Morning
There have been a few threads on this subject with various suggestions of how folk do this. Some seem very cunning and sophisticated and others more matter of fact. I'm on my travels and am taking a different combination of guns so I need a new insert. With this in mind I though I'd document how I do it.
The case is a Peli and there are three layers of foam; the bottom and the top bits are just slabs. The middle bit in the one that gets the treatment. I buy my foam from efoam.co.uk via their website. This piece was 1068mm x 340mm x 48mm and cost £15.93 delivered - which is pretty good. The process is pretty straightforward. Position the guns and any accessories on the foam and, if necessary, prop up with a cocktail sticks to make sure that they lay correctly and don't roll. Then, take a couple of hundred cocktail sticks and map around the guns. When doing this I try (albeit rather crudely by eye) to get about a 5 degree cant on the sticks as this allows for a little cutting error but, more importantly, creates a really snug fit.
Carefully remove all the guns and bits (note to self - cocktail sticks are sharp at both ends and delight in ramming themselves up your fingernails!). Take a marker pen and draw between the cocktail stick and remove them as you go. When all removed just fill in any gaps. The foam is quite abrasive so have two pens as the tip will degrade.
Once marked out the cutting can begin. For this I use a B&D workmate, a boning knife and a small block of timber. I open the jaws of the workmate about 6" which provides both really good support and is a smooth surface. The knife also drops nicely through the gap in the jaws. Place the block of timber on the foam and use this as a vertical guide to helpy ou get a cut as close to vertical as possible. Some bits are best done freehand (curves etc) but for barrel lengths and straight line cuts it's really helpful having the guide.
You'll note the marker pen lines are quite thick so I always cut to the inside edge as too much foam will distort but too little won't grow.
Finally, with the piece that you cut out for the bolt, cut it to be about 2/3 the thickness of the foam slab and push it back into the slot - this will then sit the bolt to an accessible place. It's also worth noting that if possible orientate the guns so that the serial number can be read without removing them from the foam - just makes things easier.
There have been a few threads on this subject with various suggestions of how folk do this. Some seem very cunning and sophisticated and others more matter of fact. I'm on my travels and am taking a different combination of guns so I need a new insert. With this in mind I though I'd document how I do it.
The case is a Peli and there are three layers of foam; the bottom and the top bits are just slabs. The middle bit in the one that gets the treatment. I buy my foam from efoam.co.uk via their website. This piece was 1068mm x 340mm x 48mm and cost £15.93 delivered - which is pretty good. The process is pretty straightforward. Position the guns and any accessories on the foam and, if necessary, prop up with a cocktail sticks to make sure that they lay correctly and don't roll. Then, take a couple of hundred cocktail sticks and map around the guns. When doing this I try (albeit rather crudely by eye) to get about a 5 degree cant on the sticks as this allows for a little cutting error but, more importantly, creates a really snug fit.
Carefully remove all the guns and bits (note to self - cocktail sticks are sharp at both ends and delight in ramming themselves up your fingernails!). Take a marker pen and draw between the cocktail stick and remove them as you go. When all removed just fill in any gaps. The foam is quite abrasive so have two pens as the tip will degrade.
Once marked out the cutting can begin. For this I use a B&D workmate, a boning knife and a small block of timber. I open the jaws of the workmate about 6" which provides both really good support and is a smooth surface. The knife also drops nicely through the gap in the jaws. Place the block of timber on the foam and use this as a vertical guide to helpy ou get a cut as close to vertical as possible. Some bits are best done freehand (curves etc) but for barrel lengths and straight line cuts it's really helpful having the guide.
You'll note the marker pen lines are quite thick so I always cut to the inside edge as too much foam will distort but too little won't grow.
Finally, with the piece that you cut out for the bolt, cut it to be about 2/3 the thickness of the foam slab and push it back into the slot - this will then sit the bolt to an accessible place. It's also worth noting that if possible orientate the guns so that the serial number can be read without removing them from the foam - just makes things easier.
