Help with Savage 24 20 gauge

[Legionnaire]

I have a very "nice" (fit and finish ... read on) Savage 24 E-DL .22 mag/20 gauge combo that I bought used some time ago. The .22 mag shoots fine: reliable and accurate enough for a .22 mag. The 20 gauge, however, only fires sporadically. I'm guessing that the gun fired 30% of the time using Remington #8 Game Loads. But the gun would NEVER fire if pointed up at anything more than a 30 degree angle.

The primers were showing signs of light strikes. More, the indentations looked a bit like they were made by a sharp point rather than a typical shotgun firing pin. I completely disassembled the gun, cleaned the firing pin channel, and examined the firing pin closely. Sure enough, it looked like it had a tiny projection right on the tip. My guess was that this tended to puncture rather than crush the primer. So I ordered and installed a new firing pin from Numrich.

Well, things are better. Now I'm getting ignition 60% of the time, but that is still unacceptable. I'm thinking about ordering a new mainspring, but the original was tough enough to get in and out (anybody who knows how a 24 is assembled knows what I'm talking about).

So. I'm open to ideas. Maybe the simplest solution is to purchase some different ammo, with softer primers? If so, are there particular brands or loads that are known to have softer primers? Suggestions welcome.

 

[Gordon]

Get a new firing pin and spring for the shotgun barrel!

 

[Milkmaster]

I have had two models of the Savage/Stevens Model 24. I had to rework the mainspring on the .410/22 to make it hit hard enough. I will try to explain.... If yours is like mine the hammer strikes the firing pin and then retreats off the firing pin. The spring surrounds a pin that was crooked into the frame with the other end into the trigger assembly. A previous owner must have worked on it or something before I got it. ( I got it cheap and suspect that is why!) Anyway, He must not have known or could not figure out how to get the spring installed easily and bent the pin inside the spring to make the assembly fit together thus making the trigger strike too lightly on the firing pin. I straightened the pin and with a bit patience reinstalled it properly into the frame behind the trigger. The gun never misfired again on me. I have since sold the .410/22lr gun in preference to keeping my other 22wmr/20ga model 24. 20 ga ammo is much cheaper and I prefer the 22wmr to the 22lr. I kind of wish I had kept both, but so it goes.

Here is a link I found that gives more info on the Model 24 in case you have not seen it....

http://home.freeuk.net/4-10/mwsavage24.html


Regarding Savage 24 22wmr/20ga I still own...It has performed flawlessly. I use it once per year to shoot a round of trap for an excuse to clean it etc. I really would like to see a picture of yours for comparison. You may see a picture of mine on my website listed below.

http://home.comcast.net/~milkmaster/milkmastersfire.htm

 

[Legionnaire]

Milkmaster, the pin inside the mainspring on my 24 is definitely not straight! I assumed that was was the way it was supposed to be. Your suggestion sounds like it might work, and I'll try that before anything else. And thanks for the link!

Don't have any pics of the 24, but will post one later if I get the opportunity to take one.

 

[Milkmaster]

The pin inside the spring was not totally straight when I finished. A bit of a curve is required to make it fit into the trigger at the proper angle. My trigger would not cock all the way with a completely straight spring pin. It was however a lot straighter than when I started. The spring and pin are a bugger to reinstall, so try not to run a screwdriver through your hand while doing it. I won't say how I know that

 

[Legionnaire]

Milkmaster, I pulled the plunger assembly last night, straightened the pin, reinstalled, and then function tested. There is an improvement, but I'm still getting light strikes and failures to fire, especially when pointing the gun upwards, like one mostly does with a shotgun.

Just ordered a set of schematics from Numrich to help me figure out the part numbers for a new plunger assembly, mainspring, and plunger seat. There are too many variants of the 24 to know which is the right one from Numrich's web page. I need to see a picture.

I'm also considering lengthening the BACK of the firing pin a bit, so the hammer strikes it harder. I want to leave the front of the pin as it is. I don't want it to project further, I just want the hammer to contact it sooner. Might try epoxying a small flat to the back and see how that works.

Open to other suggestions.

 

[evbutler462]

I have a Savage 24 that does not like Remington loads. Very hard primers. The other brands shoot fine in it.

 

[Legionnaire]

Thanks, ev. I'll try some other loads next time at the range and see if that makes a difference.

 

[Milkmaster]

Sorry to see you are still having difficulties.

I took back two different Stoeger SxS 12/20 combos because they either failed to fire on one side or fired both barrels. Both sets were using the box of Remington loads I bought to try out the first. After seeing several posts about the Remington loads, I have always wondered about the problem being the loads. However, my 1100 has never failed to shoot anything I put in it. WHo knows?

 

[Legionnaire]

Well, I just ordered $20 worth of parts from Numrich: new mainspring, mainspring washer, plunger, plunger seat, shotgun firing pin, and firing pin screw. Hopefully the new parts will solve the problem, even with Remington loads. But I'll also need to experiment to see if the loads themselves are the problem. Will report back with progress.

 

[Legionnaire]

Success! But not because of the new parts. I put them in and the problem was worse! So once I had the gun apart again --and I'm getting pretty good at getting the mainspring in and out--I studied all the parts I had to see how they were different. Turns out that the critical factor is the angle of the mainspring plunger head. If it is bent down a bit, it exerts more forward pressure on the hammer, and less on the "standoff" that keeps the hammer from contacting the firing spring when the action is at rest. If the head of the plunger is canted upwards, the standoff distance is greater, and there is less forward pressure on the hammer. Pic attached to make the shape of the plunger more clear. Once I figured this out, it was a simple matter of bending the plunger head down, bending the plunger shaft slightly so it aligned properly in the frame (it's more of a gentle curve than the angle shown in the illustration), and putting everything back together. Back to the range and had 100% ignition, even with the cheap Remington loads (also tried two versions of Winchester). So I'm a happy camper today. Thanks again to you, Milkmaster, for pointing me in the right direction.

 

[Milkmaster]

You are welcome! I am glad you got your model 24 functioning properly. They are unique and firearms to own and shoot. You will enjoy it a great deal.

 

[Legionnaire]

Had opportunity to take a couple of photos today. Here's the 24 I've been working on. That's a Leupold Vari-X II 1-4X variable on top in a BKL unitized mount. I'm setting it up as a squirrel gun.

 

[Milkmaster]

that's certainly one of the nicest looking 24's I have seen. What age is it? Here is mine...

 

[Legionnaire]

Age: I think it's early 1960s vintage; probably 1964. I need to take another set of photos. The wood looks a little washed out on these. Anyway, its from back in the day when the two barrels were attached for their full length, but it has the selector on the hammer and the dovetail groove for the scope mount. It really is in fine shape, which is why I worked so hard getting it to function properly. Hate to have a beautiful gun that only functions as a wall hanger!

 

[Legionnaire]

By the way, the .22 mag barrel shoots, too!

 

[Dave McCracken]

Most 24s shoot the rifled barrel well. The one I had did nickel sized groups aqt 50 yards with a peep sight and good ammo. Rottweil Brenekke slugs did nicely also.

Having those barrels connected full length stiffened them and made the harmonics more consistent, thus aiding accuracy.

 

[Legionnaire]

Range Report

Last Saturday, I took the 24 for a range outing. Started off by putting 10 rounds through the .22WMR barrel. Shot two 0.5" groups at 50 yards, right at point of aim. Then shot 10 rounds of #8 Remington Field through the shotgun barrel. I had one failure to fire early in the string, but think that was "user error." I didn't follow through on the trigger. All subsequent shots fired just fine. Then five Winchester rifled slugs (boy, they KICK in that gun!) with no failures to fire. However, they didn't hit anywhere near point of aim, being 8-10" off from the .22 mag's POA. Then five more Remington shot shells. Then two more 5-shot groups through the .22WMR, again, about .5" and right on point of aim.

Conclusions: The BKL unitized mount holds up nicely to the recoil of the shotgun barrel. The gun will be fine for small game, as the shot pattern overlaps the .22WMR's point of aim nicely at 25 yards, even though it isn't exactly centered around the POA. And not able to use this for deer without resighting the scope to the shotgun barrel. Overall, pleased with the result.

Oh, do think I'm going to send the scope to Leupold to have the parallax reset to 60 yards. Emailed them, and their technician said "$30, including shipping."

 

[Kismet]

Legionaire?

I think all 24s are full choke, and full choke doesn't like slugs very much. I've read of a few folks whose 24s shot slugs well, but I think that is a rarity.

Good luck.

 

[dubious]

YAY! Legionaire... You gave all gave me that bit of Knowledge I needed to fix my Savage 24. I bought a heavily used one of gunbroker, and it only fired .22 about half the time. I've been unable to find the right parts for my old variant. I replaced the mainspring and it was worse than ever. Now that I bent the mainspring plunger like you said, I've got a reliable TACK DRIVER. I'm surprised just how accurate the .22 is now that I'm not distracted by failed ignitions.

THANKS!

 

[Legionnaire]

Just bought another 24, this time a .22LR over .410. Haven't gotten it to the range yet ... just ordered some .410 shot shells. Range report when they come in.

Dubious, hadn't checked this thread in a while. Glad to hear you were able to get your 24 working properly, and glad to have been of help.

 

[timburn]

peep sight

Couple psts ago Dave McCracken mentioned a peep sight on a 24. Anyone(like Dave for instance) know what peep would fit. I put a holograph sight on with mixed results. My aging eyes can't see iron like they once did. I am putting peeps on as many of my long guns as possible.

 

[Dave McCracken]

IIRC, it was a Williams. I've also seen some since that fit the dovetail in the top barrel.