Fuxineering My Vulcan 0.22 from Talon Tunes

Thanks to the old timers here, I am starting to get my recently arrived Vulcan 0.22 from Tony readied for use.
My apologies if I don’t credit people correctly. Still trying to learn who is who.

Mine is a 2015 June production with an odd configuration of features. It has the multi part baffle shroud like the new guns, but lacked a depinger on its hammer spring, had the old style two hole HST adjuster like the older production, but like the current guns came with no hard case.

First order of business was getting its safety to actually engage. It would only partially engage and if one pulled the trigger a little harder, the blade would slip past safety and fire the gun. Turns out the trigger blade didn’t leave enough clearance for the safety plate to slide between it and the frame. The safety was just barely engaging the trigger blade and would refuse to slide further back. It was working more like a sear than a safety. Adjusting the linkage rod tension got a bit more clearance and after running the safety back and forth it now actually engages. Currently, the safety is stiff, but I put a tiny dab of moly grease and it is gradually working looser. I guess I could grind the safety plate thinner, but that means taking apart more stuff that I want to do.

Next, I turned to Hoot’s shroud vent mod. On my particular shroud, the front cap was easy to unscrew with a lens wrench.
The rear cap wouldn’t budge, so I did all the work only from the front and didn’t try removing the back flow baffle (rearmost element)

Here we see all five baffles, their intervening O-rings and the front cap

While I had things apart, I grabbed a few measurements. The baffle opening is 0.243.
The front cap opening measured 0.258
Given that a 0.30 wouldn’t fit, I’m guess the baffles and cap different for the bigger caliber version.
Then again, we see SniperQTY happily swapping barrels of different calibers on U-Tube.
Don’t know if he also swaps the shrouds.

Shroud outer diameter = 1.130
Shroud inner diameter = 1.116

I used Donny’s tape method to protect the shroud and allow easy marking of the desired hold locations.

An auto punch makes easy, accurately divots in the aluminum tubing. If you are still using an old style center punch,
do yourself a favor and get an auto punch. I kick myself for not getting one years ago.
Mine is a Lisle 30280 Automatic Center Punch. Works great.

A few minutes at the drill press and 1.0 mm holes were done.

UPDATE/ my shroud’s rear holes are now 1.0 mm and forward baffle holes 1.5 mm /UPDATE

TIP: since this is only aluminum, use 90% isopropyl alcohol to lubricate and cool the bit instead of cutting oil.
Cleanup is a LOT easier without oily residue.
(That would be the high concentration stuff, not regular rubbing alcohol)

Deburring the inside of the drill holes was done with a piece of all thread.
I taped most of the rod to limit what portions were sharp. A few passes and
all the burrs were gone. The baffles slipped easily back into place.

Finally, the vented shroud ready to install. I used an O-ring like Hoot said to secure the shroud in the desired spin.
You can’t even see the vent hols with the shroud spun to position
the holes between the shroud and barrel.

Muzzle report was now much quieter than the hammer slap and ping. Hmmmmm. was it possible that my new Vulcan didn’t have a factory de-pinger?
The lack of a hard case suggested it was a later gun, but the old style HST adjuster made me suspicious.
Opened up the access panel and sure enough —— no de-pinger at all.

Since I had to take it all apart, I went ahead and polished the hammer. Took just a few minutes with a dremel, felt wheel, and all metal polish.

Tried ONE grommet in the position that the factory places their de-pinger.

BTW, nobody quite explains how to get the whole assembly back into position.
You can’t push the spring and grommets through the adjuster hole.
Compressing the spring and hammer all together and squeezing
everything in from the side threatens to bend the hammer spring.

Here is how I did it without stressing the spring or scratching up the hammer.

1. Detach the cocking spring
2. Put the hammer, brass guide, and grommets together WITHOUT the hammer spring.
3. Insert the hammer assembly
4. Push the hammer spring in from the back. When you have enough pressure, the
grommets pop onto the spring. Then you simply spin and ease the grommets into position.
5. Reattach cocking spring
6. Insert HST adjusting plug.

Still pinged too loudly for me with one grommet, so back apart it went and I put on a second grommet.

Two grommets made the ping a bit softer. The hammer slap is now the loudest noise. Overall, the noise level has gone from loud as my Benjamin NP2 to about half as loud.
Mind, you, it is far from silent, but it is a significant improvement from how the gun arrived and worth the effort.
A delrin spring guide may be in my future.

EDIT: I have since gone to one grommet and a rubber cap over the brass bushing. See later in this thread.

Thanks all again for the info on this forum.

Guy