sig226
Member
I've been meaning to do this for a while, but finally got the gun and time to do it.
Here is an old Model 60 I recently bought. It's so old, it is a .38 Special, not a .357 Magnum. I paid too much for it, but I sold a Model 36 and it pretty much covered the cost of the gun.
It was scuffed up a bit on the barrel and the forward edges of the cylinder, but there were no deep scratches. Perfect.
The nice thing about these old revolvers is they are often poorly maintained. The owner of this one filled it up with Hoppe's gunk, which solidified over the years. The gunk was removed with a parts washer, some GunScrubber, and some elbow grease, before I installed a spring kit.
Next, I replaced two of the screws because they were boogered. Our gunsmith has piles of old screws and two replacements with sharp slots were easily found.
After it was cleaned, serviced, and lubed with G-96, I put an Uncle Mike's Boot Grip on it and test fired it. Primers were uniformly fired with a good dimplle from the hammer.
The next thing to do was bead blast it. Tactical guns can't be shiny after all. We must have low reflectivity, which will also get rid of all the scuff marks.
After I beaded it, I wanted to improve the gripping surface of the backstrap. I've handled several stippled (actually textured) handgun frames before. I wanted this on mine. I had grip tape on the blued gun, but that would look awful on a gray stainless model. Besides, I wanted it to be permanent.
USMCsilver's 1911 project and another thread on THR and the 1911forum provided the technique to do this. I couldn't find the other thread today. Anyone who knows the title is asked to post it. I like to give credit where credit is due.
I used a round cross cut bastard file and a half round cross cut bastard file to cut the surface of the backstrap. NAPA was suggested as the supplier of the files and the local store indeed had them. Cross cut bastard files are not such easy things to find these days, at least not in my area. Good hardware stores have gone the way of pay phones.
There are marks on the backstrap where I let the file slip a millimeter or so when I used a ball peen hammer to rap it. Although I've been complemented on the overall finish, I notice the marks, and it takes a while to get used to the motions with the hammer and file. I suggest that you find some unimportant steel to practice the technique before you try it on a gun.
Our gunsmith cut the notch for the orange ramp on the front sight, and the piece was done.
Now I know that some people will suggest that one simply can not be tactical unless one has a hi cap 9mm or some other blackened handgun, but I suffer no such sense of inferiority. I am morally certain that any hordes of criminals who encounter the tactical Chief's Special will already know my screen name and know that after I have emptied and reloaded the wheelgun in their direction, I will condescend to shoot them some more with such handguns as my own screen name suggests.
Of course, I won't need to go that far. One look at the tactical five shot revolver and the bad guys will head - nay, run - for the hills. Hopefully, one of them will drop a nice camera at the scene of the crime.
Here is an old Model 60 I recently bought. It's so old, it is a .38 Special, not a .357 Magnum. I paid too much for it, but I sold a Model 36 and it pretty much covered the cost of the gun.
It was scuffed up a bit on the barrel and the forward edges of the cylinder, but there were no deep scratches. Perfect.
The nice thing about these old revolvers is they are often poorly maintained. The owner of this one filled it up with Hoppe's gunk, which solidified over the years. The gunk was removed with a parts washer, some GunScrubber, and some elbow grease, before I installed a spring kit.
Next, I replaced two of the screws because they were boogered. Our gunsmith has piles of old screws and two replacements with sharp slots were easily found.
After it was cleaned, serviced, and lubed with G-96, I put an Uncle Mike's Boot Grip on it and test fired it. Primers were uniformly fired with a good dimplle from the hammer.
The next thing to do was bead blast it. Tactical guns can't be shiny after all. We must have low reflectivity, which will also get rid of all the scuff marks.
After I beaded it, I wanted to improve the gripping surface of the backstrap. I've handled several stippled (actually textured) handgun frames before. I wanted this on mine. I had grip tape on the blued gun, but that would look awful on a gray stainless model. Besides, I wanted it to be permanent.
USMCsilver's 1911 project and another thread on THR and the 1911forum provided the technique to do this. I couldn't find the other thread today. Anyone who knows the title is asked to post it. I like to give credit where credit is due.
I used a round cross cut bastard file and a half round cross cut bastard file to cut the surface of the backstrap. NAPA was suggested as the supplier of the files and the local store indeed had them. Cross cut bastard files are not such easy things to find these days, at least not in my area. Good hardware stores have gone the way of pay phones.
There are marks on the backstrap where I let the file slip a millimeter or so when I used a ball peen hammer to rap it. Although I've been complemented on the overall finish, I notice the marks, and it takes a while to get used to the motions with the hammer and file. I suggest that you find some unimportant steel to practice the technique before you try it on a gun.
Our gunsmith cut the notch for the orange ramp on the front sight, and the piece was done.
Now I know that some people will suggest that one simply can not be tactical unless one has a hi cap 9mm or some other blackened handgun, but I suffer no such sense of inferiority. I am morally certain that any hordes of criminals who encounter the tactical Chief's Special will already know my screen name and know that after I have emptied and reloaded the wheelgun in their direction, I will condescend to shoot them some more with such handguns as my own screen name suggests.
Of course, I won't need to go that far. One look at the tactical five shot revolver and the bad guys will head - nay, run - for the hills. Hopefully, one of them will drop a nice camera at the scene of the crime.
