0 grade Rib Relay
 

Well I started my first relay job gun had a loose top rib so I will give it a try. Did the P Brothers fill the void between top and bottom rib with a type of putty before soldering ? When I removed the rib this was packed in between the two. My bottom rib is tight should I remove and redo also ? I dont see any spacers either . Does the bottom rib start and stop at forend lug and start again to the muzzle

Steve, Could you take a picture of the barrels before you relay the rib?

I will do that, I got ahead of myself I forgot to take a before picture,and when I was sanding in between the barrels I thought I should do the complete trip so I removed the twist pattern well I will have to use a little more solder block when I tin . Live & Learn beats sitting in the house and filling my gut with all the pre season junk .

Yes, the forend lug is a seperate piece with the bottom ribs forward and behind it being two individual pieces as well.

Barrel Putty
 

Thank you for that observation of the putty between the barrels. I have a heavy two frame barrel set and a three frame barrel set that are of identical weight. The individual barrels are the same diameter, but the three frame set makes up 1/8 inch plus wider, as it should. I calculated that the void volume between the 3 frame barrels would need 1/4 pound plus of solder to fill.
Your account of putty filling the void also supports the need for drilling a vent hole in the under rib when re bluing a barrel set.

Thank you, Austin

Steve,
The manufacturers did not fill the void between the tubes and ribs. The material in your barrels is most likely, old school flux. Early types of flux were quite fibrous and thick compared to modern types. I would not fill the void.
You will need to tin the top rib and prep the tubes, the solder should be applied to the rib. The heat required to set the top rib will certianly loosen the lug and other two ribs. It is important to support these areas to avoid a big mess.
If you are bluing barrels with rib leaks, we reccomend removing the keels rather than drilling holes. It will allow the moisture to escape.

Brad

Thanks All Any help is taken with joy.

Heres my first attempt at the rib relay... Ive been having alot of fun with this.

I don't see any jigs, wires, or spacers. Tell us exactly how you are going about this project. By the way, congratulations on your attitude about this job. I would not be "having a lot of fun".

Bill there was none there when I removed the top rib ( I dint remove any of the bottom) so If the ribs did the job for 100 + years I think it will go another. I removed my wires and stuff after soldering.