Dents in old shotgun barrels

rolfyrolf

rolfyrolf

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I have a 99 year old J.P. Sauer & Sohn 12ga. It has a small dent in each barrel about 13 and 16 inches from the receiver. Is there a criteria for dent fixes or does a smith have to make a case by case judgement?

Any experience with these repairs out there? Cost ideas?
 
Those dents can affect your patterns and will increase pressures in the affected area. They also weaken the barrel at that area, maybe critically if the dent is deep or sharp and this can be terminal on damascus or laminated barrels. Some times untrained people will bore/hone a barrel to remove pits without raising the dents which of course results in a thin spot at this point. There are special tools for this job and the gunsmiths who own and use them usually have the experience to judge if this dent is suitable for repair. Prices in most places is $25-50 per dent, figure on a $50 minimum.
 
I have less confidence in the skill of gunsmiths owning dent raising tools. Choose a smith of known skill working on quality shotguns to protect your investment, or leave minor dents alone.
 
Some time ago, I removed a couple of light dents on an old Spanish SXS by tapping a well-oiled socket with a dowel. There's a YouTube video explaining it, that's where I got the idea.

Found a socket from my set, that slid down the barrel but stopped at the dent, oiled and tapped it through, then backed it out so as to not engage the choke. Kept wrapping it with thin sheets of aluminum foil to get it tighter against the dent,
found that half-diameter sheets worked best. Used a brass hammer on the outside (with the socket against the inside) to tap the dent smooth. Not a pro-job by far and only done to a cheap shotgun, but still infinitely better than before.
 
struff55 said:
Yes and anyone can give advice for free that has no actual experience with gunsmithimg lots of that on this thread .
Click to expand...

Tradeex currently sells a working Sauer and Sohn for $225, the OP did not mention the value of his shotgun, it could be a priceless antique or a beater gun.
Spending $150 to repair a dent on a sub $250 gun seems excessive to me, especially after I successfully repaired one myself.
Never said I was a gunsmith, I'm just a tinkerer trying to save a guy a buck, thought I made it clear enough, apparently not clear enough for you...
 
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