[LexKane]

Hello everyone! You all may remember my first set of questions about a month ago regarding the start-up of my Italian mg42/59 build and any possible conversions, and I appreciate all the responses I was given and help I recieved so much!

Well I'm back with round two of questions (which will hopefully help others who are working on the same thing as I from some of the posts I saw last time haha)!

So the welding I have a pretty good grasp on and am just waiting to get the cash put together to get the jig, so no worry there. However, I did have a burning question regarding the next big thing after welding and that is the rivets.. how have folks gone about getting the rivets taken care of in y'alls builds before?
I'm thinking of making a custom bucking tool to fit inside the rail on one end to push against the rivet and on the outside of the opposite rail so when I flip it around it won't damage the rail I just put in, kind of like a blocky Y or V style. Does this sound like it may work to those who have previous experience with these old style rivets?

Second question is the bluing after the weld and attachments have been put on (like the rails on the inside). Is it just a standard bluing like you'd do to a rifle barrel for an everyday hunting rifle? Or is there a special coloring you do to the metal that I'll have to look into? And yeah, I have heard I'll need to sand it all down, I just hope the air sander my school has is large enough to fit it in haha.

Looking forward to the aid y'all will give! And to clear things up ahead of time I unfortunately am unable to go to Weapons Guild Forum as I guess they have certain servers blocked or something so I have to try VPN or something to create an account? Idk but it's a few hoops I have to jump through so I haven't been able to get to it yet.

 

[Abominog]

The 42/59 is phosphated not blued.

WG has multiple tutorials on mg42 builds, so you should contact the admin to gain entry.

 

[LexKane]

The 42/59 is phosphated not blued.

WG has multiple tutorials on mg42 builds, so you should contact the admin to gain entry.

Yeah, I'll try and contact them again, last time I did they said it had something to do with me trying to do it on my phone (didn't have wifi for my computer at the time so couldn't use that).

 

[joshs1ofakindxj]

For the bucking tool inside the receiver to back up the rivets you get a 3/8” coupling but and two short bolts. Grind or machine the bolt heads to fit in the rails and press on the rivets. Use a ball nose end mill to put a dome into the bolt heads for supporting the existing rivet head before you start.

 

[LexKane]

For the bucking tool inside the receiver to back up the rivets you get a 3/8” coupling but and two short bolts. Grind or machine the bolt heads to fit in the rails and press on the rivets. Use a ball nose end mill to put a dome into the bolt heads for supporting the existing rivet head before you start.

Do you mind if I msg you about those tools specifically so I know what to look for? Unfortunately rivets aren't something covered in my studies since we aren't dealing with them much so the tools are something I'll have to find on my own.

 

[wangchung]

 

[50Cal Indian]

Do you mind if I msg you about those tools specifically so I know what to look for? Unfortunately rivets aren't something covered in my studies since we aren't dealing with them much so the tools are something I'll have to find on my own.

Wrote this before @wangchung, didn't hit post🤦‍♂️ but he is on it.

You really need to get on WG for inspiration on different builds. What Josh is describing is very simple. Googled "bolt coupling nut" image to follow. Add the correct length bolts to fit inside your receiver and adjust out until snug(don't jack your rails apart). If you want to get fancy, you could use a turnbuckle and left hand bolt on one side, but that would over complicate a simple solution.

As far as the bolt heads, make them smooth and add a recess in the center to match your rivet head profile. This can be done with the ball end mill, or you can round a drill bit tip to match. Picture included. It will serve you well in the future, to master the art of grinding/ sharpening tooling. Some trial and error should be expected. When you drill start small and shallow. Be sure to use a small pilot hole or you'll get a triangle shape. My use for this technique was the opposite end of the bolt, but included picture so you could see the results. You want just enough depth to fully support the rivet head, but not touch the receiver or in your case rail. Otherwise you may end up with a halo or tool marks around the rivet. If you do go to deep just remove some material from the top of the bolt.

BTW I'm not sure how using your phone keeps you from registering on WG. I Primarily use my phone. I do know there were some recent issues with VPN's that were not really VPN. Also certain emails were banned, I think Hotmail, or something. I'm sure someone else will follow up, as many members are on both sites.

Good luck and I hope this is helpful.

 

[LexKane]

BTW I'm not sure how using your phone keeps you from registering on WG. I Primarily use my phone. I do know there were some recent issues with VPN's that were not really VPN. Also certain emails were banned, I think Hotmail, or something. I'm sure someone else will follow up, as many members are on both sites.

Good luck and I hope this is helpful.

Thanks for the info! Definitely going to focus on all this help when I am working on it haha.

As for WG I'm not sure either.. when I go to their site I get hot with an instant block, and I'm not sure why.. when I went and emailed an admin about it he said it had something to do with my phone and I should go and use a computer instead.

 

[joshs1ofakindxj]

Do you mind if I msg you about those tools specifically so I know what to look for? Unfortunately rivets aren't something covered in my studies since we aren't dealing with them much so the tools are something I'll have to find on my own.

Not much more I can share. I'm about to build my 42/59, and I just grabbed a coupling nut and some bolts to make the tool as described. If I get around to it soon I will share pictures of it.

Don't overthink the rivets. Riveting is simple and easy, the only hard part I've found is making them look pretty. I usually cheat and carefully sand the heads to make them look better if they don't look perfect. But you can easily drill them out and try again too. Just go slow and you will figure them out.

 

[jamesm7552]

I was too late to buy a parts kits and will wait until there are more kits available,yes I thought about it too long

 

[Pvt.Joker]

I was too late to buy a parts kits and will wait until there are more kits available,yes I thought about it too long

I know Bob Bowman had posted that there was a second batch coming in a while back for a total of 300 kits imported, but I am not 100% sure if all those are spoken for yet or not. He also mentioned that he had another 100 bare receivers he had made a deal on, but that his supplier in Europe and another one he knew there had sold all their remaining ones to Ukraine at more than double what these went for, so the Beretta MG-42/59 kits may be dried up for some time- or maybe longer? Your best bet would be to email his sales guy, JP at [email protected] and ask him to be put on the list if any others come available.

 

[Pvt.Joker]

And to Lekane, I am in a similar place with my own kit. One thing that might be of help- as these are parked (not blued) there is still a potential issue about the welds showing as different colors than the surrounding metal. I did some research on it and ran across a product for welding rod called Tarten G TIG rod. Not easy to find and I had to buy a decent sized batch of it to be able to get it, but one of its many nice features is (from what the manufacturer claims and from what I have read about it) it is supposed to take bluing (and one would presume, parkerizing) to blend in with the surrounding metal. I have NOT had a chance to use it yet, but it is in my plans for both welding up and parkerizing the Beretta MG-42/59 and for building and then rust bluing my SBR'd Steyr-Solothun MP-34 project once the fire control group from FreedomMachine over on WG gets made and then modified. I can see about finding a link for you if you like, but again this comes with the cavet that I have not personally used it yet to claim it works as advertised or not.

 

[LexKane]

And to Lekane, I am in a similar place with my own kit. One thing that might be of help- as these are parked (not blued) there is still a potential issue about the welds showing as different colors than the surrounding metal. I did some research on it and ran across a product for welding rod called Tarten G TIG rod. Not easy to find and I had to buy a decent sized batch of it to be able to get it, but one of its many nice features is (from what the manufacturer claims and from what I have read about it) it is supposed to take bluing (and one would presume, parkerizing) to blend in with the surrounding metal. I have NOT had a chance to use it yet, but it is in my plans for both welding up and parkerizing the Beretta MG-42/59 and for building and then rust bluing my SBR'd Steyr-Solothun MP-34 project once the fire control group from FreedomMachine over on WG gets made and then modified. I can see about finding a link for you if you like, but again this comes with the cavet that I have not personally used it yet to claim it works as advertised or not.

I would like a link to that! Thank you! I hadn't even considered that the coloring might come out different.. that would have been embarrassing haha.

 

[Pvt.Joker]

I would like a link to that! Thank you! I hadn't even considered that the coloring might come out different.. that would have been embarrassing haha.

You're welcome. The link to the company is Tartan TIG Alloy - Rockmount Research and Alloys for the product in question. If you decide you are interested in trying it but don't want to drop the money on a minimum order size, let me know and maybe I can get you a small stick or two of it to try and see how you like it? Again; I have NOT tried it myself since getting it so I make no promises or endorsements one way or the other. But from the recommendations I read about it and the spec sheet on it, it sure SEEMS like it would be a great option for working on anything gun-wise that might need bluing or parkerizing.