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Long old list of questions I'm afraid.


Nickliv
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Hi all. I've had my ticket for 3 years, and I've just added a number of guns to my cabinet, about which I don't know a great deal.

My 1st gun was (is) an Escort Magnum, which I've shot with before, bought from a friend. There's only one choke with it, and it looks pretty full. I guess alternative chokes are available easily enough, it's a mk1, and I believe a mobilchoke would fit, so a couple of them are on the list.

Picked up a Lanber expert 85 O/U recently, fixed chokes at full and half. Nice and tight, if a bit tatty here and there. Again, if I can get away with opening the choke for standard steel, that's plan A, but for banging away all day at the clay ground, I could well end up retiring it if it's unsuitable for steel. 

At an auction a couple of weeks back I was looking for a SBS, and spotted a couple of likely candidates. For reasons I won't go into, largely around not being able to cancel an online bid once the auction is underway, I've ended up with them both. 

A Felix Sarasqueta Master 12g double trigger ejector with 28in barrels, full and half choke, proofed in 1965. One firing pin is proud once fired, the other a little less so. (They both pop out sharply enough into a snap cap, but one bounces back in a bit afterwards) Haven't tried a cart in it yet as I'd like it to have a once over first, but if anyone knows why / if there's anything that can / needs to be done to address it, I'm open to ideas. Whether I end up keeping it or not remains to be seen. 

AYA Yeoman 12g double trigger non ejector 26in barrels, full and half. Proofed in 1974 (a fine year, if I say so myself) seems perfectly serviceable, and once it's had the once over it'll be staying. It is proofed to 900kg on a 70mm chamber. Any cartridges to avoid? Suspect I won't want to put huge loads through it. If I end up using steel, the chokes will have to be opened out at the very least, but it probably isn't economical to get it reproofed for steel, so I'll bear that in mind if it becomes necessary. . There's always Bismuth I suppose. Anyone need a kidney?

 

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Chokes are available for the Escort, put a an add in wanted. Just make sure you clean and grease then regularly to stop them getting stuck. What's wrong with the choke that's in it? Don't get too hung up on chokes.

On fixed choke guns you can have the barrels bored out to whatever you need, I had mine done to 1/4, 1/4. Cost is about £30 - £35 per barrel. They don't need re proofing.

No need for steel at all for clays. 

Do you really need ejectors? A repair can be expensive.  No real need at clay grounds. I sold a semi because it ejected the empties too far and I couldn't find them in the field, so think before having them redone.

4 minutes ago, ditchman said:

what is the question..?

You give an answer, I'll find a question😆😬

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41 minutes ago, Nickliv said:

Hi all. I've had my ticket for 3 years, and I've just added a number of guns to my cabinet, about which I don't know a great deal.

My 1st gun was (is) an Escort Magnum, which I've shot with before, bought from a friend. There's only one choke with it, and it looks pretty full. I guess alternative chokes are available easily enough, it's a mk1, and I believe a mobilchoke would fit, so a couple of them are on the list.

Picked up a Lanber expert 85 O/U recently, fixed chokes at full and half. Nice and tight, if a bit tatty here and there. Again, if I can get away with opening the choke for standard steel, that's plan A, but for banging away all day at the clay ground, I could well end up retiring it if it's unsuitable for steel. 

At an auction a couple of weeks back I was looking for a SBS, and spotted a couple of likely candidates. For reasons I won't go into, largely around not being able to cancel an online bid once the auction is underway, I've ended up with them both. 

A Felix Sarasqueta Master 12g double trigger ejector with 28in barrels, full and half choke, proofed in 1965. One firing pin is proud once fired, the other a little less so. (They both pop out sharply enough into a snap cap, but one bounces back in a bit afterwards) Haven't tried a cart in it yet as I'd like it to have a once over first, but if anyone knows why / if there's anything that can / needs to be done to address it, I'm open to ideas. Whether I end up keeping it or not remains to be seen. 

AYA Yeoman 12g double trigger non ejector 26in barrels, full and half. Proofed in 1974 (a fine year, if I say so myself) seems perfectly serviceable, and once it's had the once over it'll be staying. It is proofed to 900kg on a 70mm chamber. Any cartridges to avoid? Suspect I won't want to put huge loads through it. If I end up using steel, the chokes will have to be opened out at the very least, but it probably isn't economical to get it reproofed for steel, so I'll bear that in mind if it becomes necessary. . There's always Bismuth I suppose. Anyone need a kidney?

 

Had one from the same year - mine had a beaver tail fore-end, 1/4 by 1/2 from new. 1&1/2oz Eley 2&3/4 Magnums no problem.

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Thanks all. Seems any problems aren't completely insurmountable. I guess getting a once over by a gunsmith isnt being over cautious. They're all in proof, I just don't want anything sinister happening.

 

Nice to see nobody needs a kidney.

Edited by Nickliv
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5 hours ago, Nickliv said:

On the Sarasqueta, the LHS firing pin is set further into the action when 'cocked' and only just comes proud of the face when fired. 

 

Gunsmith time or D.I.Y able? (Or scrap, it was £20)

The real question is, are you competent working on a gun.

If it fires when it closes - even once in 100 times - then it is dangerous. Personally, I'd want to know that someone professionally competent had looked it over and done anything that needed to be done.

And yes, I know there's going to be people piling in, saying "I wouldn't let a gunsmith touch any of my guns, in 1976 some muppet failed to fix a broken firing pin", or the suchlike. 

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16 hours ago, robbiep said:

The real question is, are you competent working on a gun.

If it fires when it closes - even once in 100 times - then it is dangerous. Personally, I'd want to know that someone professionally competent had looked it over and done anything that needed to be done.

And yes, I know there's going to be people piling in, saying "I wouldn't let a gunsmith touch any of my guns, in 1976 some muppet failed to fix a broken firing pin", or the suchlike. 

If it was simply the removal, cleaning and refitting of the disc, the pin and the spring between the two, I'd be perfectly happy, but the discs don't want to come out without a fight, and I'm not comfortable with forcing anything. It's beyond economical repair, so is either scrap, or spares.

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3 hours ago, Nickliv said:

If it was simply the removal, cleaning and refitting of the disc, the pin and the spring between the two, I'd be perfectly happy, but the discs don't want to come out without a fight, and I'm not comfortable with forcing anything. It's beyond economical repair, so is either scrap, or spares.

You maybe find there’s a locking screw on the side of the action 

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I've got to the bottom of it. I refitted the pins, but in the opposite sides to where they were when I got the gun, (as I didn't have anything better to do and I hadn't been called in from the shed for lunch) , and they fit perfectly, sit back well clear of the breech, and protrude equally then fired against a snap cap.

20211027_120747.jpg.e7aba7ed82f56f49a0e7d768eaf30226.jpg

 

 

 

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1 hour ago, Nickliv said:

I think I've worked out what the problem might have been...

20211027_111753.jpg

However they are odd maybe there’s a countersink in the hole they fit into?

you should check!! 

it’s not a hard job for someone with a lathe to make it couple of new ones although you have to decide weather they are ment to be odd or which is the correct pattern for them 

well done for having a go and getting it apart 👍

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