No one wants to be the one that gives the "go-ahead, it's safe" answer to whether or not to shoot any antique rifle or shotgun. My 2 cents: I trust good quality Damascus over ANY fluid steel of the same era. That said, any man made mechanical contraption can fail. You have to use common sense. If you're shooting a turn of the last century gun. Do a little homework, and find out what minimum barrel wall thicknesses are. Have your gun looked at, measure the bbl walls, make sure lock-up is good.
Then find a source for quality low pressure loads, or roll your own.
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