I was fortunate enough to trade into this very nice shotgun from a member I deal with often. I don't know much about them though I owned one for a short time about 20 years ago. I believe they were made by Howa in Japan and imported in the early 80s...but not certain.
I was told this gun had sat unfired for many years. Once I got it home I loaded it up and fired it. It shot fine but would not eject any shells I fired through it. Hand cycling the action resulted in the gun extracting and ejecting perfectly.
I tore it down and found the problem. These guns are known for having a piston shock absorber that deteriorates badly over time. The shock absorber looks like a rubber washer you'd find in a garden hose. This is what it should look like:
This is what it actually looked like (that's the front of the gas piston):
That stuff had hardened like tar and was a real PITA to get out of the gas piston. There's a pin that holds the piston connecting ring around the piston and a small retaining spring that keeps the pin in place. The pin looks just like a hammer or trigger pin in an AR-15 and the spring fits in a groove in the pin and keeps it in place. Well, I destroyed the very thin wire spring trying to drive the pin out so needed to replace that and the shock absorber.
Numrich had the two parts I needed for a total of $21 and change. The gentleman I bought this from was kind enough to pay for the parts.
I gave the rest of the gun a once over and a good cleaning. I also got the piston cleaned up and this is the result:
I got the parts from Numrich today and put the gun back together. I loaded it up with 3 rounds (the capacity of the gun is limited for hunting) and tested it out. Function was perfect. It's a very lightweight and really maneuverable gun and I can imagine any hunter would enjoy taking it into the field. I'm not a bird hunter...I just wanted it for some nostalgia reasons, I guess.
Anyway, I'm proud to own it now and I'm sure I'll get some enjoyment out of it. Actually, I already have. It's great fun for me to bring a non-functioning gun back to life.
Some more shotgun porn:
I was told this gun had sat unfired for many years. Once I got it home I loaded it up and fired it. It shot fine but would not eject any shells I fired through it. Hand cycling the action resulted in the gun extracting and ejecting perfectly.
I tore it down and found the problem. These guns are known for having a piston shock absorber that deteriorates badly over time. The shock absorber looks like a rubber washer you'd find in a garden hose. This is what it should look like:
This is what it actually looked like (that's the front of the gas piston):
That stuff had hardened like tar and was a real PITA to get out of the gas piston. There's a pin that holds the piston connecting ring around the piston and a small retaining spring that keeps the pin in place. The pin looks just like a hammer or trigger pin in an AR-15 and the spring fits in a groove in the pin and keeps it in place. Well, I destroyed the very thin wire spring trying to drive the pin out so needed to replace that and the shock absorber.
Numrich had the two parts I needed for a total of $21 and change. The gentleman I bought this from was kind enough to pay for the parts.
I gave the rest of the gun a once over and a good cleaning. I also got the piston cleaned up and this is the result:
I got the parts from Numrich today and put the gun back together. I loaded it up with 3 rounds (the capacity of the gun is limited for hunting) and tested it out. Function was perfect. It's a very lightweight and really maneuverable gun and I can imagine any hunter would enjoy taking it into the field. I'm not a bird hunter...I just wanted it for some nostalgia reasons, I guess.
Anyway, I'm proud to own it now and I'm sure I'll get some enjoyment out of it. Actually, I already have. It's great fun for me to bring a non-functioning gun back to life.
Some more shotgun porn:
