Please recommend some tools

Horilka

Horilka

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Hello gentlemen.
I would appreciate your advice on some quality gunsmithing tools.
1) Pin punches. Couple of brands (like Stanley) that CT, Lowes, Home Depot and Rona have in stock are of poor quality and simply bend. Which brand would you recommend and where to get one?
2) I'm also looking for a key that could unscrew bolt/screw with two pin holes in it. Something like on this picture, except I need a key or tool with adjustable distance between pins, so I could use it on different screw in guns.
Free-Shipping-5pcs-Lot-Plastic-Gun-Trigger-Lock-Gun-Lock-With-Key.jpg_350x350.jpg

3) Where the hell can I get bronze or brass hammer? CT, Lowes, Home Depot and Rona know nothing about it. From eBay? Is there any brand I can trust?

I really need gunsmith grade tools, not that junk one can buy in supermarkets and I would appreciate your advice on this. Thanks.
 
I have the Weaver Deluxe gunsmithing tool kit, it has a hammer with brass/plastic heads, a whole bunch of drivers, and punches. Serves me quite good.
 
I once bought a brass hammer at Princess Auto I believe. You should always use a starter punch to prevent bending the small diameter punches needed for firearms work. Even Brownells punches bend easily if you use them wrong.
 
Wss and bass pro usually carry wheeler products , which I have found to be pretty good except the trigger pull scale but I haven't used it much and that could just be me .
 
I have a piece of brass bar stock that I use as a bench block. Other times I use a hockey puck. If I was especially smart, I'd drill a few through holes so the pins can come out smoothly.
 
A bronze or brass hammer...simple me thinks. Do like I did...Go to your auto parts store and buy a chunk of round brass stock. I decided on 3/4 inch thick.Cut it about 6 inches long,take a old screwdriver with a round shaft. Make sure it got at least a 1/4 inch shaft to it. Cut off the screwdriver tip,thread it,drill a hole in the brass stock,thread the hole the same as the screwdriver,a little epoxy on the threads and screw it together...VOILA""...a brass hammer!! Mine has had over 30 years of use and still going strong..
 
Mayhew is another good brand of punches, try looking at a machine shop supply place for quality tools. I get some stuff from Luke's Machinery, good site to look for tools of all kinds.
 
Grace tools USA. Google the site. Excellent to deal with. You will be pleased with the quality. Like going back in time....wood handles, good steel and can be custom sized to fit.
 
Horilka said:
2) I'm also looking for a key that could unscrew bolt/screw with two pin holes in it. Something like on this picture, except I need a key or tool with adjustable distance between pins, so I could use it on different screw in guns.
Click to expand...

The term you want to search is "Adjustable Pin Spanner" or just "Pin Spanner"

For small ones, sometimes you can get away with using the tips of a set of circlip pliers, but you have to be aware that a slip is gonna cost you a great bloody scratch in the work.

Pin spanners and brass hammers are both very good projects to make yourself. Some basic tools can be made with a drill press and files, a lathe will make things a bit easier, and a mill even more so.

But it really amount to drill a few accurately located holes, and swing a file like you care about what it looks like. It's good practice! :)

FWIW, most of the nut and bolt suppliers can supply you with hard steel pins that make excellent pins for the pin spanners. Roller type bearings are another potential source. Roll pins...kinda suck for the purpose. Determine your diameter of pin, make the wrench body,lay out and drill the holes, press in pins, grind to length (or have the holes drilled the correct depth) so that the wrench fits flush to the head you are turning. Sky's the limit on those.

I have a half drawer full of broken punches that I salvaged out of the scrap bin over the years. If you grind them while turning them in a variable speed drill, you can grind a VERY nice, strong, short tip on the punch body to use for starting pins. (or driving stems out of Cherry-Max rivets <spit>)And a nice flat tip, or whatever shape you need. With a small stone on a Dremel tool you can even put a concave on it for starting roll pins moving.

Take a look at watchmakers case wrenches too as adjustable pin spanners.http://timesavers.com/i-9500741-jaxa-style-waterproof-watch-case-wrench.html Lots of other useful stuff there too!

Cheers
Trev
 
the 2 pin key should not be too hard to file out of a piece of mild steel flat bar. My brass hammer is a piece of 1" round stock that I milled square on one end and a sloping flat blunt blade on the other end. Silver soldered a 3/8 mild steel round stock handle. I think the broader question of what sort of tools do you need is once you have a basic set of hollow ground screw driver tips (and handle) plus a few good files, the next tool(s) you need will become apparent as you work on various projects

cheers mooncoon
 
As for the pin wrench if the only thing you will use it for is those silly screw trigger locks I'd suggest just buying different trigger locks. Those ones are a PITA at the best of times. Their ONLY valid function is for trigger locking guns that are used very little with lots of time between. Even with a proper pin driver or adjustable pin wrench they are fussy and fiddly to put on and take off as they pretty much fall apart into pieces every time.

If you insist on keeping them I'd suggest you make your own dedicated pin drivers by simply glueing the keys into slots cut across the end face of some 3/4 inch dowel about 6 inches long. You'll thus make your own dedicated pin drivers for the locks. If you have more than one size needed just paint them to suit as a colour identifier.
 
Without a doubt Brownells is the begin all and end all for gunsmith related gear.

For generic stuff like brass hammers and punches I've had good results with KBC tools. Their chinese stuff is way better than average and they have made in the USA equivalents at a higher but competitive price.

Beware though, that KBC catalog is evil. I've spent waaaaay more than what should have since that thing showed up.
 
Like others have said, Starrett makes the best pin punches, Brownells has a good set P/N 827-525-860WB Starrett Pin Punch Set #565 is what I would buy.
Acklands Grainger in Canada has the same set: STARRETT PUNCH-DRIVE PIN SET W/WOOD BOX A-H Product # STAS565WB Grainger Part # 2ZVK5
 
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