last year when i decided that anyone interested in these old guns needed sufficient equipment to properly measure and grok them....so i added a bore gauge to my manson's wall gauge and various inside/outside micrometers.
went back in this sites references and located an old thread re:
bore gauges. i remembered there being a source other than skeets. sure enough found the thread and it included several fellows mentioning gary bulley of montana. he part time operates as CENTER FIRE RANCH, and builds several devices of interest. he offers bore gauges in lengths up to 18", with either dial or digital clocks, and has two size ranges. one is a 28/20, the other is a 16/12.
i told him i was also interested in 10 gauge capabilities, and he responded that the 16/12 would read 10's as well. that plus the fact that he builds greater lengths than the skeets gauge (at no additional cost) helped me make up my mind. i ordered a 16" with dial gauge for $145 shipped. received it in a matter of days and am delighted with my purchase. unlike the manson's tool, the bore gauge is easy to use (i'm a bit shaky and handling the manson's is a challenge for me).
i have additionally added a depth gauge function to the shank, so that i can "map" both chamber/forcing cone profiles as well as "mapping" the depth and profiles of chokes. it is useful to be able to determine the length of the cones to understand whether they have been altered.
best regards,
tom
