"Pretty sure it was a wad." Hope you can have your gun repaired; sounds like a lovely shotgun.......Some of us would be interested in learning how the bulge occurred. What are your reasons for believing it was caused by a wad? And are you describing a base wad, a plastic shot wad, or part of a fiber wad column? Were you shooting very low pressure loads, that might have left a wad stuck in the bore? Or possibly a too small powder charge? Thanks in advance for any light you can shine on these questions..........Grant.