Jerry??? Interesting use for INFI

BillCutting

BillCutting

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Would the characteristics of INFI (me and many others favorite steel, btw) lend themselves to being a suitable steel for gun barrels?

I was just thinking how amazing a barrel for my Colt AR would be made out of INFI. Any thoughts?
 
I think that could work. No one outside of Busse knows what it really is, might not even really be metal :p
 
It wouldn't work. Knife steel would make crappy barrels. Barrels are like 40 RC, low alloy carbon or stainless. You would pay way more for a likely inferior barrel. I don't think it is available in thick enough stock to make a barrel anyway.
 
Yes I agree with RF...Infi is not really suitable...doing the "cut rifling" process or even the button pulled method on barrels necessitates a Rc hardness of around Rc40 and harder steels or rather steels composed of alloys designed to be "hardened" at a higher temperature don't work well at a lower temperature hardening as far as I understand it.

The hardest steel used in rifle barrels is by reputation the Krupp steel used by Lothar Walther in their barrels which are "hammer forged"...this is the third process for rifling a barrel and the most common method in mass factory produced barrels...and those I believe may be hardened to around Rc46...many gunsmiths complain that using these barrels to cut the chamber causes much more wear on their reamers, takes longer and creates more heat...the more heat in the barrel...the more the chamber dimensions can vary after the chamber is cut...not a problem so much with a SAAMI chambering for a standard round but is a problem when using custom tight neck reamers which are intended to give a very accurate tolerance level for dimensions. The heat can through expansion and then contraction mess up the intended tolerance level...hence the lower hardness level of Rc40 seems the preferred choice for custom barrel makers and Gunsmiths.
 
PeterPHWS said:
Yes I agree with RF...Infi is not really suitable...doing the "cut rifling" process or even the button pulled method on barrels necessitates a Rc hardness of around Rc40 and harder steels or rather steels composed of alloys designed to be "hardened" at a higher temperature don't work well at a lower temperature hardening as far as I understand it.

The hardest steel used in rifle barrels is by reputation the Krupp steel used by Lothar Walther in their barrels which are "hammer forged"...this is the third process for rifling a barrel and the most common method in mass factory produced barrels...and those I believe may be hardened to around Rc46...many gunsmiths complain that using these barrels to cut the chamber causes much more wear on their reamers, takes longer and creates more heat...the more heat in the barrel...the more the chamber dimensions can vary after the chamber is cut...not a problem so much with a SAAMI chambering for a standard round but is a problem when using custom tight neck reamers which are intended to give a very accurate tolerance level for dimensions. The heat can through expansion and then contraction mess up the intended tolerance level...hence the lower hardness level of Rc40 seems the preferred choice for custom barrel makers and Gunsmiths.
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Sounds to me like people just don't have the right tools (or patience) for the job. I can see toughness being an issue (even for INFI), when you have a long piece of steel being violently shocked, you'd probably have to heat treat it like a sword to take all the vibration and stress without shattering.

I'd prefer to use a high speed steel anyway. Something that would keep it's shape when red hot:eek:. I remember seeing some videos of a special 50 cal machine gun barrel that they put a few thousand rounds through all at once.
If only those were more common.
 
Joshua J. said:
Sounds to me like people just don't have the right tools (or patience) for the job. I can see toughness being an issue (even for INFI), when you have a long piece of steel being violently shocked, you'd probably have to heat treat it like a sword to take all the vibration and stress without shattering.

I'd prefer to use a high speed steel anyway. Something that would keep it's shape when red hot:eek:. I remember seeing some videos of a special 50 cal machine gun barrel that they put a few thousand rounds through all at once.
If only those were more common.
Click to expand...

A High speed steel barrel tempered like a sword would be a pipe bomb.
 
This guy might be interested in a little Infi tuneup



best-james-bond-villains-jaws.jpg
 
the point of high speed steel is to retain its hardness (rarely below 60, and often above 65) at high temperatures, in a gun you wouldn't really need it to be that hard, in fact it would be disastrous if you did, most gun barrels are very soft by knife standards.
 
I really don't know the science behind gun barrels so it would be difficult to say.

However, I can tell you that it would make for killer cool hockey skate blades!!! Our slow-cycle deep cryo treatment would really help to cut the ice.

Jerry :D


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Jerry Busse said:
I really don't know the science behind gun barrels so it would be difficult to say.

However, I can tell you that it would make for killer cool hockey skate blades!!! Our slow-cycle deep cryo treatment would really help to cut the ice.

Jerry :D


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Jerry,

Could I send you my Volkl Tigersharks and have custom INFI edges put in? :D

They would probably turn on a dime? I don't know if other skiers would appreciate all the dynamic, harsh cuts from the sweet carves though. :thumbup:
 
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