Barrel Bending Tips

[Tinker2]

I was just looking for tips on a more "civilized" way to do it.

I have used this type of jig made by B-Square.

B-Square barrel bending jig
Link

Easy to make one if you wanted. No longer for sale.

I mount it so the barrel will be at eye level

Lots of ways to do it, just go slow and don’t dent or kink it.

It should not look bent when done.

“I'm going to try to get an older blackpowder gunsmith that lives nearby to give me a hand.”

That’s the best idea. Good luck. :thumbsup:





William Alexander

 

[bud in pa]

Years ago I worked in a machine shop. One of the jobs I did was operating the straightening press. The first thing we did was to check the piece with a straight edge to see where it was bent. we were working with hardened steel about 3/4 to 1 inch thick. The press was a 20 ton hydraulic press. We kept the straight edge on the piece as we applied pressure so we could see how far past center we were pushing. We had to get it within .005 in. of being dead straight. Push too much and the hardened steel would snap. If I had to straighten a barrel I would make the barrel bending jig as shown in the link because you could get precise and controlled bending. :hmm:

 

[Tinker2]

When barrels are straightened, it is the bore that is straightened not the outside
Other then that, done the same way


This is a link to how Pedersoli bends /straightens barrels
I saw this posted in the flintlock forum; in the middle they show them bending barrels.
This is how I do it.
Link



William Alexander

 

[cowboysteve]

Great video! The barrel bending portion of the video was just what I needed. The two wooden blocks and "C" clamp method is just a simpler path to exactly what the factory guy is doing in the video. By creating a slight belly in my smoothy's barrel, it will allow a better sight plane without having to raise my sight picture off of the barrel flat.

 

[Tinker2]

Please post how it works out for you.




William Alexander

 

[Stophel]

I am strongly of the opinion that 200+ years ago, it was standard practice to adjust point of impact/pattern on smoothbores AND rifles by bending the barrel, and not messing much with the sights.

I have bent one smoothbore gun barrel. The customer wanted it primarily for shooting patched round ball (a very modern quirk, I think, and simply not something that was done in the 18th century). Well, balls printed about a foot or more low, which I understand is common, so with great trepidation, I bent the barrel (propped up on blocks with a clamp). My barrel may have been stiffer than normal, but let me tell you, I had to bend that sucker like a banana before it ever finally took a set. And ended up shooting dead on. :wink: Of course, his shot probably goes a foot high now.... :haha:

 

[Capt. Jas.]

Barrel bending is documented as part of the barrel making process of the 17th and 18th centuries. Barrel bending after construction for impact is also documented. There is even documented information to show the indians would even regulate their barrels by bending them.
Today, our barrels are made by stock removal which can cause a bend as material is removed and certain stresses relieved. Uneven heating of a barrel to apply soldered lugs can sometimes affect impact IMO.
If a stock is built to fit a person or certain historical style, a bend is always the best option.
One can cautiously make an elaborate set-up or put a barrel in a tree crook and have at it. I have seen it done successfully both ways.
I have a machine made by a friend for this purpose.

 

[cowboysteve]

Thanks guys for the encouragement to have at it, and the documentation that it is a pretty "standard" practice with trade guns. After I clear my deck of work obligations over the next couple of weeks, I'm going to give it a go. I'll take photos, and let you all know how it turned out.