Tightening up 10ga chambers

[Larry Stauch]

I have a DH Titanic steel barreled 10 ga and the chambers are, for whatever reason, over sized and somewhat sloppy. I have owned it for about 3 years and the other day I shot it for the first time. On opening the gun the empty in the right barrel somehow jumped behind the extractor, I think primarily because of the over sized chamber. Both shells fire formed to the chamber and I had a heck of a time getting them out.
What is the thinking on having Briley or someone installing inserts in the chambers to shim them to the correct diameter?
I know Parker made only 205 steel barreled 10 gauges of any grade, but I really can't shoot it the way it is.

Thanks in advance for your opinions.

[tom leshinsky]

Are you shure it isn't a 8 ga gun?

[Larry Stauch]

According to the Identification & Serialization book number 114677 is a 30" 10ga, so I'm pretty sure it's a 10. But, you had me thinking for a minute.

[Larry Stauch]

Thanks Jent

Larry

[Dave Noreen]

Many years ago an old acquaintance of mine, Charles Wroten, back in Virginia, picked up a very nice Ithaca NID Super-Ten that some Nimrod had bored out to 3 1/2 inch Magnum-Ten. He had Briley sleeve the chambers back to the 2 7/8 inch Super-Ten dimensions.

[Richard Flanders]

That would be my preference. Just sleeve it back to the correct 10ga dimensions. It can be done so that you barely even tell.

[George Blair]

Larry, just for grins let's check the ammo you are shooting. I'm having a hard time understanding how the rim could get behind the extractor unless the chamber was really hogged out. Took some measurements from unfired RST ammo rim dia. .918, head dia. .850. This fits pretty snug in my 10 ga. Also measured an old REM-UMC 8ga. unfired and came up with 1.018 rim and .930 head. What is the frame size of your gun? George

[Larry Stauch]

It is a three frame George.

I'm shooting Remington Express 2-7/8" x 1-5/8 oz factory shells in it.

[Paul Ehlers]

Larry,

Before getting too carried away. Get out some precision measuring tools and see what the actual chamber diameters are. Just because the book say's your gun should be a ten gauge doesn't mean it actually is one. These are old guns that have a had a lot of time & different owners who could have had them modified. It's not totally out of the question that Parker had an order for an 8ga and all they had in stock was a ten that they could rechamber and bore to 8ga to fill the order.

I have a 16ga Damascus gun that the serialization book says was shipped with 31" barrels. The letter states it was a stock gun that Parker cut the barrels to 30" before it shipped to fill an order and then never changed the stock information in the books. Your gun may have had something like this happen to it.

Measure it up and order a letter if you don't already have one.

Just my thoughts,

Paul

[Ed Blake]

Larry - How about a picture of the breech-end of your gun. I'd like to see what the extractor and rim look like.

[Larry Stauch]

Ok, there are some good ideas here, but I'll have to do the measuring and pictures when I get back from a business trip next weekend.

Thanks again guys for all of your thoughts.

Larry

[Paul Ehlers]

Larry,

Just some additional ramblings about your chambers.

I've given it some more thought and have come up with some more possibilities for your chamber situation. When you measure your chambers be sure to measure the chamber length. It's possible that someone wanted to legthen the chambers to the more modern 10ga loads. Here's the senario: the owner takes the gun down to the local gunsmith and asks to have the chambers lengthend. The smith doesn't have a ten gauge piloted reamer because he doesn't have a call to do many 10ga guns. So he takes a dull non-piloted adjustable reamer and goes for it. Now he has chatter marks in the original chambers and then takes a brake style hone to them too smooth out the chambers and the end result is over sized chambers and possibly an unsafe gun. The owner then realizes he has a ruined expensive gun and puts the gun up for sale and sends it down the road.

My suggestion is to measure the chambers and then contact a top shelf barrel man to get his opinion based on your findings. What ever you do; Please don't shoot this gun again until this issue has been resolved. The highest pressures are generated in the chamber area and the last thing you want is for your gun to blow-up in your hands & face because someone altered the chambers.

Paul