What happened Thunder? Ruptured cylinder. Bad timing?
Originally upon receiving the shotgun, it occasionally melted two of the five fired hulls in the cylinder when fired. It did not happen frequently, but did happen from time to time. The blow-back of burnt gases was extremely annoying, and happened every time the 410 was discharged. I bought this for my wife, but she hated the dangerous blow-back.
The dealer we bought it from was aware of these issues and stated to monitor the issues, and they would replace it once a steel receiver model was built. They also said this was a fairly common problem on these shotguns, all while reassuring me it was safe to keep using.
Our model would shoot both the 2 1/2" and the 3" 410 shells. On a cold clear December day, I took the revolving 410 out to plink with. I loaded up the five shot cylinder with 3" #6 Winchester factory ammunition. When I fired the third round, the shotgun appeared to explode from the right hand side of the frame. It literally blew off the gas shield, split the wood fore-piece, and a good chunk of the fore-piece also blew off. The metal gas shield went into the next county. I searched for it on the freshly fallen snow, but could not locate an entrance in the snow.
Seeing it was so cold out, I fortunately had leather gloves on, as well as a thick winter coat. Obviously I had on shooting safety glasses. You could not shoot it without them, as the blow-back was brutal. (Another issue the dealer said was normal!)
I was not injured due to all the protective gear I was wearing. Had this same thing happen during the summer months, I would think the outcome would be very different.
The metal gas shield was never located by me. I even looked after the spring thaw, I thought for sure I would find it. The two cap screws that held the shield onto the aluminum frame, were literally ripped out of the receiver, completely stripping out the tapped and threaded mounting holes. The force was unreal when it blew up, I did not drop the shotgun upon the explosive shock and jerking in my hands. I sent the damaged 410 back to the dealer, along with all the melted 410 hulls that were fired in the same firearm. The dealer could not figure out what had actually happened. The cylinder timing appeared to be okay, other than the rotation while firing in double-action mode was very gritty. Single action mode was a tad better.
The dealer offered to give us one of the newer steel frame models that were supposed to be made. We emphatically refused. It wasn't until I suggested they speak with my lawyer, when they decided to refund all of my money I had invested. I explained to them that they should be thankful I was only asking for a refund, and that I wasn't injured. In the event of personal injury, it would have been a lot more complicated.
Now I am not saying every single revolver 410 will blow up. I am saying that the issues of gas blow-back has not been resolved. And the dealer suggesting one has to take of the protective shield to stop this dangerous situation (as you stated you did), tells me the manufactures have not resolved the issues with this type of 410 shotgun.
There are many models and brand names attached to this cylinder revolving type 410 shotgun. They include Canuck, Sulun, Lazer Arms, Revolution Armory, and one other I cannot recall.
Customers can make their own decisions on the reliability, and or safety of these shotguns. I would like people to be aware of the dangers, and possibility of a catastrophic failure.
As a former dealer (with integrity), I chose not to carry or sell any of these 410 revolving type actions.