Advice Needed: Winchester 1886 45-70 Advice On Damage To Barrel Due To An Obstruction

albayo

albayo

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I have a 1905 Winchester 1886 in 45-70 with a 26" barrel half octagonal and round.
The gun is sound but I need advice on a damaged barrel.
The barrel has a slight bulge or some would call it a ring about 5" from the muzzle.
The barrel is clean with sharp rifling up to the damaged section, then it has the ring and some pitting out to the muzzle .
I think counter boring is out of the question as the damage is too far back from the muzzle.
Cutting 5 or 6" off the barrel is an option but then its devalued.
Any suggestions?
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Shoot it to determine if the bulge affects accuracy... the farther the bulge is from the muzzle, the less it affects accuracy.
 
It's been devalued already by the damage. So that ship has sailed.

I'd follow Guntech's advice as a first step. Lots of bulged barrels have been found to shoot just fine. Or at least not any less accurate than the shooter already is.

If it turns out that it does scatter bullets over a wide expanse is the barrel long enough to cut and still be over the 18" minimum for a non-semi rifle? It means cutting and crowning and also re-installing the front sight and front barrel band to support the magazine if it's a full length mag. Maybe time to change it to a "button mag" setup?
 
Can you feel it on the out side?
I would not do anything if it looks good , If you want to shoot 45-70, I would get a new/ newer one - this is a collector piece if in good shape, a ring in the barrel is not the end of the world.
 
I bought a model 94 in 30-30 recently with a ringed barrel. Even though I have a brand new barrel hidden away, I shot it first and the accuracy is excellent. Like Guntech says; shoot it first and don't fix what ain't broke

cheers mooncoon
 
I'm not flaming just asking a question to gain knowledge. Wouldn't the bulge imply an area inside the barrel where the rifling isn't making full contact with the bullet and thus a safety concern?

guntech said:
Shoot it to determine if the bulge affects accuracy... the farther the bulge is from the muzzle, the less it affects accuracy.
Click to expand...
 
Scarheart said:
I'm not flaming just asking a question to gain knowledge. Wouldn't the bulge imply an area inside the barrel where the rifling isn't making full contact with the bullet and thus a safety concern?
Click to expand...

yes but if the length of the bulge is short and the bullet long, more or less the bullet will remain supported by the rifling as it travels down the barrel. The closer to the breach that the bulge (or internally a pressure ring) is the farther the bullet will have to stabilize from any disruption, before it leaves the barrel. I think that most pressure rings are fairly short from front to back

cheers mooncoon
 
The value is no longer there, You would have to disclose the barrel condition if selling and I would pass on it. However if it were mine I would try it as is, if you have hunting accuracy 2" @ 100 you're good to go, option 2 would be shorten it.
Enjoy
 
It sucks that there's a bulge in the barrel but a 20-21" barrel 45-70 wouldn't be he worst thing in the world if it came to that.
 
Rings in bores do not necessarily mean poor accuracy.

An old gunsmith I knew purchased a 357 with a "bulged barrel" you could actually feel on the outside. He got it for a steal and took it home and placed it on a clean flat anvil and with a clean hammer he pounded that barrel back to shape carefully while turning it. He then lightly sanded to smooth it, took the bluing off the entire barrel and reblued it. I was with him when he shot it and accuracy was acceptable given what most can do freehand anyway.

CD
 
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