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Posted: 11/13/2009 9:59:56 AM EDT
| I was considering building my own project rifle. I have an idea for a carbine that would be based on the 30 Carbine receiver. I don't really want to hack up an original, so I was curious about what goes into casting receivers. I've got access to enough machine tools to finish them once i have a casted receiver in the white. What I'm wondering is if there are moulds for US carbine receivers out there. |
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Quoted:
I don't know of any molds available. There are unfinished cast receivers available, however. Now, if I could just remember where I saw that. I think they were about $25. Significant surface rust, and not finished enough to be considered a firearm. I've seen them around. That might be OK for a prototype, but if I get a good result, I'm going to start a business, get the proper FFLs, and start selling these puppies. I'll need to be able to cast or machine receivers. I guess I could machine the bastards from bar stock, but that would be painfully slow. |
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Quoted:
I was considering building my own project rifle. I have an idea for a carbine that would be based on the 30 Carbine receiver. I don't really want to hack up an original, so I was curious about what goes into casting receivers. I've got access to enough machine tools to finish them once i have a casted receiver in the white. What I'm wondering is if there are moulds for US carbine receivers out there. Cast receivers are done using the investment casting process. The mold produces a wax pattern of the receiver. A ceramic shell is deposited on the wax, then heated and the wax melted out. Now molten metal (alloy of your pleasure) is poured into the ceramic shell. Once the metal freezes, the shell is broken off and there's your part. You'd have to be pretty lucky to find a .30 carbine receiver tool that doesn't come with strings. Although it wouldn't be too difficult to build a tool from scratch. One other option though - without having a tool you can still get cast parts. If you have a CAD part, you can send that cad part out for StereoLithographic printing (SLA), then use that part in place of the wax pattern. The SLA part is consumed, but it gets you a prototype castings without having to tie up the money in a prototype mold. Running from wax or SLA there are a couple of tweaks required for overall part shrinkage (as the metal cools) and differential hole/solid shrink. Disclaimer - I do this commercially. I am not spamming for business, just trying to help with your questions. But if you needed a vendor just let me know. |
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