doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com 12 shell is a little loose in the chamber

I noticed the shell is loose in the chambers of my 12 gauge hammer.I have shot it and it shot well.Is this common?Someone mentioned brass shells maybe they made them thicker? It also has a 13 stamped on the barrels. What's that all about?
Monty

Who made the gun? What was the year of production?

I believe the 13 stamp is for bore which would be .710.

JDW is correct on the standard bore size for a gun marked 13. However, that shouldn't make any difference as far as chamber size goes. Wonder if maybe some honing was done at some point?

It's a W C Scott 1887 Damascus black powder prof. I will measure today the diameter of the chamber for the shell if I get some time. I measured the bores and by my measurement it's .735 which I assume means it's been honed.But what I I guess I don't understand about the 13 is what was the theory of the 13 gauge.More metal to hone?It also has a tiny 13 over a 14m which I think means choke but it goes from .735 to wider when it gets to the the end of the breach.

The 13 is bore diameter, the 14 is muzzle diameter. It was the early way mark a choked barrel.
As stated earlier a 13 bore would be .710 originally. If you are at .735 the the barrels have had 25 thou honed out. In countries with Proof Houses, anything greater than 8 thou (used to be 10) is out of proof and cannot be sold until reproved.
The USA has no such rules.
Here, if the walls are thick enough (most of us think 20 thou is the go, no-go thickness), we bang away with low pressure shells. 20 thou brings up much debate that can be located on previous threads about wall thickness.
Back to your question. If the bores were honed out 25 thou, it is safe to assume the chambers got some "cleaning up" as well which would account for the looseness.
Does it split hulls?

Joe

I've never heard of "cleaning up" chambers.....

If the gun functions fine then you are worried over nothing as far as the loose feeling shell.

Homeless
I think you are right.This is new to me and I have never paid attention to how loose shell go into the chamber but they all are loose in the chamber. It measures .080 which is what another newer gun I shoot measures. I guess I am trying to make sure I'm safe. The shells do not split. I think I am worrying about nothing as long as I shoot black powder.
Monty

"As long as I shoot black powder"....I'm not following you ?

Well it indicates to me that the bores and chamber may have had metal removed to clean up the pitting.
I'd have the barrel walls measured for thickness.
Just me, though.
Mike