Pork Fat
Member
I picked up an old Ithaca Model 37 12 gauge at an auction for $100.
The bore just looked dirty, action seemed smooth, finish showed honest use.
Modified choke, 26" barrel- A spare gun for someone to use when we shoot
hand thrown clays out in a field.
I get it home, start to clean it, and yuck. That barrel must have been used
to shoot very corrosive junk (bird scare bombs, flares, something with black powder in it), not cleaned EVER, then lots of regular shells.
Lather, rinse, repeat.
Now SHREDS of wadding plastic adorn this crusty sewerpipe. I used a brass
brush on a piece of aluminum cleaning rod chucked in a drill with Naval Jelly.
This was just so I could assess the bare metal, but I never got to that point.
The brush filled with plastic, the Naval Jelly escaped the bore to remove bluing
(duh), and I valiantly put the project aside.:banghead:
Haunting the "Fred Sanford" tables at gun shows yields no replacement barrels. Gun Parts Corp. shows nothing (Early series of Ithacas won't accept
late- model barrels).
So finally, here are my questions-
Can a shotgun barrel be reamed back to health?
Is it worth putting money into this dog?
How much would it cost?
If it could be done reasonably, would I lose the choke?
If I lost the choke, Poly-Choke or cut down to 18" for special social occasions?
Thank you for listening, I have held this terrible secret for 5 years.
I promise, no more kitchen table 'smithing for me.
The bore just looked dirty, action seemed smooth, finish showed honest use.
Modified choke, 26" barrel- A spare gun for someone to use when we shoot
hand thrown clays out in a field.
I get it home, start to clean it, and yuck. That barrel must have been used
to shoot very corrosive junk (bird scare bombs, flares, something with black powder in it), not cleaned EVER, then lots of regular shells.
Lather, rinse, repeat.
Now SHREDS of wadding plastic adorn this crusty sewerpipe. I used a brass
brush on a piece of aluminum cleaning rod chucked in a drill with Naval Jelly.
This was just so I could assess the bare metal, but I never got to that point.
The brush filled with plastic, the Naval Jelly escaped the bore to remove bluing
(duh), and I valiantly put the project aside.:banghead:
Haunting the "Fred Sanford" tables at gun shows yields no replacement barrels. Gun Parts Corp. shows nothing (Early series of Ithacas won't accept
late- model barrels).
So finally, here are my questions-
Can a shotgun barrel be reamed back to health?
Is it worth putting money into this dog?
How much would it cost?
If it could be done reasonably, would I lose the choke?
If I lost the choke, Poly-Choke or cut down to 18" for special social occasions?
Thank you for listening, I have held this terrible secret for 5 years.
I promise, no more kitchen table 'smithing for me.