Best way to cut an Inner Barrel?

[Lofty]

Quick question,

Best way to cut an Inner Barrel and how to Finish it off?

Just want to double check and also see how other people have done theirs and would offer any advice.

Cheers

Lofty

 

[Sitting Duck]

straight - obviously then crown it

cut it with a dremmel then file it as straight as you can possibly get it

then crown it by using a pointed grinding stone on a dremmel

often it don't work quite as good or perfect as a proper decent barrel the right size

but how bad is all down to how well you finish it off with crowning

don't think there is a better way than a pointed grinding stone on a dremmel and taking your time

but if anybody else has a better way I would like to know more please

if you are going to cut off more than say 25mm you may find your fps affected by cylinder/barrel ratio

so be sure you really want to shorten the barrel quite a bit or you may find fps dropping

and will need yet more work to get it back up again - (changing cylinder port or using a higher spring)

 

[Hudson]

I would have thought a proper metal-working Lathe would be okay; but obviously, you need someone that has access to one...which is easier said than done!

 

[ImTriggerHappy]

You need a lathe to cut and crown it properly. Most airsoft shops will do it for you alternatively look for a local engineering workshop. Its only worth doing on expensive barrels it can be cheaper to buy a new one the right length.

 

[BrightCandle]

Definitely need a lathe. Ideally you obviously want to cut it with a table saw for metal to get it nice and straight, then sand off the end and crown it and then also taper in the inernal barrel like they do on the Orca (See hunterseeker armouries for a tool to do that with a lathe).

 

[ImTriggerHappy]

You get a straighter cut using a cutting tool on a lathe than using a saw if you use a saw you would need to face off with the lathe saws very rarely cut true 90degrees.

 

[Mack]

Just a suggestion but would probably be cheaper and easier to just buy a new barrel. Pete at ak2m4 has ZCI 6.02 tight bores for around £14

 

[Mr Monkey Nuts]

+1 what Mack said.

 

[BrightCandle]

Just a suggestion but would probably be cheaper and easier to just by a new barrel. Pete at ak2m4 has ZCI 6.02 tight bores for around £14

ZCI don't do well on straightness or inner barrel consistency from the mechanics reviews I have seen. The 6.02 is far too tight for actual accuracy (its a power increase barrel, accuracy ones are 6.05 and up). Sometimes ZCI do produce good barrels but they are highly variable in quality. If you have a decent barrel already then its not too hard with a bit of work to cut it down and even improve it from before with an orga like flare.

 

[Mack]

ZCI don't do well on straightness or inner barrel consistency from the mechanics reviews I have seen. The 6.02 is far too tight for actual accuracy (its a power increase barrel, accuracy ones are 6.05 and up). Sometimes ZCI do produce good barrels but they are highly variable in quality. If you have a decent barrel already then its not too hard with a bit of work to cut it down and even improve it from before with an orga like flare.

Take it from someone who owns and uses one rather than what you have read, its an excellent, consistent and straight barrel. B)

 

[Mr Monkey Nuts]

Sounds an awful lot like conjecture that, may we see this "mechanics review" please?

 

[Mack]

Sounds an awful lot like conjecture that, may we see this "mechanics review" please?

Im guessing its these

http://forums.airsoftmechanics.com/index.php?topic=11323.0

http://forums.airsoftmechanics.com/index.php?topic=12867.0

Here are some quotes for anyone who cant be arsed to read the lot

"All in all i wouldnt buy any other brand of barrels. I have a madbull black python and quality doesnt come close. I keep the zci in my go to. On a side note i did roll the barrel on a flat percision ground inspection table... it wobbled as much if not less as the madbull barrel(about .010"). I did measure the madbull in the same fasion but this is a review on the ZCI barrel. like i said this wobble is insignificant because the barrel bore is straight. I do recomend these barrels to anybody. I give these barrels my stamp of aproval".

"Grabbed one at random to take some snaps of. The bore finish is actually among the highest I've seen out of a steel barrel, easily the highest I've seen out of a budget steel barrel. Looks like a bead wash sort of. Disadvantage of this is that it makes it easier to see flaws.

Nothing major, but you can see where cutting was done for the chamber, crown, retention slots, etc. Crown was also solid. Straightness (of the one) looked good too. I was actually pretty damn surprised by this one to be completely frank".

"1) The above average bore finish is, usually, only on the barrels with the deeper crowns. The ones more or less squared off at the ends don't seem to have it. What they have looks more like what you'd find in a typical promy bore, that sort of odd almost crystal stretch mark pattern. The crowned barrels with the nice bore finish seem to have started with that sort of pattern, but have what looks for all the world like a fine stone wash finish. I have no idea how they applied it.

2) These barrels are, on average, better than the Core barrels in all design, manufacturing, and performance aspects I've thus far measured.

3) The straightness of these barrels is only about on par with your typical entry-level upgrade barrel. That doesn't make them bad, but they're no PDI competitor in that respect".

 

[ImTriggerHappy]

Sounds like a bargain for £14. What makes me laugh is how people say cheap barrels are bad then buy a madbull which I found to be worse than some stock barrels.

There is no competitor to PDI but every barrel is usless if you move or there is any wind so unless you are on a range or in a lab it doesn't really matter.

 

[ak2m4]

I think the confusion comes from back in early 2014 ZCI changed their manufacturing process a little and were tinkering with designs. All I can tell you is that of the one's that I have examined they have all seemed perfectly straight and well cut. What I like best is that they do a crazy range of sizes, about 25 AEG and 7 GBB in total.

 

[Sitting Duck]

At best cutting a barrel down is perhaps a temp measure to see if it all shoots ok still with shorter barrel

If all ok and no bad drop in performance then look out for a decent one "properly" manufactured to size

especially if you can get a reasonable decent barrel for £15 to £20 that should perform better than most DIY ones