doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Damascus barrels and pressures

The average meaning for using a damascus barrel is to shoot low pressure rounds. Nothing wrong with that. And based on this notion, one choses to use the damascus cautiously, without the need to demonstrate any different. There is no obvious need to demonstrate any different since we use already the minimum pressure.
Only that Stephen Grant and Birmingham Proof House tests and Sherman Bell suggest that we are missing on a lot of function. It's like having a race horse in your stalls and allowing it only a controlled slow pace stroll so that he does not brake a leg. Of course if you go faster there is an increased risc of braking a leg.

In the case of damascus, virtually all is installed on old guns. That means that we are wise to protect the wood with low recoil loads and the action with low presure loads. One can let the old race horse gallop without the full bore effort needed to race. Yes, we could likely get more function from our damascus guns at a very slight increase in risk (the old race horse still knows how to run). The question is why would we? If you need racing effort, use a modern gun that you shoot well. If youare out for a pleasant gallop, shoot something you enjoy.

Rocketman,

It could not be any clearer. Thank you.

Your damascus barrelled guns are all unsafe to shoot. They should be correctly disposed of to avoid posing any danger to life and limb to you and those you hold near and dear. An appropriate secure disposal facility is located in Western Victoria, South Eastern Australia, staffed by approriately qualified technicians who can perform rigorous field tests under controlled conditions.

Well, it might work!

Or you could just give me all your guns!

If I have to die, I can think of worse ways to go than having a beautiful gun let go on me while I'm doing something I love. At least I'll die annointed in "holy black"!

Generations of shooters knew nothing of prohibitions against smokeless in their damascus guns, and went ahead and loosened many a gun and cracked many a headstock with mountains of Maximum, Impax, Blue Star and Grand Prix.

I suspect (in a very amateur, unscientific way) that the damascus=unsafe thing probably has a kernel of truth somewhere, somehow, but that it is mostly overblown.
RG

Old things should be treated as old things...just having is good enough sometimes. I know you don't want to save 'em for the next generation, but you don't want to blow them-up today.

I realize it would only be a ballpark, but what kind of pressure would a 2 1/2 brass shell loaded with 70gr FFG GOEX, Nitro card, 1/2" fiber wad, 1 1/8oz 7 1/2 shot and overshot card produce in a New Ithaca Gun Company 12 gauge hammergun? Gun is in good shape, tight and has some minor pitting in otherwise shiny bores. There is a similar discussion, of sorts, taking place on another forum and the anti-damsacus/twist crowd is chiming in big time. There is much more imperical data being provided here. Thanks!

Here's link to a Guns Magazine article by one of Bodinsons that contains some comparisons of bp and smokeless. For some reason, the bp loads in the article are FFFg--seems a little fast for shotgun. The transition from bp to bulk semi-smokelesss to nitro and the attendant confusion arising from the simple volume equivalency of the first two but not of the third (the origin of "dr. eq." on factory smokeless shells) has been suggested as the source of the original whispering campaign against damascus. It could be that the incidence of damascus "accidents" was high enuf to be noticable during this transition and that a significant no. of guns were sacrificed to overloads. Also, the economies of fabricaton of the new fluid steel would have been meaningless if it didn't sell because of a standpatter faith in damascus. Scare campaigns work better without qualification or elaboration--thus damascus unsafe, fluid steel safe. Why the signs above quarries say only "Keep Out" rather than Keep Out Unless You Know What You're Doing".

jack

Jack:
Either I am missing something or you forgot to put the link in.

I need a calendar AND a keeper! Sorry.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQY/is_3_46/ai_59281213

How many hammerless Purdey 'n Boss guns do you see with damascus barrels? Not many! Seems those chaps who could, had them re-barrel to steel very early on.