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My shotgun went off in my house tonight:(
poisoned
Member Posts: 31 ✭✭
I buddy of mine gave me an old double barrel shotgun about a week ago. I have always kept a loaded pistol in the closet and decided to keep the shotgun loaded as well. The thing was old and filthy so I decided to clean it tonight. After about 2 hours of cleaning I stuck two rounds in the barrel and closed it up. As soon as I closed it the damn thing went off and hit the wall above my sliding glass door. This scared the living hell out of me. I checked to make sure that it did not pass through the wall and it didn't but I will never load a gun outside of the shooting range again... let alone keep one loaded. My heart is still pounding even as I am typing this. Has anyone else ever had something like this happen? Why would my gun have done this? Could it be because it is so old and has not been fired in so long? Thank God nobody was hurt. I feel like such a *.
Comments
My wife's cousin was heading out the door to shoot a dog that was hurting his dog (with a litter). He didn't keep the chamber loaded so he pumped it and when he did it went off. The dog ran off but his dad (her uncle) saw that he shot the door and was ticked off and the kid said that it just went off. The uncle said guns just don't "go off" so he cycled it again putting yet another hole in the door.
The next day that gun was cut into pieces with a cutting torch! [}:)]
I wouldn't shy away from loading and keeping reputable guns in the house.
Obviously, follow safe gun handling procedures when loading and unloading just in case...
I've seen this with rimfire-rifles and double barrel shotguns mainly, but one had a Safari-type (light and short) .30-06 rifle, that he believed was "Greatly annoying" when it did that too.
Personally, I would never load a weapon that I don't know - outside a testsite or firingrange that is.
Test if the gun does this every time - or "just" when you slam the gun closed.
If you're up for a little disassembling:
You can start off easy by pulling off the buttstock and keep an eye on a few things.
Does the buttstock touch the firing-mechanism/parts in any way?
It's sometimes hard to feel.
When buttstock is off, what does the inside of the stock look like - does it have blank spots, like where metal parts have rubbed on it.?
I've had this problem on a shotgun - it was very irregular as to how much you'd need to pull the trigger.
Is the stock damaged or cracked, so a piece or pieces of wood comes out of the buttstock when you open it.?
Had this one on a "Ambassador" O/U - it fired both barrels and felt a little irregular at the trigger too.
When you look at the firing-mechanism - be sure not to set a finger on the hammer!!
But does the parts appear to run smoothly - a drop of oil around pins and connections as well as a little work with some "Practise Dummy Rounds"/"Dry fire rounds" would be a good thing.
I mean those rounds, that takes the impact from the firing-pin.
You might want to have a Gunsmith take a quick look at it.
It shouldn't be much work for him - but you can always take off the buttstock yourself and make an initial estimate.
It might get a little complicated, if the gun has "Side-Locks", those side-plates where the trigger-mechanism is assembled in each side of the gun for left and right barrel.
But always remember:
When you get a gun, used or even new in box - I'd always advice to get to know it first, before keeping it loaded for some reason.
It is unlikely that it will discharge itself - but even new weapons could need adjustment, a checkup or need to be fired a number of times.
Don't do anything that I've allready done - That'd be just plain STOOOOOOPID.
Former Member U.S. Navy Shooting Team
Former NSSA All American
Navy Distinguished Pistol Shot
MO, CT, VA.
What is likely is burred sears and sear notches or weak or broken sear springs. Also check the automatic safety. It's not preventing movement of the sears. Sometimes with old sidelock shotguns the stock interferes with the lockwork and needs to be trimmed clear of moving parts. In one case a double gun needed a metal spacer between the upper and lower tang because when the tang screw was tightened, the gun could be bumped off like yours. The gunmaker relied on the stock thickness to maintain proper spacing of the tangs but over years the wood compressed and made that fine German double very dangerous.
If you dont feel competent to assess and correct the problem take it to a gunsmith.
To answer your question, yes I've had a few accidental discharges, one like yours but with a rifle having an improperly adjusted double set trigger.
the "every gun is ALWASY LOADED should really ring true for you now.Glad no one was hurt.
Throckmortons' the alias,cas is the game.
Proud member of the NRA
When I do good, I feel good; when I do bad, I feel bad, and that is my religion.
Abraham Lincoln
If I had only known, I would have been a locksmith.
Albert Einstein
The original point and click interface was a Smith and Wesson.
Replacement hammers in steel are available from Gun Parts.
Open and close the gun to see if the hammers stay cocked. When open,see if any firing pin is jammed forward.
Shotguns and Rifles
Non-concealable firearms (rifles and shotguns) are not generally covered within the provisions of California Penal Code section 12025 and therefore are not required to be transported in a locked container. However, as with any firearm, non-concealable firearms must be unloaded while being transported. A rifle or shotgun that is considered an assault weapon in California must be transported in accordance with Penal Code section 12026.1.
IF IT AIN'T BROKE DON'T FIX IT!
SEMPER FI
If it doesn't fit get a bigger hammer.
When I first got my Ace II conversion unit, I was cycling rounds (.22LR) through the slide, when one fired. Fortunately, it was pointed at a clothes closet (mine). Ruined 2 pairs of blue jeans and 3 pairs of dress slacks. Fortunately, the wife wasn't home. I ended up with some high priced gun cleaning rags. I still have the slug and shell in a vial that I keep with the Colt conversion unit. All in all, I think it was a pretty cheap lesson.
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"That which does not kill us makes us stronger."
- Friedrich Nietsche
"Only the strong survive."
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