Michael's Build! yeah yeah, another build thread ;)

[Bil]

On your receiver pieces-remember that where it was cut,even though it looks a lot like it should,some of the metal close to the actual cut was molten,and can be contaminated.Make sure you grind back to 'virgin' steel.Don't go nuts on it,just look it over real good and if it looks funny,out it goes.It will make it easier to weld also.Looks like you are making good progress on your build! ---bil

[Michael J]

Well, a little late on the advice Bil! , i remembered though, you got lucky this time... I have the areas a nice grinding, back to a sexy silver looking finish (shiny too i might add). That was just for my tacks, i'm going to give her a nice sandy bath (sand blast) before i do any major welding. Well, i only tacked the rear to the middle, still haven't tacked the long section, as those little D-shaped ears that pop out on the rails, are a bit longer than supposed to be. Rivet holes are off by like 1/32" or less because the german "ears" on the rails i removed were a bit shorter. Problem with mixing yugo and german stuff ...

However, i will give those ears a small filing by hand, as its not much, and continue my welding. By the way, i folded some scrap copper, and made sure it was nicely shaped and properly in place. Essentially i'm "ahead of schedule", and can give myself a little more time to weld these properly.

No pics today, I will update when i'm done welding altogether, as i don't want to spam up this thread with more useless pics .

[Bil]

I used steel stock that fit inside the receiver,with a very thin layer of copper between .I drilled holes in both using the rails as guides,and bolted these through the rivet holes.this held things in place for spot welding,and keeps the spacing right. ---bil

[Michael J]

I have a thin piece of copper sheet metal in between my bolted-in rails. Although, i really should try a more "sturdy" method ! Thanks for the advice Bil

[42rocker]

Michael
You stated that the Yugo rails and the old German rails used in the receivers are different?? By about 1/32?? Sounds like something to worry about or not??

Good Luck with the welding!!

Later 42rocker

[Bil]

The rails will twist like spaghetti if you use them as a weld jig-go for something a bit stronger.There are pics onsite of several jigs that work nicely. ---bil

[Michael J]

Michael
You stated that the Yugo rails and the old German rails used in the receivers are different?? By about 1/32?? Sounds like something to worry about or not??

Good Luck with the welding!!

Later 42rocker

No, not the rail length, but the length of that D-shaped thing that pops up. It is slightly more stretched than the german "D-hole" will allow, so you must file-to-fit by hand. This will not effect anything.

The rails will twist like spaghetti if you use them as a weld jig-go for something a bit stronger.There are pics onsite of several jigs that work nicely. ---bil

Thanks for saving my there bil! Will change it before i start welding for sure. I'll just use it to tack my pieces so that i know i have the proper dimensions, then i will make up a jig from some steel flatbar i have.

[Michael J]

I've had to TIG weld backwards in order to join the massive gaps. Will this present a problem? Here is a diagram o what i have had to do. Basically after laying down a nice starter glob to work with, i'ver melted the sides of the receiver, then used the filler rod. This has resulted in a "C" shape, which is backwards compared to normal TIG welding... I couldn't seem to do it the "right way", but i will have to suck it up and redo it if this method presents any structural integrity issues... . Any comments on this, or is what i am doing (and plan to continue to do tomorrow, unless one of you speaks up and says otherwise) wrong?

[m1-dan]

on your welds did you tack the receiver together on each corner ? Also instead of laying one long bead on one part you should Stitch weld a little on one side let cool the go on the opposite side. Especially on sheet metal it will warp nice and easy. I know when im welding new panels on cars its easy to warp just a matter of doing it right and carefully!

[Michael J]

Thanks m1-dan, good advice, will do . I did a single 3/4 inch tack (well, a very short bead i guess) like shown in my diagram, on each side. My copper on my make-shift jig did not extend as to that far up to tack bottom and top symmetrically. I actually got no warping, or at least unnoticeable warping from that.

I have not tacked at all the front section to the middle section of the ima pieces. I will make a better jig, and use more copper, so i can tack probably the 4 corners, so i know everything lines up good.

side note: You know your cool when your typing on the internet with nothing but a towel on because you just got out of the shower . In Bil's case, the shower does not apply, he just likes typing naked ...

I will update when i get home from school!

[Michael J]

Didn't get too much done Thursday, just tacked the front portion to the middle portion of my IMA rear. It seems i am short by like 1/32 or something silly. I doubt this will effect function, but any comments on this, should i cut the tacks and lengthen it up? Rails and rivets will fit fine, just they'll be a bit tight. The room for expansion of the rivets, and slight hole size difference between rails, and holes in receiver should cover up the 1/32 easily though.

Aside from that, i modified my recuperator, but i must file it a tiny bit more (i figure the rest of that 2nd notch, as i only cut halfway into the small bump) to fit. I never mentioned this, but about a month ago i polished up my stock with some furniture oil, or something. It gave it a nice darker (less dry) look, i am contemplating a varnish.

All my work is halted until school is back in, which kind of sucks... But i am glad i will have no math homework or chemistry stuff to do for the next couple weeks ! In the 2 attached photos, you can see my tacks, recup, and stock. Luckily, no warping so far, i fear this may change after doing some real welding, but i will keep my beads short and symmetrical to even it up.


Anyways, i'll update with new pictures, as soon as i make some more progress, but for now, i expect this thread to sort of die for the next 2 - 3 weeks.

[www.Prussia.us]

Good show, Michael

Not too many guys look forward to having their break end quickly so that they can get back to school of course your reasoning is totally justified.

[Michael J]

Good show, Michael

Not too many guys look forward to having their break end quickly so that they can get back to school of course your reasoning is totally justified.

Yeah, my friends think i'm weird that way ! But only a couple of my good friends know why. The others just think i'm a weirdo .

[Michael J]

Progress has commenced! Yesterday i spent most of my class time tinkering around with the (ex-broken as of mid-class yesterday) sandblaster. Took me a bit to get her going, but eventually got it feeding properly (sorta), and cleaned up the rust around my cuts.

Today i welded her up pretty good, however i still have a couple gaps that i never finished connecting the middle section to the rear section of the IMA receiver. Absolutely no warping on my front section to middle section weld... well except for the fact that, the weld shrunk the receiver 1/16 too short... I will have to trim that thingy that holds the recup in place like 1/16 to make up for the length, but other than that, the rails still clear the buffer and stock. So i should be okay.

Quick question however: Is the recup supposed to be installed compressed? Or should it fit just right in there? If it is to be compressed, should it be all the way compressed, or like halfway compressed? I must determine this, so i can determine how much i have to shave off of that thing that pops up, that keeps the recup from sliding anymore backwards.

Or should i just shave the 1/16 off of that thing, as that is how "too short" i am. So that i am still at the same compression ratio, based on the length of a "perfect receiver", and my receiver.

Lastly... I'm lucky that i machined enough out of the grip area, that even after the 1/16 shrinkage, my FA grip still does not fit . I wouldn't want to be producing nothing illegal!

No camera around today, but i'll see if i can grab it tommorow.

[Michael J]

Also, a TIG welding safety tip i learned the hard way this morning:

DO NOT try to lift your mask up with the same hand holding your nice and toasty just-used welding rod! Not only did i do that, but twice in one day! I have a nice half inch line melted into my flesh right on that soft squishy part on your neck. You know, the part that smoker sometimes have to have poked open, so they can breath properly. I'll take a pic when i get the camera .
Also got a nice 1 inch long line (not as badly burned) on the right side of my lower jaw (Yep, Mr.smarty pants over here).

[www.Prussia.us]

Michael,

While battle scars can be great conversation pieces, try not to give yourself a traciodomy in the process.

I am glad to hear you are back in the saddle on your project, as for the recoup I do not think trimming 1/16 off the plunger tip, which is thick enough, will hurt but I am NO expert.

I installed it the only way I think one can, I had my recoup fully compressed except for the final plunger, shaft, and spring (I have the older style plunger where the metal shaft that fits inside the spring is separate from the final plunger that engages the barrel). Then in order to tighten the bolt on your forward mounting screw you will have to compress that final plunger assembly to hold it in place. I fear ever having to replace it b/c even after grinding down the inside weld it is a fairly tight fit beneath the rails.

Of course with the price of ammo these days (and projected in the future) I do not foresee thousands of rounds being fired to wear mine out.

[Michael J]

Finally got some pictures, but with my sisters crappy camera. Just a warning, quality will suck, because it is so cheap that it does not have anything to compensate for wobbling. So if you twitch, the pics will come out blurry!
I also attached a pic of my tiny burn in my neck from my stupidity . The one on my chin doesn't look too bad anymore, as it was just minor surface burns.

[m1-dan]

not to bad kid, if I were you though take a die grinder with a cutoff wheel and dig out the welds , where you have the tiny wholes ( purosity in your weld due to lack of gas in that area) and go over to fill in with more weld. Trust me a weld like that with out being touched up will be weak and rust on you before you know. Keep up the good work though !

Dan

Purosity is a big thing in welding , like when we weld new QTR Panels on cars thats one thing we go over all the welds for. Car would come back with rust even with a appropriate finish.

[Michael J]

Will do dan, thanks for the advice . I was contemplating that part, as i figured i'd just weld over it when attaching my ratchet plate, but i don't want cancerous rust eating my gun from the inside out! So I'll go over those for sure.

Hmm, that last picture really portrays my receiver as bowed, even though it isn't... Must be the angle, or camera, or is it just me?

[johnnymg]

That what I was wondering, pictures can really squew your perception, really looks bowed down to the front.

Will do dan, thanks for the advice . I was contemplating that part, as i figured i'd just weld over it when attaching my ratchet plate, but i don't want cancerous rust eating my gun from the inside out! So I'll go over those for sure.

Hmm, that last picture really portrays my receiver as bowed, even though it isn't... Must be the angle, or camera, or is it just me?