doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com non rebounding hammers

If the shooter is careful to keep the hammers off the pins (half cock position) with the chambers loaded, is there any reason a non-rebounding hammer gun is less safe in general terms than a rebounding hammer type?

I'll rephrase:

On a non rebounding hammer type doublegun, does keeping the hammers at half-cock prevent accidental discharge if the hammers or triggers are bumped accidently?

Thanks.

I believe that at half-cocked, you cannot pull the trigger, making the gun safe. Leaving the hammer against the firing pin if accidently jarred, the hammer could strike the firing pin and go off.

RC;
The undercut notch & thin sear nose of a non-rebounding hammer gun are most often "Much" more delicate than the notch & nose of a rebounder. They would take a fairly hard blow as in a droppped gun, but under those conditions the sear nose(tip) can be broken or the notch sheared out resulting in a discharged gun. This is essentially the same situation for whch it has always been advised to carry a Colt SAA with only 5 chambers loaded & the hammer down on the empty one.
The rebounding hammer guns are inherently safer, which was rhe reason for their development, along with the convience of not having to half-cock prior to opening the gun.
I have carried non-rebounding guns afield, both MLers & breech loaders. When doing so I try to practise extreme caution & if any spot of known precarious footing is encountered I will un-cap the ML & let the hammers down or unload the breech loader, close the gun & let down the hammers.
I do not personally advocate simply opening the gun as in the case of a fall the gun may hit in such a way as to close it & then add the jar of being slammed shut to the jar of falling. Also though realizing others disagree I am throughly convinced in the case of a fall a gun is less likely to be damaged if bolted shut than with the bbls flopping around where the lug may be sprung or worse.
You definitely "Never" want to carry a gun with the hammers in contact with the cap or the firing pin touching the primer.

Carry it at half cock and keep muzzle awareness foremost. If it is quality and in good condition it is as safe as a gun can be. Think of half cock as your safety catch.

Here's the particular subject:

http://www.cabelas.com/product/WCScott-Hammer-Side-x-Side-in-10-Gauge/1211908.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fgun-library-english-shotguns%2F_%2FN-1103068%2FNo-48%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_103580280%3FWTz_l%3DFooter%253Bcat103792680%26WTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNP&WTz_l=Footer%3Bcat103792680%3Bcat103580280

From the pics, it has a few peculiarities, like the repair to the rib extension, I can't figure out what it would be screwed into. Hopefully not the barrels.

Thanks again for the great help.

I am sure these new fangled hammerless jobbies will never catch on - so unsafe to carry a gun round at full cock!!!

R.C., I looked at "your" gun. Dunno what those goofisies at Cabelas told you but that Scott has rebounding hammers built on the Stanton patent. Most rebounding locks don't move the hammer back far so you've got to really look hard to see what it has. Just might be a pretty nice gun, especially at that price. And you've got the right to return it in a 30 day period. Not bad.

Bet'cha the rib extension hasn't been repaired. That sucker is usually brazed on (I think) and it'd be very unusual for it to separate. Someone probably tried to mount a sight or something. Who knows.

Back to non-rebounders: If the locks are in good condition they're as safe as any system ever devised by man, other than an unloaded gun! I sorta like 'em. At half cock they're a lot easier to pull back to full than non-rebounders. And they just look sexy what with those big hammers sticking up real proud....time was when I did too.....

Joe, their salesman described it as a "non" so I took his word for it. The chamber length is a puzzle as well; I've seen these with 2 5/8 or 2 7/8, not 3". How could one know if it is original, presuming it has only BP proofs?

The high hammers do make a difference in the ambience of the hammer gun. I may have to throw away my 10 gauge hulls and loading tools and so have to stop looking at these things...

R.C., there's no way those fellers could tell the difference between 2 7/8" and 3". Don't ask why.

Rebounding: call him again. If the locks don't have a half cock notch then it's a rebounder. Have him pull the hammer back. Bet'cha the only "click" is when it reaches full cock. Also, if he can open the gun without manually cocking the hammers it's probably a rebounder. With the hammers full down at rest, pull the trigger and push forward on the hammer at the same time. If there's any forward hammer movement then it's a rebounder.