Gil,
I agree with Joe about not shortening the firing pins. A late gunsmith friend told me many years ago that gun parts never get larger by wear...You might benefit by polishing any rough areas off the point, it should be round and smooth. I found from experience that it is folly to dimension firing pins so they stop hard by the receiver with the correct amount of protrusion. If it is not stopped by the primer, too much inertia is robbed by the receiver stopping it. As far as hardening, there are some steels that don't require it; but when required I try to harden so the front is spring hard and the rear chisel hard( to prevent mushrooming). You have to carefully watch the color run from the thick rear part to the smaller point, when "drawing" it. In other words so the point is blue and the rear is still "straw". Also, the strikers must not be too much smaller than the hole.
Mike
Last edited by Der Ami; 03/26/21 04:43 PM.
