bead installation advice ?

bertn

bertn

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A while back I picked up a 12ga 30" Marocchi OU (model unknown) from the ee that I plan to use for some trap this spring/summer.
I'm not much of a shotgunner, only shot a flat and a half in my life but hope to get the hang of it at some point with this shotgun.

Besides the bit beat up butt stock it is a nice gun imo, steel receiver nicely engraved, super tight lock up and single selective trigger.

Now the bad part..It has a humongous fiber front sight that is not the factory one I'm sure.
It's soldered off center and tilted... no wonder the previous owner sold the gun lol.

Now I want to bring it back to original condition, that is I assume a brass front bead.

Anyone know what bead size I should get and where to get it?
Also looking for a bead drill center guide, (like the Williams) anyone have experience with this and willing to share recommendations for such tool?

Thanks,
Bert













 
I have no experience with those guns, but would have come from the maker with some sort of front sight bead, I would think? So, I would think there is actually a drilled and tapped hole into that rib, under that existing sight, unless barrels had been sawed off? I had read to use heat to make the epoxy go soft to remove it - if it is solder than the fiber optics part must be able to be removed - same deal, just higher level of heat required. Most "soft" solders - lead / tin are going to be in 400 degree F range to melt, so like need a propane flame - certainly much, much lower temp than getting stuff "red hot" - if that is solder, and if there is a tapped hole underneath, going to have to figure out how you will dig out that solder - may end up having to re-tap following existing threads??
 
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Most likely epoxy and not solder. The heat needed to soften the solder would have melted the red plastic fibre optic.
When you get down to replacing, I have beads of most sizes.
 
Ever hear of Kentucky Windage ?
As mentioned above , Elwood Epps for a bead.
Heat with a soldering iron to remove the old bead and either silver solder or use JB Weld to install the replacement bead in the existing hole.
Thats what i would do for a well loved first trap gun.
Rob
 
I think the original tapped hole is underneath, the barrel has not been cut I am 100% sure.

could be epoxy, i will scrape it a bit underneath to verify if its solder or epoxy.
Just never thought that such beads would be epoxied on.

The plastic insert can easily be pushed out.

What size bead would be best on a 30 inch barrel?
 
FLHTCUI said:
Ever hear of Kentucky Windage ?
As mentioned above , Elwood Epps for a bead.
Heat with a soldering iron to remove the old bead and either silver solder or use JB Weld to install the replacement bead in the existing hole.
Thats what i would do for a well loved first trap gun.
Rob
Click to expand...

Your mention of silver solder - I'm finding that to be a source of confusion for me - am finding "silver bearing solder" - like 4% or less silver with tin - is low temp melting like lead / tin solder - but supposed to be "stronger" - sold by Brownells as Force 44 for gun work - several Canadian suppliers of equivalent. Versus "silver solder" - that needs the steel to be "red hot" - 900 or 1,000 degrees - very, very strong, but is more similar to a braze, than a solder. And I am not a welder, by any stretch, so easily get confused!!
 
Boy, iff'in there ever was a challenge more challeng'in than profiling a new butt pad,
this would be it.
Get the bead holding tool whilst yer attit.
 
Well I scraped underneath and it was indeed epoxy.

Then made a big mistake...I assumed the ring was epoxied on the rib so I twisted it off thinking I would find a hole.
Turned out the ring had a brass post that was screwed in the hole and sure enough it broke off flush with the rib.
The epoxy was just in addition..sigh.

So now I have to manage to get it out.
At least the hole appears to be centered properly so most likely the sight got bumped into the off center position.
 
Looks like an Ithaca RayBar sight.
Threaded plug on the bottom. I expect that when the sight was screwed in, it didn't line up fore and aft, so the epoxy was to keep it in place.
You will probably have to drill out the stump, then clean or recut the threads.
 
Those holes are tiny, you may have to drill it out and re-tap to a larger size. I did one on a pump shotgun many moons ago with a broken off stud and I set it up in a drill press with a tiny center drill to start then finished it an tapped it. This is not a job to try freehand with a Makita drill.
 
tiriaq said:
Looks like an Ithaca RayBar sight.
Threaded plug on the bottom. I expect that when the sight was screwed in, it didn't line up fore and aft, so the epoxy was to keep it in place.
You will probably have to drill out the stump, then clean or recut the threads.
Click to expand...

Wish you posted this earlier lol.

Yes, I will drill it out and re-tap where needed.
 
Well, got it out.

Drilled through the center, heated up the rib a bit and got it out with a small screw extractor.

The hack who put the fiber bead in must have drilled out the treads to fit his bead in because there is no thread in the hole and the brass piece that came out had some sort of epoxy in the treads.

so now what? tap oversized or epoxy a brass bead in.



 
A bead can be made with an electric drill, files and some abrasive paper. The drill is used as a little lathe. Hold it in a vise.
Chuck up a scrap of aluminum rod (for silver) or brass. Spin it against a file, to turn down the end to fit the hole. Leave it a bit rough for the adhesive to grab. Using small files shape a bead of the desired size. Polish as desired. Cut it off, polish the top round.
The shank can be threaded with a die, if you wish to go that route.
 
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