Mis-drilled Lock Plate

[JLayne]

Hello all,

So it took me four kit assemblies, but I finally mis-drilled my first lock plate and the bit went just below the bolster leaving me with a hole to fill. I don’t have a professional welder or welding skills,  just a Benzomatic propane torch and some plumbers solder. Will this be sufficient to fix the hole if I thread it and insert a piece of 8-32 bolt? Also, assuming that works for the repair, once it is filed flush and polished, will the repair show if I leave the lock in the white?

Thanks in advance.
Jay

[rich pierce]

If the hole is through and through the solder will show a little. I’d rather do a slight countersink, and peen and file flat.

[borderdogs]

Hi Jlayne.
I have had holes to fill although not on a lock plate. What Rich said is similar to what I did. I filled one on a tang by counter sinking the hole on both sides slightly then used a steel rivet. You can use a vise to squeeze the rivet so the material will fill the counter sink on both sides. When you file it to the plate and finish it you will not see it.
Good luck,
Rob

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Fixing the lockplate is easy.  What concerns me is how you got there.  I drill the lockplate out of the gun in exactly the place I want the bolt to go, and then run the drill bit through the plate in the stock and out the other side.  You cannot put it in the wrong place that way.  I use a drill press and a table set level, holding the gun in a vise for the work.

[JLayne]

Hi Taylor,

I got there attempting to drill through the pre-drilled rear bolt hole in a Chambers York stock using a hand- held drill. Apparently the bit/I wandered south in the process and passed through the plate just below the bolster. It’s worked great on three Kibler kits, but didn’t go so well here. Lesson learned.

Jay

[Bob Gerard]

Hi Taylor,

It’s worked great on three Kibler kits, but didn’t go so well here. Lesson learned.

Jay

(Kibler rifle kit locks are already drilled and threaded.)

[JLayne]

Bob,

The newer Kibler’s are already drilled, tapped and threaded, yes. The earlier ones had the hole through the stock, but the lock plates still had to be drilled and tapped.

Jay

[Dave B]

Just for those who encounter this situation the way to address it is to use a chop stick with inletting black on the end. you want the chop stick to be snug in the hole ie not sloppy. Run it through the side plate lock bolt hole to touch the surface of the bolster while the lock is in its inlet. Center puch the  bolster and drill a small hole  1/4" deep then counter sink this so the perimiter of the counter sink is larger than the screws shank size. Re assemble the lock in place and drill press the hole into the lock plate knowing the drill will not wander off track now. No chop sticks or dowles?  It is possible to soot black the bolster and using a wood mallet whack the lock plate firmly into the inlet. you should ge a transer of black on the wood all the way around the hole. The un touched dot of soot is where your hole will need to be drilled as discribed above using a counter sink to guide your hand drill if you dont have a drill press.

[Rado]

Just for those who encounter this situation the way to address it is to use a chop stick with inletting black on the end. you want the chop stick to be snug in the hole ie not sloppy. Run it through the side plate lock bolt hole to touch the surface of the bolster while the lock is in its inlet. Center puch the  bolster and drill a small hole  1/4" deep then counter sink this so the perimiter of the counter sink is larger than the screws shank size. Re assemble the lock in place and drill press the hole into the lock plate knowing the drill will not wander off track now. No chop sticks or dowles?  It is possible to soot black the bolster and using a wood mallet whack the lock plate firmly into the inlet. you should ge a transer of black on the wood all the way around the hole. The un touched dot of soot is where your hole will need to be drilled as discribed above using a counter sink to guide your hand drill if you dont have a drill press.

Very good news for us European customers with metric thread cutters...