Browning O/U opens when fired!

[HappyHunter]

I have a 30 inch Browning O/U that opens up when the top barrel is fired. 

It does not do it all the time.  With more powerful rounds it will open more frequently. 

I have only shot 7-1/2 and 8 shot loads for sporting clays. 

The gun was purchased used and looks to be in great condition.  This problem developed after I purchased gun, it was fine for months.

I have ordered Radacy Take Down Guide.  It is my intention to give the gun a complete inspection and cleaning, in an effort to locate the problem.


ADVICE?  ANY HELP IS MUCH APPRECIATED.


Fred

[Graybeard]

I'm certainly no gunsmith and can't give you advice on fixing one BUT I'm thinking it might not be broke to begin with. Most likely you're just not fully closing it. The top lever used to open it must be fully back to the left for it to stay latched. Now that don't necessarily mean any one position as they do move their home postion as they wear in. But it needs to return to the same spot that's right for it each time. I suspect it's not.

I bought a barely used 28 ga Citori that got real hard to open and close during the first round of skeet I used it on. Took it back to the dealer, he took it apart and it appeared the trigger and an arm in there were binding pushing the trigger out of position. He was gonna do a bit of filing on it but before he could it just fixed itself. Not given a moment's trouble since. Got no clue what was going on, maybe a burr or something.

Make sure the gun is cleaned and lubed properly and then each time you close it use your thumb to make sure the lever is to the left as it should be. See if that stops the problem. I think it will. Still you shouldn't have to do that. Maybe you're closing it too softly and it's not closing properly.

[HappyHunter]

GB,

Thanks for your suggestions, but that is not the problem.  It is fully latched. 

It opens only on the top barrel.  I assume that is because this bore will apply the most pressure on the bolt. 
My first thought was that a single pellet was caught in the works and prohibiting a good lock up.  This seemingly is not the case either. 

When my take down guide arrives I plan to take it down to look further.

Fred

[nabob]

I have an XT that had the same problem.

First thought: be sure the shelf that locks the barrel to the receiver down at the bottom of the action is not lubed very much at all. It needs next to none. I know this sounds weird, but other Citoris I've had were sensitive to too much lube on the shelf, especially if there was any sort of water in the air that could condense or fall on the shelf. When the lube and water were present, the lever popped to the right when shooting. I use next to nothing on the shelf insofar as lube goes. Just a bit of a sort of gun "dry lube" like the kind used for Remington semi-automatic actions.

Second thought: the top lever spring needs replacing. This, more than the issue with too much lube on the shelf, was my problem. When the top lever spring was replaced on my gun, it stopped popping open.

Third thought: the shelf itself might not be completely square if you've had any work done on the action. My trapshooting buddy had an XT with this problem. Replacing the shelf solved the problem. It wasn't noticably out of square but somehow, it was enough.

My guess is maybe problem one, very likely problem two and unlikely problem three. Bet if you replaced the top lever spring, your gun would be fixed. Good luck.

[dave375hh]

I'd have to agree with Nabob on this one. I have a Citori GTI with over 110,000 rounds through it and it was springing the top lever like his XT. I had an oversize lock plate fitted and the smith also replaced the lever spring stating the spring was likely the problem. The lock plate was worn but not yet out of spec. He replaced it because that's what I wanted done at the time due to the round count. A friends Sporting Lightning was doing the same and only needed a lever spring to fix it.

[HappyHunter]

Thanks guys,  my shotgun is the lightning sporting clays as well. 

My take down guide came in the mail today.  I will be working on it likly this weekend.

I appreciate the advise.

Fred

[joshco84]

we have the opposite problem an old 12 sxs (dont know the manufacturer sorry) that fires both barrels when you close it.  it scared the s*** out of my uncle when it happened and we all laughed afterwards, but it was kind of nerve racking when it happened.