Drill & Tap 1903A3 receiver

[ccrider]

I am converting 1903A3 Sporter to a 1903A4 clone . It was already drilled and taped for a Buehler base & rings, so I can't use the base as it is to long. My question is how to drill & tap the receiver as it is so hard I can't even center punch it much less drill it! Any advise as to how to do this will be greatly appreciated.

Information

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[Johnny Peppers]

An old timer gunsmith showed me how he uses an old fashion plumber's soldering iron to spot anneal the receiver. The soldering iron is made out of copper and was heated on one of the old blow torches. The copper retained the heat to make several solder joints before it needed re-heating. They can be found in most junk shops. The handle needs to be cut off and a flat filed on the tip of the soldering iron.
Clamp the receiver in a drill press vise, and adjust everything to where the tip of the soldering iron will touch the receiver at the spot where you want to drill it. Heat the soldering iron and press it against the receiver and lock it there. Let the soldering iron cool there, and the area will be annealed without heating the entire receiver. Repeat for the other holes.

[Chuckindenver]

try that on a SC reciever, and let us know how that works..
SC,s are hardened all the way through.
a Remington however is only surfaced hardened, and surface annealing will work fine.
what i do,
i use a short peice of rebar, grind the end down to a dull point, heat it with a torch red hot, push the point wear you want to drill and hold it, untill it cools, usually 5 mins works,
with out a D&T fixture, liikely you will drill the holes off, or crooked.
most gunsmith including myself will D&T for about 25.00 a hole.
the Carbide bit your going to have to use will cost close to that.
some advise, no matter what clearance drill they say to use,
use one the next size larger.
you will break the tap...and u say you WILL break the tap, and have fun getting it out.
also, if you snap the tap, and think you can grind it down and reuse it...dont.
toss it, it has fractures all over, and will snap as soon as you try it again.
after you Drill the receiver, toss the drill, its done. 3 holes is about all your going to get out of them, dont try and resharpen them, youll only frustrate yourself down to road.
can you tell iv been there done that???im cheap my nature. but learned.
dont be cheap when it comes to this.

[Chuckindenver]

heres a link to the fixture that needs to be used, to D&T.
even with it, its tough at best.
Universal Sight Mounting Fixture

notice the price???thats why i charge 25.00 a hole, i have to do a lot to cover that cost.:}

[JBS]

Listen to Chuck on this one. The bit you will have to buy just for this job is a solid carbide three flute available from Brownells. Then you will have to buy the fixture. Have a Smith do the job with the correct tools and make sure they have done this type of receiver before.

[mark1]

Great advise JBS, and send the receiver to Chuck. He does great work and it will make your life much more simple.

[JGaynor]

heres a link to the fixture that needs to be used, to D&T.
even with it, its tough at best.
Universal Sight Mounting Fixture

notice the price???thats why i charge 25.00 a hole, i have to do a lot to cover that cost.:}

Considering what Jiffy-Lube charges for an oil change $50-$75 to drill and tap an 03-A3 is a gift.

Regards,

Jim

[Johnny Peppers]

You're probably right. The gunsmith mentioned has only been doing it for 60 years, and has probably never D&T'd an S-C receiver. The copper soldering iron holds the heat much longer than rebar.
I have also seen him remove broken taps with nitric acid. The nitric acid attacks the high carbon steel but not the receiver. After the acid sets for a while, hit the tap with a center punch and it will shatter. Then just blow it out with an air hose.

[Chuckindenver]

with all do respect to Forester products..
i picked my Jig up for a lot less then 400.00. a 100.00 i think.
i have a few styles of D&T fixtures, i get them at gunshows or Ebay when they come available,
same for the drill guides.
my D&T rates are a bit under market, i know some places that charge 50.00 a hole.
a word of warning, the new made Redfield bases are NOT the same dems as the original US made.
the new ones are made in China, and the same as Gibbs bases, sans the Gibbs markings, likely made by the same company.
look on the back of the Redfield bubble pack.. says...MADE IN CHINA.
look for a commercial Redfield in a box. not the plastic pack.
avoid the Burris amd Leupold bases as well, all have different mounting holes.
you can do some pretty bad damage to a receiver by drilling holes in it..
measure 3 times, set it 2 times, and drill it once..
and if your lucky..your holes will mate up..
remember. i charge 35.00 a hole to weld it shut.. my way of saying do it right. or pay the price, lol.
FYI: i respect the heck out of Johhny Peppers, but i challange him to D&T a SC receiver, or come over next time i do it. same for removing a tap from, a receiver,
remove a broken tap from the front hole of any A3..that hole goes through the forward locking lug, the thickest part of the ring.
when they usually break, they do it on the bootom. Murphys law in effect.
make sure its someone elses receiver, so you can stress on damaging someone elses rifle, as well.
3 weeks ago, i drilled a SC, and the first one ever for me..iv done many Remingtons ect, took 4 drills to do the job, and my low speed drill press wouldnt do the job, so i used a buddys mill, with oil dripping, a new drill, ect, it cried, and sparked all the way through, the rear hole was tough, the front took all i could do just to get the hole started, and 2 new drills to get it done.
even with a tap guide, i still had a hard time tapping the holes, and i drilled them over size..
with respect to your friend..i dont watch i do.
id like to find some nitric acid, after 9/11 regular folks like us cant buy the stuff. i cant get sodium nitrate since then either.

[ccrider]

Thanks fellows for you advise , I may mess it up but so far I thank I am on the right track . I attached the base with the rear screw. made a punch from the shank of a 11/64 drill that is the size of the front screw hole. Was able to make a slight mark , I then with a diamond burr I was able to break through the harden surface. I was then able to re-punch and drill the hole. Used a 1/6 drill will re drill with #31 or perhaps a 1/8" may be better?