soldering a breech plug question

[hunter thompson]

IAM building a smoothbore 3/4 schedual 40 stainless barrel and am putting a hooked breech plug into the the barrel,filling in the void with a bushing to take up the play that was tig-welded around the hooked breech threads.Now i was thinking to create a tighter fill in ..Would silver solder....not plumbers solder be strong enough?

 

[rich pierce]

I’m not sure I really understand the situation but why can’t you just get good breech threads and properly fit a breechplug?

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Just a tad confused....,

If you're asking about using solder on the plug where it inserts and is held in the barrel, or if there is a gap between the shoulder where the rifling ends, and the threading of the barrel begins, then no, the plug should be flush without a gap.

BUT I think you're talking about the "play" between where the hooked breech meets the tang-piece, and the play between the hook and the tang- piece, not the plug and the barrel? Yes?

I'd say solder is pretty much too soft to take up slack where the hook and the tang-piece meet...over time I think it's going to peen itself from recoil and you'd be back to square one. If you look at the old mechanical drawing, you will note a screw is installed by tapping and threading the tang-piece, where the screw will then take up slack on the underside of the hook. However, I'd say a better solution, that will give you zero slack AND reduce any "battering" your stock will take from recoil, would be by using some bedding compound and bed the barrel and tang piece so that all of the slack that isn't necessary to allow barrel removal for cleaning, is eliminated.

LD

 

[Zonie]

IAM building a smoothbore 3/4 schedual 40 stainless barrel and am putting a hooked breech plug into the the barrel,filling in the void with a bushing to take up the play that was tig-welded around the hooked breech threads.Now i was thinking to create a tighter fill in ..Would silver solder....not plumbers solder be strong enough?

I know it's not part of the question but, in my opinion, if you plan on shooting your gun, you chose the wrong material for the barrel.

A 3/4" schedule 40 stainless steel pipe has a burst pressure of 8610 psi and a working pressure of 1080 psi. Both of these pressures are true only if the pressures are applied gradually.
https://www.google.com/search?q=3/4...e..69i57j0.26044j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
In the case of a firearm, the pressure is applied almost instantly. Because of this, the pressures mentioned above do not apply and a pressure far below the burst pressure I mentioned will cause the pipe to fail.
By the way, the pressures in a muzzleloading 12 guage barrel firing black powder can exceed 6000 psi in the breech area. Pressures like that coupled with the fact that they were created by an explosion says to me a 8610 psi burst pressure is far to low to be safe to fire.

Your 3/4" pipe has an internal diameter of about 3/4" and an outside diameter of about 1.050. That results in a wall thickness of .150.
Before the Civil War, the war department ran a number of tests to determine a safe thickness for the wall on a muzzleloading barrel. They arrived at a minimum thickness of .200 in the area of the breech.

If you intend to use the pipe for a barrel I strongly suggest you make the gun impossible to fire.

 

[hunter thompson]

thats the wrought iron chart in ABOVE not the stainless....schedual 40 stainless is 16000 burst pressure and the wall is double that of a 200.00 one that i bought in 20 gauge from a muzzleloading company.

 

[hunter thompson]

I’m not sure I really understand the situation but why can’t you just get good breech threads and properly fit a breechplug?

i have n

I’m not sure I really understand the situation but why can’t you just get good breech threads and properly fit a breechplug?

o way of threading it but have tremendous brazing/welding skills

 

[Alexander Efremenko]

The words,(brazing,soldering, welding) should not be used in conjunction with the word breechplug.
As previously stated ,your barrel material is a recipe for disaster.

It's nice to want to try to do things yourself . But use proper materials and methods,or research how to.
Building a safe firearm should not include a learning curve............

 

[Treestalker]

You're scaring the hell out of me. I've been building ML guns, mostly shotguns, since I was 21 years old and I'm 65 now and no extra holes or pieces missing. That's mainly because I learned to thread and breech my barrels and not play games with unknown quantities like pipe. Also I listen when the graybeards speak. Zonie may eat dirt and ants and filth but he is educated in stuff like steel, pressure and Knows what works and what doesn't. Take advantage of his life's learning and occupation and save yourself untold grief. Alexander E. has tons of experience too. The learning curve can be short and painful or deadly. It starts when you pull the trigger!

 

[hunter thompson]

tig welding is better or the same.The chart is from wrought iron.

 

[SDSmlf]

IAM building a smoothbore 3/4 schedual 40 stainless barrel and am putting a hooked breech plug into the the barrel,filling in the void with a bushing to take up the play that was tig-welded around the hooked breech threads.Now i was thinking to create a tighter fill in ..Would silver solder....not plumbers solder be strong enough?

Could you post a photograph that shows what you are trying to do? There is a lot of speculation as folks try to understand what you are attempting.

 

[Pete G]

Sounds like the OP has already made up his mind, regardless of anyone elses knowledge or experience otherwise.

 

[bud in pa]

Just realize how close to your face and eyes are to the breach !

 

[hunter thompson]

all welded .This is A bushing for inside the 16000 pound rated bbl of sched 40 STAINLESS..NOT wrought iron of 8000 pds,,so iam going to tig weld it inside of the stailess 3/4 pipe..ITS RUGGED AND A OPEN SYSTEM. IT WILL WORK NO doubt

 

[45man]

Scary as welding can change metals. After my front wheel broke off my yard machine at the weld that holds the steering plate, I would not be shooting a gun with welds at the barrel. Breech plugs have no problems going through a human head.

 

[SDSmlf]

all welded .This is A bushing for inside the 16000 pound rated bbl of sched 40 STAINLESS..NOT wrought iron of 8000 pds,,so iam going to tig weld it inside of the stailess 3/4 pipe..ITS RUGGED AND A OPEN SYSTEM. IT WILL WORK NO doubt

So you have taken a cast hooked breech, welded a sleeve around the threads, and plan to weld that assembly into a piece of 3/4” schedule 40 stainless pipe (1.050” od x 0.113” wall x 0.824” id), correct? Interesting. Would really like to hear your plan for proofing the breech plug and barrel welded assembly.

 

[Josephg]

IAM building a smoothbore 3/4 schedual 40 stainless barrel and am putting a hooked breech plug into the the barrel,filling in the void with a bushing to take up the play that was tig-welded around the hooked breech threads.Now i was thinking to create a tighter fill in ..Would silver solder....not plumbers solder be strong enough?

I was a certified welder and dealt with weld proceedures for many years. Have also made my own patent breeches. I'm still trying to wrap my head around what you are trying to do. Thus far I have to say no, don't do it. Rather, fabricate your barrel and breech using tried and true methods and materials.

My dad a was a welder but had a sixth grade education. He was a gifted welder and did do some welding on firearms. Every project he did failed in one way or another. One with catastrophic results to the firearm. Thank god no one was hurt.

 

[Josephg]

Sounds like the OP has already made up his mind, regardless of anyone elses knowledge or experience otherwise.

True. As they say, they walk among us.

 

[Treestalker]

all welded .This is A bushing for inside the 16000 pound rated bbl of sched 40 STAINLESS..NOT wrought iron of 8000 pds,,so iam going to tig weld it inside of the stailess 3/4 pipe..ITS RUGGED AND A OPEN SYSTEM. IT WILL WORK NO doubt

all welded .This is A bushing for inside the 16000 pound rated bbl of sched 40 STAINLESS..NOT wrought iron of 8000 pds,,so iam going to tig weld it inside of the stailess 3/4 pipe..ITS RUGGED AND A OPEN SYSTEM. IT WILL WORK NO doubt

May Allah have His mercy on you who drive the rocket!

 

[Carbon 6]

Every time you pull the trigger you will be weakening the weld, braze, or solder.
It's basically a time bomb.

 

[Sam squanch]

I guess you can go ahead with your project, but for the love of GOD don’t let anyone else shoot it but YOU, and if you get tired of it, DESTROY it so some other innocent person can’t shoot it. It’s YOUR life and vision.....