Hello!

I am sorry for bothering you and maybe it is not the right place to ask, but I am in desperate need for two taper pins for an A1 front sight.

The problem is that I am in Germany and all the on-line shops I could find are currently out of stock. I was already spending quite some time on this issue. It may sound weird to you in the US, but I cannot walk into the next store and get AR spare parts here.

Maybe someone has an idea where I could look for them in Germany or Europe?

Or can anyone provide me with the exact measurements? A friend with a lathe is willing to give machining them a try as I am so desperate...

Thank you in advance.

Mike

I've been waiting for the Colt pins to come back in stock at Brownells.  

Midway has these in stock

Thank you: Sadly due to the variety of regulations controlling shipments outside the U.S., MidwayUSA is unable to process international orders.

https://www.brownells.eu/

Is your FSB already drilled with the matched barrel or are you using a new to the FSB barrel?

Thanks, mate. Brownells Germany is currently out of stock.

The FSB and the barrel are already matched. I just need the proper pins.

If time is not a pressing factor, maybe THIS helps?

Thank you. I think I will give it a try, although 12 weeks can be a long time. But with this project time is on my side ...

I found proper diameter taper pins on Amazon that were too long, but removing excess length is much easier than making entire pins. I think it was like $5 for a box of 12.
Wish I saved the link.

Maybe search Amazon for taper pins and look at reviews or something?

I think these are them

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HYK3QSC?tag=arfcom00-20

Any idea on hardness scale rating?

If you don't land any, I will mail you two, just cover postage. I have something (CNC related) coming in from Zeven woot.

No idea, but it al least gives the OP a start. Maybe he can find better quality based on the size of pin listed.

Thank you very much, mate. I really appreciate your offer and I will gladly get back to you if I cannot find another way.

They're a standard #2/0 carbon steel taper pin, no? I could be wrong but I don't think they're specific to this purpose, you may be able to find them from a machine/hardware/industrial supply locally

Standard #2/0 hardened. Longer will work fine, set them and trim them, finish with cold blue.

I happened to have a FSB that I am in the process of chopping/shaving and a taper pin here.....some quick dial caliper numbers....


0.750" OAL
0.118" small end
0.130" large end


Attached File


Attached File



That'll get you damn close.

Appreciate the correction, the "hardened" part might be important

Not everyone is a stickler for hardened stock. I personally wouldn't want any chance of the pins bending, resulting in a FSB cant.  

Specialty pin with a drawing. I think it is just a carbon steel taper pin but I never been able to find an ordinary stocked taper pin with a surface hardness anywhere near it.

Taper pins have been used in machinery since the 1800s.
My 70 year old lathe has taper pins in it.
Have you tried any industrial supply sources in Germany?

EDIT: Larry Potterfield & gang (Midway) are idiots not to ship because it's an industrial part...

But they are marketed as "fireams parts" and likely fall under ITAR as dumb as that is, especially to a "friendly" country.

Many things that can be "legal" fall under the "illegal" or "restricted" catergory strictly due to the way they are advertised or marketed. For example: Is that a bong for smoking weed? Or a water pipe for "tobacco use only"? Same thing, different intent/marketing completely changes the legality. Again, absolute horse trash..but unfortunately that's what we are dealing with.

ITAR licensing/exporting "war materials" is freaking expensive..Is the comparatively small, anti freedom/communistic European market worth it? In Some of these countries, folding knives with locks are illegal! God forbid the knife lock open..it is fine to have something you are more likely to injure yourself with in use, as long as it is as unpractical as possible to defend yourself or hurt someone else (including an attacker) with.

The juice is likely not worth the squeeze for Midway, that's .gov's fault (both ours and theirs) not Midway's.



OP mentions A1 sight as what he's wanting to install, so I'm guessing maybe take off parts? Or going for some kind of retro build? Otherwise straight pins (solid or spiraled) can do the same thing and should easily be found and/or made without "firearms parts" restrictions. An added benefit would be less disruption and deformation of the bore v.s. a taper pin forcibly wedged between the FSB and barrel. AK's use straight solid pins for multiple barrel mounted components without issue, granted they are installed with a light press fit.

Thank you all for your input, advice and offers.

It is an old Colt M16A1 FSB from the 1970s for some kind of retro upper project.