Looking for advice on repair

[Geoff Clark]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I will follow up with them.

[Geoff Clark]

Just curious- in looking at pictures of other VH guns about the same age as mine, the trigger guards seem to only have one screw into the stock while mine has two. They also seem to all have the serial number engraved on the trigger guard strap while mine does not.

Any ideas on why my trigger guard has two screws and no serial number?

[Geoff Clark]

Thanks for all the help. The lever does stay to the right when I open the breech. I assume this means the cocking slide is in there.

It is interesting that I can see no trace of the serial number on the trigger guard. I guess it must have been buffed away when the extra screw was added?

[edgarspencer]

Originally Posted by geoff clark

Thanks for all the help. The lever does stay to the right when I open the breech. I assume this means the cocking slide is in there.

Not necessarily Geoff. The two aren't connected. It just means that the lever latching pin is in there, that, when depressed, releases the top lever.

[J. A. EARLY]

Edgar, Not to argue the point, but even if you flipped the gun upside down and got the trip to hold the lever open one time, once it was closed the trip /spring/pin would just fall into the action since it rides on the slide. See the little indentation on the slide? That's where the pin seats when opened. And the slide is what keeps the upward pressure on the three parts. We just fixed one where someone flattened the pin and took a file to the trip where the barrel lug presses down to release the trip. Could not find new parts so it works only so well now. That is why one should hold the lever when closing and then release to reduce the wear on these unavailable small parts. Not the best design. Just my observations and if I am wrong please let me know here in a cold goose blind by myself.

[edgarspencer]

I was revering to part 20, which is the lever latch.

[edgarspencer]

Damn touchscreen keyboard.

[Geoff Clark]

Is there a way to tell if the parts you mention are missing without taking the action apart? Not sure I want to attempt disassembly.

[B. Dudley]

An interesting thing to notice in your photos is that the trigger plate is not sitting flush with the frame in the front up by the dolls head portion. This is a good indication that something may be put together incorrectly on the inside.

The two screws in the guard is a shame. Looks like it may have been done when the stock was replaced. Maybe whoever did it was having a hard time getting the back of the guard tang to lay down. Other than that, I canno think of a reason as to why. That could be corrected by welding up and grinding back down the rear hole.

The gun has some nice heavy plumb patina. You usually don't see them worn that heavily.

The Gun is a V grade, making it lower on the value scale. But it is certainly worth getting back into safe shooting condition.

[edgarspencer]

Originally Posted by Brian Dudley

An interesting thing to notice in your photos is that the trigger plate is not sitting flush with the frame in the front up by the dolls head portion. This is a good indication that something may be put together incorrectly on the inside.

People often fail to clean the frame groove and trigger plate before replacing the trigger plate. Invariably, there is old oil in the gap, which when the trigger plate is put back on, gets pushed into the inside corner, preventing the trigger plate from seating at the correct depth.