In Part I I started work on the illuminated front sight post. Here I get to hacking.
The part of this build that takes the most work is the handguard. I started with a Sig MCX 12.5" handguard brought my Dremel friend to the party and got after it.
One of the challenges on these one-of-a-kind prototype projects is that I don't know what I need to cut, until I start cutting. Since I don't have the time or skill to do full 3D modeling of each piece, I need to make a couple cuts see how it works, make a few more cuts, and repeat.
For example, I didn't know how much of the left side of the handguard I needed to remove to allow the cylinder to open until I'd cut the handguard enough to get the revolver in it's general position.
So, I use tape to mark the first couple cuts and then slowly cut more to get the handguard and revolver into place.
You can see below a rough fit of the revolver after the first couple rounds of cutting the handguard.
A couple things to notice:
My plan is to connect the red dot mount to the top section of the rail, so I need the handguard to sit that far back on the gun, but not so far back that the barrel sticks out the front of the barrel.
I want to leave as much of the handguard as possible on the left side, but need to make space for the cylinder for open. So, once the top of the handguard is near the front of where the red dot mount will sit, I'll start cutting the left side to make room for the cylinder's swing.
I need to attach the front of the handguard to the Weigand no-drill rail mount that sits in the front sight groove.
My plan is to grind down the last notch of the picatinny rail and then the underside of the EGW red dot mount so that the rail slides underneath the mount. Below you can see the rough grinding down of the rail and how it will meet up with the mount.
Finally, the holes and bolts used to connect the handguard to the front sight rail mount. Not bad for doing free hand with a drill.
After a couple evenings of work, here's the progress I've made on this space gat. Lot's still to do, but it's a good start.
Note - the original plan was to cut the top of the rail off and add a piece of carbon fiber in it's place. This would allow the rail to sit lower on the gun and increase the space below the barrel for an attachment. That is no longer the plan.
I'm now planning to leave the top rail in place, attach it on the rear to the red dot mount, and put the Micro Scout Light that I wanted inside the handguard on the outside. More to come on this, but I think it's a good choice.