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Offline Paul5388

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Doing the forbidden
« on: March 28, 2004, 05:32:21 PM »
I'm really kind of tired of my synthetic .223 and .357 not shooting well.  I've been messing around with this for three months and after reaming a lot of material out of the forearm and using several shims, it will shoot fairly good.
 
In an attempt to find a solution to the continuing problem of poor groups, I took the .223 barrel and put in on a H&R12 gauge shotgun frame and forearm, serial # AU 591xxx.  The trigger pull is rather stout, but even so, I shoot a 1 3/4" group of 8 shots at 100 yards.  The loads were mystery loads that were given to me, of 24.5 gr of some kind of ball powder.
http://forums.handloads.com/uploads/Paul5388/BBB9B_scan0026.jpg
 
Using the same mystery loads, I changed to the synthetic stock and forearm and shot two 5 shot groups that were 1 1/2" and 2 1/2".
http://forums.handloads.com/uploads/Paul5388/D3Z2C_scan0027.jpg
 
All of this was kind of encouraging, so I went home and loaded a few rounds of surplus IMR 4895.  Using the synthetic stock and the shotgun forearm I shot a 3 shot group of 3/4".
http://forums.handloads.com/uploads/Paul5388/AZ81F_scan0025.jpg
 
Obviously, the synthetic forearm is a problem.  
 
Obviously, a properly head spaced .223 barrel on a shotgun frame isn't a problem (even if the trigger isn't target quality).  
 
The shotgun forearm will pass a folded brown paper bag between the barrel and forearm, the total length.  When I put the same forearm on my .357 barrel, the right side is closer than the left side, indicating a barrel stud problem (probably welded off center or tilted).

EDIT: For some reason these links don't work unless you copy the url and paste it in a new window.
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Offline Paul5388

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Doing the forbidden
« Reply #1 on: March 28, 2004, 05:37:36 PM »
The images seem to be a problem again.  I am using Netscape 7.1 and with that browser you can right click on the image icon and select "view image".  After bringing up the image on a separate page, the image will appear in the proper place when you use the return arrow..
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Offline Paul5388

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Doing the forbidden
« Reply #2 on: March 31, 2004, 04:54:31 AM »
If you will note the "EDIT" on the original post, the pictures will be visible.
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Offline Sourdough

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Doing the forbidden
« Reply #3 on: March 31, 2004, 06:04:04 AM »
Paul 5388: I too did the forbidden.  I had left my Handi 30-06 at the cabin, but wanted to use my .223 that was fitted to that frame.  Just for the heck of it, I tried it on an old H&R Topper slug gun that I had reworked the trigger on.  The old Topper from the early 70s does not have a transfer bar, and I had reworked the trigger to be real light, lighter than you can get with the transfer bar.  In my opinion since the old gun was strong enough for 3" magniums, it would handle low pressure .223s.  Perfect fit to the frame, had to use a differant forarm, since the old forarm would not fit due to differant type of fitting on the old barrel.  This gun makeup shoots real nice.  Very accurate.  In fact it's been on the old frame for three years now.  I don't have much use for a single shot 12ga slug gun here in Alaska.             :-)
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Offline Paul5388

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Doing the forbidden
« Reply #4 on: March 31, 2004, 06:26:27 PM »
Sourdough,

I think a lot of people are missing out on some pretty good shooting with these shotgun frames.  Even though the trigger pull is rather healthy, I still shot a 1 1/2" group with the .357 Mag today at 100 yards.  I'll be shooting some .360 DW's in it tomorrow!
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Offline mag41vance

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Doing the forbidden
« Reply #5 on: April 01, 2004, 09:16:24 AM »
You guys are lucky the barrels close and lock. My barrels won't interchange on mine. I have 3 barrels for my sb2, and 4 other complete rigs none of which will lock closed on the other.
                           RV
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no x now!

Offline Paul5388

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Doing the forbidden
« Reply #6 on: April 01, 2004, 03:15:00 PM »
RV,

Your problem may be in the barrel locking shelf.  

If you look at the angled shelf just below the ejector, there may be some irregularities/forging marks that are keeping the barrels from locking up.  My barrel fit wasn't luck.  It wouldn't lock up at first, then I smoothed up those forging marks (without changing the angle) until it would lock up.

However, before you do all of that, check the barrel to receiver gap with a feeler gauge.  Mine will not lock up if I have a .001" feeler gauge in that gap (above the ejector).  If you can get a .006" feeler gauge in that gap and it will lock up, forget trying to fit it any farther, unless you use some brass shim stock of the proper thickness on the back side of the hinge pin.  That will move the barrel back, the amount of the shim thickness, toward the receiver.  You might call that a head space adjustment.

HTH

Paul
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Offline Paul5388

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Doing the forbidden
« Reply #7 on: April 07, 2004, 04:26:40 PM »
Well, here I am doing the forbidden again!  This time it looks like this.
http://forums.handloads.com/uploads/Paul5388/Z498A_HPIM0091.JPG
The shotgun frame/receiver, serial # AU 591xxx,  I had the .357 Mag on is now a slender barreled .22 Hornet.  Barrel compliments of BigBoreFan!  

The "new" frame/receiver is serial # NR 325XXX and it has a decent trigger to it.  The other frame/receiver has a trigger that needs a gorilla to assist in squeezing off a shot!  The AU frame, with the rotten trigger, did shoot three groups today and the worst one was 2 1/2" at 100 yards!

RV,

All three barrels will fit any of the frames I have.
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