Bullet strike

J E Custom

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Jul 29, 2004
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This can be one of the worst things that can effect accuracy if a component is poorly attached
to the muzzle.

Believe it or not It it not that uncommon and besides effecting accuracy, it can also cause injury.

It was recently brought to my attention buy a friend and fellow gunsmith that there had been an incident where a bullet actually exited the side of a suppressor. This was purely a case of a poor installation, and could have been avoided.

Even when I do all of the machining on the brake, and thread the barrel in the lathe my self, I have one final check after installation. I use tools that I made just for the prevention of this problem. They are made of aluminum (So they don't damage the bore) and two to three inches fits the bore of the firearm the rest is machined to the required clearance of the brake or suppressor (Normally .020 thousandths larger than the bullet for clearance). If everything is perfectly aligned the tool will slip right in without any resistance.

This is a final check to verify that everything is perfectly aligned and there will be no bullet strike. Everyone can make a mistake, and this is just a way of making sure everything is good and safe. The fact that a suppressor is longer than most other attachments to the muzzle, this becomes even more critical.

There is speculation that a crush washer was the culprit, But with good thread fit, and proper installation, this should eliminate these problems. "BUT" a final mechanical check should verify that the installation is good and most of all safe.

Never assume that everything is OK, Prove it.

J E CUSTOM
 
The other thing that brought this up Is that some smiths wont install a brake/Suppressor ,unless they have the barrel and can check or cut the threads themselves for good reasons.

Some think they can save some money by threading the barrel them selves and just ordering a brake on line. Most of the time they will be ok if the threads were cut correctly. But if not, bad things can happen.

This is not a place to cut corners.

J E CUSTOM
 
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I am one who falls 'in the camp' of , "I want the muzzle attachment in hand before threading the barrel". All it took was one time. A client told me the brake he had ordered had a 1/2"-28 thread. When the brake arrived it had a 9/16"-32 thread. He was in a hurry and figured all he had to do was screw the brake on the barrel when the brake arrived, so he insisted I thread the barrel without having the brake in hand. Kinda' like the guy who wanted me to weld an old bolt handle on a Mauser bolt (the handle looked like it had been attempted to be welded on 2-3 times before) and not do any of the clean-up/contouring. I decided I didn't want that job, either.
 
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Rather than a crush washer would a set of Spherical Washers keep the alignment
better if you took it off and on?
https://mortonmachine.com/spherical-washer-sets-self-aligning-washers


In my opinion, good threads, a square shoulder and a timed setup so everything is held in perfect alignment is best. One other thing to consider is that crush washers of any type or design should not be re used. they should be replaced every time the brake is removed.

There are timing washer sets that can be used and they are precision ground to remain flat and not deform. they come in many different thicknesses and can be an exceptable substitute. but I still recommend checking after everything is done.

J E CUSTOM
 
It's difficult to imagine that any professional gunsmith installing a muzzle device, not doing a final safety/clearance check such as JC described. Seems to me, that's as basic as headspace go/no-go checks.
 
In my opinion, good threads, a square shoulder and a timed setup so everything is held in perfect alignment is best. One other thing to consider is that crush washers of any type or design should not be re used. they should be replaced every time the brake is removed.

There are timing washer sets that can be used and they are precision ground to remain flat and not deform. they come in many different thicknesses and can be an exceptable substitute. but I still recommend checking after everything is done.

J E CUSTOM

just wondering what your take is on the brakes like the "area 419" self timing setup where the adaptor is put on and has a taper to keep everything centered when the brake is removed and put back on. it seems like an accurate way of doing things since a lot of machining tools work this way and they are very repeatable.
 
I have first hand experience with bullet strike on a muzzle brake. I am not a Smith so didn't do the work myself. I took my rifle and a brake to a "smith". He called a few days later and did it's done and I could come get it. I show up and he says I dont owe him any money because he marred the barrel by spinning it in the lathe. I'm the type that I still paid him because he still did me a service by threading and installing the brake. And it is a hunting gun and looks aren't the world to me. So I remount the scope and head to the range where I boresighted and shot at 50 yards to get close ish. It would not group. So I moved the target to 20 feet. Still couldn't find any consistency, and I know it grouped good before this work. So frustrated I went home and removed the brake to inspect and found copper shavings and chunks taken out of the end of the brake. Excellent! I tried to save a buck by going to a guy that I knew could be iffy but he seemed mostly legit. Instead it cost me a bunch more because of the bill from the reputable second Smith that I should have went to in the first place. Luckily none was injured and the only hurt was my pocketbook. I learned a valuable lesson from it though.
 
just wondering what your take is on the brakes like the "area 419" self timing setup where the adaptor is put on and has a taper to keep everything centered when the brake is removed and put back on. it seems like an accurate way of doing things since a lot of machining tools work this way and they are very repeatable.
The adaptor for that system would still need to be concentric to the bore as the brake itself centers off of the taper on the adaptor.
 
The adaptor for that system would still need to be concentric to the bore as the brake itself centers off of the taper on the adaptor.


+1
Any system needs to be checked after final installation.

I once found a brake that hurt the accuracy and the guy brought it by for me to remove it. The first thing I did was to try my .30 cal mandrel before I removed it. the bore in the brake would not allow the mandrel to go in and after measuring the bore hole I found that the muzzle brake bore had a .308 bore diameter, not a .328 bore for .020 thousandths clearance.

The bullet was striking the break every time and shaving copper jacket material. I offered to bore it out for him until I unscrewed
it and found tons of Loctite to make up for sloppy threads.

I had to replace the brake and cut and re thread the barrel tenon, The last time I heard from the rifle was shooting sub 1/2 moa and he was very happy with it. he was mad that he had to pay twice to get it done right. (I did cut him a brake and only charged him the cost of the brake).

My lesson out of all of this is/was to check every re do while the owner is there so he understands what he has and to do a final check in front of the owner as he receives it for his own piece of mind

J E CUSTOM
 
My boss took his AR to a smith that I had been using to have a new suppressor installed. He had a new barrel that was tuned to the suppressor and should not be shortened. When he went to pick it up, the suppressor was obviously not concentric to the bore. When he asked the smith about it, he first said he would cut the barrel back and re-install. My boss told him about the barrel and why it should not be altered. He agreed to order a new barrel but never did come through. My boss got a new barrel and took it to another smith who did a very good job. Neither of us use the original smith anymore.
 
JE,
Regarding a suppressor, are you suggesting to have a gunsmith doublecheck everything when my suppressor shows up?
I already have a rifle with a brake that will be removed for the CB mount and I am currently having a couple barrels threaded. My gunsmith stated that he threads it to the bore, not the barrel to prevent baffle strikes.
 
JE,
Regarding a suppressor, are you suggesting to have a gunsmith doublecheck everything when my suppressor shows up?
I already have a rifle with a brake that will be removed for the CB mount and I am currently having a couple barrels threaded. My gunsmith stated that he threads it to the bore, not the barrel to prevent baffle strikes.


If he installs the suppressor, he will/should check the installation. Even though he did the threads correctly, the threads on the suppressor
may be off.

If you are going to install it yourself, use a cleaning rod from the breach and slowly run it through the barrel and see if it is centered in the suppressor. (Not the best way but better than doing nothing).

J E CUSTOM
 
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