I've toyed with the idea of buying a cheaper double and building it into a dedicated woodcock and rabbit gun. I'm thinking shorter barrels and cyl/cyl. With a gun of very little to no collector value, would this be a terrible idea? Yes, I could have the chokes reamed out, but a shorter lighter barreled gun would be much faster in the thick aspen and alder thickets. My concern would be filling the open hollow between the ribs. I've seen some fill this will devcon steel epoxy/JB Weld, but I'm afraid that would look a tad trashy. If I were to plug it and try to fill it with soft solder, I fear too much heat could loosen the ribs and cause them to separate. Any advice on barrel length, techniques, should I avoid this, has anyone tried this etc?

Why would you cut barrels when there are so many 26 inchers out there already and they sell for less than longer barreled guns. I would look for a fast handling gun and 26" barrels usually means faster. Chokes could be cut by Mike Orlen. He charges somewhere around $40/choke and he is good at turning your chokes into cylinder. Maybe the left barrel should have some choke for longer shots.

Aahhhhh!!! Chopping off lengths of shotgun barrel is anathema to us Brits. With the shock horror out of the way I have performed this operation on a gun owned by local game keeper for the same reasons you describe, Using a gun in thickets and dense woodland. I did put up all the arguments with a suggestion that he purchased a 25 inch barrel set for his Webley and Scott 700. Unfortunately, I was not persuasive enough though and after the suggestion that he would take a hacksaw to the gun which I am sure he would know I would relent and take the barrels down to 25 inches. I must add here that it was in the early 1960’s when Webley and Scott shotgun’s where a reasonable cost and another barrel set would not have broken the bank.
My method was first to measure the length of finished barrel required then add an eighth of an inch to allow for trimming and cleaning up, then cut making sure the cut is square and straight. Next file up a three eights in length fillet of mild steel shaped to take up the major part of the space between the bottom and top ribs and each of the barrels the closer the fit the better. Then prepare the barrels for soldering and the fillet, firstly at about an inch from the muzzle wrap wire around the barrels and between the ribs and the wire slide in some metal wedges (I used Aluminium wedges a good heat conductor) doing this is all to keep the soldering heat away from the ribs and melting the solder holding them and keeping everything tight. Next flux up the inside of the ribs and barrels also flux the steel fillet and to improve the odds of first time success I did tin the metal fillet before fitting (you MUST use a non-corrosive based flux) now the solder I recommend is electrical grade of 60:40 Tin Lead because it has a lower melting point of the common available solders.
I held the barrels in a vice fitted with wooden cheeks at an angle of about 20 degrees with a wet cloth wrapped around the barrels from the wire wrap down towards the breach (do not fall in to the trap of mounting the barrel vertically muzzle up) because there is a good chance the solder will empty out of the joint caused by gravity, and unless you have some form of stop on the fillet it has the potential to drop out of sight when things expand due to the heat. WORK QUICKLEY!!!! And try to keep the heat to just enough to get the solder to flow. When everything has cooled down use a flat fine file to trim the fillet taking care to keep everything true and at right angles. Even now I have not changed my mind, purchase a low price gun with short barrels and leave the said gun as designed and manufactured.

I don't plan to cut any barrels but I do really like the detail you go into with your pasts Damascus. Thank you!

Steve

FWIW, I find open chokes terrible for cottontail shooting.
For Woodcock, in the thick, it can up your scores.

Thank you guys...

I'm trying to create a Becassier-type shotgun. Its rather hard to find these types of shotguns at reasonable prices here in the U.S.

???

Woodcock. Canon raye. Rifling up the bore to disperse shot for short range targets...Geo

There may be a good reason.

SRH

Don't believe they are very useful Stan?

Have you looked at this one listed on Gunsinternational: http://www.gunsinternational.com/guns-fo...un_id=100943538

It's a 16 gauge with 27-5/8 barrels but at less than 6-1/4 pounds, would probably be delightful to carry.

Remington, I have looked at that. It is very nice, but I think the seller is very high.

I agree, but you lose nothing by contacting him and making him an offer you think fair.

My late father-in-law was a successful car dealer. One of his favorite expressions was - If you don't ask, you don't get...

Steve

Spreader chokes will give good shot spread, not as much as a canon raye but wide enough to fully cover a 30 inch circle at 12 meters. I have tested with Briley, Colonial, Seminole and European made chokes. There is not much difference between makes.

The advantage of the spreader choke is that a choke change makes the barrel adaptable for other uses, something not possible with a canon raye.

Seeing there is plenty of used shotguns with screw in chokes, it might be worth considering this option.

Just cyl choke(s) are good. Use spreeder loads in them if you want even more.

As far as filling the void at the muzzle on cut bbls, don't be concerned that the entire assembly will fall to pieces because you apply heat to solder it up.
I routinely solder and re-solder the muzzle ends closed after rust bluing (I open them to allow the bbl's to drain better if I can).

Clean the edges of the bbls and opposing ribs down in there, scrape clean. A tiny amt of paste flux, insert or reinsert the keels if you have any.
If you don't, a small tuft of steel wool pushed into the opening a ways will dam it closed so the solder won't drip down the opening freely. It'll absorb the flux with the first heat and then the solder and become one mass soldered to the bbls and ribs in there.

For heat I use nothing but a pistol grip electric soldering gun (Weller). Plenty of heat( I tin the ribs and most all of the bbl surfacees with the same gun when relaying ribs), common 50/50 or 60/40 lead-tin solder.
No wet wraps or clamps, it takes but a few seconds to heat and flow the solder and be done. Nothing comes undone.
File trim it flat and polish smooth.
If there are any voids in it, it was dirty. Clear them, scrape them clean, reflux the areas and touch up with the soldering gun again and retrim.
One of the old school plug in soldering irons w/the large copper tip works well for this too. Tin the tip well to start.
It'll have plenty of heat for a quick solder job on the muzzle.
Stay away from a propane torch IMO,,no need for one to do the muzzle fill-in job. You can get into trouble using one of these unless very careful and apply too much heat w/o noticing it. Then you can start to loosen ribs or overheat the steel and have problems.

About 30 ears ago at the same time I started hunting and collecting doubles I would stop at tag sales here in NY while driving around for work. One day I found a high condition Stevens 5100 (precursor to the 311) in 16ga. w/28"bbls., 75% case color, 95% blue and wood.

Not long after, still being new to actual hunting, I read that CYL & CYL is perfect for woodcock. Out came the hacksaw, bobbed it bac to 24" and did a very nice job, patterned well. I filled in gap under the ribs with some Brownells solder.

Sure wish I had left it alone.