Cutting down a barrel

[Hondo44]

That is a great way to do it. But he'll cut off the entire barrel address if it's the old style or only half of it, if it has the warning label.

His front sight may be short though going from 7 1/2" to 4 5/8", but might still be in the range of his adjustable rear sight or if needed he can file down the rear sight blade a bit, very easily.

 

[TrueAt1stLight]

Tag for that list of gunsmiths!

 

[CraigC]

Lots of great gunsmiths that can accomplish this. Cylinder & Slide is a well reputed shop but waiting over two years for a barrel chop is really excessive. Huntington will have it back to you in a few months.

Cutting it off at the rear is a terrible idea. Do that and you'll have to not only rethread the barrel, which will take longer than doing it the other way but you'll have to completely remove the barrel address and cut a new hole for the ejector housing.

 

[Jimbo357mag]

Shortening barrels is not a complicated process and a 1/2 way decent local smith can do it.

To keep costs down I buy a new front sight for a .45 cal model, it has the extra height you need, and can be screwed on like the single six sight. For $10 for the sight and screw, you save the cost of silver brazing the sight on, removing, rebluing, and re-installing the barrel. You also save gunsmith time by trying to remove the original sight.

So you cut the barrel off, square up and crown the muzzle, (depending on skill level, no special tools required other than files, a large countersink bit, and a good eye); drill the sight and barrel for the screw; and tap threads in the barrel screw hole. Counter drill the sight screw hole for a flush fit. Touch up muzzle and front sight with "New Blue" by heating the barrel.

Could not be simpler and if I ever do one I will try exactly that way. Thanks.

 

[Mus408]

My first and only barrel shortening job was a year or so ago when I wanted to trim my .45-70 BFR from 7.5 inch to 5.5
Being a toolmaker I removed the screwed on front sight,and chucked up the muzzle end of revolver in my lathe chuck. Set lathe speed at a very slow speed and cut a starting groove using a parting bit where I wanted the length to be.
Then finished cut with a hacksaw working my way around.
Next I setup a fixture in my Bridgeport mill to square the end of the cut perpendicular to the bore,then used same fixture rotated 90 deg. to crown the barrel.
Used same fixture to relocate and drill/tap new front sight hole.
Turned out really well.
Now just a click shorter overall than my old SBH Hunter with 7.5 barrel and is easier to withdraw from cross draw holster.

 

[blueroan]

That is a great way to do it. But he'll cut off the entire barrel address if it's the old style or only half of it, if it has the warning label.

His front sight may be short though going from 7 1/2" to 4 5/8", but might still be in the range of his adjustable rear sight or if needed he can file down the rear sight blade a bit, very easily.

MINOR CORRECTION: He'll have to drill a new hole for the ejctor housing screw. I'd be tempted to mill off the old front sight BLADE and have it set up for replacement blades of some sort...simplest would be like RUGER factory on stainless BLACKHAWKS. Might as well polish off the factory lettering and re-blue/touch up with cold blue.

 

[Hondo44]

blueroan,
You're exactly right. I forgot that because many barrels I've shortened were from 4 5/8" to something shorter and I did it from the threaded end so I didn't have to redo the sight, and the housing screw hole didn't need relocating; the housing had to be shortened at the rear.

 

[altajava]

This discussion had me check the roll marks down the side of the barrel. To do it right, maintain the factory look, you'd have to cut both ends of the barrel to maintain the roll mark.

 

[Hondo44]

The roll mark is in slightly different placement depending on barrel length.

 

[edlmann]

Remove the barrel and SINGLE POINT the threads on the barrel shank. This will make the barrel concentric as from the factory. Cut off from the back end and you don't have to re-do front sight or ejector housing screw hole. Re-thread end of barrel and adjust barrel cylinder gap.[Emphasis Added]

Hmm. If the OP removes almost 3" (7½" to 4⅝") from the breech end of the barrel, how is it that he won't have to relocate the ejector housing screw?

 

[CraigC]

Forget about shortening from the rear. It takes a talented machinist to be able to cut the threads just right so that the front sight indexes properly. Easier BY FAR to just shorten it from the muzzle end.