Janssen Sons Shotgun

H

Hardcase

New member
Hey, cowboy guys, I posted this over at Gunboards, but maybe you folks will have some suggestions.

I've got a Janssen, Sons & Co. side by side, external hammer 12ga shotgun that was my dad's first shotgun just after WWII. It was used when he got it, so I imagine that some North Dakota farmer bought it new around 1900 or so for something like nine or ten bucks. I'm pretty sure that it was one of those gazillion or so Belgian shotguns that came across the pond around 1900 - well, it's definitely got Belgian proof marks.

It's a laminated barrel gun and I know the issues that surround that. However, I took the barrel down to one of the auto performance shops here in town and had them magnaflux it. The found no problems and didn't even charge me...they'd never done a gun barrel before and thought that was kind of a cool thing.

So the barrel has no obvious damage, it locks up fairly tight, has all its parts and is is good shape for a 100 year old budget shotgun. I suppose that the next trip should be to the gunsmith to have him check the visible stuff. See, I'd like to shoot the gun, not regularly, but just now and then, for fun, assuming that the gunsmith finds no problems. Which leads me to my big question: It's proofed for black powder, so where do I get paper hulled black powder shells? I don't want to load my own - I'm not interested in shooting it that much! What are my options?
 
Correct, they are 2 1/2 inches. I visited the gunsmith yesterday evening and he said that if the magnaflux showed no problems, it was good to shoot with black powder only.

Thanks for the help.
 
I'd also suggest these gentlemen:

http://www.gadcustomcartridges.com/

I've dealt with them in the past and he is quite helpful and friendly.

The other option that I suggest if you are going to shoot it often, is to purchase your own brass cases and components and load them yourself. It is much cheaper and it isn't rocket science (but getting a load you like and your gun likes can be if you put the time in on it! ;)).

The brass hulls are much better for black because black powder will melt the plastic hulls in just a couple of firings, also you can't wash any plastic hull that has a paper base wad, and paper hulls only last 2-3 firings before tiny holes are burned through the side of the case. I think it is nearly impossible to wear out a brass hull used for black powder, unless you allow it to corrode, step on it or just damage it through careless handling.

Get the brass hulls and be happy.
 
Wow, Bernold was a little grumpy this morning, but we worked out a 2.5", 7.5 shot black powder load. I ordered a couple of boxes from him, so we'll see how it works out.

Actually, he sounds like some kind of character :D Thanks for the suggestion!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top