Redfield Mount Question

[Rick H.]

I have an 03A3 and I want to mount a Redfield scope base on it ala 03A4. Has anyone had this done and if so, did the person doing the job have to take some temper out of the receiver by heating it up in order to drill and tap it for the mount screws? Thanks for any help..Rick

Information

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[Rick H.]

I guess no one has had a Redfield scope mount put on an 03A3........

[vintage hunter]

What kind of 03a3 do you have? a u.s. military or one of the '60's parts guns made by Santa Fe or Golden State Arms? I've personally never drilled a ex military 03a3 reciever but don't think they would present any problems. Santa Fe's are are a different story, harder than woodpecker lips. If it does turn out to be too hard,don't heat it under any circumstances, especially the reciever ring.

[Mike D]

I guess no one has had a Redfield scope mount put on an 03A3........

Really!?

I have a sporter that was slightly ground before drilling.

[JGaynor]

I have an 03A3 and I want to mount a Redfield scope base on it ala 03A4. Has anyone had this done and if so, did the person doing the job have to take some temper out of the receiver by heating it up in order to drill and tap it for the mount screws? Thanks for any help..Rick

The technique you are referring to is "spot annealing". It requires a very small, precise flame since you don't want to effect the whole receiver but just he area under the screw holes. The nickle steel used in real (Remington or LC Smith Corona) 03-A3's ia extrememly tough so the best recommendation IMO woud be to have mount installed by a trusted pro and let him select the precise technique.
You mgiht want to email chuckindenver on this forum and see what he suggests. I suspect he could do the work for you as well.

Regards,

Jim

[Johnny Peppers]

The old gunsmiths used one of the plumbers copper soldering irons with the handle shortened. They would file a 1/8 inch flat on the point of the soldering iron, clamp the rifle receiver in a drill press vise, and chuck the soldering iron in the drill press. Heat the soldering iron until it glowed red, and lower it down onto the receiver and leave it locked there until the soldering iron cooled. The area of heat was pinpointed, and annealed the receiver in just the spot you wanted to drill. Allowing the soldering iron to cool on the receiver allowed the receiver to cool slowly, further helping the annealing process.

[Rick H.]

The 03A3 that I have is made by Remington. The gunsmith that I took it to told me he uses a torch to heat up the top of the receiver so he can drill and tap it. The more that I thought about his technique the more I didn't like it. I have contacted a few other gunsmiths and only one told me that he can drill and tap the receiver without heating it up. I am just trying to find out what is the most preferred way of accomplishing the task and who can do it without messing up the receiver. Thanks, Rick H.

[vintage hunter]

I never had any problems drilling/tapping nickel steel recievers, have never done an 03a3 but have finished several 1903's that bubba had started. There;s a simlpe, effective test that will tell whether or not it can be drilled. On the bottom of the reciever ring make a cut with a good quality file. If the file cuts it so will the drill. As for the old gunsmith trick with the soldering iron, there's no merit to that, strictly a myth. Metal has to be heated to a dull cherry red, about 1100 degrees F, before it begins to lose it's temper and this requires a constant heat source,i.e. a torch. Heat travels, so with the soldering iron method it will cool down too quickly due to radiational heat loss plus the reciever acting as a heat sink to have any effect. With a torch, spot heating an area, say 1/4 '' in dia. will produce a heat affected zone 2-3 times that size, on a rifle reciever thats most all of the top. There's another thing to consider when heating metals, the expansion and contraction thing. As the area is heated it ''swells'', as it cools it shrinks, or in welding terminology, ''draws''. This could,in most cases will, result in reciever distortion. Dunking it in water only magnifies the distortion. Grinding and heating are two entirely different things. You'll have nothing but a pile of shavings left long before you'd get a gun reciever hot enough to remove the temper.

[Chuckindenver]

find another gunsmith... direct flame should never be used to anneal for drill and tap, sometimes spot annealing is needed,
i use a sharpened bit of rebar with a dull point, heat it glowing hot, and hold it on the place i will be drilling., let sit on that area till it cools.
if you use a mill and a good carbide bit, it sould drill with some pressure,
avoid using any of the new made Redfield bases, or the Gibbs made bases, they are both made in China, and are junk.

[Rick H.]

Thank you gentlemen for the replies. That is exactly the information I was looking for. Now I have to get my rifle back and try and find someone that can do this job the right way. any suggestions???? Rick H.