So I acquired an old Iver Johnson 12G single shot. First, there is no marking for the size of shells it can take. Does that mean that it can only handle 2 3/4" shells? And second, the hammer is super heavy to pull back, and I mean super. I can squeeze almost 200PSI with my right hand, and can barely pull this hammer back. Is there any way to loosen it?
Question about old Iver Johnson
- Thread starter Redpoints
- Start date
It maybe 2 1/2" depending on how old it is. Iver Johnson was in business between 1871 and 1993. Made single shot shotguns the whole time.
Have a smithy look at it to make sure it's safe to shoot. The hammer issue may be caused by rusted internal parts. The only way to find out is to take it apart and look. You'll have trouble finding a manual though. The current Iver Johnson company has nothing to do with nor do they have any info or parts for the old company's stuff. Gunparts lists a few parts, but not many.
Have a smithy look at it to make sure it's safe to shoot. The hammer issue may be caused by rusted internal parts. The only way to find out is to take it apart and look. You'll have trouble finding a manual though. The current Iver Johnson company has nothing to do with nor do they have any info or parts for the old company's stuff. Gunparts lists a few parts, but not many.
as sunray says take the stock off and soak it with wd 40.there will be a slight step in the barrel at the end of the chamber.if you measure this you will be able to tell if it will take 2 3/4 shells . a fired shell is 2.75 inches.an unfired shell is 2.35 inches so you have to have 2.75 inches of chamber or the end of the shell will be forced into the barrel .i have lots of parts for these old iver jonsons .p.m. me if you need anything.be glad to help.
Thanks farmer. I appreciate the advice. I measured it with my caliper to 2.710 inches to the start of the forcing cone. Still close enough to 2 3/4" for me. I will try to loosen up the hammer with a penetrant like wd40 also.
When you knock out the rivets from the receiver everything comes apart?
When you knock out the rivets from the receiver everything comes apart?
i would be leaving the receiver together if i could get the hammer free as you probably have a corrosion problem in the receiver making dissasembly difficult.pull the butt plate off. two screws hold it . take a heavy screwdriver and remove the stock bolt and stock. this will give you access to the receiver ,you should be able to clean the internal parts through this opening. the receiver is a combination of flat and coil springs .as well there is a screw holding parts together as well as the rivets . as i said leave it together if you can free it up as it can be difficult to get apart and reassembled.
