Dealing with bushing plugs

[fishhawk]

There have been a few posts lately about stuck bushings in the plugs I have modified. Here's my methods and tools for dealing with them. First, I believe that Luke states with the plugs he sells to coat the hole in the plug, the outside of the bushing, and the lock ring with anti-seize. I know that a bushing can still get tight using anti-seize, but it shouldn't hurt to use. Use a 5/32" (.156") drill bit from the primer side and clean the carbon out down to the bushing. The hole in a Savage plug and PA Pete's plugs is .161" so you won't be hitting metal until you reach the bushing. Then I remove the lock ring with a 5/32" allen wrench. Stand the plug on a piece of hard wood, primer end up. Using a heavy hammer and a 5/32" straight side drift, drive the bushing out until it contacts the wood. Once it's this far out, it should come the rest of the way fairly easy. Since most of the carbon was cleaned out from the primer side, little or no carbon should be impacted in the bushings hole. Clean and reassemble with anti-seize. If the hole is blocked with carbon, it can be very impacted. I use carburetor jet drills in a pin vice to slowly drill the carbon out. These bits are tiny so you have to go slow to not break them. Below is sources for the tools I use. You should be able to paste the description between the parentheses into the search of EBay and Amazon to got directly to them.
5/32" drift Amazon (KD Tool 33130) $14 shipped
Jet drill set with pin vice EBay (21pc Micro Drill Bit Set) $7.25 free shipping
For checking ventliner and bushing sizes.
Gage pin set EBay (.011-.060 Steel Plug Pin Gage Set) $21 shipped
If the bushing won't move, soak it in Kroil, or some sort of carbon dissolver. If that doesn't work, heat it up a little with a propane torch. If it's still stuck send it to me. Really until you need to change or turn over the bushing, I see no great reason to remove it.

[Deleted]

Great informative and detailed post! Thanks

[cowhunter]

Great information, but I won't use it. I'm just going to use the plug until it stops working. That should be in about 2034, by which time I can afford a new one.

[fishhawk]

Cowhunter, since you tried to drive it out, the bushing may be packed tight with carbon. You might have to drill it out or see if a primer shoots it out.