FACE-IT FACTS
To provide our customers with information to make an informed decision to choose our FACE-IT design; fully adjustable comb hardware on their gun versus the traditional designs on the market, we offer the following explanation.
For the past 35+ years, we have installed hundreds of adjustable combs for Trap, Skeet and Sporting Clays shooters.
The old version consisted of basically (2) 3/8” diameter vertically installed comb pins.
These comb pins would be made from high quality heat treated and hardened material that had to be harder than the cup point set screws that were used to tighten down on the posts in order to hold the comb in place, without scaring or marking up the pin, which would prevent it from sliding smoothly inside the upper collar hardware.
These vertical comb pins would be nickel or chrome plated or possibly blued to prevent them from rusting or being suseptabile to any other forms of corrosion.
The upper collar inserts that the comb pins slid inside of, contained a 10-32 thread diameter cup pointed set screw that tightened up against the comb pins.
The base material was made from regular grade steel or in some cases it was made from alloy aluminum.
There were two slots milled into the base to a sufficient depth to accept two 10-32 square or hex nuts and then two 10-32 machine screws were inserted thru the center of each of the comb pins as described above.
These pins were threaded into the two nuts (mentioned above) and tightened down with an Allen wrench to the desired location.
This design was and still is used to this day by all of the various installers with one exception.
We are this exception, and here in is the reason why we chose to make the change with the new FACE-IT design.
You might be thinking, why would anyone choose to improve upon something that was admittedly working fine?
Simply put, there was room for improvement as you will see from the comparison between the two designs.
A common question that we are asked by our customers is the weight comparison between the old-style steel version and our new FACE-IT aluminum alloy design.
The aluminum alloy is lighter in weight than the steel version, but it has proven to be, every bit as strong.
The shooter is unable to determine which material, the steel or aluminum, is used in their adjustable comb hardware.
In the case of the hardened and heat treated steel comb pins, the steel is stronger. So, what then, is the advantage of switching to the aluminum alloy version?
The advantage is, the new design does not require the use of hardened and heat treated steel because it utilizes a different holding or clamping design.
The old design incorporates the use of two set screws tightened up against the two vertical comb pins. The new FACE-IT design does not use this form of holding the comb in place.
So, what is the advantages of the new hold down design?
With the old design using the two cup point set screws, there is only 1/8” of total surface area (per set screw) contacting on each of the two comb pins when they are tightened down.
A significantly more amount of tightening force is required to securely hold the top comb in place because of the small contact surface area of these two set screws. This holding method has been known to loosen occasionally.
So, what is the benefit of the new FACE-IT design?
In the new FACE-IT design, there is no need for heat treating anything and two parts have been replaced by one part.
Instead of tightening down or clamping up against the comb pins, as with the old design, that have a very small contact surface area, the new FACE-IT design utilizes a round barrel nut with far more contact surface area, and therefore does not require anywhere near as much tightening. The clamping force needed to accomplish the same effect is not subject to any form of loosening because of the new designed barrel nut fastening system.
With the new FACE-IT design the barrel nut is pulled up against the comb post rather than being pushed down against the two comb pins by the two aforementioned 10-32 cup point set screws in the old design.
Another advantage with the new FACE-IT design is the fact that the single comb post assembly also has markedly more surface contact area when tightened down against the single base assembly with far less clamping pressure required to secure it in place.
Another FACE-IT design advantage is:
The new design uses Torx Plus style Allen hex machine screws. With the improved Torx Plus head design, it is almost impossible to strip these out.
With the Torx Plus Allen wrench design, the key is far less likely to get deformed. As mentioned above, far less tightening force is required to apply sufficient pressure to securely hold the top comb post and base in place.
Our top comb post and base unit utilize a series of milled in horizontal graduation lines, as well as, a center height adjustment screw used to accurately set your comb height in precisely the same position every time.
The new FACE-IT design eliminates the use of several different thickness plastic washers, that were used to set the comb height back in the same location after the comb had been removed.
The visual graduation lines that are milled into the base plate and comb post allow for precise return location placement.
The simplest way to record these settings is to take a photo with your cell phone for future reference or to jot down which graduation marks that you have your comb set on.
All of the aircraft aluminum 6061 T-6 alloy that we use is anodized and provides a life time of protection. This assures the comb hardware will stay looking new for life.
We offer three different color choices to choose from: Traditional Black, Silver or Gold.
This comb hardware is without question as strong as it needs to be; compared with the same steel components. We offer, with complete confidence, the same life time warranty on our new FACE-IT hardware.
We have tested and used this new FACE-IT design on various shotguns for years prior to its introduction, with no failures or any other issues.
We take the time to completely seal and refinish the undersides of the comb cuts to match with your existing stock finish. This is both beneficial and protective to your stock.
“Our design, quality and workmanship are second to none”.
As competitive shooters, we have an understanding of the shotgun sports that our customers participate in. As a result of this, we can provide them with what they need.
This explanation should aid you in making a more informed decision concerning your future adjustable comb installation choices.
Please review our website pages for photos of the adjustable comb hardware with the three distinctive color options available.
Do not hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns regarding the product and services that we provide.
We also do recoil pad installations to get the correct (LOP) length of pull and pitch for the perfect final fit.
Our contact information: twocruzn@icloud.com or (802) 417-9630
