Hi everybody, , I recently purchased a Fenton 14 gauge antique shotgun in good condition.
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Nice yes where I shoot in Ontario for Partridge and some other birds I have to use non-toxic so I'm looking at purchasing number 4 Bismuth for this then I will get lead double odd Buckshot for deer I'm hoping the 14 gauge will shoot this okay next I have to work on loads because it's muzzle loading
There's a person in Alberta or company that I ordered 14 gauge Nitro cards then like a fiber or cork type patch to absorb the shot I think it's about a half inch and then over shot cards. As you can tell those are not quite the right terminology but I got all three
You can load the Bismuth substituting it straight across for lead.
Cat
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It will be close , yes. Your stack height may be a bit higher for shotshells, but not much.
For a 14 gauge muzzle ,loader it is a non issue of course as far as stack height goes, and Bismuth is very close to lead so if yu are a bit over on your scoop, no worries.
We often use pre- measured charges in the field kept in small vials from a craft shop, so you could pre -weigh your shot if you want to get really accurate on your weights.
Cat
You have inspected the gun carefully, and are sure the barrels and stock are sound?
I used to hunt quite a lot with a 14ga muzzleloading double. When I inspected this gun before purchasing it, I noted the barrels and the faces of the breech plugs were shiny. It had always been properly maintained. I made paper cartridges for it using brown wrapping paper. Powder cartridge had the filler wad glued to it. Open the cartridge, dump the powder, ram the paper and filler wad down. Shot cartridge had the top wad glued to it. Open the cartridge, dump the shot, ram down paper and wad. Two pockets in my bag, one for powder, one for shot. I used "square" loads, one oz. shot, equal volume of Fg. If reloading only one barrel, remember to remove the cap from the still loaded barrel before reloading. Also check that the load in the second barrel doesn't shift from the first barrel's recoil. With good wads it won't. Caps were kept in a little in-line capper tethered to the bag.
I don't know about buckshot for deer. What size buckshot would nest nicely? It would be best to do some serious pattern testing. I suspect that buckshot would be a really close range proposition. Might not be a good idea. You might also try a patched round ball. See how the different barrels handle ball. Might be effective at reasonable distances. Depending on your testing, perhaps a ball in one barrel, buckshot in the other might work.
I used to hunt quite a lot with a 14ga muzzleloading double. When I inspected this gun before purchasing it, I noted the barrels and the faces of the breech plugs were shiny. It had always been properly maintained. I made paper cartridges for it using brown wrapping paper. Powder cartridge had the filler wad glued to it. Open the cartridge, dump the powder, ram the paper and filler wad down. Shot cartridge had the top wad glued to it. Open the cartridge, dump the shot, ram down paper and wad. Two pockets in my bag, one for powder, one for shot. I used "square" loads, one oz. shot, equal volume of Fg. If reloading only one barrel, remember to remove the cap from the still loaded barrel before reloading. Also check that the load in the second barrel doesn't shift from the first barrel's recoil. With good wads it won't. Caps were kept in a little in-line capper tethered to the bag.
I don't know about buckshot for deer. What size buckshot would nest nicely? It would be best to do some serious pattern testing. I suspect that buckshot would be a really close range proposition. Might not be a good idea. You might also try a patched round ball. See how the different barrels handle ball. Might be effective at reasonable distances. Depending on your testing, perhaps a ball in one barrel, buckshot in the other might work.
Different ways to have a look at the bore of a muzzle loading shotgun. Drop a ball of foil down to reflect light from a flashlight back up. Drop a little single cell penlight down, pointing back toward the muzzle. Might need to tape paper over the lens to cut the brightness.
Give the barrel a good scrubbing. Might be many years accumulation of crud. Build up a swab that fits the bore - wrap fine steel wool around it and scrub with oil. Might be necessary to make a go devil to polish the bore. Wooden dowel just under bore size on the end of a rod. Slit the dowel, insert a strip of fine emery cloth. Use an electric drill to spin the abrasive against the bore's walls. Use oil. This will clean off surface oxidation.
Your photos show light pitting. Deep pits could be dangerous.
I would not recommend trying to remove the breech plugs from double barrels. Too much chance of damaging the barrels.
Are the nipples in good condition? Can they be removed?
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Give the barrel a good scrubbing. Might be many years accumulation of crud. Build up a swab that fits the bore - wrap fine steel wool around it and scrub with oil. Might be necessary to make a go devil to polish the bore. Wooden dowel just under bore size on the end of a rod. Slit the dowel, insert a strip of fine emery cloth. Use an electric drill to spin the abrasive against the bore's walls. Use oil. This will clean off surface oxidation.
Your photos show light pitting. Deep pits could be dangerous.
I would not recommend trying to remove the breech plugs from double barrels. Too much chance of damaging the barrels.
Are the nipples in good condition? Can they be removed?
You can post photos direct from your computer, no need to use a hosting service. Click on the little picture frame beside the emoji symbol. Click on drop image. Open your photo file, select the desired photo and click on open. Here is a sample.
I haven't tried to remove the nipples yet. When I put a number 11 on 1 of them, it's not snug. And it barely fits on the other one. So no they're not in grate shape i'm going to see about pulling them out tomorrow. Just not sure. If I should, because it's under a 30 day warranty and I'm not sure if I should return it. Because there's pitting like that all down the barrels
While it is nice to have smooth, shiny bores, barrels with moderate roughness might still be OK. Deep pits are an issue. I acquired a nice little 12 bore single, hoping it would be a shooter. Bore had deep pits. I reamed it to .750", an increase of about 10 thou per side. Pits were still there, so I sleeved the bore with a seamless 4130 tube. No hesitation to shoot it now.
My first shooter double was a Belgian I bought at auction for $4.50. Missing both locks. Made a pair of locks. Bores were dark. Scrubbed them out, they were still dark. Test fired the gun with stiff loads, used it for hunting with moderate charges.
My first shooter double was a Belgian I bought at auction for $4.50. Missing both locks. Made a pair of locks. Bores were dark. Scrubbed them out, they were still dark. Test fired the gun with stiff loads, used it for hunting with moderate charges.
Soak the nipples with penetrating oil, use a good fitting wrench. They might or might not come out. If they won't come out, but are clear and caps fit, they might be OK to use. But a blown nipple is dangerous. Old caps left extremely corrosive residue. Nipples can be drilled and the stumps extracted, but that gets complicated.
If I'm selling an antique muzzle loader, I would describe its condition accurately. I would say whether or not I have shot it, or if I would shoot it. If I've shot it, that means I had confidence that it was OK to shoot. But I would not guarantee the gun as a shooter.
The gun in the photo... It a Wilkinson & Son 16ga single entered into the book in September 1822. It's bore is clear and smooth. Based on bore condition, there is no reason it should not be used.
Bit of a gamble buying an antique with the intention of firing it. Is the Fenton expensive? Almost invariably muzzleloading shotguns will have welded barrels. Might be twist, Damascus, linear seam, depending on original quality and cost. It was far easier to weld up a tube than to drill and ream from solid.
Something else to check - English guns will have the barrels soldered together, many Belgian guns are brazed. Either way, the barrels should be soundly joined with the ribs solidly in place.
I am particularly fond of muzzleloading shotguns, have a bit of a collection. Some are shooters, some aren't. I've test fired many. Only ever blew one breech plug from a barrel, and it turned out that someone had previously messed up the threads. The barrels were in a test cradle, not in a gun.
When I test fire a gun, I support it and pack it with sandbags. The bags behind the butt absorb recoil, and there is nothing to mark the gun.
If I'm selling an antique muzzle loader, I would describe its condition accurately. I would say whether or not I have shot it, or if I would shoot it. If I've shot it, that means I had confidence that it was OK to shoot. But I would not guarantee the gun as a shooter.
The gun in the photo... It a Wilkinson & Son 16ga single entered into the book in September 1822. It's bore is clear and smooth. Based on bore condition, there is no reason it should not be used.
Bit of a gamble buying an antique with the intention of firing it. Is the Fenton expensive? Almost invariably muzzleloading shotguns will have welded barrels. Might be twist, Damascus, linear seam, depending on original quality and cost. It was far easier to weld up a tube than to drill and ream from solid.
Something else to check - English guns will have the barrels soldered together, many Belgian guns are brazed. Either way, the barrels should be soundly joined with the ribs solidly in place.
I am particularly fond of muzzleloading shotguns, have a bit of a collection. Some are shooters, some aren't. I've test fired many. Only ever blew one breech plug from a barrel, and it turned out that someone had previously messed up the threads. The barrels were in a test cradle, not in a gun.
When I test fire a gun, I support it and pack it with sandbags. The bags behind the butt absorb recoil, and there is nothing to mark the gun.
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1000$ externally, the gun looks great for the most part, completely functional. The only thing that worries me is the barrel. A little bit, I usually deal with antique handguns. All of mine are shooters when i'm done with them and resell.
It's my first time trying to get into the rifles, something to actually hunt with. If I can get the percussion nipples out, then it would be a great gun if the barrel was good, I don't know how I would fix it. I don't have a good gun.Smith.Close
