Have Rifle Cartridges, What's Next?

[keithlong]

Ok, today I got some 7mm mag rifle cartridges from a friend of mine. He gave me about 60 of them, they are brass and are tarnished some. I have some semichrome that I polish my pocket knives with, so I put a little on one of them and it cleaned it up real good. I plan on cleaning them all, then polishing them. Do I need to drill my holes in the primer end first? Looking forward to making some of these pens. Thanks, Keith

 

[jttheclockman]

Keith

The very first thing is check out thelibrary and see some of the articles on making cartridge pens. It is not that we are brushing you off but if you look at those tutorials and then have questions it will be easier to ask them and we will answer. There is a whole process to them and it depends how you want to do them. There are several methods. Check them out and see what you think.

 

[TellicoTurning]

Hi Keith,
John T is right.. the library is the first step. But to answer your question, I drill and mount the tubes in the cartridges before I try to polish. I don't powder coat or anything other than polish mine and I advise my customers that over time they will tarnish since it is brass. I tell them they will need to occasionally repolish them if they want the bright work to stay bright.
Personally, I have a difficult time drilling out the primers, because I've noticed that most center fire rifles don't actually always strike the primer at center... I had a few used cartridges and I didn't feel the holes were centered well, so I bought unused cartridge casing and drilled them... it worked better for me. After I mounted the tubes, I put them on the lathe and spun them against a paper towel with a little brasso and shined them up before assembly.

 

[juteck]

I just finished my first one, and I found easier to drill the cartridge through the inside of the casing instead of through the primer end. I did knock out the spent primer first, using a 1/4" file with a modified tang to fit through the firing hole (it was the only "punch" I had on hand that would fit through the 300 Weatherby casing).

I polished the brass after drilling, but left the brass unfinished. After a few days of steady use from my co-worker, you can see the tarnish coming back already. I found the following article, which gives a brief discussion on dipping the brass into a metal lacquer, which I will try on my next one.

http://www.woodworkforums.com/video/270BulPenTutl.pdf


Good luck.

 

[KenV]

I agree on the tutorials as a good place to start -- and note that the 7mm mag is not the easy place to start. The 308 with new cases is the most simple beginning point because the 308 is almost a perfect match with slimline hardware and requires the minimum jigs and gear to make a good pen. the 308 let you use a standard slimline nib with only a little adaptation.

For the 7mm mag -- if you buddy is not a reloader, call the local gun/reloader dealer and see if he can connect you up with someone who is -- swap a pen for having someone with the reloading gear and reloading dies deprime and resize the cases. Life will be easier with a consistent product to work with. (hint -- the reloader may have some 308 cases that you can swap for - also deprimed and resized.). The deprimed will make it easier to drill out the primer pocket and the resized will give you a consistent friction fit for the bullets you will be drilling out to form the nibs of the pens. Your 7mm is too small for the standard slimline nib to fit into and look good -- the insert portion will fit, but the outside lip of the nib want to be in a 308 case or it is noticably proud of the case -- not smooth like a bullet in a case. Not a good place for a lump.

You will need to buy bullets - these can be either lead filled or solid brass/copper alloy. While more expensive, I really like the barnes solid alloy bullets -- you may be able to get these for at the same time you are asking about reloading contacts at the reloading supply dealer. Look for the lighter bullets -- about 125-140 grain bullets are better than the heavier longer ones as the 7 mm mag has a fairly short case neck.

Have fun learning

 

[mywoodshopca]

metal lacquer

Have you tried this method? I would be worried the lacquer would start chipping or flaking off making a big mess.. Sort of the same way the old aluminum rims were when air/moisture got under the lacquer on them..

I leave mine natural and they can be easily reshined up or let tarnish depending on how the customer wants them to look.

I dont pop my primers out, I just drill right through them using the 7mm drill bit and a mini metal lathe.

 

[keithlong]

Have you used 7mm cartridges? If so please advise as to how to do them. They seem to be a little longer than the normal 7mm tubes that come in the slimline kits. Thanks

 

[juteck]

I haven't tried the lacquer yet -- I can only find it available as a spray, or minimum quart sizes --- too much for me for just a trial. If I can find a smaller sample size, I will try it, test it, and post my comments.

Have you tried this method? I would be worried the lacquer would start chipping or flaking off making a big mess.. Sort of the same way the old aluminum rims were when air/moisture got under the lacquer on them..

I leave mine natural and they can be easily reshined up or let tarnish depending on how the customer wants them to look.

I dont pop my primers out, I just drill right through them using the 7mm drill bit and a mini metal lathe.

 

[juteck]

I haven't used the 7mm cartidges, only a 300 Weatherby magnum - the magnum casing is longer than the normal 7mm tube, so I ended up buying some spare 7mm magnifying glass tubes from Woodcraft -- they were a little long, but ieasy to trim to length after setting the bullet, inserting the tube and marking its length, then cutting with a hacksaw. I use a countersink tool to chamfer the inside edges of my tubes before pressing parts, and used it to take the brass down to the rim of the cartridge neatly.

Have you used 7mm cartridges? If so please advise as to how to do them. They seem to be a little longer than the normal 7mm tubes that come in the slimline kits. Thanks