pauly you can take the barrels to any car engine rebuild shop that does valve grinding and head work...they will magna flux the barrels for you...this is nothing but a electric magnet with magnesium powders applied if theres a crack it will show up...cost should be very little...if you were in miss..i could do this for you....it definately will work...i also like the kerosine test... charlie

Paul,

You stated that the crack was 4" below the chokes. Is that from the start of the choke constriction or from the muzzle? Either way the crack is between 4" and 8" from the muzzle. Your gun has first generation muzzle porting! :)

All kidding aside, please do not cut the barrels. The pressure in a barrel is low by the time the ejecta reaches that point. If the barrel walls ajoining the crack have at least .020" thickness then the crack should be able to be repaired to make the gun shootable.

Long ago I read something from Elmer Keith that for a crack or hole near the muzzle he soldered (silver soldered?) a piece of beer can (or other thin stock) to contain the pressure and continued to shoot the gun.

Send your barrels to someone like Brad B. who knows how to weld a crack in Damascus or twist barrels.

Mark

Actually Charlie, It's powdered iron. Magnesium is non-magnetic. Dry powder magnaflux is generally a good inspection, but it would be difficult to do a thorough job, because the barrels, being long, and very narrow, can only be exposed to a magnetic field in basically one direction.
Your suggestion of going to an automotive shop isn't a bad one though, as most also to visable dye Liquid Penetrant testing, or flourescent penetrant (Similar, but uses a black light)
I thought the barrels in question were steel? Didn't I read V grade? They should be repairable.

thanks EDGAR i d always heard it called magna fluxing.... now maybe i can remember its iron filings and not magnesium...but any way it would be a cheap way to check for cracks in a gun barrel....charlie

Magnaflux is actually a trade name of the MQS Co., (stands for magnaflux quality services) but the 'magna' stands for magnetic.
You mentioning magnesium reminded me how I got my a$$ kicked for playing with it in high school chem lab. Funny I remembered that and not anything important.

Kerosene, that is interesting. I will try that with the VH barrels. Somebody else told me to use gasoline. Fortunately this crack (if it is a crack) is located about 25" out on the barrel, and is on the bottom. My gunsmith suggested just shooting it, and when (or if) it fails cutting the barrels.

I think I will try the kerosene first. If that doesn't show anything, maybe I'll try the magnaflux thing. I think once I get the gun back from the gunsmith I'll measure the wall thickness too. It doesn't look like the barrels have been honed, so I may be in pretty good shape to have them welded. I am having them fitted to one of GH guns that had its barrels cut down (ironic ain't it!).

Thanks to all who contributed to this topic! I love being a PGCA member! You guys rock!!!

Get a new gunsmith.

I second that.