Experience with down-sleeved chambers?
 

I am considering having a 20ga sleeved down to a 28 (chambers only) due to a bulge at the end of one chamber.

My question is how well will it perform, will there be a velocity loss, how might it pattern.

Does anyone have experience with a similar situation and resulting performance.

Thanks

Keavin

We've talked about this but 16 to 28 performs surprisingly well

It would be no different than using gauge-mates. Which I always wondered how performance is on that too.

Performance from 28 to 20 should be no problem at all.

I’ve used the Briley shorty tubes in 12 gauge skeet guns for the 20-28 and 410 with very good results . The most noticeable thing I found was how much louder the report was with 410’s . But on the skeet field they performed adequately. My thought is if a 12 gauge barrel shoots 410’s okay with the shorty tubes (they’re maybe 6 inches long) , then anything else should be a piece of cake .

I have tried gauge mates in several variations and they seem to work very well. The little data I have seen has not shown much velocity decrease, usually along the lines of a reduced shot charge in an overbored barrel.

The problem is that tehy will not, as a general rule, fit in a 2-1/2 inch gun. They are not generally as useful as they would seem. I have a couple of older inexpensive guns with pits that I have lengthened the chamber in to 2-3/4" and then used the gauge mates.

If there was a commercial source for the chamber sleeves, they would be simple to install for anyone with the equipment. They would go in like the headspace repair rings that Brownell's has/had. The same piloted tool would bore for them.