Making a firing pin

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dj_28

New member
I've been trying to make a firing pin for a Stevens Crackshot and little scout. Turned them down on a lathe, fit them to the breech block, and they have good protrution. I'm getting hard strikes on the primers of the .22 shells but no bang. What's up. I can't figure were I'm going wrong.

And yes I know that I can buy the firing pins for both guns but why buy when I can make.

DJ
 
I'm assuming you mean you are getting good strikes on the RIM of the 22 shell.

My first guess would be to make sure that the new firing pin has a sharp square edge on it, I had best results when the firing pin made a pronounced square dent in the rim of the 22 shell, not a rounded one.

by sharp I mean the tip should be flat and blunt, but the corners should be sharp and not rounded. I hope that makes sense anyway.
 
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I'd also ensure the rim recess area of the chamber edge, under the FP tip, hasn't beed swedged out by dry-firing (maybe why a new FP was needed in the first place ? ).

If there's a little recess there, and no metal protruding into the chamber area, then someone's most likely filed the metal away as a repair for hard/no extraction, instead of properly swadging the mischevious metal back to where it came from (with the proper chamber-swadging tool) - and a repair to the barrel/chamber in that spot is indicated.


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Not an issue on the crackshot or the little scout, the extractor is under the firing pin strike location. So if dry fired it will hit the extractor (still not a good thing but no barrel damage).

DJ
 
That's good - but if the old FP tip put a divot in it, dry firing, the air space might take away enough rim support to give you a misfire with the new FP.

If there's nothing amiss the it, then i'd WAG your problem lies with the new FP - tip shape and/or protrusion.




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The firing pin end shape that seems to work best is rectangular, with a width of about .05-.06" and a height of about .09-.10". Some makers have used a ball shaped tip, set to keep the entire strike area inside the case head; others design the firing pin tip to extend outside the edge of the case head, that is across the primer area. Position is probably as important as the shape of the firing pin tip.

Also don't overlook the possibility of excess headspace. If the cartridge is not properly supported, ignition will fail or be erratic.

(All the advice, here and above, assumes the ammunition is reliable and has been tested in another gun.)

Jim
 
When I made a replacement pin for my dad's Walnut Hill thirty-odd years ago, I took the advice of a toolmaker at work to use oil-hardening drill rod for its added toughness (as compared to water hardening), and to draw it back from the quench to about a Rockwell C scale hardness of 50. An 800°F temper, IIRC. That's about what is used for high quality hammer heads so they can strike nails without indenting significantly or cracking and shattering. I kept the original rectangular profile.
 
I've tried all different shape tips round, flat, rectangle, and even pointed. I used a grade 8 bolt to make the firing pin so hardness isn't an issue.

I'm thinking that it is a weak mainspring.

Could be protrution. I may be leaving to much but I have started with it long and took alittle off at a time until it no longer hit at all. So probly not.

DJ
 
Do you know how old those guns are? Many .22 guns made in the late 1800's or early 1900's were made for the copper cases of the day, not the harder and stronger brass needed for the higher pressures of newer cartridges. So increasing the hammer spring strength may be the answer. But be aware that firing "modern" cartridges might not be the best thing for those old guns.

Jim
 
One of my neighbors had a crackshot that would not fire, he thought maybe the firing pin was bad.

I checked the rifle over and the firing pin looked good but the hammer tension felt weak.

I made a new hammer spring (main spring) for it from a piece of feeler guage and the rifle is still shooting without any misfires.

Best Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com
 
I was once called to a man's home because his hall light stopped working. When I got there, I promptly found the breaker panel. Breaker was on.
Took the cover off, check with the tester, breaker worked.
Went to the switch, took the cover off, tested the switch. Worked fine, had power in and out.
Took down the light, checked the connections. All fine.
Asked if they tried changing the bulb. They did.
I reinstalled the light. Went to put the bulb back in, noticed it had a broken filament.
To keep from disrespecting the homeowner, I told them I broke it, and asked for another. They had two more left in the box.

I grabbed one, broken filament. Grabbed the last one, broken filament.
Stole a bulb from a working lamp and, ends up, light worked fine. The box of bulbs was bad.

You know where I'm going with this -

Did you try another box of bullets? ;)

Not to be a wiseguy, but worse has happened, that's for sure.
 
The crackshot has not for high velocity rounds on the barrel but the little scout doesn't. I have been shooting shorts out of them to test my repairs. Been trying to find something to use for a mainspring on the little scout. I have tried making spacers but the spring is in bad shape and still doesn't have enough tension to get the job done.

On the crackshot I'm going to make a new mainspring plunger thats alittle longer and that should put enough tension on that spring. It's still in good shape, just alittle weak I think.

DJ
 
Hunter Customs, you must be thinking of a different gun than I'm talking about. The crackshot and little scout that I have use coil mainsprings not flat mainsprings. Kinda wish that they did. Making flat mainsprings are easy. Bend them to the shape that you want and temper them back in and your done.

I have used old hacksaw and saw-saw blades to make flat springs but have never tried a feeler gauge. May have to borrow that idea in the future...lol

DJ
 
Hunter Customs, you must be thinking of a different gun than I'm talking about. The crackshot and little scout that I have use coil mainsprings not flat mainsprings. Kinda wish that they did. Making flat mainsprings are easy. Bend them to the shape that you want and temper them back in and your done.

I have used old hacksaw and saw-saw blades to make flat springs but have never tried a feeler gauge. May have to borrow that idea in the future...lol
Click to expand...

I apologize for any confusion I may have caused, I do believe the rifle I built the spring for was a Stevens Favorite 1894 model.
I believe the Favorite even went to a coil spring mainspring in 1915 but the early models had leaf springs.

Best Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com
 
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