Looking for gunsmith expert in resoldering a rib

trevj said:
Yeah. As an addendum, there is a lot of stuff done in production with induction heaters,

Drag a thumbnail through the solder used, to see if it is harder or softer than the thumbnail. That is a good start towards identifying what was used. If you can find an unobtrusive place where you can access the solder or braze between the barrels, a poke with a HB pencil point will soon sort out if the solder or braze is harder or softer, which will determine if it is relatively safe to apply torch heat to melt the solder as the rib is properly applied.
!
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In the 1800s and probably the early 1900s it was done with a large copper soldering iron; think in terms of a 2 or 3 lb square copper block with a point on the end. The solder seam itself was very narrow but usually seemed to hold. Some of the double guns I have shot were made in the 1840s - 1870s. I have refastened maybe 6 or so ribs and the problem I have had was that I tin the whole of the void space portion of the barrels and when heating with a torch, that allows the solder to sort of wick away around the barrel rather than form a miniscus along the seam. It does have the advantage that in effect I have galvanized that portion of the barrels and that leaves much less risk of a corrosive flux attacking the iron / steel of the barrels. Traditionally resin was used as a non corrosive flux but my abilities of using resin are somewhat less than perfect

cheers mooncoon
 
UPDATE

Job was performed by Gunco - Jason Spencer, in Ottawa. Fair price was paid. Tested several times. Very satisfied with result.
Thank you all for your assistance and interest.
 
bruno38 said:
UPDATE

Job was performed by Gunco - Jason Spencer, in Ottawa. Fair price was paid. Tested several times. Very satisfied with result.
Thank you all for your assistance and interest.
Click to expand...

That was done in a very reasonable time as well... good to hear...
 
hunter5425 said:
I seem to remember that 50/50 lead tin solder was used in the original guns . It looks like a poor prep job in your original picture or else the wrong flux was used , either way a crappy job.
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I have put front sight ramps on modified Enfields in the past using 50/50 solder and it should last forever if it is cleaned and fluxed properly. You don't need a lot of heat either.
 
For future reference, Nick Makinson outside of London Ontario is a British trained gunsmith who can actually build you a sxs rifle or shotgun. He's getting up there in age so mostly only does repairs now, no longer builds guns. His work is top notch and he's a good guy to deal with. Just google Nick Makinson.
 
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