S&W 3000 2-3/4 vs. 3 inch chamber

[howler99]

Ok, just got in my used S&W 3000 from JG sales, nice condition. Not fired yet, but appears to work great.

I am new to the world of shotguns, and I have a question about 2 3/4 vs. 3 inch shells though. This was advertised as chambered for 2 3/4 shells, and on the barrel it says:

Model 3000 PUMP 12GA. 2-3/4 CHAMBER POL. CYL.

However just for grins I inserted a 3 inch 00bk shell I had for another shotgun, and it appeared to chamber fine. I pulled the barrel, and checked the chambering for both 2-3/4 and 3" shells, and it seemed the same.

Can anyone tell me what is going on here? Would it actually seat & fire a 3" shell, or am I missing something?

My real concern is that I have a couple of boxes of 3" shells, and I would be worried about getting them mixed up with the other ammo and accidently firing one of those things.

Thanks for any help or advice.

 

[SwampWolf]

It will fire a 3'' and you possibly could get away with it on an occasional basis in terms of the gun not being damaged or you not getting hurt but the risk is great that only bad things would happen. The practice of firing shells longer the the chamber indicates, however, is definitely not recommended.

By the way, your Model 3000 is a very nice shotgun, every bit on the par of, say, an 870 Remington.

 

[rodregier]

I bought a new S&W 3000 many years ago. Still very impressed with mine. SwampWolf gives good advice about sticking with shells the chamber is designed for. Not being a big fan of recoil, I've not found the lack of a 3" chamber to be an important limitation in the 3000.

By the way, they were made under contact by Howa in Japan for S&W at the time.

 

[howler99]

Thanks SwampWolf and rodregier. I'm recoil adverse too, so the 3 inch isn't really a problem for me, but I'm just worried about chambering one accidentally.

No firing experience yet, but it seems like a really nice HD gun - smooth fast action, nice trigger. I wish the tube held more than 4, but the speedfeed stock gives me a better feeling although I'm not sure about using it in the dark.

Speaking of recoil adverse, I guess I should stay away from 2-3/4 inch magnum loads as well. Again, it's not really a problem. I'm just worried about chambering one accidentally. I've got a bad habit of just picking up whatever buckshot loads wally world has in stock.

 

[dfariswheel]

Firing 3" shells in a 2 3/4" chambered gun is NOT safe.

In addition, the gun won't be able to eject the longer shells since the ejector is made for 2 3/4" length.

 

[rodregier]

If your goal is HD, the 2 3/4 reduced ("tactical") slug and buckshot loadings are just fine. I've managed to purchased some earlier, and I handload them too so practice cost is reduced, with good availability.

My S&W 3000 came with a magazine tube extension giving 7+1, but finding a compatible extension today would be really tough. Choate made accessories for the S&W 3000 when it was in production, but that was years ago. Choate is no longer making accessories for that model to my knowledge.

If you don't like the recoil pad on the current stock, look at using one of the Pachmyer SC100 pads as a replacement. They give good cushioning but permit a fast "mount" to the shoulder.

 

[GrandmasterB]

I just got one of these too. Sure is smooth and the trigger is great.

 

[Virginian]

A 3" shell is shorter than 3", until it is fired. It then expands to 3" in overall length, and you need a 3" chamber to allow the shell to open fully without getting pinched and raising pressures.