doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Sleeved barrel seam

Hello all:
I am considering the purchase of a fine English SXS with sleeved barrels. The work was well done but at some time in the past. Now the silver-solder line is showing up around both barrels where they join the monoblock. I am wondering what are the possibilities and need some technical guidance.

Has anyone had sleeved barrels re-sleeved? I spoke with Mr. Kirk Merrington today and he says that the existing barrels (they are in good shape BTW) cannot be removed without destroying them. Re-sleeving will cost $3000. Yikes!

Another well respected gunsmith in England says that the barrels can be sweated off, saved, prepared and then TIG welded back on at a cost of $1000. Big savings if it works. I understand that TIG welded seams are more easily disguised. Has anyone had this done?

If I go this route, I'd like to find someone here in the USA who could do this kind of work and do it properly without the shipping hassles.

If I could find some technique to blacken the silver scar, that might work, but I am dubious that it would ever be permanent.

I don't know if just the seam could be welded, without removing the barrels, thereby eliminating the visible seam.

Another option would be to just walk away from the deal.

Any technical advice or other options would be welcome.

If the silver line bothers you pass on the deal.....

Oscar used to make an effort to wipe steel onto the joint as he finished the barrels. This can result in a deposit of steel over the joint. If the joint is brass colored it is silver soldered. If it is gray or silver it is soft solder which can be touched up with a blacking agent.
By wiping I mean he worked only in one direction, no back and forth, up and down or circular motion.
bill

Oscar used to make an effort to wipe steel onto the joint as he finished the barrels. This can result in a deposit of steel over the joint. If the joint is brass colored it is silver soldered. If it is gray or silver it is soft solder which can be touched up with a blacking agent.
By wiping I mean he worked only in one direction, no back and forth, up and down or circular motion.
bill

Brownells makes a product called SolderBlack - http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/P...0SOLDER%20BLACK

I would also assume that the barrels could be sweated off without destroying them.

I agree with gunut. If they bothered me that much I would pass on the deal. I have a buddy who has a beautiful Joseph Lang that has been sleeved and it doesn't bother him at all. It is a gorgeous gun and he has a great time breaking great skeet scores with it.

Mark: Whether you can see the seam or not, the gun is still sleeved and its value remains the same. Some sleeve jobs are less visible than others, but you can almost always find the seam if you look for it. As has been said, if the seam bothers you, pass on the gun, as there are many more to choose from. But if the price is right, remember that many a fine antique Brit has been sleeved, and while priced at a discount, many see it as a bonus, because the useful life has been extended on someone else's dime, you don't have to worry about old and fatigued tubes, etc. Good luck. TT

Mark,

Two questions. First, do you like the feel of the gun? Second, is the gun properly priced?

If the answer to both question is yes, go ahead and buy it. If you shoot it well and decide it's a keeper decide just how offensive the line is. If you can't live with it, send it off to an engraver and have him lay on a simple pattern of the type used by the Italians on their monoblocs. The shipping will cost you more than the work. The engraving will hold any of various coloring agents including paint. Lines gone.

If you send it to someone else in the US Kirk will probably end up with it anyway.Are you sure the price in England was dollars and not pounds.Easiest way to cover now would be a fine bead blast and rust blue.

Nothing wrong with properly sleeved barrels.You can disguise the seem using Zeebo or Zeebrite.Many a Yank has expressed a desire to buy my sleeved Higham 28 guage, but she is not for sale, EVER.