No one on the internet can tell you if YOUR gun is safe, with any load.
A adequate hands-on evaluation requires that the examiner has the interest, equipment (bore scope, wall thickness gauge, and the correct screwdrivers!), and expertise to properly do so. If your gunsmith is unable to tell you the wall thickness of your barrels from breech to muzzle, you need another opinion.
ANY vintage shotgun, regardless of barrel material, should be evaluated as follows:
1. Visually inspect for dents, bulge, wall integrity
2. Inspect bore for pits. Done right this would require a direct or fiberoptic digital bore scope. If not properly examined, you can not know the condition of the bore
3. Inspect and 'ring' barrels for evidence of rib separation (which might suggest a bulge)
4. Measure bore for evidence of previous honing. (I am of the opinion that any vintage gun with 'mirror' bores and no 'frosting' has been at least polished.)
5. Measure chamber length for evidence of lengthening, and measure wall thickness (WT) at the end of the chambers (recommended .105") and the end of the forcing cones (recommended .100")
6. Measure wall thickness from breech to muzzle, recording wall thickness (WT) 9" from the breech (.045"), 9" from the muzzle (.025"), and minimum wall thickness (MWT) in the distal 1/3 of barrel (no less than .020")
7. Remove the forend and assess lock-up
8. Attempt to pull triggers with safety engaged
9. Disassemble and check and clean the action, which likely has 100 years of congealed oil, grease, and field debris
Based on these findings, he who plans on shooting the gun will have additional evidence on which to base his decision regarding both using the gun and choice of shells. In no way does this evaluation guarantee the gun is 'safe to shoot'.
Additional information:
https://lcsca.clubexpress.com/content.a ... b_id=43784
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZIo ... c-kGA/edit
Turn-of-the-century Shotshells, Powder, and Ballistics
c. 1900: The "standard" 12g field and inanimate target load was 1 1/4 oz. shot with 3 1/4 Dram Equivalent (1220 fps) of Bulk Smokeless with a modern transducer pressure of 8000 - 9500 psi.
Just before WWI: The "standard" 12g field and inanimate target load was 1 1/8 oz. shot with 3 Dr. Eq. (1200 fps) Dense Smokeless with a transducer pressure of 8,500 - 10,000 psi.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1F2s ... FU/preview
Sherman Bell's destructive testing of a Parker GH with Dam 3 and a Parker VH with Vulcan Fluid Steel was published in The Double Gun Journal Vol. 10, Issue 4, Winter, 1999, "Finding Out For Myself" Part II and Vol. 16, Issue 2, Summer 2005, "Finding Out For Myself" Part IX.
Both guns were subjected to sequentially higher pressure loads at about 2,000 pounds/square inch (psi) increments. The GH testing started at 11,900 psi and one chamber ruptured at 29,620 psi. The VH started with a Proof Load of 18,560 psi. Both chambers bulged at 29,620 psi and ruptured at 31,620 psi.
That testing in no way establishes that YOUR unobstructed barrels would tolerate a pressure of 30,000 psi
We only have 10 fingers and 2 eyes
Mark Twain
"It is better to be careful 100 times than to get killed once."
A adequate hands-on evaluation requires that the examiner has the interest, equipment (bore scope, wall thickness gauge, and the correct screwdrivers!), and expertise to properly do so. If your gunsmith is unable to tell you the wall thickness of your barrels from breech to muzzle, you need another opinion.
ANY vintage shotgun, regardless of barrel material, should be evaluated as follows:
1. Visually inspect for dents, bulge, wall integrity
2. Inspect bore for pits. Done right this would require a direct or fiberoptic digital bore scope. If not properly examined, you can not know the condition of the bore
3. Inspect and 'ring' barrels for evidence of rib separation (which might suggest a bulge)
4. Measure bore for evidence of previous honing. (I am of the opinion that any vintage gun with 'mirror' bores and no 'frosting' has been at least polished.)
5. Measure chamber length for evidence of lengthening, and measure wall thickness (WT) at the end of the chambers (recommended .105") and the end of the forcing cones (recommended .100")
6. Measure wall thickness from breech to muzzle, recording wall thickness (WT) 9" from the breech (.045"), 9" from the muzzle (.025"), and minimum wall thickness (MWT) in the distal 1/3 of barrel (no less than .020")
7. Remove the forend and assess lock-up
8. Attempt to pull triggers with safety engaged
9. Disassemble and check and clean the action, which likely has 100 years of congealed oil, grease, and field debris
Based on these findings, he who plans on shooting the gun will have additional evidence on which to base his decision regarding both using the gun and choice of shells. In no way does this evaluation guarantee the gun is 'safe to shoot'.
Additional information:
https://lcsca.clubexpress.com/content.a ... b_id=43784
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZIo ... c-kGA/edit
Turn-of-the-century Shotshells, Powder, and Ballistics
c. 1900: The "standard" 12g field and inanimate target load was 1 1/4 oz. shot with 3 1/4 Dram Equivalent (1220 fps) of Bulk Smokeless with a modern transducer pressure of 8000 - 9500 psi.
Just before WWI: The "standard" 12g field and inanimate target load was 1 1/8 oz. shot with 3 Dr. Eq. (1200 fps) Dense Smokeless with a transducer pressure of 8,500 - 10,000 psi.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1F2s ... FU/preview
Sherman Bell's destructive testing of a Parker GH with Dam 3 and a Parker VH with Vulcan Fluid Steel was published in The Double Gun Journal Vol. 10, Issue 4, Winter, 1999, "Finding Out For Myself" Part II and Vol. 16, Issue 2, Summer 2005, "Finding Out For Myself" Part IX.
Both guns were subjected to sequentially higher pressure loads at about 2,000 pounds/square inch (psi) increments. The GH testing started at 11,900 psi and one chamber ruptured at 29,620 psi. The VH started with a Proof Load of 18,560 psi. Both chambers bulged at 29,620 psi and ruptured at 31,620 psi.
That testing in no way establishes that YOUR unobstructed barrels would tolerate a pressure of 30,000 psi
We only have 10 fingers and 2 eyes
Mark Twain
"It is better to be careful 100 times than to get killed once."