Making a custom shotgun heat shield

[Magno]

I have a Mossberg 590A1 which I am turning into a WWII-style trench gun. The last thing on my conversion list is the iconic barrel shroud. I've been keeping an eye on the A1 shield from Aimpro, but I'm not fully sold on it's looks. It seems too narrow, and the holes are too small and few for my taste. I also perfer a stagger formation of perforations, not the straight collumns on the Aimpro.
So while trying to think of an alternative to spending $65 on something I don't even fully like, I started entertaining the idea of fabricating it.

I figure all I really need is an appropriately wide tube of sturdy metal, which I would cut to length and then groove across the bottom. I would secure it to the front of the barrel with some sort of clamp, but I haven't figured it out yet. Likely it would be based on the standard Mossberg/Aimpro style clamp. Then I would drill the holes the way I want them, and make some sort of spacer for the far end to fit snug around the barrel.
Eventually I would probably get it parkerized, but I would just paint it for now, presumably.

So I would like some help from the experts here.

• What type of metal should I use?
• What is my BEST method for drilling the holes? (keeping them straight)
• How should I attach the piece to the barrel?

Thanks in advance. If this proves to be too complex, expensive, or labor-intensive, I'll just stick with the Aimpro product. Just throwing ideas around. I'm a big fan of personal-fitted weapons.

 

[RevolvingGarbage]

You will find that drilling holes in a rounded pipe will be annoying at best. Generally heat shields are made from rolled sheet steel.

If it were me, and I had access to a decent machine shop, the first part of the design would be doing some math and make some card stock prototypes to figure out exactly what size and shape of sheet steel would be needed to make the proper shape when rolled into a shape to fit the barrel. Then once you know that, you cut a piece of sheet steel (not sure what gauge you want, but if its too thin it will dent easy) to the right size and shape. Then, the easiest way to cut the holes would be using a vertical mill, but a drill press would be almost as good. The mill obviously will be the easiest to keep the holes straight as you just have to make sure it starts straight and then you just crank the table over as you go. Will most drill presses you would have to use some measuring and marking equipment.

After your holes are drilled, you would need to roll the sheet into a tube shape and honestly I'm not all too familiar with all the different ways that's done, but I'm guessing it involves rolling the sheet over a mandrel.

If you don't have access to this equipment, it can be done with a dremel or drill, a vise, some measuring equipment and marking dye, and a lot of patience and attention to detail.

What I don't think will work out well is using a piece of solid tube stock.

 

[klutchless]

you can use 16ga sheetsteel mark and drill on a press use plenty of oil to make the vents then you can form it over a piece of tube steel or bar stock with rubber mallet be carfull not to bend it back and forth to much or it will break. it takes alot of time to get it right but when its done its well worth it. As far as securing it maybe a lapover at the front tig welded closed and a clamp in the back.