i was talking to my brother yesterday and somehow my grandpas old shotgun came up. i know it has a broken stock, he also told me that there are hairline cracks in the barrel. i wos wondering if the barrel can be fixed or if it will be a wallhanger forever?
If there are indeed hairline cracks in the barrel, you might want to just keep it as a family heirloom. You can't really can't fix cracks in the barrel. My grandfather had a Lefever side by side made of Damascus steel. There are no cracks but it was designed for paper cartridge black powder shells and would never hold up to today's pressures. It will stay on the wall.
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Thats what is going to happen for my Gramps SG. It has some archaic choke that won't allow for steel shot. Plus it needed a full tear down and scrubbing just to be operable.
Its dinged, used and good for hunting not displaying. I think Gramps would perfer it that way.
Any type crack or swelling in a barrel is a critical warning sign not to be ignored.
However, just as a project these older guns can be fun to reblue and rework the stock for appearances sake but that does not make them safe for shooting.
Having this gun is a great way to remember the owner and think about the times in which he lived.
i was talking to my brother yesterday and somehow my grandpas old shotgun came up. i know it has a broken stock, he also told me that there are hairline cracks in the barrel. i wos wondering if the barrel can be fixed or if it will be a wallhanger forever?
Are they actual cracks or could it be a Damscus twisted tube?
If it may be a Damascus twisted tube, do not shot modern shells in it.
If it is indeed cracked...you know the answer to that one.
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Most old guns do not take to steel shot I would never shoot steel in anything not fairly new. I would not shoot your shotgun at all let it hang on the wall i have seen what a shotgun blowing up can do to you its not good.
Thats what is going to happen for my Gramps SG. It has some archaic choke that won't allow for steel shot. Plus it needed a full tear down and scrubbing just to be operable.
Its dinged, used and good for hunting not displaying. I think Gramps would perfer it that way.
There are places on the net that sell shotgun barrels.I dont waterfowl hunt anymore and never shot any steel shot in any of my shotguns.Grandpa's old shotgun got to where if you shot Highbrass shells in it the forearm would come off in your hand and sometimes the barrel would fall off,it was an old Oakleaf shotgun made by who knows? Bought one of those tubes that slide down the barrel and it shoots 20 ga.shells now instead of 12ga.I would replace the barrel or buy a 20 ga. barrel that just slides down the barrel and has its own extractor that works off the original one.Sure would not want to shoot it with cracks in the barrel.
Any type crack or swelling in a barrel is a critical warning sign not to be ignored.
Just what is critical about a "swelling" in a shotgun barrel? As far as I know it just indicates that it was fired with a bore obstruction, result bulged barrel and tendency towards blown patterns with subsequent firing. Not particularly dangerous though.
Just swell 
