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View Full Version : Yet another L1A1 back from the dead (pics)


Gaspipe
September 03, 2001, 19:39
It was raining again this morning, so I decided to build up another Aussie L1A1 kit I bought from Tapco, refinished and salted away. This one has a very nice barrel, but had generally very poor furniture.

I refinished this one with cheap auto parts store baked on satin black engine block 500 degree spray paint over degreased parking which was about 75% or so. I baked the parts (left the barrel, receiver and gas tube in the original parked finish) for 250F for 75 minutes. This has been very resistant to oil and bore solvent so far.

The wood was really bad on this kit - it took me a couple weeks to degrease, drill through several cracks, plug, glue, clamp, stain and oil. I was going to throw it away at first, but decided it'd be good enough for a 'shootin' gun. Besides, it has a '986' cartouche in the left side of the stock inlayed with white paint, so I decided it had character and looked cool, so it got a second lease on life. It would be easy to repair scrapes and scratches due to the nature of the finish. I used a very dark mahogany stain to hide many of the repairs (and future filth).

This rifle (after refinishing the parts) went together remarkably fast - about 75 minutes and it was ready to shoot. It has a type 3 metric Entreprise receiver instead of a Type 1 to keep costs down. It got a metric bho and mag release asl. To keep the cool 'inch pattern' look, it got a VOW folding charging handle (an excellent product). Other US parts include a DSA gas piston, FSE H/T/S and a 'faux' VOW flash hider.

It used a size 3 breeching washer, and a .262 locking shoulder. Timed by hand to 1100, and torqued right in smoothly.

It took me about 10 minutes to fit the VOW charging handle - the shoulders on the pin that activates the bolt carrier needed to be milled to sit flush against the slider. The quality of the part is first rate, looks cool, and counts as a US part (which is important for me so I could keep the inch furniture and 'look'). I'm going to put these things on all of my FALs now.

http://www.hunting-pictures.com/members/Gaspipe/l1a_0011.jpg
http://www.hunting-pictures.com/members/Gaspipe/l1a_0012.jpg
http://www.hunting-pictures.com/members/Gaspipe/l1a_0013.jpg
http://www.hunting-pictures.com/members/Gaspipe/l1a_0014.jpg

This rifle is going to get an ARMS scope mount and a VOMZ 4x pilad scope (not seen in the pics).

The pic quality was sacrificed compliments of hunting-pics.com, but that's whatcha get for nothing :)

Ciao,

Tex
September 03, 2001, 19:47
Looks good, dude. Another one lives again! :D

idsubgun
September 03, 2001, 23:32
What are you doing, building these things at work? Where you finding the time? ;)

Looks good. You're pushing me to build some of my kits, instead of opening the boxes and just looking at them. :D Oh, the shame of it all.

I'm still waiting on that receiver for the CETME kit I got from you, should have known Inter Ordnance hadn't changed.

Farmer from Hell
September 04, 2001, 10:43
Nice looking SLR.

It does my heart good to see one reborn like this rather then done into an L1A1 sporter by the angry beavers.

FfH

Gaspipe
September 04, 2001, 11:41
Originally posted by idsubgun:
<STRONG>What are you doing, building these things at work? Where you finding the time? ;)</STRONG>

LOL....nahhh, when I drag my sorry butt home at night, I always have some sort of project I have set up in my mind, other than the 'Honey-Do' stuff. Many times it means little sleep, like last night I was up until 0300 baking freshly coated parts - the simple joys of an insomniac - yet have to go into work at 0700.

But seriously, I take my time over a few weeks' worth of evenings to refinish a kit, and then once I'm ready, building the rifle usually only takes an hour to hour and a half, depending on any mishaps and whether I have the correct locking shoulder, etc.

FfH: Thanks for the encouragement! Got a couple more to do before I take a break to let the checkbook recover. Maybe a G1 and that R1 kit I have stashed away.

See Ya,