Guns and Ammo Thread

Old school... (finally starting to get some finish on this thang). Inletting was hell and I've had to repair some catastrophes.



Super new school... (any other carbon fiber buttplates out there?)



I have the buttplate held on with a magnet system... I epoxied small rare-earth magnets to the carbon fiber and fitted them to the butt with some added depth in the holes. I put a screw in each hole and have them set just a hair away from the magnet so they stick but never actually touch. This is so I don't need to actually screw any buttplate to the stock and can adjust the weight and balance of the stock by using heavier/lighter buttplates and have them all stuck on with magnets.

 

Alright folks I need some advice and this is so last minute I don't even know how to wade through what I'm sure is ton of info I could find online.

My dad recently signed us up for a sporting clays shoot in a couple weeks. The immediate problem being I don't have a shotgun. So, we are making a roadtrip to Denver tomorrow to go shopping. Unfortunately, I don't really know shit about guns. I would say my dad does, but I would like some extra opinions.

Do any of you have opinions/advice for first-time shotgun buyer who is looking for a .12 gauge shotgun suitable for a variety of purposes?

Thanks a bunch in advance.

 

How much are you looking to spend? Do you want pump or semi auto?

I currently have a Franchi I-12 and I love it. Light weight but also light on the recoil.

 

I think people here might give you a little more specific suggestions if you state what those "variety of purposes" might be. Barrel length, possibility of adjustable chokes, how often / how quickly you need to reload, durability under certain conditions, etc. all factor in. For instance, if that variety never includes hunting, or certain types of hunting anyway, you wouldn't need a semi-auto. If that variety was all clays - sporting, skeet, trap - and maybe going on a few quail / pheasant hunts, you'd be fine with something that's a side-by-side, with a wide variety of chokes. (Beretta, Weatheryby) If you're going to shoot sporting clays rarely, but mostly want the variety to include goose hunting, you might want a pump that takes a 3" shell that you can take apart in the field if you accidentally drop it in the canal. (Mossberg) You should mention your budget, too.

There are people here that know waaay more than me, so I won't chime back in unless nobody else responds.

 

I can't recommend a Remington 870 enough. You can pick up a new 870 Express with a 28" rem choke barrel (allows the use of different chokes for different situations) for somewhere around $350. For a couple more bills, you can spring for the 870 Wingmaster and have a better gun, but that's your call. My current shotgun is my Dad's Wingmaster that he bought in the early 80s and it's in fantastic condition.

You also might want to consider a used gun as well. If you don't do much shotgun shooting, it'll save you some money.

There are a ton of options out there and even more opinions, so take this for what it's worth.

 

+1 for the Remington 870.

I'd even take a used Wingmaster over a new Express if they were around the same price... if it was well cared for, you might as well consider it just broken in for you.

 

You can't go wrong with an 870. They're cheap, reliable, and they're just good guns.

 

Truth.

Having owned a used Wingmaster for a few years and shot a bunch of newer 870s, I'd take mine any day. That's not to say that the new 870s are bad, mine just has years of service behind it and it's smooth as silk.

Even if you get an older one (say 80's era like mine) that still has the fixed choke barrel, you can buy a new Wingmaster barrel with rem choke if you want for less than $200 if you shop around.

 

Thank you all for the replies.

I apologize for not giving more specific information. The problem is I don't even really know what info I needed to give. By variety of purposes I just meant something that could be used for general clay shooting (sporting, trap, and skeet), hunting (quail and pheasant, mostly) and home defense (meth heads?) I'm just looking for a gun that could help me get started on all of this. I'm not even sure how much I'm going to be shooting. I hope that it becomes a good hobby, but I can't say for sure.

I'm not dead set on buying new. We did look in some pawnshops last week, but they didn't have a great selection and the guns weren't in very good condition.

My upper limit is $600.

I'm definitely going to keep the Remington 870 Express (I don't think I can swing a Wingmaster) in the front of my mind.

Thanks again for the quick replies.

 

Another +1 for the 870 (express). It's been a tried and true boom-stick.

Keep an eye on SlickGuns. Their user base updates deals/price drops on firearms almost daily. Might help you find a good deal.

Helped me find this bad boy this past December, brand new at Cabelas with chokes and a case for $275:

 

You could easily swing a used Wingmaster, plus a couple different length/choked barrels. My dad has 3, none of which he paid more than $200 for (all purchased in the last 5 years). All are in excellent condition, and have multiple barrels. Make sure to get a magnum receiver that can handle 2-3/4" or 3" shells. Rural auctions are the best way to pick up good guns on the cheap.

 

Thanks again for all of the advice everyone.

I ended up picking up a new 870 express with a 26" barrel. There was a surprisingly little amount of selection in Denver, because of turkey season opening up. But I was glad to get the last 870 express in stock at either Bass Pro and Gander Mountain.

Hopefully I will get to go shoot it tomorrow.

 

I recently acquired this old flintlock rifle. I was hoping someone could help me identify it. As you can see, it's in worse than horrible condition, but I'm a history nut and I'd love to know what it is. Unfortunately, the only markings on it that I can make out are "New Hartford, CONN" above the trigger. Immediately above that is a 6 or 7 letter word that ends in 'RANT'. It could be Warrant, Tarrant, or anything like that. It also has a stamping of an eagle with 2 arrows in one talon and an olive branch in the other talon. Near the butt plate, a previous owner had inscribed 1840 into the wood.

Does anyone have any clue what this might be?







Kato, would you be able to do any CPR on this stock for me or is it beyond repair?

 

It's beyond repair for me to get it functional again (way outta my league with those cracks/chips), but that thing would look great on the mantel.

Do you have any close up pics of the markings and stampings?

 

I tried, but they just come out blurry.

On the trigger plate, it reads

- - - RANT
New Hartfort, CONN

I don't know what the top word is because it's rusted over and scratched. I put some Hoppes #9 on it and gently worked it in with a toothbrush, but I couldn't make out anything more.

It also has a stamping of an eagle with 2 arrows in one talon and an olive branch in the other at the base of the barrel.

I'm not looking to restore it to original condition or anything, I just want to make it nice enough to hang over the fireplace in our new house.

 

No I haven't although that is on the list of projects to do at some point (i.e. start with a maple blank and do it all by hand. I haven't shot many modern muzzleloaders but all of them were close enough to a slug shotgun that any muzzleloader I build will be a very "purist" styled rifle.

 

As in, a simplification of the Great Seal of the USA?


It looks like it's a percussion cap rifle, with that little "nipple" near the breech, instead of a little hole in the side where the pan would be.

Are you certain that the last four letters are "RANT"?

Can you measure the bore?

Can you manually control the focus of your camera? Using an external light source, would you have any better luck taking a picture of the "lock", nipple, breech, and plate?

From a mildly educated history nerd, it looks like it might have been a conversion piece, starting life as a flintlock long rifle and then being retrofitted with the percussion system.

 

It may be a simplification of the great seal, but I don't know enough about the history of the seal. For all I know, it may be from the revolutionary period before that seal existed.

As far as the letters, the last 4 are pretty clear. It may be the person's first initial and last name, eg. "J. DURANT" or it could be somethign else. For all I know, it could have been made by some small time individual gunsmith back in the day who did custom work.

The more I look at it, I see that it was a cap and ball and not a flint lock. The hammer and nipple are both busted off.

I'll read up on my camera and try to take some better pictures with a more neutral light source.

 

The Seal's been around a bit longer than the Constitution, if I recall correctly. Check Wiki if you're curious.

It very well could have been an individual gunsmith.

Since the metal's in poor condition, have you considered electrolysis? It should reverse the rusting process, without physically stripping the iron oxide from the gun (which would reduce the detail and weaken the remaining metal). Be sure you've hooked everything up correctly, of course, or it will actually further rust the gun. Basically, you'd be sacrificing some unimportant piece of iron to the rust gods so that this barrel may live.
It's not complicated, but I'm pretty sure you'd have to remove the action and barrel from the stock to do it. But, hey, if you want a great looking mantle piece, maybe you'd be up for a full restoration, where you get or have made a reproduction stock, then re-attach all the restored metal fittings.