doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com bringing a gun back on face

Shimmed hook



Peened hook (Fox)



One whack too many

well, there is the right way and the wrong way, depending on opinion...and then there is the least expensive way to keep a gun going as a safe shooter...

kinda like dealing with joint pain...no need to go the surgical replacement route, until one has tried less drastic alternatives...such as, pain killing topical sprays, anti inflammatory herbs, anti inflammatory drugs, pain intercepting drugs and lubricating and steroid injections...

as with the human body, gun surgery, should be a last resort, after less dramatic and costly alternatives are exhausted...as the video illustrates, a simple hammer and file in skilled hands can accomplish wonderful things...

The last two pictures don't seem to fit the topic and might be confusing to some readers. It looks like the barrel extension was hammered to tighten the bite. Back on face is different than trying to get the break lever to right and thereby tighten the bite.

The Smith top rib extension and hook are 2 pieces, which were brazed. Someone pounded the barrel hook, and in the effort probably broke the indexing screw in the rib extension. I can't guess their intention.

By Wedge are you speaking of the locking bolt? This will not put a gun back on face.

pounding any part of a gun with a heavy hammer seems like a bad idea...as is squeezing gun parts in a vice...

Walter Grass insisted the correct way is to replace the hinge pin, but I did watch him tighten a couple the "quick and dirty"( read cheap) way. He didn't peen the hook, rather, he expanded the hinge pin. He did this with the help of an employee by taking the covers off the pin and using a punch set in a vise as an anvil and another punch on the other end to transfer the impact of a shop hammer to the end of the pin. He also stretched the forearm iron by peening the backside with a punch that looked similar to a cold chisel that was rounded and polished on the end. By then bearing on the latch hook on the barrel, it pushed back against the receiver. He did peen the locking lug recess, but polished the punch marks out. when he finished, there were no visible peen marks.
Mike

With all this talk of off face guns the question comes to my mind of just how much do you have to shoot a gun for it to go off face? The hook and hinge pin are the two things that I ensure I flush out and lube after EVERY day in the field whether I shot or not. Of course, with my skills I never have to worry about not shooting!!! I always wipe my guns down and swab the bore with one of the long fuzzy sticks and then I go for the hinge pin and hook. I always use either a shot of Rem Oil or Silicon spray and then quite often a dab of white grease applied with a cotton swab. So far, I have never had a gun even appear to be the least bit loose or off face? Don't take this as me patting myself on the back but with this conversation and after watching the video I just felt I would ask and possibly get some more discussion on the issue. Have any of you ever had this happen with a modern shotgun? When I say modern I am talking about guns other than the English Best guns I hear some of you speak of that are over 100 years old.

One sees a lot of things if you look at enough guns. I have heard of people putting the Top Lever back to center on guns with a rib extension & cross wedge bolt such as on Bakers & Stevens etc by closing the gap in the extension by hammering the top down.

This should Never Ever be done. It will, of course, put the lever back to center but it will Positively Ensure the barrels are not properly seated. That top part of the extension is there purely to fill up the slot for cosmetic purposes, it should not even touch the top of the wedge bolt. It treats the symptoms, but worsens the problem.

The bolt should be supported on its top by the frame with the lower wedge portion bearing on the lower arm of the rib extension. The wear will occur on the locking portion & is compensated by the lever going left. When the top of the extension is beat down, then the barrels are pulled UP to the bolt, rather than the bolt pulling the barrels down on face.

This fix is somewhat akin to putting sawdust in an oil pan to deaden the sound of a Rod Aknocking.

https://www.bevfitchett.us/repair-of-firearms/shotgun-repairs.html

Potterfield with a Parker
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IypBM9xHSFc