doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Did I get screwed on this 16ga Bernardelli?

Can't get the seller to call me back yet. Sent a couple emails and left some voicemails. I don't think I want to send the gun back until I know I can get my money. It was from an individual and I sent money orders. The guy had good reviews too. This would be my first bad experience with gunbroker so far. Maybe he'll still call back.

Try calling him using someone else's phone. He may be avoiding your number.

Pits look nasty, but you could still probably shoot it as a 20 with GaugeMates or chamber sleeving if a gunsmith says it's not safe as is. I have a couple of Brescias and they are nice guns. Have never actually seen one in 16, so may be awhile before you see another one. Send it back? Screwed? Depends on what you paid and how you plan to use it. If seller is not answering calls or emails, send a registered letter informing him that you want to return it, but do that within the three day inspection period. Might have a gunsmith look at it while the letter is in transit.

Exterior looks pretty good. Don't think I've ever seen pits like that in Bernardelli bores. I think all of them I've seen have chrome-lined bores, which seem to do a pretty good job of preventing pits. Have never seen an SKB with pitted bores either. Also chromed.

Those sure look like pits, but have you scrubbed the bores real well with a brush to see if any of them go away? They do surely look like pits from your photo though.

Hammerman:

Looks like heavy black powder pitting for sure, send it back post haste .......it has been run hard and put away wet I'd say, ......refund please........

Well, I finally got a call back. The guy said he would pay to have the barrels honed out. He says he didn't know. What do you think? I'm not sure if lengthening the forcing cone and back boring would fix it or not. I don't want to have barrels that are too thin. I'm thinking of letting Brileys look at it. I don't know of anyone who works on shotguns in NM.

If that's his solution, I'd send it back to have him do it on his dime, then have the honed barrels evaluated by someone you both endorse before accepting the gun

Those pits are in the worst possible place, where the pressure is very high.........very dangerous to back bore/hone or remove metal and thin those walls right in front of the chamber where the pressure peaks with those "deep" pits, which would require removing a lot of metal.......that is a recipe for disaster just waiting to happen IMO........

You should send it back for a refund and move on....

Good Luck,

Deep pits in the bore is about the worst problem a gun can have.

I would return for a refund, or, as tudurgs said, have the seller hone the bore at his expense and have the finished gun okay'ed by a second mutually agreed highly regarded gunsmith. If the gunsmith won't sign off on the completed work, then a refund.