Lefever 16 - should I cut it

[NH Shooter]

I inherited a Lefever Nitro Special (Ithica Arms) 16 gauge double barrel from my grandfather in my youth. It was (and still is) fully functional, but the barrel had been cut before it was given to me do to grandpa bending the end of it. The shotgun had seen some use and was in good (but far from perfect) condition. These seem to be going for between $200 and $400 in auctions, so it's not a valuable collector's gun.

At some point many decades ago, a cousin of mine who is actually a pretty skilled amateur gunsmith refinished the entire shotgun. It can out pretty nice (Belgium blue job) but at this point, it obviously has little collector value. It sits in my safe, I haven't fired it in about 40 years, but functioned perfectly back then.

I am tempted to make a "coach gun" out of it, having the barrel professionally cut to around 20 inches, a new bead installed and the stock cut to about a 12 inch LOP. It would actually make for a very handy travel gun for when we visit relatives in NY, breaking down to fit in my travel duffel. FWIW, Federal makes a #1 buck load in 16 gauge, which I have purchased enough for patterning and testing purposes with enough left for what ever self-defense duty the old gun might see. I suspect it would be an effective SD load at typical in-house distances.

Truly tempting, but I'd like to hear your thoughts on doing this before I send it for surgery.

[Bratch]

I inherited a Lefever Nitro Special (Ithica Arms) 16 gauge double barrel from my grandfather in my youth. It was (and still is) fully functional, but the barrel had been cut before it was given to me do to grandpa bending the end of it. The shotgun had seen some use and was in good (but far from perfect) condition. These seem to be going for between $200 and $400 in auctions, so it's not a valuable collector's gun.

At some point many decades ago, a cousin of mine who is actually a pretty skilled amateur gunsmith refinished the entire shotgun. It can out pretty nice (Belgium blue job) but at this point, it obviously has little collector value. It sits in my safe, I haven't fired it in about 40 years, but functioned perfectly back then.

I am tempted to make a "coach gun" out of it, having the barrel professionally cut to around 20 inches, a new bead installed and the stock cut to about a 12 inch LOP. It would actually make for a very handy travel gun for when we visit relatives in NY, breaking down to fit in my travel duffel. FWIW, Federal makes a #1 buck load in 16 gauge, which I have purchased enough for patterning and testing purposes with enough left for what ever self-defense duty the old gun might see. I suspect it would be an effective SD load at typical in-house distances.

Truly tempting, but I'd like to hear your thoughts on doing this before I send it for surgery.

My first question since it was inherited from your grandfather is how would you feel if something happened to it on your travels?

[schüler]

Reliability would be my first priority. Choke/patterning confidence would be second. I'd put the money in a solid 870P with preferred sighting option, if legal.

[RevolverRob]

I'm jealous I was supposed to inherit a SxS .410 from my grandfather when he died. Unfortunately, my psychotic aunt convinced my grandmother to sell everything and leave the money with her. So, I never got it. If I had, I can't imagine cutting it up, let alone losing it (although I guess I lost it anyway, huh?). BUT that was a fairly pristine gun and had never been mucked with.

In this case, if the barrel has already been cut, the gun has already been reblued, and it hasn't been used in years. I'm inclined to say, shorten it and use. With three caveats

1) Is there anyone in your family (cousins, siblings, etc). Who might want the gun in its current condition and who would use it as a hunting gun? I bring this up, because if you haven't used it in 40-years, there might be someone in the family who would appreciate using it now. Grandkids? Niece, nephew? Any youngins' who might need the first gun and can inherit a family heirloom? It already has value in your family, from grandpa and from your cousin doing the refinishing. Before you cut it up for yourself, it might be worth seeing if someone would appreciate it.

2) If you do cut it up - I'd suggest having the barrels threaded for chokes. Remchokes are probably what I'd use (they are so common). That way you can choke the gun to get your buck to pattern where you want it. My only concern with 16s is the limited choice for buck, means you can't cheat like we do with 12s. Which is to say, we just find a 12-gauge load that any given gun shoots well. In a 16, you might have to make the gun shoot the load you have.

3) I'd have the stock cut by someone who knows what they are doing. 12" is pretty short (and I like short stocks). I'd be inclined to go 13.5-13" first and shoot the gun a bit, before chopping it down. You can always chop more off, but you can't put it back on...

Pics.

[mmc45414]

I also have a Ithaca (probably same as your Lefever) from my grandfather. It does not fit me very well and I do not shoot it well, maybe because I never do. Perhaps I will take it out Wednesday...

I am in the same situation, but probably worse, with a M-60 that was my father's. It is pristine, but I never carry it and hardly ever shoot it. I would like to have it smoothed up and bead blasted and some kind of better sights put on it. But it is a pristine M-60. But we did not have any children, so I should probably have it revised so that I would use it, it is not a shrine. But it is a pristine M-60...

If you do cut it up - I'd suggest having the barrels threaded for chokes. Remchokes are probably what I'd use (they are so common).

It is probably too thin, but maybe once cut back it might not be. And yeah, Remchokes would be available in 16, probably not a lotta options.

[schüler]

...
1) Is there anyone in your family (cousins, siblings, etc). Who might want the gun in its current condition and who would use it as a hunting gun?
...

No choke on it now, has already been cut down. And the current barrel alignment may be suspect anyway - it was originally cut because bent.

[NH Shooter]

Thanks to all for your comments! If I proceed with this I'll use the same 'smith who did the work on my 1187. Otherwise, there might be a Stoeger Coach Gun in my safe soon to fill the role.

Edit - I just pulled it out of the safe. It seems the barrels were originally 28 inches, they now measure 25-1/4" with just a touch of choke remaining. The barrel-receiver lock-up is very tight with no discernable play, the refinish makes it look new but far from original.

I think there's a new travel gun project in the works...

[NH Shooter]

Today I cut the barrel to 20 inches using a miter box and fine tooth saw, an assortment of files, 600 and 800 wet-dry paper for the final finish. I used JB Weld to fill in the gap between the barrels and some Brownell's cold blue to touch up the bare metal. All tolled I spent about 6 hours getting it perfect and am very pleased with the results!

I have a HiViz TriComp sight on order and will install that next weekend. The only other change I'm planning is to replace the hard plastic butt plate with a Pachmayr D200B-BL Decelerator Ultra Light Recoil Pad leaving the stock as-is (uncut). LOP is about 14" to the front trigger and 13" to the rear trigger.

I will be patterning the Federal #1 buckshot load at 5 and 10 yards in a few weeks. Since this is intended for close range personal defense, I am not concerned about the spread at distances beyond 10 - 12 yards.

I will post photos next weekend. The old Fudd gun rides again!

[mmc45414]

Today I cut the barrel to 20 inches using a miter box and fine tooth saw, an assortment of files, 600 and 800 wet-dry paper for the final finish.

A friend started shooting skeet with us and was struggling with his fixed choke 1100, since he only had full and modified barrels. We cut it back to the first pillar in the rib that was behind the choke, and squared it up with a disc sander, got it the best we could measure with a square and our eyeballs. He drilled it for a new bead and came out and started crushing targets.

Shotgun chokes can be overrated

[NH Shooter]

Shotgun chokes can be overrated

Depending on load and distance, they can be more of a hindrance than a help!

The slender old Lefever looks really nice with 20" barrels. Depending on how the barrels pattern, I may drop the coin to have some flush choke tubes installed.