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Thumbcocker and I spent a morning making Lanyard rings.
This project started out as do you think we can do it? Then quickly went on to maybe we should do it? Followed by an epic fail then on to success.
Thumbcocker and I worked in the same building for a number of years and quickly became friends. I could tell right away he was the type of fellow who would give you the shirt off his back or feed you a meal if you were hungry. Quite often we would spend afternoons chatting about casting boolits, reloading, shooting, hunting and on occasion show and tell!
Two weeks ago, on Saturday Mrs waarp8nt went to work and Mrs Thumbcocker went shopping so we decided to try our hand at making a lanyard ring. We made a couple of nice rings and things went downhill from there. I tried to make a stainless sling stud, but cranked a little too hard on the Southbend 9" while cutting off the nearly completed stud and ruined it. Then, although we both had watched a couple of YouTube videos on how to solder stainless steel neither of us had actually done it. Thumbcocker brought along a jewelers torch and a mini Oxygen/Acetylene torch set up. My Harris full size Oxygen/Acetylene set up was out of O2 and darned if I could find anything but the cutting head. We tried anyway, but Thumbcocker's torch hoses were dry rotted and cracked from age and my cutting head didnt focus enough to solder the little rings, the no-lead solder wasn't working and silver solder wasn't working either. We tried different fluxes, some paste and some old borax flux that had been laying around the farm, nothing seemed to work. So, we decided to break for lunch and go by the local gunshop to buy a stainless steel sling swivel stud. Lunch was good, a local favorite Mexican restaurant, chicken tacos with refried beans and fresh salsa...yum! However, absolutely no stainless sling swivel studs at the gun store or local farm store. Thumbcocker ordered sling swivel studs in the farm store parking lot. We went back to my garage and decided it best to order parts, supplies and to just get better organized for round two.
Round two; The following week on Sunday morning, ladies off to work and shopping respectively. Thumbcocker purchased new hoses for his mini torch kit, a dozen stainless steel sling swivels and some new flux. I had swung by the welding shop for a new tank of O2 for my torch. This time were prepaired! We were just gathering things up to get started and lo and behold there was the welding/brazing tip for the larger Harris torch. I had bent a few rings before he got to my garage. We decided to take some YouTube advise and smash the solder flat to ensure it would set between the homemade stainless steel rings. After degreasing with break cleaner, a liberal coating of flux was applied to all parts. Using vise grips to hold some tension on the ring and a quick touch of the Harris torch with the proper tip the ring was sliver soldered together. Thumbcocker prefering the stainless ring to have an angle cut on it for more holding power and I prefered the stainless ring to be cut straight and to simply butt up for solder. Impressive...how well it worked with the correct combination of components and heat, each of us trying our hand at it.
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Ring made and soldered onto the stud. We now meeded to mount it to the Ruger Bisley Grip Frame. Except, I didn't realize the frame needed to be milled. I thought that was done at the factory, but no. A little apprehension on my part, so we milled mine first and it turned out well. Thumbcocker's grip frame up next and turned out just as well. Next we had to drill for the sling swivel stud to connect with the milled out section of the grip frame. Hole drilled properly we slid the lanyard ring into place and bolted them down. Assembled the grips and the finished product. Thumbcocker showing of his Ruger New Model Super Blackhawk Hunter and a little leg too.
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