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Well guys I finally did it - I found a ready source (in fact several ready sources) of accurate pipe or tube for Sterling receiver tubes for E-11 builds! The whole problem seems to be that we've been looking for the wrong thing. We've all been using or shopping for PVC tube (possibly as a legacy of the BBC plans) which only comes in a 40mm OD. For those who don't want to use metal pipe, because (like me) they live in a country in which this could cause legal issues or because (like me) they have no metal working skills, having an accurate pipe but in plastic, is a god send. We should have been looking for polycarbonate tube or butyrate tube which comes in, not only a 1.5" (38.1mm) OD but also has the accurate wall thickness of 1/16". This means the outside diameter, inside diameter and wall thickness all match the original sterling receiver tube perfectly! No need for any more inaccurate 40mm pipe builds! Here is a link for the polycarbonate tube: http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=27235&catid=841 And the butyrate tubes: http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=35305&catid=704 And for anyone just looking for a quick order of a small amount willing to pay just a tiny bit more it's even available on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000OMHJGW/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_3?pf_rd_p=1278548962&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000OMHI0E&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1D1CHZ8Z7TY4SBVWS6FB It's slightly tougher to drill or cut than PVC pipe but is also much tougher and crack resistant in the long run. It's also available at many other suppliers - just google it. With this info in hand there's really no reason why we should even need the 40mm templates anymore since it was just a default choice anyway. Having made the tube templates recently I can safely say that this tiny 1.9mm difference in OD does actually make a big difference in accuracy once you spread the receiver details out across the new circumference. So what are you waiting for? Get ordering!
