The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - Legal and technical requirements for DIY silencer?

hal9000 · October 18, 2010, 05:59 PM

No problem, I hope you get a chance to use them. I haven't done any home anodizing, but am constantly on the hunt for a project that might "require" it.

What are you envisioning in terms of the cause of the weld failure? Just vibration? One fix I could think of would be to slot the outside edges and install several guide rods around the perimeter, welded to each disk. It would be fairly easy to make the guide rods sit flush against, or even index into grooves in the housing. That would supply lateral support while minimizing the chance of permanently lodging the insert into the housing if it gets dirty.

BTW, for those that can't envision it it would look vaguely like this: ()()()() I've seen commercial designs which are similar, so assume it's not a bad idea in theory at least.

It sounds like that guy in the video was stretching the metal on a lathe, I've heard of this but never seen it done. The way I understand it its kind of like throwing a clay pot on a wheel, only with metal.

Press forming metal:
The two types of press forming I'm familiar with are 1) forming the stock between two hard dies (example, somebody over on silencertalk suggested making a die to insert into a loading press to make aluminum cones from soda can bottoms... this would have two interlocking dies); and 2) pressure forming. This involves making a concave female die from a durable material (micarta, wood, aluminum, or plastic all work) and placing the metal between the die and a flexible material like urethane or rubber. Usually this is done on a small hydraulic press. Pressure forces the metal to stretch into and conform to the die.

In my opinion, the second method is easier for the DIY'er, but it's hard to get very sharp corners if that's what you need. You can buy or build a press for not very much money, and the rest of the supplies can be made from your choice of materials in a variety of ways. If you want sharp edges, you can also pressure form first, then finish in a two die system, but that doubles your equipment needs.

October 18, 2010, 05:59 PM	#22
hal9000 Member Join Date: October 15, 2010 Location: AZ Posts: 82	No problem, I hope you get a chance to use them. I haven't done any home anodizing, but am constantly on the hunt for a project that might "require" it. What are you envisioning in terms of the cause of the weld failure? Just vibration? One fix I could think of would be to slot the outside edges and install several guide rods around the perimeter, welded to each disk. It would be fairly easy to make the guide rods sit flush against, or even index into grooves in the housing. That would supply lateral support while minimizing the chance of permanently lodging the insert into the housing if it gets dirty. BTW, for those that can't envision it it would look vaguely like this: ()()()() I've seen commercial designs which are similar, so assume it's not a bad idea in theory at least. It sounds like that guy in the video was stretching the metal on a lathe, I've heard of this but never seen it done. The way I understand it its kind of like throwing a clay pot on a wheel, only with metal. Press forming metal: The two types of press forming I'm familiar with are 1) forming the stock between two hard dies (example, somebody over on silencertalk suggested making a die to insert into a loading press to make aluminum cones from soda can bottoms... this would have two interlocking dies); and 2) pressure forming. This involves making a concave female die from a durable material (micarta, wood, aluminum, or plastic all work) and placing the metal between the die and a flexible material like urethane or rubber. Usually this is done on a small hydraulic press. Pressure forces the metal to stretch into and conform to the die. In my opinion, the second method is easier for the DIY'er, but it's hard to get very sharp corners if that's what you need. You can buy or build a press for not very much money, and the rest of the supplies can be made from your choice of materials in a variety of ways. If you want sharp edges, you can also pressure form first, then finish in a two die system, but that doubles your equipment needs. Last edited by hal9000; October 18, 2010 at 06:12 PM.