Hello Fellow Smiths!
Just took in an original 1859 Sharps four-barrel pepperbox with a broken hammer spring. I’ve heard that these little buggers are hard on springs in that area, and I’m attempting my first ever, “make from scratch” spring. I’ve already carved out the initial length and shape from Brownells spring stock. the spring is shaped just like the replica shown on pg. 947 in your #35 Numrich Vol. 2 catalog. How do you make the proper bends in the right area? Like, not bending top bend too short, or long, as well as getting the proper curve to the initial shape? It appears to me, that the whole length was curved first, then the top 90 degree bend (roughly), was bent after. Any help at this time would be greatly appreciated.
i have to say that spring making is sometimes an art form. Curving and then bending sounds reasonable, but be prepared to try several times before getting it right. Beyond that, is this going to be a shooter (kinda doubt it)? If so, tempering/annealing will be required, if not you may be able to skip that step. Jeff
Answer
Anneal the stock first. Without that spring steel doesn’t want to be bent; it will spring back. Then bend, form, drill, stretch, or whatever to get the piece into final shape. Even install it to make sure it is correct. Then heat and quench to harden. Polish to white and temper to blue. It requires some practice but not that hard. -TL
Question Follow Up
Thank You to Jeff and TL, for the input. The stock is annealed from Brownells. No, I do not believe it will be a shooter, Customer just wants function for a collector piece. My biggest issue is how to determine proper bend locations to not end up with less material on the working end by the hammer. It makes sense to me to always make longer, and then you could file down to proper length, to cover your butt. I’m sure the factory had a jig that would bend precisely as needed. I’m starting from scratch, with the original spring in two pieces, made measurements for roughing out the shape, began filing, sanding out to closely match original, and now preparing for both bends. 1st the initial curve to the whole spring, which is the easy part, but to get the right bend, ending up with the needed amount of material for the top near 90 degree bend by the hammer, how to determine where to bend as not to short myself of material. Doesn’t the end tend to pull down, or shrink as you make the bend? I did make these a little on the long side, I’m just hoping I get it right the first time. If I end up short, start over, I guess. If long, file down to fit. DW
Answer
You can heat it red and bend it as well if need to get a more precise bend to the material. Bend it as you need but leave extra material on the top and on the bottom of the spring. Once it is shaped pretty well you can lay out the original parts and trim the ends to the correct length. If you did not have the original I would recommend the same practice. Leave it oversized and trim to length as you go. Ken
