doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com An ethical dilemma?

I personally can readily see why the original owner tried to salvage the action. When I first became really interested in single shots about 40 years ago, there wasn't any internet and all we had was Shotgun News. Single shots in my part of the country were usually J.C.Higgins bolt-action 22s and I could count the number of locally-owned walls on the fingers of one hand. Orphan wall parts were a pipe dream down here and finding a loose receiver (or even an action with a good receiver) would have been a major miracle. Now please don't misunderstand, I've never welded-back a cracked receiver but I HAVE welded-back a number of broken tangs, ground-off hammer safety notches, extra holes and broken-off forearm retainer flange corners, and will gladly continue to do so.

It appears that in this case there was no intent to deceive anyone. My reservations in this case are because he didn't POSITIVELY ID the receiver as being broken and welded back. It would be perfectly safe with the 22RF or any other RF for that matter but the breakage & weld-back incident needs to be made plain to any future owner.

Nowadays a fairly good receiver can readily be found for a few hundred $ through the internet and so such shenanigans are largely unnecessary, but I can fully understand the impulse to try to save the part if possible. It just needs a little more work, that's all.
Regards, Joe

I was once loaned a Ballard for black powder cartridge development that had been rebored for .44 Special then later, because the bore was correct, rechambered for .444 Marlin. I knew what it was and gave it back to the guy who then sold it and last I heard, it was blow-up with ONE factory round. The point is, we have no proof laws in the USA and we in the gun world have to self-regulate because if we don't some idiot is likely to weld a lug back on a Krag, rechamber it to .25 Krag and some other idiot is likely to.... knowing or not...
on down the road.
Joe, you will argue with anyone, about anything, and there are obviously folks here who can somehow justify this busted action welding.

IMO it ought to be in the river and it is a gross injustice to let a potential bomb be passed on into the world for future problems.This bomb justification thinking makes me want to never read another word on this forum.

One of our regulars had a relic shotgun restored to the point it looks good enough to shoot, and now wants to send it to be sleeved so it IS safe to shoot even though he doesn't want to shoot it himself He is conscience of future potential problems because of his activity and a very good guy who can think beyond his own selfish interests or so-called rational justifications for dangerous and despicable behavior. Guys like him are the reason I do come back here.

I love you too Steve.
Hugs & kisses, Joe

If I'm not mistaken, that's what the present owner is trying to do, and I for one applaud him for it. Sorry it twists your knickers.
Regards, Joe

Dumb asses get hold of guns all the time and do modifications without much thought even though they may be capable of doing the work themselves.There is no way one can guarantee where our guns will end up in 20-50 years or to what foolishness they become part and parcel of.

I should mention that my previous post is not a reflection on or intended as criticism of any one on this forum.

It certainly is a dilemma. On the one hand if it were mine I would continue using it, in a rimfire configuration. On the other hand I absolutely understand where SDH is coming from. The dilemma would have to be addressed at the moment I no longer wanted to play with it and would have to decide whether to let it get into the hands of "the great unwashed masses" or destroy it. I think at that point I would de-mount all useable parts for further use, and quietly drop the bare receiver off of a bridge.