DIY chamber reamers?

[Roadracer_Al]

Hey there folks.

Does anyone make chamber reamers themselves?

I've had modest success in the past making cutting tools - I've made "D Bit" reamers (the type in which you cut the reamer in half, and hone a slight relief on the cutting edge) in the past with excellent results. I've also made 4-flute custom router bits for woodworking -- not as successful, in retrospect, wood tooling needs more relief than metal tooling.

Thoughts, experiences, warnings, etc. always appreciated.

[Mike E.]

Before you go down a dangerous road, consider looking into taking an NRA course in barrel fitting and chambering. Lassen Community College in Susanville use to and may still provide this and other gunsmithing classes.

[JScott]

I've never made a reamer but have researched it.  When making say a six flute reamer I have read one thing that can trip you up is cutting the flutes equidistant around the circumference of the reamer.  Apparently doing this can easily lead to chatter when cutting a chamber.  This can be avoided by offsetting some of the flutes a few degrees.

Speerchucker30x378 (Rod Henrickson) talked about this on Practical Machinist.  He had a lot of good posts over there until he got tired of arguing with a couple of knuckleheads that thought they knew more than a gunsmith with 40+ years of experience.  He has a very straightforward method of chambering using the steady rest and a lubricant flushing system.  I reviewed it with my machinist friend who was a tool and die maker for IBM in Colorado for 30 years and he agreed with the method.  Good enough for me and I'll try it one of these days. I'll be using a purchased/rental reamer though!

[Roadracer_Al]

I've also been reading about making reamers. The thought was to make a 5 flute reamer with two of the flutes at off angles. That was the methodology of car MFGs to reduce fan noise.

Mike, I *did* look into that course, it's still available. I'd need to buy $$$$$ worth of guns before I could take the $$$ course. And, I'd have to live in Susanville for, IIRC, 2 years.

[Mike E.]

(02-07-2019, 01:54 AM)Roadracer_Al Wrote: ……………………… Mike, I *did* look into that course, it's still available. I'd need to buy $$$$$ worth of guns before I could take the $$$ course. And, I'd have to live in Susanville for, IIRC, 2 years.

Wow, how times change. I remember when there were 8 hour a day, one week long high intensity summer classes there. The cost as I recall was about $150.oo, which included breakfast & evening meals along with dormitory accommodation. You also first, had to pass a background investigation before being accepted to take any of the courses; unbelievably, even for the engraving course where no firearms or parts were present.