16ga.com ~ View topic - New to forum-quick question

Joined: 20 Mar 2008 Posts: 18 Location: washington

Hey all, I recently acquired a 1954 remington 870 16 gauge. This gun has a 28" barrel and a modified choke. Honestly, it has evidence that its had a quite a few rounds through it, but overall it appears to be in good condition. The bore looks great and it throws some old spent 16 gauge cases I've found smartly away from the gun. Which leads me to my question. Do you all really send your newly bought old guns to a gunsmith to have them check out? By the sounds of it, 870's are relatively safe, and from what I've seen of guns in pawn shops, mine is in better shape for it's age. I've yet to to shoot the thing, and I'm debating whether or not I should take it to the gunsmith.

I'll try to figure out how to upload a pic of it.

Joined: 20 Mar 2008 Posts: 18 Location: washington

Heres a couple pics

Member Joined: 25 Jul 2006 Posts: 781

No I don't. But I'm a risk taker.

I also cut the labels off my pillows that say "do not remove this tag".

Jeff

Damn right, I take every "new old" gun to my gunsmith! He is an expert and for a nominal fee, he will check the gun "from stem to stern"...

All you have to do to be convinced of the correctness of this approach is go to any good law school bookstore and purchase any lawbook on "torts" and review a few horrifying cases. The number of cases over the years of people being injured by accidents from unseen "latent defects" in firearms is sobering! As with any inherently hazardous product, defects that are hidden to the layman, in many cases, can be readily ascertained by a professional. The extra insurance to your personal health and safety obtained by a gunsmith review is certainly worth a few dollars.

Plus, from a contract standpoint, review ensures that you got "the benefit of your bargain" and purchased a firearm in good, safe working order. If there are problems, you can return your purchase for a refund or haggle over the price in view of any repair costs of latent defects.

Remember...your gunsmith (and if necessary, your lawyer!) are your FRIENDS!

OSL

I have to admit I never have, but I'm not saying you shouldn't. Most of what I've bought have been doubles, and and you can get a pretty good idea from the overall condition of the gun whether it's been abused or altered; weigh the barrels, measure the thickness, etc.

If I was buying a mechanical-action shotgun I might, but then I have bought a couple of lever-action rifles and I didn't have them checked out either.

Jeff, I hope the Pillow Police never find out; I don't think I'd be admitting to that on an open forum Shocked

!

Welcome to the board Silverslayer.

Personally, my views and actions regarding "new" old guns have been more aligned with Jeff's comments rather than OSL's. However, this past duck season has opened my eyes. A friend of mine loaned his old 870 backup gun to a fellow waterfowler when his BPS malfunctioned. The backup was acquired second hand after having seen years of use. The 870's barrel split wide open just distal to the magazine on the barrower's second shot at incoming ducks. The barrower of the gun was alone at the time (thankfully, since nobody else was put at risk of injury). I suspected operator error, most likely a barrel obstruction. The barrower insists his first shot cleared the barrel and he did nothing wrong. Instead, the barrower believes it was a combination of a deficiency in the barrel construction and the high velocity ammo he was using that caused the failure. Nobody knows for sure. But now I agree with OSL, because a qualified gunsmith may have detected a problem in that barrel had a problem existed. As always, better safe than sorry.

Another thought that crosses my mind when I purchase a "new" old gun is..."Will my wife or kids ever use this gun?". Since hunting and shooting for us is a family activity, it is likely that I am not the only one using the guns. With that in mind, I visit my friendly gunsmith so he may inspect my new acquistions. Best of luck with your "new" 16 gauge.

BTW, I would love to post a pic of the 870 with the split barrel (it looks like something from a Bugs Bunny / Elmer Fudd cartoon) but I can't seem to make the whole Image function work. I have tried loading from both Photobucket and Picasa without success. Any suggestions from other posters would be appreciated.

Cheers,
Chris

Member Joined: 25 Jul 2006 Posts: 781

Chris, email the picture to me and I'll post it.

jeff_mulliken@hotmail.com

BTW, splits right in front of the chamber are rare as hens teeth.

Regarding "qualified gunsmiths", how many of us have ever seen a "smith" use a wall thickness gauge? I know hobbyists that are better versed in properly vetting a gun than most of the "smiths" I have ever met.

There are some great smiths out there but you if you want to use smith to check your guns then you better check your smith.

Jeff

Good point, Jeff. You have to "vet" your smith before you trust them with any really ticklish work...especially true when they are passing on the condition of a used firearm for you. Mine is a true expert and he carefully checks wall thickness among other things and gives me a full report on the condition of the gun.

You would be truly surprised how many barrel problems on guns have led to crippling injuries and death. It is a more common problem than most shooters think. Now that does not mean a defective firearm is always to blame. Operator error such as shooting overpowered ammo for gun proof, barrel obstruction and the like certainly is an issue. But a significant portion of firearm accidents happen due to problems with the firearm itself. It only takes ONE of these incidents to ruin-or even end- your life.

No sir, safety is paramount with gun operation and handling. I intend to keep both my hands and eyes until the Lord calls me home and they "lay me down and roll me out to sea" thank you very much! Wink

OSL

I agree that finding and vetting a gunsmith is paramount to determining whether he/she is qualified. It literally took me years to find the gentleman I now send my guns to. I trust his opinions and covet his skills. The only problem is that my trusted gunsmith is older than Methuselah and I dread the day he retires. It seems the "qualified" smiths are getting harder and harder to find. Hmm, maybe I should see if is too late for him to take on an apprentice.

Jeff - I emailed you the picture of the blown barrel. Thanks for the assist.

Chris

You know Kirk, I find myself in a similar position. My smith is only in his early 60s, but if he retires, I'll probably never find one as good again. I've thought about taking a couple years off and working in his shop as an assistant for free, just to try and learn some of what he knows.

But there were several good reasons the law called to me as a profession, and among them is the fact that mechanically, I am "all thumbs"! You would not really want me working on your gun! I don't want me working on MY gun! Laughing

Member Joined: 25 Jul 2006 Posts: 781

Dang! Glad I was not there. This barrel did not split, it popped!

So much for the saying that a bad day hunting is better than a good day at work.

Jeff

Pictured above (playing the role of Elmer Fudd) is my neighbor and barrower of the doomed shotgun. Miraculosly no one was injured. As luck would have it, the hunter sharing the duck blind with my neighbor that morning left the blind minutes earlier to take his Chessie for a walk. I was hunting from another blind on the same bay and heard the shot that blew the barrel. I recall the shot because it sounded so strange, and there was very little shooting going on that bluebird day. I had no idea what had happened until we met up later that day at the boat launch.

Thanks for posting the picture Jeff.

GOOD LORD!!

What a picture! Glad to hear that there was no serious injury here...

Just proves again...you can't be too careful!

Member Joined: 27 Jun 2005 Posts: 1545 Location: Michigan

It sure looks to me, like some kind of obstruction, had to have caused that type of burst.

Guest