FLYS

[Craig Wilcox]

Does anyone have a close-up pic, or a drawing, of a fly?  Working on both a large and a small Siler lock kit, and would really like to see a fly in "larger-than-life" pose.
And please, no flying insect flies.
TIA - Craig

[Scota4570]

Make the black part on a lathe.  Cut out the red part. 

[Craig Wilcox]

Thank, Scota. I had been wondering about the end of it that prevented the sear from dropping into the half-cock notch, and now I see that it is "beveled" in both directions.

[rich pierce]

The width of the fly, the width of the slot, and the angles of the tip of the fly all interact precisely. No margin for error.

The fly width left and right of the center line determine how far the fly swings left and right.

The length of the swinging arm and angles at the tip determine how the fly flips when the cock is cocked. The sear tip must pop the fly forward when going to full cock. The angle of the right side of the tip of the swinging arm and it’s length must cause the sear tip to ride over the half cock notch. Tricky business when made from scratch.

[mountainman70]

And please, no flying insect flies.      bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!!!

Sorta sorry, Craig, I couldn't let it pass. Rich will get you squared away. Have a goodun,bros. Dave F

[flinchrocket]

If I'm not mistaken, the fly that comes with a Siler kit has to be hardened.

[Craig Wilcox]

Thanks, Rich, for helping to understand the magic of the fly. And scaring me in the process...

I am filing the flipping part very carefully, and will check it when I get everything oriented correctly.

Dave,  needed that!  Gonna get after you with my fly swatter.

Flinch, I will harden and temper it like the rest of the tumbler and other parts.  So darn small, you could almost harden it with a kitchen match and a bottle cap filled with oil.

[flinchrocket]

It's been a while,but I'm pretty sure I used mechanics wire to hold the fly while heating and dunking.

[Craig Wilcox]

THAT is a very good tip, Flinch.  In the past, I would hold small articles with my "stone tweezers" or forceps.  As I have neither at this time, I would have been lost when I started heat treating all the parts.

I managed to find my surgeon's magnifiers - as they have a light, and a working distance of 18", they really help with tiny parts like these.  They are 3X, which works well.  I used to use an Optivisor, and will again, but the superior working distance is really great - no hunching down with your nose almost touching the work.  Nice bright LED light, too.

[heinz]

The fly needs only a moderate hardness. It gets pounded pretty hard on the firing cycle when the sear nose hits it. So it needs to be tough as opposed to hard. I harden it with a propane torch and then draw it back holding the flat tip in a pair of pliers or a hand vise. Going slowly on the tempering when you can see the working tip turning blue it is done.

[Craig Wilcox]

Thanks, Heinz - danke!  I kinda had that in mind - heat, dunk in oil, polish a bit, then turn it blue.  Sure is a tiny part, with a big part to play.