Preferred method to shorten hand guard?

[Les]

12.7" group barrel, Guntec 12" handguard that actually measures 12 1/8". Looks to need 1/4"-3/16" to allow can to fully screw down. Natural inclination is to use a bandsaw, really don't want to "bubba" this.

[pinetreebbs]

A milling machine. The picture below is an Armalite hand guard getting trimmed to fit a non Armalite upper, Bear Creek side charger.

BigBlueWorking.jpg

In this example it is the back end of the hand guard not the front, but the operation is the same.

[BCHunter]

I have not done it but , another member on here used a table top belt sander to shape his forearm

[Bigs28]

I would prefer to sell the hand guard and buy one that works

[Les]

I would prefer to sell the hand guard and buy one that works

That is an option being considered, just wished I known the real length beforehand. That's the whole reason I went with the 12.7" buy. I didn't like the look of the other upper with the previous 12" group buy barrel having to use a 10" handguard.

[Crusty]

I'm right there with you Les. It chaps my hiney that manufacturers can't give accurate measurements nor are they able to post sketches of a handguard's interior with typical clearance dimensions so that you can tell if it will fit over your particular gas block. I've even written for this information only to have them tell me that it's proprietary info and can't be shared. Fat jesus on a tricycle it's not rocket science.

If I can't know before I buy that a handguard will fit, I pass on by. More fish in the sea.

If I was doing this I might try 80 grit discs on my disc sander while paying particular attention to keeping the handguard against the table and square to the disc, with a bucket of water nearby for cooling. It'll take a while.

[ricsmall]

If you have a horizontal band saw that cuts straight, shouldn’t be a problem. If it doesn’t cut straight, then leave a little extra and clean it up with a 2” wide file. A better alternative is a machine shop with a cold cut chop saw. It’ll be straight and probably cost you $10.

BTW, if you’ve even thought about cutting it yourself, you’ve already Bubba’d it!! Lol.

[Tex Nomex]

Chop saw and hand sander. And beer. It's only money and it wasn't going to work anyway...

[Frontier Gear]

I chopped these with a cut off wheel on a cheap 4" angle grinder. Then I sanded them down with a table top belt grinder/sander. They actually turned out quite well.

Bubba'd? yep
Effective? yep

[Greyling]

The end mill is the best, but if you don't have many tools around, just use what you have. hack saw, band saw, chop saw, dremel tool with cutoff wheel..... aluminum isn't hard. Clean up with a belt sander if you have one, a file if you don't. Or even sand paper around a block of wood. debur the edges and sharpie or paint the cut end. Be bold! you can do it!