Shotgun Wall Thickness Gauge
Good evening everyone!
Quick question, are there any smiths within reasonable driving distance of southeastern PA who have wall thickness gauges? I don't particularly want to shell out $500 for a gauge and am happy to pay someone to do measurements for me! If not, I will probably buy one since I have a weird addiction that requires I buy a vintage SxSs every few months. In any case, I currently have a few vintage shotguns that I want to ensure haven't been honed to ludicrous levels and will blow up on my hand/face if I decide to fire them. Thank you!
Re: Shotgun Wall Thickness Gauge
You could just buy a cheap set of telescope gauges and a micrometer. Subtract the I.D. from the O.D., and divide by 2.
Re: Shotgun Wall Thickness Gauge
How does one ascertain the original thicknesses from chamber to muzzle? What amount of thinning is allowable?
Re: Shotgun Wall Thickness Gauge
would this honing have been done to hide/remove rust and pitting or for some perceived performance benefit like weight savings or spread?
i've heard of honing a cylinder... but never when that cylinder is actually barrel.
Re: Shotgun Wall Thickness Gauge
Quote:
Originally Posted by
ScorpioIM
You could just buy a cheap set of telescope gauges and a micrometer. Subtract the I.D. from the O.D., and divide by 2.
That's not a bad idea. I hadn't thought of using a telescope gauge for the ID. The OD would definitely not be a problem with a micrometer. I may have to shop around for a cheap gauge. Even at full cost, a telescope gauge is significantly cheaper than a wall gauge.
Re: Shotgun Wall Thickness Gauge
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Bang
How does one ascertain the original thicknesses from chamber to muzzle? What amount of thinning is allowable?
You can't really know the original thicknesses, but the Brits have some standards for minimum thickness which is then measured at different distances from the chambers. For a 12 gauge .020 inches is considered okay for most parts of the barrel. Ideally you want more than that. The chamber obviously has to be thicker as well.
Re: Shotgun Wall Thickness Gauge
Quote:
Originally Posted by
fallenleader
would this honing have been done to hide/remove rust and pitting or for some perceived performance benefit like weight savings or spread?
i've heard of honing a cylinder... but never when that cylinder is actually barrel.
The honing is usually done to remove rust and pitting or to reduce weight to sleeve a gun. My main concerns are honing that was done close to the chamber or if someone improperly reamed out a 2.5 inch chamber to a 2.75 inch chamber. If too much metal was removed lengthening a chamber or honing I'm not going to shoot the gun even with the black powder or low pressure reloads I use
Re: Shotgun Wall Thickness Gauge
Tie it to a tree and pull the trigger with a rope.
Re: Shotgun Wall Thickness Gauge
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Bang
Tie it to a tree and pull the trigger with a rope.
Been there done that ;) but... I'd at least like a nice wall hanger if a couple of these don't work out
Re: Shotgun Wall Thickness Gauge
As an update, the situation ended up working itself out. Just as I was about to buy a set of 12" telescope gauges I decided to check Brownell's one last time. Wouldn't you know that they magically have a Manson wall thickness gauge in stock for $110? I thought they were done carrying them! I thought Hosford & Co was my only remaining option.
In any case, if anyone in SEPA needs a to measure wall thickness on 12-28 gauges, you're more than welcome to borrow my gauge!