I get to see a fair amount of old guns, Chesapeake country is waterfowl country and lots of folks have their ancestor's shotguns in a closet someplace, even if they do not hunt, target shoot, or regard home invasion/civil unrest as much of a threat.
I've had everything from 8 Ga Parkers to 20 ga "Trapper" shotguns made from converted trapdoor Springfields trotted out for me to admire.Latest, I had the pleasure of telling a good friend that the "rabbit gun" he used in the long gone days of his youth was a W&C Scott game gun worth, probably, 4 figures.
Mostly, tho, the guns tend to run towards hardware store utility guns, field grade versions from good makers like the Sterlingworth Fox, or the occasional jewel, like a minty Baker or LC Smith.
And every now and then the urge strikes to take Great Uncle Zeb's Long Tom off the rack and go shoot it a bit. It's natural, we like to shoot and it's right there, but let's think about this a little....
First, maybe a century has passed since that thing left Connecticut, and ammo has changed some. Maintenance may have been spotty in the years between Zeb and us, and maybe it sat in a barn with a mud dauber nest in it for a decade of so.Maybe the nest is still in there.
And even without the Damascus/twist bbl steel problem, that cast iron frame and mild steel bbls may have lost some strength in the interim. It also might be chambered for a shorter cartridge than we use, lots of 2 1/2 and 2 9/16" chambers are still out there,and some folks still apply for a spot on the Darwin awards by dropping in a modern 2 3/4 or 3" load and in effect, hold a grenade up in front of their faces and pull the pin.
So how do we go about this?
Get it to a gunsmith you trust and have him go over it. While it's there, it's a good idea to have him clean and lube the internals, before you (or I) bung up the screw slots or lose a part.The question to be asked is:
"Is this safe to fire with modern ammo, and if so, WHICH modern ammo?".
He should check for those short chambers,headspace,locking on face, corrosion, bbls dings and dents, pitting serious enough to compromise strength, faulty lock parts, whether the safety functions, etc.Trigger pull weights and any slippage have to be checked also.
His answer will probably be,"No" and he gives a reason, or "Yes, but"....
A "No" answer is easy to deal with, if not accept. Hang it on the wall and admire it.
A "Yes, but" answer may get expensive. Perhaps the lockup isn't, and a bit of welding is needed to make things right. Or, those pesky chambers are short. Or,a dozen different but fixable things. At this point,we have to decide how much we want to shoot this heirloom.If it's reasonable, go for it.
So, Uncle Zeb's duck gun has now passed all tests,save one.
Before shooting it yourself, take it off to the woods, tie it to the spare tire from the car you're going to trade in soon anyway, load it up with the lightest load you have on hand(No steel,slugs, short mags or max loads) and fire it by pulling a string while behind something shrapnel resistant.
So it fires and it's supposed to and it's time to try it out. A few handthrown clays are a good start,and some small game hunting might be a nice way to spend a few hours.
Some caveats:
Even if the gun in question is a known brand and model like a Model 12 or the Remington 31, have it checked out by a pro. Things happen, and maybe your great grandpa was a trap shooting addict with a 500 round/week Jones.
Also,forcing cones in the old days had short tapers to build up some pressures with the old powders, and chokes tended to be extreme. This can mean some high pressure loads go redline. Wathc for pressure signs, and use light loads, the 1 oz light target loads are well nigh perfect.
And maybe as you slide through the hardwoods next fall with your eyes on the canopy and a pocket full of low brass 6's, the spirit of Uncle Zeb will look down from Heaven( or Valhalla) and smile to see his treasured old meat maker in use again...
I've had everything from 8 Ga Parkers to 20 ga "Trapper" shotguns made from converted trapdoor Springfields trotted out for me to admire.Latest, I had the pleasure of telling a good friend that the "rabbit gun" he used in the long gone days of his youth was a W&C Scott game gun worth, probably, 4 figures.
Mostly, tho, the guns tend to run towards hardware store utility guns, field grade versions from good makers like the Sterlingworth Fox, or the occasional jewel, like a minty Baker or LC Smith.
And every now and then the urge strikes to take Great Uncle Zeb's Long Tom off the rack and go shoot it a bit. It's natural, we like to shoot and it's right there, but let's think about this a little....
First, maybe a century has passed since that thing left Connecticut, and ammo has changed some. Maintenance may have been spotty in the years between Zeb and us, and maybe it sat in a barn with a mud dauber nest in it for a decade of so.Maybe the nest is still in there.
And even without the Damascus/twist bbl steel problem, that cast iron frame and mild steel bbls may have lost some strength in the interim. It also might be chambered for a shorter cartridge than we use, lots of 2 1/2 and 2 9/16" chambers are still out there,and some folks still apply for a spot on the Darwin awards by dropping in a modern 2 3/4 or 3" load and in effect, hold a grenade up in front of their faces and pull the pin.
So how do we go about this?
Get it to a gunsmith you trust and have him go over it. While it's there, it's a good idea to have him clean and lube the internals, before you (or I) bung up the screw slots or lose a part.The question to be asked is:
"Is this safe to fire with modern ammo, and if so, WHICH modern ammo?".
He should check for those short chambers,headspace,locking on face, corrosion, bbls dings and dents, pitting serious enough to compromise strength, faulty lock parts, whether the safety functions, etc.Trigger pull weights and any slippage have to be checked also.
His answer will probably be,"No" and he gives a reason, or "Yes, but"....
A "No" answer is easy to deal with, if not accept. Hang it on the wall and admire it.
A "Yes, but" answer may get expensive. Perhaps the lockup isn't, and a bit of welding is needed to make things right. Or, those pesky chambers are short. Or,a dozen different but fixable things. At this point,we have to decide how much we want to shoot this heirloom.If it's reasonable, go for it.
So, Uncle Zeb's duck gun has now passed all tests,save one.
Before shooting it yourself, take it off to the woods, tie it to the spare tire from the car you're going to trade in soon anyway, load it up with the lightest load you have on hand(No steel,slugs, short mags or max loads) and fire it by pulling a string while behind something shrapnel resistant.
So it fires and it's supposed to and it's time to try it out. A few handthrown clays are a good start,and some small game hunting might be a nice way to spend a few hours.
Some caveats:
Even if the gun in question is a known brand and model like a Model 12 or the Remington 31, have it checked out by a pro. Things happen, and maybe your great grandpa was a trap shooting addict with a 500 round/week Jones.
Also,forcing cones in the old days had short tapers to build up some pressures with the old powders, and chokes tended to be extreme. This can mean some high pressure loads go redline. Wathc for pressure signs, and use light loads, the 1 oz light target loads are well nigh perfect.
And maybe as you slide through the hardwoods next fall with your eyes on the canopy and a pocket full of low brass 6's, the spirit of Uncle Zeb will look down from Heaven( or Valhalla) and smile to see his treasured old meat maker in use again...