Iron Glock - silver soldering vs welding?

[javaduke]

Please pardon my ignorance but I'm completely unexperienced in welding and don't have an access to any welding equipment. So I came across this Iron Glock thread: http://www.northeastshooters.com/vbu...022-Iron-Glock
and really want to build one. I'm wondering if silver soldering would be adequate enough substitute to welding. Any thoughts?

[ar15barrels]

Iron Glock - silver soldering vs welding?

Ask Boris what he thinks...

Worst case scenario is that the solder does not hold and you scrap the parts and start with another parts set...

Silver soldering g is a learned skill just like welding.
I hope you don't expect to learn while building as I can assure you that you will be scrapping the parts set...

[Mstnpete]

What a waste of good pistol!

[kcstott]

Full agreement with Randall.

The only thing I can add is the joint strength. Lap joints are the best design for solder joints regardless or solder used. These are all Butt joints and not the best for a soldered joint. Not knowing the stresses involved I can't say if it would survive or not.

[Scuba951]

We'll that thread is added to my bookmarks. Great writeup.

[kingjoey]

Silver solder would not be sufficient and would break rather quickly. Silver solder requires larger contact area for strength, using it in place of something like a weld would be really weak

[e-clip]

Have you thought about brazing? It's best done with a conventional gas welding setup, but you can buy a cheap welding kit that's good for several welds at places like Ace hardware.

There's a variety of brazing rods available that can produce welds with excellent tensile strength, far better than silver soldering.

[kingjoey]

Have you thought about brazing? It's best done with a conventional gas welding setup, but you can buy a cheap welding kit that's good for several welds at places like Ace hardware.

There's a variety of brazing rods available that can produce welds with excellent tensile strength, far better than silver soldering.

Brazing is less brittle than silver solder, but is also a lot softer. I would wager that if the joints held, they would develop fatigue cracks after awhile. If you have an oxy-acetylene or oxy-MAPP torch you can always......wait for it......weld steel with it . You can use regular fill rod and do very strong welds with it. There isn't shielding gas like you have with arc/TIG/MIG, but its still a lot stronger than brazing/soldering. Personally, I'd find someone with a TIG setup for this project if you're going to attempt it. Also, the metal components in a Glock are very thoroughly heat-treated, something to consider when you start thinking about home-made locking blocks and rails.

[kcstott]

Brazing is less brittle than silver solder, but is also a lot softer. I would wager that if the joints held, they would develop fatigue cracks after awhile. If you have an oxy-acetylene or oxy-MAPP torch you can always......wait for it......weld steel with it . You can use regular fill rod and do very strong welds with it. There isn't shielding gas like you have with arc/TIG/MIG, but its still a lot stronger than brazing/soldering. Personally, I'd find someone with a TIG setup for this project if you're going to attempt it. Also, the metal components in a Glock are very thoroughly heat-treated, something to consider when you start thinking about home-made locking blocks and rails.

thats a no go on finding some one to help him. It's a frame he has to do all the work welding or soldering too..

As for the soldering brazing thing. well that depends on what you are using.

I use for just about everything i silver braze unless the flow temp is to high safety silv 56 just about the best silver brazing alloy made. a little tough to learn how to use but once you get it you're good.

[e-clip]

Brazing is less brittle than silver solder, but is also a lot softer. I would wager that if the joints held, they would develop fatigue cracks after awhile. If you have an oxy-acetylene or oxy-MAPP torch you can always......wait for it......weld steel with it . You can use regular fill rod and do very strong welds with it. There isn't shielding gas like you have with arc/TIG/MIG, but its still a lot stronger than brazing/soldering. Personally, I'd find someone with a TIG setup for this project if you're going to attempt it. Also, the metal components in a Glock are very thoroughly heat-treated, something to consider when you start thinking about home-made locking blocks and rails.

I'll agree that a nice TIG would be the ticket.

[kingjoey]

thats a no go on finding some one to help him. It's a frame he has to do all the work welding or soldering too..

Well, sounds like this is a project he should avoid then. Life is too short to lose fingers due to hinky homemade "project guns" because someone is trying to skirt a BS law, just sayin'. If ya ain't got the tools to do it right, don't rig up something and hope it don't hurt ya.

[kcstott]

Well, sounds like this is a project he should avoid then. Life is too short to lose fingers due to hinky homemade "project guns" because someone is trying to skirt a BS law, just sayin'. If ya ain't got the tools to do it right, don't rig up something and hope it don't hurt ya.

Could not agree more

[DEF23]

I've seen the airsoft Glock bodies used for conversion to real firearm successfully. They work real well with .22lr conversion kits and Mech-Tech uppers where the stresses aren't as large or transmitted the same.

You just need to know the correct ones to get. IIRC, US customs was trying to put in end to those frames for a number of reasons (copyright infringement also) but you can still find them from time to time.

I, personally after having seen and handled one said frames for an extended period of time, before and after conversion, would not advise using one for anything other than the .22lr conversion kits. But then, I think it would probably last just about forever with proper care and upkeep.

[sd_shooter]

Get a Harbor Freight welder and practice on something else first. Little tack welds are not that hard.