doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Bending a drawbolt gun?

Thank you all for your confidence. I am willing to talk to you Stan.

I have had several through bolt guns bent. The hole did have to be enlarged in a couple but not in others. Guess the bolt hole was so close to the bolt size there was not a lot of room for movement. Or perhaps the person doing it just enlarged it by habit. I would bend if possible or just send the gun down the road if not. Too many other nice guns out there to shoot a gun that does not suit. And it is your gun so do with it as you wish. It is a nice gun but not a rare one of a kind classic.

I don't understand how you can bend a through bolt gun. If the bolt is loose the stock would pull away from the inletting during the process. Not a good thing I would think.

If the bending takes place at the wrist but the bolt is tight it would not allow bending unless you are bending the through bolt. Enlarging the hole allow room to bend but you would still be flexing the through bolt. If you force the bend you would lose all feel and possibly break it at the wrist. Can anyone explain how it is done?

I guess it would depend on how much play around the bolt in the hole.A little bend of 1/8" at the wrist would give a much bigger movement down at the butt.There might be enough play, ..if not , enlarge it a bit...though Im just guessing.
If people do it, it must work somhow
You might even be able to make & fit a thinner bolt,LOL
cheers
Franc

Mike Orlen has successfully bent one drawbolt double for me. No problems and quick turnaround.

That's exactly right, Jon. But what IS hard to find is a .410 double gun that has ejectors and 30" barrels, with an extra set of 28 gauge barrels, each with their own forend, of near Beretta quality, for $1500. Really hate to send this one packing if I can help it.

Thanks for the help guys. Traded emails with DES today, plan to call him tomorrow.

SRH

Good luck with your venture. I understand your desire to get it right instead of just sending it down the road. But like you said it is a $1500 gun not a five grand gun so you can roll the dice and see what happens. Small tears instead of great big ones.

I remain amazed by the retention of ideas so often held by the shooting fraternity. I and others have often posted on this very subject. There was even a very long tutorial posted by a gentleman in Seattle(with pictures) of his bending fixtures to prove draw bolt guns may be bent. Since each gun is unique, the amount of bend available is not set in stone.
However ladies and gentlemen, once and for all time.... You may bend draw bolt guns.

There are precautions a bending operator must take to assure no broken gunstocks occur. Being careful and patient are just two of the precautions. A reputable craftsman inspects the work for repairs, flaws, un-repaired cracks, too tight of a stock bolt , too thin a stock bolt(yes some are so small in diameter they act as springs), aluminum tubes in the stock bolt hole....the list goes on. After 25 years if bending gunstocks there is always something to learn. AND there is always more than one way to accomplish the goal of customer satisfaction. A craftsman/woman is flexible enough to recognize what needs to be done and gets it done well. IF the stock may not be bent they explain why and apologize for not being able to help.