Tools

Review: Wen 61720 Brad Nailer Works Great and is VERY Affordable!!

Hiya folks, my hands shake due to what is known as a hereditary tremor.  When I try to do fine work it often gets even worse and I hate trying to drive fine nails/brads.  A number of years back I bought a Harbor Freight brad nailer that broke in 2016 after a few years of very light use (read that to mean the quality was very disappointing from the get go).  So, rather than play Russian Roulette with Harbor Freight, I went to Amazon and started digging on brad nailers and reading the reviews.

I came across the WEN 61720 3/4-Inch to 2-Inch 18-Gauge Brad Nailer.  It is both their best seller and with 926 reviews, it has 4.7 stars.  Folks, when you have that many reviews and that kind of score, it says something.  If a product sucks, reviewers can go back in and change the score so I figured the quality must be pretty decent.  I paid $26.33 for it in May 2016 and now it is $19.34!!  Yes, the price actually went down.  But I tell you what, I have no regrets.

The Wen uses regular 18-gauge brads.  It came in a simple plastic case with a small tube of oil and instructions.  It even had the 1/4″ air fitting installed.  I’ve used Senco, Bostitch, Porter Cable and Harbor Freight brads no problem.  I bought a few variety packs of brads but most of my nailing seems to be 1″, 1-1/4″, 1-3/8″ and 1-1/2″ with this unit.  I have a bigger 16 gauge nailer that I use for longer heavier nails.

 

To make moving the nailer around easy, I have a 1/4″ x 50′ Amflo Polyurethane air hose on it with Milton fittings.  This hose is light and very flexible.  Even in the winter it has been great – I use it to put air in my truck tires when it is so cold that my rubber hoses are stiff.  By the way, if you want air couplers that hold up over time and do not leak – go with Milton.  They beat the beat the heck out of Harbor Freight and Husky.

I tend to run the tool between 60-90PSI depending on how hard I want it to hit the nail.  If you are working with really soft pine, it can really drive it in so I run a lower pressure, usually 60 PSI, in those cases.  I will drive a test brad and look at the results to decide if I need to adjust the pressure further or not.  Most of my work is with pine but I have also done some poplar as well as a bit of oak trim.

As with just about any air tool, be sure to lubricate it with air tool oil.  I don’t run inline oilers due to needing clean air for my plastic work so I simply put in a few drops when I start using the tool for the day.  I have used all kinds of oil and just stick with name brands.  Right now, I have bottles from ATS and others sitting by various tools.  I would recommend sticking with a name brand and one that is relatively light for use in nailers vs. thicker for impact wrenches (Lucas is an example of a heavier pneumatic tool oil).  Also, unless you have an inline oiler, a squeeze bottle with a spout really helps vs. a pour top that will make a big mess.  For guys getting started, the small bottle that comes with the nailer will last you quite a while – just be sure to use it!!  Don’t run the nailer dry.

My project the other day was to resurrect and old planter from my dad.  I took the screws off and each shelf that was stapled together had become very loose.  I put a few drops of air tool oil int he Wen’s inlet fitting, selected brads that were a hair shorter than the wood I was putting together, and then drove 2-3 of the small 1-1/4″ brads into each individual slat to stabilize it.  I then reassembled the plant stand with new screws, stained it with Minwax Provincial Stain and applied 4 spray on coats of satin spar polyurethane on top.  The project turned out great.  It’s rock solid and it’s a little something from my dad that reminds me of him.

So I have driven probably at least 500 brads with this over the past year without one problem of any kind.  The reliability is a huge plus as I hate having to mess with tools to get them to work.  I have no problem recommending this Wen brad nailer to you for relatively casual use – I do not use it in production.  I’d certainly buy it again – you can’t beat the combination of quality and price.

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Tools

Review: Chicago Pneumatic CP7200 Mini Orbital Sander is Solid!

Well folks, I bought three Jet small dual action sanders from a closeout tool shop 4-6 years ago and have to replace the little valve on them several times each.  This year when two failed, there were no little valves to be found so I decided to go with a name brand.  I did this for two reasons – solid quality and replacement parts.  These get a ton of use in my shop.   I did some digging around and ran across the CP7200 that has a nice grip, variable throttle, integral regulator to adjust the speed and both a 2″ and 3″ hook and loop pad.

For me, the backer is really important.  I need to sand curved shapes, constantly switch grits of sandpaper and those backing pads do wear out.  I can’t tell you how many I replaced on my Jet sanders and not all of them are good quality.  I made sure this unit used a standard thread (1/4×20) so I could readily find replacement backers.   Note the little tool in the next photo, it slides into a key hole so you can lock the head and screw the backer in securely.  Many of these little sanders are this way.  I have a tool glued into a length of fuel hose to find it easier, I’ve used little philips head screw drivers, etc.  Bottom line is that you need to lock the head in place so you can thread on the backer and tighten it down.

Any air sander uses a lot of air – let’s just be up front about that.    The manual recommends 16.6 CFM @ 90PSI.  That means you’ll want to have a decent compressor and need to figure out how much you want it to run vs. you waiting.  In other words, using this with an air compressor intended for an air nailer is going to suck.  The little compressor will not be able to keep up and it’s tank is way too small.  I have a Ingersoll Rand 2340 with a 60 gallon tank and the pump can deliver 14.3CFM at 90PSI and fills the tank to 175PSI.  This that if I am running the tool wide open non-stop, I will use air faster than the compressor can refill the tank.  However, it is a big tank at an even higher pressure plus I sand and stop, sand and stop over and over.  It really does not tax my compressor at all.

Oh – one last comment about the air supply – use a 3/8″ internal diameter (ID) hose so you can get enough air to the tool.  With a 1/4″ hose you may well starve it because the air will be very restricted until it gets to the tool.  It’s like having too small of a gauge extension cord going to a power tool – you can just get so much air down that small 1/4″ diameter hose.  Quarter inch fittings are fine but do use the 3/8″ hose.  With that said, as usual, the unit did not have a 1/4″ quick connect installed so I took one out of my parts bin, installed some PTFE tape and snugged it down. As you can see, the tools weighs in at 1 pound 9.7oz.  Not too bad and the grip is nice.

Before you put it into production, squeeze in 2-4 drops of air tool oil.  I’ve had good luck with all the oils I have bought and just stick with a name brand such as ATS, Porter-Cable, CH, and even Husky.  Your air tool needs this to run.  If you have an in-line oiler in your air lines then you may be able to skip this step.  I filter the heck out of my air and have to manually oil my tools.  My rule of thumb is to oil them before each day of use.

So I bought the unit on May 14th, 2017, and already have probably 20 hours on it with no hitch.  Not surprisingly the head was a little stiff but everything wore in nicely.  It appears to be working like a champ so I am recommending it to others.

Here it is at Amazon:

Note, CP backers are a fortune.  I’ve had very good luck with this brand of Chinese backing pad with my other sanders so I’m providing the eBay link.  Be very sure the thread is right (I’ve found three so far – 1/4, 5/16 and M6 so be careful) and look for the particular graphic label.  I’ve had other Chinese backers that just disintegrated with very little use.  You figure the tool can spin up to 15,000 RPM so your pad needs to be rated for that as well.  If you can find them elsewhere, great.  I scrounge around on eBay until I find them.

Update 7/7/2017:  The sander is still working great – no problems at all.  I’d estimate the unit has somewhere between 30-40 hours of use on it at least – it gets used a lot.

Also, I swear by Milton air line fittings.  Harbor Freight and Husky female fittings just do not hold up.  I do have a ton of HF and Husky male fittings that I am slowly using up but only buy Milton female quick connects now and will switch to all Milton as soon as I run out of the old plugs.  I’ve been using Milton Type M female couplers for over a year and they are solid.

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AR & Related Rifles and Pistols, ARBuilds, Gunsmithing, Shooting in General

ATF letter stating you can build an AR pistol from a receiver transferred as such and never assembled as a rifle

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Okay, I posted a couple of ATF letters and a guy sent me a message asking if I had the letter specifying that an AR pistol can be built from an AR receiver that was transferred as a receiver and never assembled as a rifle.  It just so happens I did save that one back when I built a couple of AR pistols a few years back.  I like to have the letters of anything someone may ask about and keep them in my case with the weapon when I take it shooting.  At any rate, here is the ATF letter in case anyone else needs it:

Please note that I am not a lawyer and this should not be construed as legal advice.

 

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Air & C02 Rifles and Pistols

How to install a Huma Regulator in a Hatsan Gladius Air Cylinder

The Hatsan Gladius is a pretty cool precharged pneumatic (PCP) air rifle.  You get a long of bang for your buck but it does lack an important feature needed to get more consistent accuracy from the rifle – regulated air pressure.

The stock Gladius has a power setting but it does not have a consistent air pressure supply.  What a regulator does is allow you to have the reservoir set at one pressure and then the air fed to the rifle is set at another.  For example, the Gladius’ cylinder is rated for 200 bar (3,000 PSI).  You can set the regulator for 130 bar, which is a popular setting, and you always get 130 bar until the pressure of the cylinder dips below 130 bar.  This not only helps you have a far more consistent pressure but also the number of shots increases because a lesser volume of air is used with each shot due to the regulator.

In talking with folks, the most recommended regulator I could find for the Gladius is made by Huma in the Netherlands.  You can order direct from them, which I did and my two regulators arrived in less than a week.  I should also point out that they were very prompt in replying to my questions, which I really appreciated.

In this blog post I will cover how to install the Huma based on what I learned while trying to install the regular.  I would also recommend that you read the instructions from Huma to make sure you get a better understanding of what is needed.  With the Gladius, installing the regulator is relatively easy because it goes into the removable air cylinder.

Step 1:  Mark the bottom of the cylinder.  I put a piece of tape and marked the bottom of the cylinder while it is screwed all the way into the rifle.  You must do this because the regulator has a top position that must be oriented properly when the cylinder is screwed back in.

Step 2:  Remove the cylinder from the rifle.  It simply unscrews counter-clockwise and you may need to pull the cylinder to overcome resistance caused by the O-Rings.

Here are the instructions but before you do anything – MAKE SURE YOUR CYLINDER IS EMPTY [Click Here For Instructions to “degas” the cylinder].  There is a pressure gauge at the end of the cylinder and it should read zero.

Step 3:  Remove the brass valve assembly end of the cylinder.  Use a 13mm wrench to turn the brass fitting counter-clockwise and unscrew it from the black aluminum tube.  This should turn easily.  If it does not, install the degas tool, turn the set screw and ensure all air is out.  This brass valve assembly should unscrew fairly easily.  If it is taking a lot of torque to turn then this may indicate that the cylinder is still under pressure.  If it is empty and still does not want to turn then there may be a threading issue and you need to decide if you want to apply more force or contact Hatsan.  Again, on my cylinder this came off very easily with me holding the aluminum tube with one hand while turning the 13mm wrench with the other.  The 13mm wrench sits on a flat spot on the valve body made just for this purpose.

Step 4:  Watch out for burs.  The machining inside the cylinder and the valve body are all quite sharp.  Be careful when you are turning things by hand.  If you see any visible burs remove them or you may slit the O-Rings of the regulator by accident.

Step 5.  Prepare the Regulator.  The regulator is one piece.  The online instructions mention and show a separate spacer that is no longer there.  Set the pressure by aligning the brass dial with the pressure markings on the tape.  You would do this by removing the small 3mm screw and using a blade screwdriver to make the adjustment.  I ordered mine set for 130 bar so I didn’t need to do anything but the screw did confuse me as I couldn’t figure out what it was for – it was loose and just sitting there.  I contacted Huma and they told me that this screw is meant to be loose and serves as an air flow restrictor.  To set it, screw it down until it stops and then back it off two full turns.  I had to do this because I removed the screw trying to figure out what it was before I asked Huma.  What I did was hold the screw and rotate the body because that was very easy for me to count two full turns given all the markings.  Huma told me to leave the screw loose so that is what I did.

Step 6.  Grease and seat the bottom O-ring.  Grease everything lightly with silicone grease.  DO NOT USE A PETROLEUM GREASE.  It must be silicone grease to be safe.  Make sure the bottom O-Ring is in place.  This must be done outside of the air cylinder and greased there as well. This is critical – if you do not grease this O-Ring and the bottom of the valve then it may well twist out of position as you tighten things together.

  

Step 7:  Option – notch a small V in the front of the top of the tube to better enable venting. Huma reports there are two ways to make sure the regulator can vent properly.  One is to simply not screw the brass valve back in all the way or take a file and make a tiny notch on the top inside edge of the cylinder before the threads.  I opted to do this as I don’t like the idea of having a loose valve body moving around unpredictably when installing or removing cylinders so I just took a small file and made a tiny notch at the top of the cylinder (opposite from the bottom mark you should have made with the piece of tape).  I did this with the valve sitting horizontally and then wiped out the tiny aluminum shavings and then blew it out too.  I applied the silicone grease after I filed the small notch but took the photo after I greased it so that’s why you see the grease.

Step 8:  Grease everything and insert the regulator.  Ensure the regulator, threads and the first 7mm(ish) of the cylinder after the threads have the silicone grease.  To install the regulator, you must orient it properly.  There is a tiny vent hole in the body of the regulator just below the O-ring that must be at the top of the cylinder where you also made the small notch.  Now the screw end of the regulator goes in first.  So hole up and screw first.  Gently insert the regulator and use a dowel to push the unit into the cylinder.  There will be resistance as the O-Ring pushes past the threads in the cylinder walls.  You really do need a dowel or something to help you push it in while avoiding that bottom O-ring.  If you push on the O-ring with your fingers, it will probably come out — I know this because I did that and it came out and I had to tap the cylinder on my wood work table to get the regulator to come back down so I could fish it out.  What you want to do is slide it down just past the threads.  The air pressure will push it back against the valve body when you fill the cylinder.

 

 

Step 9:  Reinstall the brass valve body.  As mentioned previously, you have two options – either make the notch and screw the body back on all the way or do not thread it back on all the way so the air can vent from the regulator more readily.

Just for reference, if you don’t want to notch the inside edge of your tube, they say to tighten down the brass valve assembly and keep about a business card thickness gap in it.  Again, I made the notch in the top and tightened mine down.

Step 10.  Pressurize and check for leaks.  So, I used my Hill hand pump and gave myself three targets taking breaks at 50, 100 and 150 bar until finally I reach 200 bar.  It is a fair amount of work so take your time, take breaks and let your body weight work for you if you go that route.  At any rate, I checked for leaks at each stop with soap water.  So far, so good.

Now I just need some time so I can do some shooting and compare my unregulated cylinder to my 130 bar regulated cylinder and report the speed, accuracy and air consumption.  That will be for another day.

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Air & C02 Rifles and Pistols

How to Degas / Depressurize a Hatsan Gladius Cylinder

The Hatsan Gladius is a really cool bullpup precharged pneumatic (PCP) air rifle.  One really neat feature is that you can simply unscrew the air cylinder and install another.  A second cylinder is way easier to carry around than an air tank of you are hunting or doing pest control.  Also, you can have different cylinders regulated at different pressures that are tuned for combinations of pellets and distances.  Now the base rifle is not regulated and really all a spare cylinder does is give you a backup air source.  I’ll cover installing a Huma regulator in another post but this one will focus on how to degas, or empty, the air cylinder of the Hatsan so maintenance can be done.  For example, if you want to drain moisture, etc.

First, I need to give you a safety message.  A Hatsan Gladius cylinder may contain up to 3,000 PSI of air pressure in it.  This kind of pressure is dangerous.  Do not mess around when you are working with high pressure air (HPA) or you may get injured or killed.  Respect it and be cautious.  If you haven’t read the manual for your Gladius, do so.  If you lost your manual, click here for an online copy at Hatsan.

Okay, depressurizing the cylinder is very, very simple.  Hatsan includes the tool you need in the small white tool box that came in the original case with your rifle.  It consists of a heavy brass cap with a set screw in it and the appropriate sized Allen key.  The first step is to back the set screw out so when you thread it onto the cylinder it does not touch the conical shaped nipple on the end of the cylinder.  The third photo shows what the set screw will look like when you back it out.  You want to be able to screw the brass cap on all the way without that set screw touching.

  

Next, thread the brass tool all the way onto the cylinder by hand.  Do not turn the set screw until the cap is fully seated.  Note the little vent hole shown in the next photo.  This is where the air will vent.

Now, turn the vent hole away from you and do NOT look straight at it to protect your eyes.  Very slowly turn the set screw clock wise.  As it threads into the body of the cap, it will depress the conical nipple and high pressure air will start to vent.  It’s going to act like a jet and you will feel the cylinder move. I don’t advocate cranking it wide open so you don’t blow dust every where and you can maintain control of the cylinder.  It will empty very fast. In the next photo, you can see the set screw turned in.  The only reason the vent hole is showing is for the photo.  Normally I have it turned away from me.

Last step – the cylinder should be empty when you no longer hear air exiting.  Double check the gauge.  To remove the end of the cylinder should be very easy because Hatsan uses some form of silicone grease on the threads and doesn’t tighten it much.  If it is taking a ton of force, double check the gauge as there may be air in the cylinder.

That’s all there is to it.  I hope this helps you out.

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AK & Related Rifles, Russia and also USSR

Video: Процесс производства оружия на ВПМЗ Молот // Production process at the VPMZ MOLOT factory March 2017

     

Molot published this walk through of their production facility in March 2017.  It’s in Russian but with English subtitles.  It’s only 5:31 long and worth your time.  Yeah, I drooled when I saw the injection molding.

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Gunsmithing, Shooting in General

The actual March 2017 ATF letter approving stabilizing braces has a section about customization you need to know about

Yes, I am late to the game on actually reading the March 2017 ATF letter clarifying the use of stabilizing braces.   It’s been on my to-do list for some time and I finally did.   I do think this is very helpful – notably:

With respect to stabilizing braces, ATF has concluded that attaching the brace to a handgun as a forearm brace does not “make” a short-barreled rifle because in the configuration as submitted to and approved by FATD, it is not intended to be and cannot comfortably be fired from the shoulder.

With that said, folks need to bear in mind  the very next paragraph:

If, however, the shooter/possessor takes affirmative steps to configure the device for use as a shoulder-stock – for example, configuring the brace so as to permanently affix it to the end of a buffer tube (thereby creating a length that has no other purpose that to facilitate its use as a stock), removing the arm-strap, or otherwise undermining its ability to be used as a brace – and then in fact shoots the firearm from the shoulder using the accessory as a stock, that person has objectively “redesigned” the firearm for purposes of the NFA.

So what this means is if you put a brace on a pistol, use it as-is.  Do not remove the Velcro straps, stick foam in the brace to make it solid, and/or attach the brace in such a way that it is permanent so long that it could not connect to the forearm.

I always recommend that people read guidance directly for themselves.  Here is a link to a PDF copy of the letter so you can do so: Reversal of Stabilizing Braces – ATF-letter – March 2017 — please note I changed the file name when I saved it but the content is all original.

All in all, I think this is a much needed clarification overall.  Just bear the customization clause in mind when you are building, or modifying, your weapons.

Yes, for the record, I do not like the fact that short-barreled rifles or shotguns need special regulation per the NFA but the braces do provide an option for folks. Also, please note that I am not a lawyer and this should not be construed as legal advice.

 

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Germany plus Historical East and West, Russia and also USSR, Sniper / Precision Rifles

Video: Ostfront 1987: Walther WA-2000 vs SVD Dragunov from InRangeTV

This 30:11 long video had me seriously drooling.  You have Ian McCollum from Forgotten Weapons and Karl Kasarda from InRangeTV squaring off on targets.  Ian is firing a rare German Walther WA-2000 sniper rifle in .300 Win Mag and Karl is shooting the Russian 7.62x54R SVD Dragunov.  They role play a bit and take this back to the Eastern Front of 1987.  I think both rifles are amazing and both presenters do a great job.  It’s very cool to see what the rifles can actually do vs. armchair myth.  Kudos to both men!

Here’s The Video

 

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When Strength and Quality Matter Most