Drilling out cannon/machine guns??

Hey, Richard! This is one of the first questions i asked when i joined the forum! Cassibill suggested using a heated pin to drill out the ends, but you may want to keep a bit of cold water ready, just in case! the other alternative for detail is an aftermarket kit... Check this site out, it's way cool! http://www.kitreview.com/reviews/karayabarrelsreviewgg_1.htm You may also want to experiment with hypodermic needles... i don't even want to go there because i have an irrational fear of them...

You can use fine tubing for SOME mg's such as those on the P-47, but many have cooling vents so this is not an option.
Okay, so you have to stay with plastic. Do you have a pin vice? If not, this is an essential tool and your LHS should have one. You can either buy a set of bits for this at about $20 for a wide variety or you can get them one at a time. Take the piece you need to drill out with you and match them up to the bits available. Your clerk should be able to hepl you here.
When you get home, place the bit in the pin vice. Make sure the end og the barrel to be drilled is nice and flat to start with. Place the bit at the tip of the barrel and start turning the pin vice. If you slip off. take a fresh #11 and start a smal;l set hole. Be careful it doesn't slip and make a bit set hole in your finger. Once you have this set hole, repeat the pin vice step.
There's no need to go very far in, just enough to define a depressio, perhaps a mm or so.

Go to your local welding supply shop and get a 'tip drill' It's a little set-up that includes a variety of small bits and the handle for about six bucks. For gun barrels I make sure the end of the barrel is flat first with a little fine sand paper then using a fresh razor knife I will place the point in the center of the flat and give it a little twirl to make a small dimple. Next I will place my welding tip drill bit on the dimple and drill out the barrel. The dimple prevents the bit from sliding off to the side and trashing the end of the gun barrel. This process works great for me and I have never ruined a gun barrel yet. I do wear an omni-visor when I'm doing this so I can actually see the gun barrel - the ol' Mk 1 eyeballs are wearing out a little bit.

Another idea someone else came up with was putting a very fine bit on a Dremel, and mounting it on a drill press. Then place the gun barrel in a vice, making sure it is straight up and down. Carefully line up the bit to the barrel and then turn on the Dremel to it's lowest speed. Drill out the barrel to about 1mm or so and voila! Drilled Gun Barrels!

I haven't done this myself, but I saw it posted in these Forums before by someone else.

I don't know about using a dremel tool to drill out 1/48 gun barrels, that sounds like way over kill, unless you need a few hundred of them. I'd go with the pin vise or the tip drill. G.L.

An option that no one has mentioned yet is to simply replace the barrels with tubular brass, aluminum or stainless steel. Most of these items are available at most well-stocked hobby shops. They also have the miniature tubing cutters necessary, or you can simply cut them with an XActo blade. Then just take a pin vise or a Dremel with a small bit and drill out your vent holes. BTW, Dremel makes a drill press adapter that fits most of their tools, including the cordless ones.

QUOTE: Originally posted by Keyworth . Then just take a pin vise or a Dremel with a small bit and drill out your vent holes. .

If you're doing this, you're a better man than I, Gunga Din!

have you considered using metal tubes or needles

QUOTE: Originally posted by ajlafleche QUOTE: Originally posted by Keyworth . Then just take a pin vise or a Dremel with a small bit and drill out your vent holes. . If you're doing this, you're a better man than I, Gunga Din!

Been there, done it, no big deal. Just time consuming, but gives worthwhile results.

not sure i am up to this yet. may have to work myself up to this type of detailing. as for the needles im with shrikes, have never liked them, will never like them, dont want to use them.

joe

Actually using hypo needles for gun barrels works well. Put on the saftey glasses, take a dremel with a cutting wheel in it and slice off whatever length and quanity you need. Clean up any burrs with a file. Hypo needles come in various gauges (size) and are really just thin walled stainless steel tube. At the hobby stores around here I usually don't find brass or aluminum tube smaller than 1/16 in. OD and that is a bit large for gun barrels in 1/48. Using hypo's or tube has the advantage of being round and no seam lines to clean up. G.L.