SxS shotgun assembly help.....

[IndianaBoy]

Good evening all. I have a dilemma.


I have an old SxS that was in desperate need of some oil and some TLC. (It spent many years sitting in a friend's wood shop.) I took it apart for a thorough cleaning and now I am seeking advice from those wiser than I. I am having trouble overcoming the spring tension from the springs that provide the energy to the hammers. (Mainsprings?)

The springs sit in their recessed hole in the frame, and there is the part that engages the notch on the hammer, and then the hammer needs to be positioned and the pin tapped back through the receiver. The problem is that the spring is so stiff that it is going to require a large amount of force to compress the spring enough that the pin holes in the hammers line up with the proper holes in the receiver.

Is there a trick to getting these things put back together? It is an old SxS labeled only 'Daniel Boone' that I think was made by Crescent Davis. It locks up nice and tight, and I don't think the barrels are damascus. (I see no evidence of the spiral pattern of damascus.) The barrels are bright and the only rust is surface rust. Assuming I get this thing back together, would it be safe to fire with light loads at an occasional squirrel?


I am also all ears for anyone who knows more about these. I presume it is nearly worthless except as a shooter, and even perhaps as nothing more than a wall hanger.
Thanks in advance!

 

[washambala]

I just did this on a friends old LeFever Nitro special. It took both of us to do it. We got a flathead screwdriver and cut a notch into the middle of the blade and ground down the edge on one side so it was concave. The part that engages the hammer went in the notch and the bottom of the hammer rested in the concave portion of the ex-screwdriver. My friend held the gun steady and I put all my weight on the screwdriver compressing the spring. When the hole in the hammer for the pin lined up with the hole in the receiver, he tapped in the pin with a hammer. From there I had to lever the screwdriver out toward the bottom side of the receiver to make sure that the spring landed in its little groove on the hammer.
Heres a picture of the tool we made:


Any questions?

 

[rcmodel]

Assuming I get this thing back together, would it be safe to fire with light loads at an occasional squirrel?

I'd check the chamber length and make sure it has 2 3/4" chambers.


All guns made by Crecent are so old it very likely has short 2 5/8" chambers for paper roll-crimp shells though.

2 3/4" shells will chamber in a 2 5/8" gun before firing, but there is no room at the end of the shorter chamber for the star-crimp to open up fully.
(Length of shell is measured after firing, with the crimp unfolded)



rc