Repairing Loose Barrels

[Mike Murphy]

Looking at a very old Parker that has everything going for it, EXCEPT, the barrels are not tight on face. There is a little looseness felt when the usual forend off /shake and twist routine is done.
How much is involved,i.e. how much money, might a fix require?
Also, if you know of someone who is excellent at such repairs, a name and number would be helpful.
Thanks.

[Bill Murphy]

If it is tight with the forend in place, I would do nothing.

[Ed Blake]

Cut a small piece from an aluminum can roughly the size of the hook, maybe a little smaller. Dab a little grease on both sides and fit it to the pin in the receiver. This will take up the slack. If the aluminum is too thick, hobby shops have thin sheets of brass stock that work well.

[Mike Murphy]

Bill, Thanks - I didn't think to test it with the forearm on. My bad.

Ed, That simple? I have visions of the Gunsmith's Association members following me around with pitchforks. If I buy it, I'll give it a try.

If however, I decide to go the gunsmith route, any idea what's involved?

[Ed Blake]

Dewey Vicknair in Pennsylvania does a great job for about $300, give or take.

[J. A. EARLY]

Sometimes it is the forend that is loose, and not the barrels. Fool around with it and you may find this to be the case. I just had Keith Kearcher in OR fix a very sloppy one for just $75, and now it is as tight as new.

541 617-9299

[Pa SxS]

I recently bought a 1877 12ga underlifter that needed some TLC. The barrels were slightly off face. Not having any shim stock at the time, I cut a piece of copy paper and used it as a shim. The paper mic'd out at .004 and the gun was perfectly on face. I got some shim stock, the .003 was too big, the .002 was too small. I greased up the paper shim, shot 100 sporting clays and the gun was still tight. It doesn't open as smoothly as if it were metal to metal but not bad. Talk about a cheap fix. I'll test it and see how long the paper shim lasts!

[Kevin McCormack]

Eightbore has it right; first and foremost check the motion (if any) with the forend in place correctly. I always use the "washrag" test: with the forend on, twist the barrels with the forend in place with one hand, with the other hand rotate the grip in the opposite direction forceably. If you can perceive no movement, you are probably OK. On the other hand, if you can shake the gun held vertically by the grip with the forend off and you see or feel excessive movement, you are probably looking at a rejointing job (either barrel lug buildup using metal deposition and recontouring to the roll pin or a similar procedure to the roll pin itself). There is a very simple fix to the forend iron involving a slight distortion to the radius of the rotating locking latch which is achieved using a drift or punch, but it is something you do not want to watch being done, trust me! This procedure restores the required friction surface against the rear of the forend iron, which provides the correct pressure against the face of the receiver to hold the barrels correctly on face. Again, this is in the case of a loose or worn forend iron only, and will not compensate for a severly worn or damaged barrel lug or roll pin.