So for those who remember on Scout last year, I machined several torch cut Bren receivers to prepare them for re-welding and reassembly as semi's. The AMAZING guys at Kiwi Custom Guns in California finished the rewelds and the assembly/finishing/test of the parts kits I had prepared. Ended up costing me a bit more than I had thought, but far less than buying on the open market. And the results are utterly spectacular.
I can't say enough good things about Kiwi. They've done two Vickers for me and now these two Bren's.
Here are the pictures from last year that I posted on the old forum... Lots of geometry to turn massively-destroyed torch-cut receivers into pieces that could be easily welded together. But with some creative mill work, I managed to pull it off at the rate of about 16 hours per receiver.
Below the in-process pictures are the finished BREN guns.
Cheers,
Sirhr
Jigged up receiver. Note the assembly plate locked on the bottom.
Picture showing better cut lines.
Here is a close-up of the joints, trying to get them as 'clean' as possible for welding. It's pretty easy for the welder to fill a 1/16" gap. Once you start getting to torch cuts over 1/8", then it gets pretty dicey.
Here is one more picture of receiver before sending off for assembly. BTW, until denial blocks are fitted, any welding-together of the frame into fewer than three pieces is... not advised.
And one last picture of the gas port area. Note how tight I was able to get these joints. Creative mill angles to allow parts to mate. BTW, these came in as torch cut kits and the receivers were NOT usable. But I was able to buy two hand-select receiver kits from IMA for pretty short dollars. And between the kit receivers and the IMA receivers, the cuts are in different spots. So was able to make great joint lines, though ended up with 5 or 6 pieces on the frames, instead of three. But you gotta do what you gotta do!
Here's the finished product! Mk 1 and Mk2 Bren's... semi-automatic and shooting like typewriters!
Note the different sights between MK1 and Mk2.
What makes the guys at Kiwi worth the expense? Look at the receiver (and compare to above.) Some of the cheaper frame re-weld outfits get you back a frame with weld-lines clearly visible through the finish. Some are appalling. Not Kiwi. Perfection. If I look closely while also looking at a picture of my receivers before sending them, I can pick up a couple of places where I 'may' see an artifact of welding. Otherwise.... perfection.
And to toot my own horn a bit, I did the wood refinishing and the internal parts. When it comes to the wood, it is really spectacular and am really happy with it. It's done in about 20 coats of satin Minwax Spar Urethane. Replicates the oil finish very well and is very durable.
Anyway, just shows why having machine tools and some spare Saturday's makes the firearms hobby even more satisfying!
Cheers,
Sirhr
I can't say enough good things about Kiwi. They've done two Vickers for me and now these two Bren's.
Here are the pictures from last year that I posted on the old forum... Lots of geometry to turn massively-destroyed torch-cut receivers into pieces that could be easily welded together. But with some creative mill work, I managed to pull it off at the rate of about 16 hours per receiver.
Below the in-process pictures are the finished BREN guns.
Cheers,
Sirhr
Picture showing better cut lines.
Here is a close-up of the joints, trying to get them as 'clean' as possible for welding. It's pretty easy for the welder to fill a 1/16" gap. Once you start getting to torch cuts over 1/8", then it gets pretty dicey.
Here is one more picture of receiver before sending off for assembly. BTW, until denial blocks are fitted, any welding-together of the frame into fewer than three pieces is... not advised.
And one last picture of the gas port area. Note how tight I was able to get these joints. Creative mill angles to allow parts to mate. BTW, these came in as torch cut kits and the receivers were NOT usable. But I was able to buy two hand-select receiver kits from IMA for pretty short dollars. And between the kit receivers and the IMA receivers, the cuts are in different spots. So was able to make great joint lines, though ended up with 5 or 6 pieces on the frames, instead of three. But you gotta do what you gotta do!
Here's the finished product! Mk 1 and Mk2 Bren's... semi-automatic and shooting like typewriters!
Note the different sights between MK1 and Mk2.
What makes the guys at Kiwi worth the expense? Look at the receiver (and compare to above.) Some of the cheaper frame re-weld outfits get you back a frame with weld-lines clearly visible through the finish. Some are appalling. Not Kiwi. Perfection. If I look closely while also looking at a picture of my receivers before sending them, I can pick up a couple of places where I 'may' see an artifact of welding. Otherwise.... perfection.
And to toot my own horn a bit, I did the wood refinishing and the internal parts. When it comes to the wood, it is really spectacular and am really happy with it. It's done in about 20 coats of satin Minwax Spar Urethane. Replicates the oil finish very well and is very durable.
Anyway, just shows why having machine tools and some spare Saturday's makes the firearms hobby even more satisfying!
Cheers,
Sirhr
