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How to Cut Barrel Dovetails

Barrel dovetailing is not what some would think. It does not involve cutting dovetails in a wooden barrel. Dovetailing a barrel is the act milling the tail portion of a dovetail joint into the barrel of a gun so that a site or another accessory can be simply and quickly attached to the firearm. As with most things in life, there is a simple way to cut a barrel dovetail and a difficult way to cut a barrel dovetail.

Things You'll Need

  • Padded vice
  • Barrel dovetail cutting fixture
  • Hammer
  • Brass punch
  • Small C-clamp
  • Small flat file no thicker than 1/4-inch
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Instructions

    • 1

      Unload the firearm that will have a new dovetail cut in the barrel. Disassemble the firearm according to the firearm manufacturer's instructions.

    • 2

      Clamp the barrel of the firearm in a padded vice ensuring that there is enough room to mount the barrel dovetail cutting fixture.

    • 3

      Remove the forward site from the barrel. Tap it out of its groove by holding a brass punch against it and tapping the punch with a hammer until the site is removed. Check the level by placing the bubble level that comes with the barrel don't tail cutting fixture into the slot. Reposition the barrel in the vice so that the slot on the barrel is level.

    • 4

      Attach the barrel dovetail cutting fixture to the barrel by holding it in the position where the dovetail will be cut and clamping it to the barrel with a small C-clamp. Ensure that the dovetail cutting fixture is level by placing the level that comes with the barrel dovetail cutting fixture on top of the fixture at a right angle to the barrel. Loosen the clamp and adjust the position of the fixture until it is level. Tighten the C-clamp.

    • 5

      Remove the material from the center of the dovetail by filing it out with a 1/4-inch thick file. Make as little contact as possible between the 1/4-inch thick file in the fixture to ensure the longest possible life for both tools.

    • 6

      Remove the material to form the front and rear dovetail angles by filing the material out with the 60° angle file included with the dove tail cutting fixture. File the metal out to the point where the file first contacts the dovetail fixture and stop.

    • 7

      Fit the accessory or fixture that the dovetail was being cut in the barrel for into the dovetail to ensure proper fit.


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