.

POGO sure beats what I have been called.

We could use a posssum like  POGO in these interesting times  that we live in.

[Bobber]

I don't post much anymore on forums , but I must say Howie's posts always are very informative. Really like how the stocks he does turn out.  As well as the tips he shares, using easily obtainable tools and materials  to work on guns. I like my barrels to have a good crown as well, and am fortunate to have a lathe and tools to do the job. However here's some food for thought. About 55 years ago a fellow whose name was/ is familar to riflemen, Col. Whelen, wrote an article about barrel crowns and their affect on accuracy. The information is repeated in the book about his life called "Mister Rifleman".In his little experiment,he took a rifle with a barrel he was going to re-barrel anyway , shot it and recorded the accuracy and groups. Then he deliberately filed  on the crown , distorted it, with a rat-tail file.. He then shot the gun  again, and found that although the rifle shot to a different POA, it did not affect it's ability to group.

[howie1a]

Very interesting maybe we are looking at the quality of crowns to close, It's a thing to look at and think about maybe one of us that has or is going to cut down or re crown a air rifle could do the same  thing  and see how it comes out , you would have nothing to lose one other thing is as the POA changes does this affect the accuracy in different distances like 25 yds to 50 yds ect. ? howie

[Bogey]

Howard,  I have a heavy barreled .22 cal. target rifle without crown.   It is flat flush, not even a slight bevel.    It is very accurate and I would hesitate to make any changes to the barrel.  Now for high-powered center fires I don't know.  All that I have are crowned.


Maybe the crowning is more for eye appeal than anything else.????Or to prevent damage caused by cleaning rods???

[Magnum]

Although I have never had the guts to try this, I have thought about it ...Excellent info great idea thanks for sharing:)  I would place a pellet in the barrel also before grinding anything the more stuff kept out of barrel the better:)

[Bobber]

I checked my copy of the book mentioned in my post above. The experiment was done to the writers .30-40  Winchester single shot rifle, to test the theory that cleaning a gun from the muzzle destroys the accuracy of the barrel. It didn't, but as mentioned , it completely altered the zero of the rifle.It also made it necessary to completly re-learn the sight settings for different ranges and ammunition.  After the experiment the writer cut 3 inches off the barrel and re-crowned it. I recently aquired a rusted Crosman mod 120 rifle that had the entire barrel packed shut with bug dung. I cleaned the barrel out and it has NO rifling left in the last 2 inches of the barrel. After re-sealing this basket case , I found that it shoots pellets it likes into less than 3/4" ,( 10 shot groups) at  ten meters. Also I have noticed  that when shooting different but the same model .22 rimfire target rifles , that there often will be one that will always out shoot the others. There is more to barrels than just crowns.