Thread: shotgun;a project,work in progress.

this is a 12ga shotgun i acquired some years ago.of course it cannot talk,but in its latter years it fell on hard times,some butcher had a go at it and failed and eventually i bought it.excuse my poor photos but it is covered in exquisite engraving,and i loved the celtic imagery,wildly popular today,but unusual when this gun was made in 1867.yes it is an irish gun,made by w.kavanagh,the man to whom stephen grant did his apprenticeship under,grant was later to manage boss and co before branching out on his own.it has the most beautiful damascus patterned barrels that i have ever seen/held.sorry i do not have a picture but they are away at the moment getting some work.the stock which is a magnificent peice of (irish?) walnut has been smashed through the wrist and it has a series of holes bolts through it in an attempt for a repair.the butt stock has two engraved end plates,toe and heel.at first i thought i would keep it as a curiosity peice,but then the idea grew about restoring it,in order to shoot it on it's 150th aniversary,say a brace or two of quail,i pictured them in flight right between the hammers.i began to do the maths and it became a little daunting and fiscally unjustifiable.so it lay there in the safe. but this week i made a start.the barrels will be first.

great looking gun well wourth the effort/ it looks like someone had made up a plate and atached it to the stock as some way of holding it together ,i must work out about doing photos and put a few of my projects up good luck

yes,i do not think the stock is original.the pistol grip does not fit with the time of manufacture,and the tang has been cut short to run down the grip.the top strap has no engraving either,this is at odds with the rest of the gun.both the trigger tang and top strap are broken so need to be welded and re-engraved along with some screw replacements.the butt stock i would like to keep,but renew the head with a mortice and tenon,to make an english style stock and hide the join amongst the checkering.the stock and forend are the expensive part.the hammers are non-rebounding,however i will add springs to convert them for safety reasons. it won't happen overnight but it will happen.

I look forward to seeing your progress with this. Looks like an interesting and attractive piece.

these photos will only be of interest to a shotgun nut,but the engraving is a feature on this gun and i love the celtic touch on the sidelocks.considering this was done in 1867 and when mackay brown in the late 1990's introduced it on some of their guns, it drew rave comments.notice the top strap has been snapped and so has the trigger tang,leading me to suspect the gun was deliberately smashed by holding the barrels and swinging to break the stock, or it was run over.it is still a work in progress,next step-- fixing the broken metal.

forgot to upload the veiw of the locks.impressed with the workmanship and condition.considering the age of the gun,the mechanics have remained unbodgyed about.

I did an overhaul, stock job and blue, of a very old single barreled shotgun and the locks are identical to those in the photo. Lots of photos taken when stripping it right down to its individual parts. By the lok of some of the screw heads I would say it has been taken apart at some stage in its life

I did an overhaul, stock job and blue, of a very old single barreled shotgun and the locks are identical to those in the photo. Lots of photos taken when stripping it right down to its individual parts. By the lok of some of the screw heads I would say it has been taken apart at some stage in its life

that stocks been /is a lovely bit of timber in its time.
the metal works to die for

Pistol grip is odd, straight stock will be much more fitting of the period when you restock it. What are the bores like? And most importantly, when you finish it, will you sell it to me?

hi pointer,the pistol grip could be original or the gun restocked.i would have expected a straight stock,although there were pistol type grips around then.the wood is beautiful,but has well and truely been smashed ,drilled through in the wrist area.i had thought about mortice and tenon to the butt end and a new piece of wood the receiver end,shaping a straight stock and recheckering. the stock work will be the costly part.the fore end wood is original,its a little chipped along both sides but repairable.you can see a shadowline where it has been converted from an escutchen side release to a bottom lever.the bores were quite heavily pitted when i obtained the gun,hence it was put to one side for a few years.i relooked at it and decided that one day i would really like to shoot this gun,but without barrels a gun is stuffed.i contacted brian thompson,the briley agent with a view of getting the barrels sent to the states and fitted for 20 ga tubes. however i discussed this with a gunsmith friend and after a bit of measuring and hours of work, i had the barrels honed so now they a mirror perfect.the wall thickness is a little down but ok for the light 12 guage loads i will put through it as the gun will only be used on occasions.i love the damascus of the barrels.in about a month the metalwork should be completed, then some reengraving required and then it will be a stocking project.by then i will have spent that much,i will have to die before i could be parted with that gun.a shameful but so rewarding indulgence.

May it bring you much joy and great sport!

Great project!