Re the forend loop thing. The model 21 with its inbuilt barrel stop prevents any undue loading of the forend loop when the gun is open. I mentioned this feature to several UK trained smiths and they all scoffed at the idea of a useful barrel stop. On the other hand, they tend to scoff at most anything not designed in the UK or embodied into UK practice.
Losing a forend during firing is another thing altogether. I had it happen on brand new guns and from that I deduce that it is not just a matter of static loading, as in carrying the gun open, but a more dynamic thing that occurs during firing.
