Small fasteners

[Someoldguy]

Anybody here make their own Action and scope base screws?

I'm tired of chasing after them or waiting 2 - 5 days for them to show up.

A large lathe is NOT conducive to small fastener making. Do the small lathes really work?

 

[carlsbad]

I keep a good supply of both in longer lengths than I need so I can use the lathe to shorten to length. --Jerry

 

[Someoldguy]

I keep a good supply of both in longer lengths than I need so I can use the lathe to shorten to length. --Jerry

Yeah, I get that. But sometimes I don't have what I need lying around. And when all I need is a scope base screw or action screw well, . . . . I want to make one from scratch rather than wait.
It can't be too hard if one has the correct equipment. I'm trying to figure out what that equipment is.
A 10" lathe is a challenge, I can tell you. Not impossible, but doggone . . .

 

[carlsbad]

The large lathe can make the small fasteners just fine. The challenge is small sharp cutting tools. I've made 48 tpi theads or finer on many occasions but never on that small a diameter.

Most will say your time will not be well spent spending an hour to make a fastener that you can buy for a $. But I've been there too. Make it today vs wait a week for it. I made an o-ring sealed plug for my air rifle compressed air tank that I could have bought for $12. But one reason I made it was because the tank is 4500 psi and the one I found online looked Chinese. Didn't want to take a chance.


-Jerry

 

[Someoldguy]

The large lathe can make the small fasteners just fine. The challenge is small sharp cutting tools. I've made 48 tpi theads or finer on many occasions but never on that small a diameter.

Most will say your time will not be well spent spending an hour to make a fastener that you can buy for a $. But I've been there too. Make it today vs wait a week for it. I made an o-ring sealed plug for my air rifle compressed air tank that I could have bought for $12. But one reason I made it was because the tank is 4500 psi and the one I found online looked Chinese. Didn't want to take a chance.


-Jerry

Well . ..

Perhaps I should not admit this, but I had to try twice to make a doggone 1/4-28 action screw today. Threading tool would not cut for several .001", then would grab and cut more than I wanted. Old, worn, loose-as-a-goose lathe. It works OK for barrel threading, but that small stuff has *little* room for error.

And 6-40 screws? Oy, Vey!

 

[carlsbad]

Well, I'm gonna make some 1"x 32 tpi threads this week for some prototyping--unless a batch of bolts shows up for me to work on. --Jerry

 

[Toolbreaker]

The large lathe can make the small fasteners just fine. The challenge is small sharp cutting tools.
-Jerry

+1. The smaller that the workpiece becomes, the more crucial that the tool becomes, as well. Also, the tool height in regard to material C/L is much more critical. As the diameter of the workpiece gets smaller, it'll have more of a tendency to climb or push off of the tool if not exactly on certerline.

 

[RWO]

Trying to single point 1/4-28, 8-40, 6-48, 6-40 threads is a waste of time. Dies for those threads are less than $10 each. Google is your friend.

RWO

 

[Gun Smith]

As RWO said. I've made hundreds of screws for older guns especially, and have just about every tap and die in all flavors a man could ever want, even some of them foreign "metric" ones they've foisted upon us. Dies are the way to go for small screws.

 

[hogpatrol]

As others have posted, not worth your time. Spend a few bucks and get a gunsmith's assortment.

https://www.brownells.com/gunsmith-...t-head-scope-ring-base-screw-kit-prod622.aspx

 

[Someoldguy]

I have a small screw assortment. Unfortunately, I never seem to realize I'm out of a particular size until I need one. Hence the question.
I suppose as has ben suggested the best thing to do is collect a set of die nuts.

Thank you for the suggestions.