Le Deckard, I was telling you in another thread about this mods.
deflector post 221 in here:
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=108895&page=23
charging handle post 249 in here:
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=108895&page=25
Well, you didn't quite see it at that time.
Instead you made fun of me
saying about the bolt carrier that it looks weak. Remember?
But if I was posting a funny pic, or bugging you,
you would have started piping right away.
That was more than a year ago.
Meanwhile both things have been done on one rifle.
The deflector was just for shizzles,
because both me and the rifle owner shoot right hand.
It does not function as a brass catcher how I initially suggested,
as I don't see the point in collecting brass that is badly mangled.
The charging handle was somewhat difficult.
The real reasons for doing that modification were
eliminating the vertical carry handle (moving it on the side) and
bringing the scope at a normal height, closer to the bore.
This is what was done:
Charging handle itself:
It was mounted on a thin collar, on the side
(it can be mounted on either side, left or right)
(if you want to drill that specific portion of the bolt carrier,
it has to be done very shallow
because it has another functions as well).
Plastic cover:
I was lucky to have the help of a friend who knows plastics
and who has enough patience to work with me.
There was very little left from the original plastic cover.
The carry handle was cut and the rest of the cover reinforced
with borders and 2 ribs.
The difficulty was the fact that I wanted
the plastic cover moded in such a way
that it can be removed (for cleaning purposes)
without removing the scope.
Scope mount:
Old scope mount was cut.
I tried a couple of different things until I found the way to
hook a scope mount mechanically,
since I hate to braze or work with heat on firearms.
She wasn’t pretty, but quite solid.
On top of that mount I put a short piece
(I think 10 grooves, 11 lands) of Picatinny rail.
Edit to add: front sight was eliminated as well.
Other people did a couple of other mods on that same rifle.