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Old October 22, 2001, 11:18 PM   #1
slickpuppy
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Jewelling Parts For Improved Functionality - Advice Sought

I searched on jewelling here and came up with a little information regarding the process. My questions are to what you guys feel produces the best metal surface for lubricant retention and smoother operation of small metal parts in a firearm.

1. What do you feel is the best "grit size" for use in jewelling small parts that need improvement where they contact other metal parts? This specifically would be for trigger components and their contact points.

2. Have you jewelled sears and their hammer engagement areas? Would this improve or smooth out a trigger job?

Thanks for sharing any accumulated knowledge you may have.
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Old October 23, 2001, 09:21 PM   #2
James K
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I am sure others will disagree, but I don't care for jeweling. It looks fine on a rifle bolt, for example, as long as the rifle is not used. Then the inevitable wear marks make it look cheap and shabby. I am not sure what you mean by contact points on a trigger; no one would jewel the engagement surfaces - that would be a gritty trigger indeed, so I assume you mean the sides and the like.

I know the theory about how jeweling holds oil and all that, but it can also increase friction (after all, it is simply decorative scratching) and it is additional wear since it removes metal. A better approach on internal surfaces is to relieve the metal at unneeded contact points, like lengthwise milling the rebound slide on a S&W to reduce friction. S&W used to mill pads into the contact points (around the hammer and trigger pins, for example) so that there was minimal contact, but it fell to the high cost. That, or shimming, could still be done and would be preferable (IMHO) to jeweling.

Jeweling can look pretty, but as for reducing wear, I note that some other machine parts get a lot more wear than gun parts ever could, and no one jewels the pistons in a Toyota.

Jim
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Old October 23, 2001, 10:18 PM   #3
DeBee
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Are you saying you wish to jewel the trigger and sear?

I wouldn't do that. Your trigger and sear would be trashed if you attempted to jewel the surfaces and maybe unsafe afterward. Your best bet is to lightly stone the surfaces so as to highly polish but not remove metal or change tolerances. Usually a jig is used to maintain the angles... I chuck pins in a pin vise and chuck that in a drill held in a vise and polish with 600 thru 800 paper or crocus cloth if I can beg borrow or steal some...

A hard ceramic stone works good depending on the type of metal or a Ruby Gesswein stone. I feel the harder the stone the better because it will be more difficult to remove alot of metal with the hard stone. Apply some moly grease and resist the temptation to polish it again...

Everything you would need is in the Brownells catalog...

P.S. I don't care for jewelling on the bolt either...
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Old October 23, 2001, 11:51 PM   #4
yorec
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I like jeweling and high quality wood, but that is a personal preference. Jeweling is for cosmetic value cosmetic only, it just makes things sparkley. I also don't think that it would improve the way a lubricant resists corrosion, just remember to properly lube your gun. And since it's just cosmetic, Jeweling of any internal parts would be a waste - you'd never get to see them unless you disassemble the gun.

Pistol parts to Jewel - anywhere on the outside that can be polished and shiney. Flat spots on the slide, side of the trigger, hammer sides, etc. But be careful if you try doing this without direction, it isn't as easy as it looks...
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Old October 24, 2001, 04:08 AM   #5
slickpuppy
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Good information. Thanks. One of the reasons I posted this was that I had read that Teddy Jacobson of Actions By T was jewelling the internals of pistols as part of his reliability package. This was up on his website. I don't know which parts he was jewelling in all fairness to him. Jewelling on pistol internals was a new one that I hadn't heard of before.
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Old October 24, 2001, 09:30 AM   #6
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LOL...Teddy is the "BEST"...

...If you want your guns to be as good as his...Send it to HIM!!!

He certainly has his own way of doin' it and would never do anything that would allow someone to get hurt. But...HE ...is the only one that knows how he does things...and he sure loves to do it!

Good Luck...Hey...Why don't you contact him and get his take on it? He'll talk to ya' if yer' nice...

[email protected]

Tell him gyp_c2 said "Hey"!

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Old October 24, 2001, 11:06 AM   #7
James K
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Hi, DeBee and guys,

I think the reference to jeweling hammers and triggers was to the sides of those parts, something that is often done for show. However, some old time makers, especially of shotgun locks, jeweled the insides to hold oil. Remember though, that they were building guns in an era and for a group who were told (to quote an old book), "Always have your man wipe down and clean the guns carefully after shooting" and "return the gun to the maker for inspection and cleaning at least twice a year".

So, retention of oil may have been a bigger thing than on a modern firearm cleaned by those who don't have "a man" to do it.

Jim
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Old October 25, 2001, 12:15 AM   #8
yorec
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LOL! Now THAT description fits where I would think jeweling the internals of a shotgun lock should! (Kinda make sense too for that time period and metalurgical level...)
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Old October 25, 2001, 05:20 AM   #9
WESHOOT2
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SOLUTION

Send your whole gun to Robar (www.robarguns.com) and have them NP3 the whole thing. Kill two birds; no more rust, and NO LUBE REQUIRED.
Perfect for actual work/carry guns.
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Old October 25, 2001, 08:07 PM   #10
Dfariswheel
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Jeweling has been used a LOOONG time as decoration, and in the belief that it held lube. The earlest form was done with a hardened steel bar. The bar was firmly pressed onto the metal and pulled over the surface. This left an attractive "wave" pattern. Lately we used the circular overlapping patterns.

At various times, actions were gold plated, and in some models of CZ75's, copper plated.

With the advent of the new "super Lubes", that make surfaces super slick, all this is now just decoration.
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Old October 28, 2001, 11:19 AM   #11
Phideaux
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Just as information, the other (and maybe more common) term for "Jewling" is known in the metal finishing industry as: "Engine Turned." There's a great on-line illustrated reference all about these types of finishes at: http://www.pledge.co.uk/

John
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