Question about chokes

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sgiven

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I was out doing some trap shooting today. It was my first time really going out shooting anything much bigger than a 22.
We won't talk about my score, but I hit some clays and I had a lot of fun.

I was using my remington 396 but I didn't think to bring the chokes with me (screw in chokes), so...

1. Did I damage my barrel (the threads or something) by shooting it without a choke in?

2. For future reference, how tight am I supposed to crank them on? (I don't have a wrench or anything, they just seem to screw in by hand)

Thanks.
 
1. Yup! You probably screwed up the threads real good!
2. If the choke tubes have an exposed, knurled end, you should be able to tighten them by hand.
 
Given the thickness of most Remington barrels you probably didn't ruin your gun by firing it without chokes. Check the threads to see how they look. If they appear undamaged clean the threads thoroughly of any plastic or lead fouling and then attempt to install the tubes. If they go in smoothly then you should be fine.

Choke tubes do not need to be wrenched hard into a gun. Lubricate the threads with a good choke tube grease and then seat them firmly using light hand pressure.
 
Phew!!!

Well, You guys scared me.
Fortunately, it seems there's no damage done .
The chokes still screw in all the way, solidly, (they do have the exposed end) and the threads don't appear damaged. It was only 25 shots of target loads so I guess I lucked out.
Needless to say, I won't be doing that again (without the chokes in).
Waterfowler said:
And it is a Remington 396 o/u?????

That's not what I would call an entry level gun.
Click to expand...
Yeah I know, I know it comes with a nice price tag as well, but fortunately for me, I didn't have to pay for mine.
In any case, thank you all for the advice.
 
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This isn't the first time that a gun has been shot without tubes.The chance of damage is unlikely if you were using lead shot and seeing as how you were trapshooting I'm assuming that that's the case.Barrel steel is pretty hard stuff,even when its been subjected to fine threading.Shot,on the other hand is extremely soft.Soft lead generally won't damage hard steel.Just remember your tubes next time.What kind of score did you shoot without the tubes?
Dave
 
vetteman said:
What kind of score did you shoot without the tubes?
Click to expand...

Like I said, this was my first time with a shotgun, let alone shooting trap. I used a SxS for about half the shots (wanted to both guns out) and I got 6 out of 25.
The funny thing is that those hits were all without chokes. I didn't hit anything with the SxS.
I realize that's nothing to brag about, but I plan on going out again soon for more practice.
And yeah, I won't forget my chokes next time.:)
 
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