doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Have a question about my old shotgun.

Well, I have an old Crescent Peerless model 12ga, and it is a great old gun, but it has or is becoming loose at the action or the correct term may be 'off face". What needs to be done to fix it? It is a good old gun and has good barrels on it, and I (in the past) never thought twice about shooting high brass 2 3/4 loads out of it for turkey hunting, I don't shoot anything out of it now but I really hate to see it become a "wall hanger". Thanks for any info you can provide.

High brass 2 3/4" turkey loads? I wonder how it got off face?? MDC

It may be that the high pressure loads you mentioned have stretched the action, making it off face. These old guns just weren't designed for regular ingestion of whoopie loads. There are a number of good gunsmiths capable of tightening it up. But you'll need to put the gun on a diet of loads it was designed for if you want to keep it tight.

It can probably be fixed. You may be able to put it back into shooting order with a shim, or a gunsmith can put it back on face, but it will probably cost a few hundred $. Post your location and you will get referrals to qualified gunsmiths. It's probably not worth shipping a Crescent across the country to get it fixed, but there may be a decent smith near you.

The general location would be Southern Indiana. Well when/if I get it tightened up (I'm not spending a ton of money at this point on a $200 gun), what would be the reccomended load for turkeys? I'll be honest this is really the only shotgun I have except for my slug gun. Also,(this may stir up a hornets nest)If its gonna cost more than the gun did, what would be a good side-by-side replacement. I'm not a collector, I'm just a general outdoorsman that enjoys the company of a decent side-by-side in the field. With that said I dont need a super fine double, I just need something reliable that probably isn't a classic because it will get used a good deal. Thanks for all the advice and information.

Jack Haugh
Milan, IN
812-654-3209

You might look for an honestly used Hunter Arms Fulton or Ithaca Lefever Nitro Special; or for a more modern SxS a Browning BSS or Ithaca/SKB 200.

There is a very nice Fox that has just been listed in the For Sale section right now. Keep the loads at or below 1 1/4 ounce and 1200 fps and it will last you a couple lifetimes.

Get 16ga or 20ga Winchester Model 24. About the only thing that will destroy that gun is two-handed sledgehammer. Veeeery durable piece.

Ithaca/ SKB 200 is a best buy any time. SKB 100, too. I bought three new 100s at $180 each and gave them away as gifts to family members. They're still going strong in one of the harshest hunting environments on the continent.

So do you think that the model 24 could handle the occasional high-brass load for my turkeys?(16ga.)Maybe I should clarify that that Peerless has had a grand total of about 3 or 4 High brass loads shot through it,but that may have in the end been too many. I patterned it with two before I took it hunting and incinerated a pop can at 25 yards with it (so I figured I could wipe out a turkey humanely at that range with that success)and shot it once at a turkey in the fog and completely missed lol. When I said that I wasn't afraid to shoot high brass it was more in saying that my barrels were in good shape. Thanks for the replies.

It will handle however many cases you want to shoot through it.

One of turkey hunting's great writers, Tom Kelly used that same gun for turkeys. Like the Stevens 311, the model 24 Winchester is at it's "best" in 16ga..Geo

Now I am familiar with the Stevens 311 my Grandpa has 2 a .410 and a 12ga. that he just calls his "Meat Maker".If I end up shopping for a new gun the Stevens will be one that I look for. Are there any weak spots in the Stevens doubles? Thanks.

TPJ, I like the Stevens guns for their reliability and because I don't mind getting them wet on a bad day. However, they seem to me to be built on just two frame sizes; the 12's seem to be built on a frame that is unneccesarily big and all of them handle like a 2x4, whereas the 16, the 20 and the .410 all seem to be made on the same frame. That frame is just too big for the smaller guages. Only the 16ga seems "right" to me. If you can find an older gun made in the forties or fifties, you'll be surprized at how good the walnut stocks can look.

All said, there are many better guns, but not many of them sell in the $250 to $450 range that Stevens 311's do...Geo

The only problem with the Model 24 is that some (most?) dealers ask ridiculous prices because the gun says "Winchester" on it. You can probably find a Hunter Fulton, Lefever Nitro, or Ithaca Western Long Range a good bit cheaper, talking about guns in similar condition. All pretty much similar quality, although the 24 does have consistently good stock dimensions, while you may find some of the others have quite a bit of drop. You'll find Stevens a whole lot cheaper than 24's.

Ok. Here is what I have so far. I'm going to look at getting the Peerless fixed, if that will be too much I'm going to look at the Stevens 311, the Nitro special, the Model 24 Win. The Hunter Fulton, and the Ithaca. On these guns I know the Winchester and the newer Stevens can handle the occasional high-brass load. But what about the rest I listed there? Thanks for all the help.Oh I'm going to look at the SKB's too

Just about any decent SxS built since WW II will be safe with modern 2 3/4 loads.

It would probably not be wise to shoot the Hunter Fulton, Ithaca Nitro, or Western Field guns with heavy loads. They will no doubt take it in the beginning, but once the bolting surfaces get pounded, every successive round gets a running start and the wear accelerates. Once a gun gets loose, even normal or low pressure loads can cause more damage.

I will probably be looking for something post war then.Any more suggestions? Thanks

Today I looked at J.P. Sauer & Sohn made 1958 that was off face too. It wasn't because of firing heavy loads as these Sauers are pretty hardy. It was very apparent the owner never cleaned or lubricated the trunion or locking surfaces on the double underlugs. He also slammed it shut when he handed it too me. He was quite dissappointed when I handed it back after examining it and so was I as otherwise I would have bought the gun at his price. So for another suggestion - clean and lubricate the trunion surfaces after each use, also the locking lug surfaces. Learn to close the action properly - don't slam them closed as that will stretch the action faster than a few heavy loads. You can add a post war Sauer to the list of guns you might want to consider. They can be had in the $500-$800 range frequently. Also the Charles Daly Miroku SxS which is a close relative of the Browning BSS and much less expensive.

The way I always closed it was, I would hold the thumb lever over to the right instead of letting it close, then I would close the gun gently ( it didn't take much),and finally I would push the lever back to the center to lock it. Would that be the correct way?

The correct way is to just close it and don't monkey with the lever.

As Joe said just close the gun smoothly, not slammed, & let the lever snap home, this is why they're called "Snap Action" & the way they were designed to be closed. The Ithaca built NS was Ithaca's first entry after the development of the new "Super X" shells in the early 20's & was designed for them. One properly cared for & used only occasionally with heavy loads as you state, will outlast you.
An option for the Crescent is to simply shim the hook until it closes tight. Various substances have been used for this purpose including feeler stock, aluminum can, even paper. It can be glued in place or simply stuck with a light coat of grease while gun is assembled. In this case it may fall out when gun is disambled & have to be put back, but will stay put as long as gun is together. If you reload you can find 1¼oz loads at less than 1200 fps, say around 1150, which with a proper size shot will work great & not put near as much stress on the gun as full blown Express loads in excess of 1300fps.

Not long ago I picked up virtually unused 1950 vintage Beretta 424 extractor for just over $600. Purdey double under bites with Greener X-bolt, needless to say perfectly suitable for 2&3/4" Nitro Mags. Lowest grade Beretta SxS is still better then lot of clunkers out there. Ejectors only add about $250+/-50 to the tag so why pay big bucks for Winchester 23 or BSS BLE.

Well, I'm going to go try and shim up that Crescent then if that works I'll work up a lighter load for it. On a Nitro special or any other gun, The only time I would be shooting a heavy load would be to pattern it,then after that only if a turkey walks in front of me.Thanks.

Another question, do you really need to shoot that heavy of a load? Many of these old shotguns shoot a pretty tight pattern anyhow.

I've got it shimmed up and back on face. I'm going to take it to Papaw and he can make a more permanent shim for it. I shot the heavier loads because I want a kill to be humane. In the end what I will do is, put the Crescent in semi-retirement, I'm still going to enjoy it, but will get another primary shot gun to take up the slack. On the new one I'm going to look around at all of your suggestions and get what I can find in the best shape. Thanks everyone for the replies and advice.

TJP you are making an assumption that heavy loads work better because they are heavier. That usually just isn't true. Try some of the lighter loads of shot and see how they pattern in your gun on the turkey target before deciding you need heavy loads. Often the light load will throw better patterns. Many shooters mistakenly think having more shot automatically gives them better killing patterns or that higher velocities or both are necessary. I found my guns all shoot better patterns with the normal loads which in 12ga would be between 1oz and 1 1/4 oz at 1150 to 1200 fps.

I'll look at a lighter load then. Thanks.

jack haugh might charge a little more than the gun is worth!