Range report maverick 88

[chuwee81]

So, i was taking a friend who is new to shooting to test out his maverick 88. He just started learning to shoot a handgun and found the experience to be eye opening, expecially in relation to firearms (guns) in general. He wanted to own one but i told him to get a shotty so he can learn to shoot different type of firearms and can double up as a good HD weapon. So we found a cheap 12 ga maverick 88 at academy with 18" barrel, 5+1.

Since he's new, i told him i'll get the range ammo, so i got the winchester target (cheap stuff), and remington long range xpress ? Before the trip however, I decided to see how big the pellets are, for both the rems and wins. The rems are much bigger than the wins, and had longer metal case. Anyway, i had some rubber paintballs lying around (diameter is .689) and if i'm not mistaken, the 12 ga diameter is .70 or .71. So out of curiosity, i inserted the rubber ball and it fit perfectly in the shot cup. i then filled 5 of the winchesters with the rubber ball and 1 of the xpress.

So at the range, we tried to shoot the rubber balls first, using the lighter-load winchesters. The first shot didn't connect. In fact, it barely has any kick. When i opened it up, smoke came out, shotshell opened, barrel was not obstructed, and the ball was gone. I didn't know what was going on since it was our first time using a shotgun, but it SEEMED like i didn't hold the forend completely forward when i pump the handle. Maybe it had a light primer strike or something. Second one went off just fine, the 3rd - another dud (same thing happened). The same for the 4th. The 5th went off and the remington also went off. After that, i guess i learned the lesson and tried to instinctively hold the pump forward and it was fine after that. We burn through the winchesters and almost a box of the remingtons. First shot with the winchesters at 15 yds, you can see the holes at the target instantly all over the paper. I think it was pretty accurate for 15 yards from a chokeless shotgun. with the remington, it was a BIG hole maybe a 4-5" hole at 15 yds.

Boy that was so much fun. He had the biggest grin ever and so do I. I was expecting much worse in terms of kick but being noobs, i think both of us did pretty good (until this morning). felt like i just removed tree stumps using my right hand, bare handed.

Well, we hit the handgun lane after that and to my surprise, he prefered the challenge of shooting a handgun better than the shotgun (both are fun of course) and told me he would probably sell the shotty to me if he can find a good, reliable handgun. Oh well, our paychecks will be in in about 2 weeks

 

[scottishclaymore]

I am still not sure what you were doing to create the light strikes. I have had no problems with my very, very used 88.

 

[chuwee81]

me neither. I mean it fired, though very lightly. I see debris inside the barrel (i took it off to see if anything was obstructed). So it could be the rounds as well. I don't know. All i know is that it was my first 5 shots. Maybe the firing pin was overlubed from factory ? Or parts are not settling in - or all these aren't possible ??. All i know it was just like "pffftttssshh", smoke, shuck the shell, check barrel.

no subsequent problems after that. Also we used regular rounds instead of the rubber balls after we finished those "stupid" rounds

 

[kmrcstintn]

1) 'hard' primer ammo...more common with handgun ammo, but still possible

2) firing pin might be a tad short and out of spec (not as deep a hit on the primer)

3) bolt spring (that holds back the firing pin) might be a bit too strong or have crud between the coils causing the firing pin to not strike fully

 

[BhmBill]

Something I learned recently that actually helps a lot when cycling a pump shotgun is to keep your elbow pointing down at a comfortable angle, instead of out to the side like a wing. Also pull forward slightly on the forearm when shooting. I bought my brother a Maverick for his bday a few years back and the only problem I found (very minor) was that it wanted you to pull forward slightly on the forearm when firing.

And make sure the firing pin is striking deep enough like kmrcstintn said. Next time, inspect the spent shells primer, there should be an indent on the primer like this...

 

[RandKL]

You're new to shotguns so you're going to get some learning whether you
need it or not (lol) Just bear with me for a bit. We all learn the same way.


First off, recoil is dependent on three things: the payload of lead, the muzzle velocity, and the gun's
weight. That's not scientifically written but it's good enough for government work. A 1oz load of lead, a
light target load in this case, accelerated to a muzzle velocity of 1300fps will give X amount of recoil
from a gun that weighs Y pounds. That's a target load and it'll kick a bit but not too much. A 1.5oz load
of lead, a heavy field load (magnum) accelerated to the same 1300fps will give 50% more kick from the
same gun. That will hurt you if you aren't careful. A 3 1/2" (if your gun can take them, the Mav 88
can't) magnum turkey load firing 2 1/4oz of lead will break your shoulder if you aren't careful.


What does that all mean in relation to you? Well, take it the other way around. You replaced the 1oz of
lead in a light target load with what, 1/8oz of rubber ball? Your recoil would be 1/8 the recoil from a
light target load. You literally wouldn't notice it if you weren't expecting it. Your loads didn't
misfire....you simply didn't have enough payload to get a kick, and probably not enough compression to get a bang.


On a side note, a 20gauge shotgun will kick exactly the same as a 12ga will if the payload and the velocity
are the same. Mass of lead times the velocity divided by the gun's weight, remember.


On firearms in general....if you had ignition in any way, a light primer strike wasn't the problem. Ignition
means the primer got hit and fired whether it was a light hit or not. A primer hit is a primer hit no matter
how hard it was. If you noticed smoke, the shell fired....just in this case, again, the load was just too light
to notice much recoil.


Shotgun shells....almost all shotgun ammo is marked with three numbers on the box and almost always on
each shell as well. It'll be something like "3 - 1 - 7 1/2". That means the shell has the power equivalent to
3 drams of blackpowder. The drams equiv is an old rating system but it's still the common method of
judging the power of a shotgun shell....some ammo is doing away with it these days in favor of just listing
the ammo's velocity in feet per second. The second number is the payload in ounces. The example would
be a 1oz lead shot load. The third is the shot pellet size. The example is #7 1/2 shot which is target shot
or "bird shot". A #7 1/2 pellet is a bit less than 1/10" in diameter. A #6 pellet is a hair over 1/10" in
diam. A #4 pellet is roughly 1/8" in diameter. The smaller the # the larger the pellet. #7 1/2 is target
or bird shot, the #6 is for larger birds or longer ranges, the #4 is a game load for turkey/rabbits etc.


In the case of your Winchester ammo, it was probably target 3 - 7/8 - 7 1/2....that's 7/8 ounce load of
lead, remember....maybe a 3 - 1 - 7 1/2. Your Remington was probably #4 or #6....larger pellets and a
higher velocity.


The brass length (almost always brass-washed steel) on a shell, at one time, was a good judge on how much
powder the black powder shell had in it. You could judge the rough power level by the brass. That's not
true anymore, though. The brass today is used as a selling point and nothing more. A "low brass" shell can
often be a magnum load and a "high brass" shell a light game etc. Some ammo has no brass at all.
Reloaders, folks who reload their own ammo, will use any hull they want to for any load....so that's a prime
reason to NEVER use anyone else's reloads unless you know them REALLY well! That could have been a
light target shell you just loaded or a magnum game load.


I have about 2,000 rounds of 00 buck packed in a box in the basement that I loaded while on a survivalist kick a few years ago....I loaded those into low base Remington black hulls that are marked "7 1/2".


A loaded shotgun shell is called a "shell"....an empty, fired one is called a "hull". The shell is the loaded
ammo, a hull is an empty piece of plastic


Always keep your forearm (gun's forearm) hand snug forward on the gun's forearm. Never pull on it during aiming/firing.
That hand is meant to aim the gun (during the firing phase) and nothing more. When you're cycling the
weapon, then you pull on the forearm. Wrist hand (the shotgun's wrist is where you grip it with your
trigger hand), keep backward pressure on it so it holds it tight to your shoulder. Keep the butt snug to
your shoulder or you'll eventually get hurt. Practice your form on light target loads and then move up to
heavier stuff.


The butt *doesn't* go on the shoulder part of the arm nor on the shoulder joint itself. Both will hurt you now or tomorrow morning. Put the butt on the thick end of your collarbone just inside the shoulder joint itself....and avoid lowering your head to look down the barrel, too. Properly done, the cheek of the stock will be right against your cheek....your head will be level....and the weapon will be pointing at approx 315 degrees. That's between 22:00 and 23:00 on a clock face with your body facing noon.


On a side not, not applicable to you, Chuwee....the Mav 88 and the Mossberg 500, when really well used,
can develop a tendency to half fire. The hammer will only snap forward to the hammer block sear and not
to the firing pin. That's due to two things: #1 is the shooter soft squeezing the trigger....and on a shotgun,
you never squeeze the trigger, you jerk it or "slap" it hard and fast....and #2, an old mainspring. It'll
work perfectly fine as long as you fire it hard and fast so experienced shooters will often not even notice
it....but the spring can be replaced in about five mins if you need it. A new mainspring makes it factory
fresh again. New trigger groups' hammers don't have the hammer block sear position on the hammer at all. It's missing entirely. Not going to comment on the logic behind removing it.


If you need anything else, C, let us know! I'm looking forward to reading more of your posts, bud! I lurk but I do read.

richard

 

[chuwee81]

wow richard, thanks for the long post. Very informative. And yes, the rubber balls did launch - even though there's no felt recoil.

Saving this thread for further reading (at work)