macgyver-isms and the gun hobby.

[Dave Shooter]

Paper plates with target dots on them for pistol targets. They are just a little bit smaller than the 9 ring on a B27 silhouette target.

Lifesavers scotch taped to the backer at 25 yards for .22 targets. Kids big and small love shooting 'em. And if it doesn't break you can claim bullet went through the hole!

[vujade]

Lifesavers scotch taped to the backer at 25 yards for .22 targets. Kids big and small love shooting 'em. And if it doesn't break you can claim bullet went through the hole!

That's a great/cheap idea for a target. it's harder than it sounds. Something similar - we took old CDs and shot them with 22 rifles at 25 yards. The goal was to get it through the hole without damaging the CD.

[Caster]

Lifesavers scotch taped to the backer at 25 yards for .22 targets. Kids big and small love shooting 'em. And if it doesn't break you can claim bullet went through the hole!

Necco wafers are better. The compressed powder composition give a nice poof when they take a hit. They're cheaper and easier to see in their pastel colors.

[jtmaze]

I wish I had all the 45s(records)I shot as a kid. This is mainly for recurve bow but could work for pistol as well. Take an old tire put card board in center draw dot in center of cardboard, roll tire, have fun. With pistol, good luck finding someone to roll tire.

JTM

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[Oh Shoot]

I wish I had all the 45s(records)I shot as a kid.

I wish I had the 007 cans I shot as a young man. They're worth as much as 500 clams each.

- OS

Edited August 28, 2012 by OhShoot

[Dolomite_supafly]

For general use oil I use a 50/50 mixture of Automatic Transmission Fluid and 30 weight synthetic. If I want it to have a cleaning affect as well I add about 10% fuel injector cleaner.

For guns with rails use grease rather than oil. It stays put and and dirty or crud gathers on top of the oil and does not make it into the tight clearances that can cause sysling issues.

For quick and easy brass cleaning without a tumbler use Lemishine. It is about $1 in the cleaning section of Walmart. Put enough hot water in a container to cover the brass you want to clean. Add a few teaspoons of Lemishine to the water and shake until disolved. Then add your brass and give it a good shake. Then let it sit for the next 24 hours, giving it a shake every time you think of it. The when the enxt day comes rinse the brass a few times with water. Then let the brass air dry and load as usual. Some brass may turn pink, this is completely normal and will not hurt the brass at all.

Dolomite

[Guest sL1k]

For quick and easy brass cleaning without a tumbler use Lemishine. It is about $1 in the cleaning section of Walmart. Put enough hot water in a container to cover the brass you want to clean. Add a few teaspoons of Lemishine to the water and shake until disolved. Then add your brass and give it a good shake. Then let it sit for the next 24 hours, giving it a shake every time you think of it. The when the enxt day comes rinse the brass a few times with water. Then let the brass air dry and load as usual. Some brass may turn pink, this is completely normal and will not hurt the brass at all.

Dolomite

I will have to try this, I've used white vinegar the same way I still tumbled after though.

Another tip for a polish to throw in your tumbler is nu finish 2000 most people have a bottle of this just laying around not being used.

Edited August 30, 2012 by sL1k

[graycrait]

Charcoal briquets are about minute of squirrel head big and reactive. Can be sprayed with flourescent paint too. I don't feel guilty leaving them behind. Styrofoam cups are fun to shoot but a mess to clean up.

[gunwhatgun]

This is a fantastic thread!! I am going to start making my own oil and cleaner!!

I will add this, If any of you are/have a nurse, doc, or other medical person in the house, a 60ml syringe with a length of I.V. extension tubing makes a a great oil applicator.

[zapfbroad]

Great thread but I would point out how much the topic title would offend mr richard dean anderson lol

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[Dolomite_supafly]

You can swap shellholders around to suit your needs for oddball calibers. I recently loaded 38 S&W using 9mm dies and a 38 SPC shell holder, worked great.

Rather than crimp you can reduce the OD of the sizing mandrel a few .001" with sandpaper. The increased neck tension will work just as well as a crimp without deforming your bullet like a crimp will.

You can make your own case lube by mixing pure lanolin and 93%+ alcohol. Heat both up in a pot of boiling water then pour them together, 8 parts alcohol and 1 part lanolin. Shake vigorously for a minute or two and they will never seperate. Best part is you have enough to do a few years worth of sizing for under $15.

When using Lee dies with any other press the locking rings are all but useless. I get rid of the locking rings and use a few drops of low strength loctite to hold my adjustments in place. The best part is if you do have to make adjusments later on there is resistance so you can make small adjustments without your locking ring screwing them up as you tighten it. I use loctite on nearly ever one of my dies.

No need to lay your bullets out you have tumble lubed. Just leave them in an open container and give it a shake once a day until they are dry.

When using a powder measure make sure to make a powder baffle. That way a set amount of powder is resting on the measure. Otherwise the charge weight will change based on how full the container is. Makes the throws a lot more consistent.

Here is a good list of different sized templates:

http://www.google.co...MmC1a_SCIsDs_6Q

Dolomite

[Shug]

Use Ed's Red as a cleaner quite often, and use Mobil 1 Synthetic Oil as a lubricant. Since I use it in my truck and there is always a little left in the bottle. I transfer it into an old glue bottle. For targets I use old paintballs {My sons left about 5000 of them when they left for the military} tape or glued to paper plates. Make great brain splatter simulators for head shots

[vujade]

Guys, I hope it OK to resurrect this old thread but I realized 2 new tricks this week and thought I'd share here.

 

1. I had a bit of wobble in an AR.  Some google led me to the accuwedge and being the patient man I am, I couldn't wait and kept searching.  I did the 'o-ring' trick and that works! 

(google ar15 o-ring trick and click on images to see some pictures of where to put it)  This is probably common knowledge for you guys but being a black rifle newbie, I was pretty excited when it worked and I wanted to share the feeling. =)

 

2. The wife kept complaining about me cleaning my gun on the carpet or table so I found some clean plywood and just covered it up with some felt you get at Walmart's fabric section.  Now i have a portable gun cleaning table of different sizes. 

[DMark]

Use a ballpoint pen to teach folks about trigger control.

 

With a clicky ball-point pen press with the trigger finger until you feel the "break" and then slowly release the pressure to feel the "reset" and repeat.

 

I have found that this not only explains break & reset, but will train the shooter to not come off the trigger between shots.

[ttocswob]

Chap-stik cap works for trigger too, although no reset. Just cap it loose, then pull til it snaps.

 

Weedeater cord makes a decent boresnake for rimfire. Use a lighter to melt a ball on one end and use to push or pull 3/4" patches thru.

 

Guitar string ("G") to clean nipple on BP guns.

 

Bic pens, pencils, and lighters are a good source for small springs.

 

WD-40 on cast bullets before sizing, enough to keep from leading the sizing die and not as messy as bullet lube. Then tumble lube as usual.

 

All I can think of for now.

[79troublehead]

3/4 or 1 inch foam pipe insulation makes a pretty decent cheekpiece on an ar with collapsible stock and optics

[ttocswob]

3/4 or 1 inch foam pipe insulation makes a pretty decent cheekpiece on an ar with collapsible stock and optics

 

Ditto - I tied mine on with cable wraps.

[dcloudy777]

I once used a 1996 Ford Thunderbird instead of a vice to swap barrels on an AR15.... that count?  :woohoo:

 

  DanO

[ttocswob]

Another idea: use plastic drywall anchors for .22LR snap caps.

[vujade]

Another idea: use plastic drywall anchors for .22LR snap caps.

 

That is awesome!