neil smith

At last weekends PSG competition at Romsey I witnessed an uncommon breakage on a fellow squad members Remington 870, we regularly see broken extractors & shell latches but I have never seen an action slide tube fail. The tube that is up the inside of the forend & connects the action bars to the forend snapped of near the base rendering the gun useless & forcing the guy to go to a spare gun for the rest of the day. If like many shooters & I include myself in that, you rarely if ever strip the action tube out of the forend when you clean your gun it may be worth inspecting this item more closely every now & then. Keep on pumping folks. N

The Beretta 391s & 400s both have firing pin springs, so now Im left wondering what your definition of free floating might be, but lets quit this discussion as it really doesn't matter, but if you need one they sell them here... http://www.midwestgunworks.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=C95322&Store_Code=mgwi&search=beretta+A400&offset=&filter_cat=&PowerSearch_Begin_Only=&sort=&range_low=&range_high=

Hi Chrispti I agree it does depend on the make, which is why I said "in most semi auto's" there are a multitude of designs, most do have it in the stock, some don't. I also agree that firing of the hammer is unnecessary in modern coil spring equipped guns, which is why I said not all the tension will be released & so the full benefit cannot really be obtained & as coil springs are cheap its not really worth worrying about, to my mind the only spring worth protecting is the action spring, and its why I store my guns with the bolt closed to save the action spring a little. If keeping the gun stored with the bolt open makes people feel safer then there is nothing wrong with that, it just means you may get cycling issues further down the line & excess wear on the gun if you don't swap the spring as it becomes weaker over time, but so long as you do that then all is well. I also agree the Beretta 1301 does have the action spring fitted around the magazine tube instead of in the stock, I have worked on them a number of times, but the gun does not have a free floating firing pin, there is a spring that fits around it & acts upon it, the gun does have a free floating hammer, which is what I think you meant to say, it also has another coil spring that is fitted around a guide rod too the side of the trigger group that acts on the carrier dog (shell lifter) like a Benelli its not uncommon for this spring to get damaged or the guide rod bent. So as regards storage I don't think there is a right or wrong way to store a semi so long as you have the correct maintenance plan in place to support your chosen preference with regards to the springs. Kind of strayed off topic a little here so my apologies to the OP. N

Most Auto's will have at least 3 or 4 within the mechanism. By leaving the bolt closed you allow as much tension as possible off the largest of those springs, that is the action spring, located in most cases inside the tube that runs within the stock & acts upon the rear of the bolt, if you leave the bolt open then this spring will be compressed & under maximum tension & may weaken the spring over time. The second strongest spring is usually the hammer spring & by firing the gun prior to storage you again release this spring to a lower tension than if left cocked, but by doing so you place a small amount of extra tension onto the firing pin return spring housed inside the bolt. Most also have a spring the acts on the carrier dog (lifter) but again by leaving the bolt closed its under lower tension than if left open. As all of the springs mentioned are modern coil springs & are easily available these days & also cheap to replace, its not worth the trouble of trying to go to any great lengths to protect them, I change these springs in my main competition guns every 5-10 thousand rounds to avoid spring related issues & excess wear on the associated component parts, but closing the bolt & dry firing helps to extend their life a little bit, works for me. N

If any of you are planning to do PSG competitions with your pump or semi-auto guns then be aware that flags made from old cartridge cases are prohibited at most clubs, the tapco flag is the preferred flag because it not only sticks out of the ejection port it actually goes into the barrel of the gun preventing anything else being in the chamber. It is made from plastic & friction grips the inside of the chamber meaning that it cannot fall out & you can leave the bolt open or close the bolt onto it. Pump shooters especially will appreciate these flags as other kinds tend to fall out if the gun is stored vertical with the muzzle up, best of all they are only a couple of pounds.

If your on a budget, get in touch with Bentley at Riflecraft, they may have some Steoger M3000s left, they are a virtual copy of the Benelli M2 but at half the cost. The 1301, SX3 & Versamax along with older gas guns like the 11-87 will all need careful cleaning of the gas parts to remain reliable, I have seen all of these guns have problems after poor cleaning. The Benelli isn't perfect despite claims to the contrary but its as close as you will get in my opinion, it will however need some upgrades to certain parts to make it competitive & more user friendly, the carrier will need welding up to prevent trapping your thumb, oversized safety & bolt release buttons will speed up operation & the obligatory nordic magazine extension tube to increase capacity. Don't by the the fixed 7 round model as they are harder to extend. Or you could always buy the Bora magazine fed shotgun which is developing a following in open division. N

Hi Geoff Yes as my old mate points out I should have been a bit clearer, an extension fitted to a gun that remains restricted by some physical means like a crimp means no law is broken. N

Only when fitted. Some police forces have been pressuring dealers to ask for FAC proof but its not a requirement in law.

Yes, in the past I have fitted the pistol grip plastic stocks to mossbergs belonging to a mate of mine & they will easily interchange between the two models, hope to see you at the next WNSC club shoot, keep an eye out for me, I'm easy to spot with my name on the back of my shirt so tap me on the shoulder & say hello. N

I must have seen you there then, it was a shame about the weather, the WNSC matches are good & a great bunch of guys. N Yes they will....

Shoot at WNSC ? We're you there on Saturday ? N

I would say so, welcome to the club N.

I would say have a good read through the "Pump Club" thread..... http://forums.pigeonwatch.co.uk/forums/topic/236687-pump-club/ And change your friends N

For the pumpers here that are into a little PSG, last weekend saw many of the UK's keen shotgunners down in Dorset for Round 4 in the Four4islands Shotgun Championship, the match was held at Shield Shooting Centre run by Steve Pike, here is a link to BL Photographics page containing some of the better pictures from the day. https://www.flickr.com/photos/benlove79/sets/72157645114368124/ And here are a few less than professional ones that I took….

With any luck, come October nobody else will care either. N