Bolt Bending - Forging Blocks
Forging blocks are about the
cheapest way to bend the bolt. The blocks cost about $46, and you will need a
heat sink, about $17, and some heat paste, a vise and an acetylene torch.
Here are some blocks I got on
E-Bay, with a heat sink, lower left, and a Brownells heat sink, lower right.
Another picture.
Here is a bolt in the blocks,
in the vise, and ready to bend. The bolt has the heat sink installed and is
coated with heat stop. DON’T TRY TO BEND THE BOLT WITHOUT HEATING IT TO A CHERRY
RED HEAT. I will not give detailed instructions, as the ones that come with the
blocks do a better job than me.
Here is the bolt after bending
and initial grinding, compared with the commercial bolt at the bottom. See that
the bend is not as close to the body of the bolt, so to get the bolt to clear a
scope some of the metal on the handle has been ground away. This grinding also
removes the hammer marks left after beating on the metal to forge it and thins
and weakens the handle.
See that using the existing
handle leaves us a little short.
But all-in-all not a bad job.
The knob could be swept back and polished.
Here is a forged bolt in an action.