doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Epoxy Repair Barrel Pits?

Sure. Hard chrome plating the inside of pitted shotgun bores would involve first machining out the pitting, as was done in the case of the high dollar aircraft struts mentioned above. You cannot fill in pits with plating, and get a smooth surface. Then the bores would be nickel plated, followed by a hard chrome plating of not more than .005". Going any thicker would lead to problems with the chrome surface, which is much more brittle than steel. I can't imagine that .003" to .005" of chrome plating will make the barrels any stronger, especially if you honed out that much or more prior to plating them.

I have no idea how this would be accomplished on an intact set of double shotgun barrels, i.e., how this could be done without plating the outside or affecting rib solder joints, etc. This may have been economically viable on high dollar aircraft struts, to prevent future internal corrosion, but likely wouldn't make any sense whatsoever on a set of old pitted shotgun barrels, unless the gun was rare and very valuable. Anyone want to speculate what sort of valuation hit a Parker A-1 Special or Lefever Optimus grade would take if you chrome lined the bores???

The idea that any currently available epoxy as a bore lining would have merit would be quickly dashed by simply taking a sample of the epoxy and comparing the surface hardness to the hardness of typical shotgun barrel steel. Then compare all of the other attributes of steel that make it the universal choice for gun barrels. It is wishful thinking to believe that an epoxy lined bore in a shotgun barrel would last, given the temperatures, pressures, and friction involved. Even when these materials are used to repair pitted surfaces in a cavitating centrifugal pump, for example, the repair is regarded as a temporary fix until a replacement can be acquired.

If I'm going to dream about something, I'll dream about winning the Powerball Lottery Jackpot, and then buying a really nice shotgun without pitted barrels.

There was an outfix in Charlestown, IL that crome plates barrel i.d."s. The first coat was copper to provide a base for the chrome to stick to. Perhaps that base coat could be applied heavy and the hone to hid the pits?

bill

I couldn�t care less about a pitted barrel unless they�re extreme. Small ones have virtually no weakening effect on strength or performance. With proper cleaning, modern powders, primers, and plastic shot cups pits are not going to grow. When buying a real vintage gun I tend to run backward (long experience) when a seller says the bores are perfect without a single blemish. Bells ring all over and I hear �honed�! Now I have to worry about wall thickness, quality of honing, and all sorts of stuff. Give me a frosted barrel anytime over a perfect bore.

watt joe said...

The only currently available technique I hold out hope for is some form of spray welding to restore the barrel's interior to solid, uniform steel.

Tubing/sleeving into the breech of a gun is very viable, esp. with TIG welding. But, properly done, it isn't inexpensive. There is a fairly broad range of guns that can get a "second run" via this technique at a reasonable return on the cost. Bottom of the heap guns are best consigned to a comfortable place on a wall or over the mantle. Top of the heap guns should have new barrels, spankin' new from a time served barrel maker.

Chrome plating is common for extra runs of aircraft engine cylinders. I don't discount an adaptation to gun barrel repair.

DDA

I know of no currently available spray welding process that could be used inside even an 8 gauge bore. 12 gauge or smaller would be out of the question. I've seen a couple different spray welding processes in use, and the size of the equipment, and the requirement that the arc or plasma spray be applied perpendicular to the surface being repaired, would preclude filling even one pit inside a barrel, let alone lining and restoring an entire bore.

Spray welding isn't even used to build up and resurface worn out ways on lathes, because it will delaminate at the thin edges when surface ground or scraped. The molten metal droplets spread out and stick to the surface, and to each other. But there is not the same type of fusion to the base metal as in other welding processes where the base metal is actually melted.

Then there is the little problem of the heat generated during the process. Even the lower temperature arc and combustible gas processes would heat the barrels hotter than the melting point of the solder used to join double barrels. The plasma spray process, which would give much better adhesion and a more uniform surface, is much hotter than that.

Maybe someone will someday miniaturize spray welding equipment to the point that it could fit inside a long small diameter tube such as a shotgun barrel. And maybe someone will also develop a process to inexpensively 3-D print a new set of barrels that would perform safely. Right now, both ideas are nothing more than dreams in the distant future.

I have brought this posting to the top after Keith’s disparaging remark about me stating I would be using epoxy on a pitted barrel and reporting back on the results.
Please read through this complete posting and determine for yourself if I ever stated this.
I as well as others were throwing around ideas as far as possible solutions to addressing barrel pitting and possible repairs.
This is something that should be encouraged, the sharing of ideas and healthy conversations between reasonable members.
Keith throwing out disparaging remarks especially ones that are not true or incorrect is something taken from the Liberals play book that you Keith, regularly voice your position against.
Your attempt to discredit me publicly and your on going unprofessional nasty comments about others overshadow any good knowledge you are able to share.
Although it allows you to vent it does not add any value to this forum.
It simply creates hate, discontent and makes you appear to just be a grumpy old man that is miserable with life and is determined to try and tear down others, ruin their day, and trying to beat them down with your labeling and name calling.
This internet bullying takes away from this forum and discourages many from posting.
I know that posting these comments drive you to take offense and spend hours researching my history to try and find something to beat me up with a discredit me.
Don’t waste your energy. It will only confirm my earlier statements.
Too many good people no longer contribute to this forum due to your personal attacks.
You are clearly a bright individual with plenty of knowledge to share but many don’t appreciate this knowledge due to the hate and negativity you bring to the forum.
I’m voicing what many feel but are hesitant to state as they don’t want you to put them on your personal attack list.
Feel free to PM me with your contact information and we can have discuss this further rather than on this public forum.

There is an old saying- if you throw a rock at a pack of dogs, the dog that gets hit, will be the first dog to bark. Meaning, the person who usually does the accusing of people doing something wrong, is usually the person who is the problem. You remember when the teacher used to say, "Okay, who did this?" It was usually the guilty child who screams, "It wasn't me!" So who do you think would be the first person on this board to be the one who is anti-gun. And a Joe Biden lover. You got it! It would be Kieth. Is he even a gun owner? Has he ever even posted a picture of a gun he owned? Yet he is always accusing people of being a liar when they say they bought a gun. Like SKB asked- has he ever posted any work that he has done? I talked to several people who are expert in their field and when I posted it, Kieth calls them liars. That is why I keep him where he belongs - on IGNORE. I get emails from people telling me how enraged he gets at me. It is hilarious. It is so easy to do. Ignore him. I love it when someone says that he is calling me a liar and saying I'm stupid. 😁

Spot on WRT "keith."

He's a cancer, and something should be done.

I haven't read all the posts, but I have thought about this before and considered how you would cover it up. Bluing probably wouldn't work? Paint?