doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Alternative(s) to Merrington and Damascus

I'm wondering why a gun that has been relined by Teague would show any change in its handling qualities. As I understand it, the barrels are bored out to accept a liner of a given thickness (i.e. if a liner of .030 is to be installed, then .030 is removed from breech to muzzle and the liner inserted). In other words, I believe they are removing a given amount of metal and replacing it with the same amount removed, and evenly distributed over the entire length just as it was removed. Now, if they put in a liner that is thicker than what was removed, there could be a net weight gain in the barrel. But if we stay with the same internal bore diameter after the lining, the only difference could come from the possible difference in density between the original barrel metal and the new liner. I can't see where this could be very much. Nor can I see how you could compare the handling qualites of a Teague-lined gun with one that hasn't been done. They were different guns to begin with. The only way to know this would be to measure the MOI of ONE gun, pre- and post-lining to see if there would be a change. Even if measureable, I have serious doubts that it would pass a blindfold test where the shooter is to determine which is which based soley on "feel" while blindfolded. I don't claim to "know" these things, I'm just presenting the ideas for discussion. As for me and the gun in question, I'd have to see about having the bulge fixed, then having the Teague liners done. This seems to be the most elegant solution to me, as it retains the original appearance and guarantees continued safety for shooting. When done, no one but the owner is likely to ever know it was done. I'm still scratching my head over the "shadetree" comment. The bulge repair will not affect the damascus pattern to any recognizeable degree, and the liners are self-sufficient as to containing the pressure so safety is insured (plus they are re-proofed afterwards, anyway). What else could you want? Sleeving, to me, is much more likely to affect the inherent handling qualities, and it will definitely do away with the damascus. I have to believe that the market value would be least affected by the Teague process as well.