20 gauge shells in a 16 gauge gun?
I have my grandfather's 16 gauge Fox Sterlingworth.
Before my father passed and left it to me, he told me that if I had trouble getting 16 gauge shells, that he had shot 20 gauge shells through it without any problem.
What do you say? Doable? Considerations?
greg
Before my father passed and left it to me, he told me that if I had trouble getting 16 gauge shells, that he had shot 20 gauge shells through it without any problem.
What do you say? Doable? Considerations?
greg
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NO 0 -
Not much larger... only 5/100ths of an inch, I think... but I would not try, just buy 16ga shells... they should be available in any real shooting shop... 0 -
thank you. 0 -
Absolutly Not!.... 0 -
email sent about 16 ga availability on the auction side 15 boxes for 100.00 0 -
Come mid august a few local feed/seed places will have 16ga birdshot at about $90 per flat (10 boxes, 250 rounds) 0 -
I'm no expert, but here's my thoughts anyway.
You have your grandfathers gun. Probably pretty old, 1930's
or so? This isn't the thirties. Back then if ammo wasn't on the shelf, or in the sears catalog, it wasn't available, so you made it with what you could get. Since you are on this site, you obviously have internet access and the skill to find the info you need, so you should be able to find the proper 16ga ammo with no problems, even if it isn't available locally.
Also, ammo has come a long way since then, as has metallurgy. This gun has sentimental value I assume? You want to pass it down to your kids? Then why risk blowing it up?0 -
You can shoot 12 ga in a 10 ga too. But not recomended. 0 -
This got me wondering, so I pulled out an old 16 ga. double gun and stuck some 20's in it. I would venture to bet that the only thing that would happen is that it would expand the shell casings and maybe the brass. I would guess that you could not get it to cycle in a pump or auto. The 20's also flop over the extractors so they are hard to remove.
The only good reason to use 20's in there would be if you had to, otherwise get some 16's.
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a .615" (20ga) case would have to stretch to .662" (16 ga) to seal properly. The circumference would therefore have to increase by ~.148 inches (difference in diameters * 3.14159), over 1/8". I'd think you'd see plenty of split brass and gas blowback. 0 -
Gas blowback would be neligible in a SXS. Brass may split but its got nowhere to go. The risk of explosion IMO would be no more than with a 16ga shell. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by gmccon
I have my grandfather's 16 gauge Fox Sterlingworth.
Before my father passed and left it to me, he told me that if I had trouble getting 16 gauge shells, that he had shot 20 gauge shells through it without any problem.
What do you say? Doable? Considerations?
greg
Could you get away with it in an emergency? Yes, probably you could.
Is there a good reason to do it today? I doubt it.
As mentioned, you'd be ruining the shells at least.
While I don't think the gun would "blow up" (ie overall shotgun operating pressures are relatively low, compared to many guns, and you're probably not increasing pressures to dangerous levels), gas venting into the rear of the action around an undersized shell can't possibly be good for the gun or for you. You're likely to see marked increase in chamber fouling, and that could make it hard to put 16 gauge shells in there without vigorous scrubbing. Also, as mentioned, you may not get good extraction (though the loose fit of the smaller shells may mean you don't need it. . .they may just fall right out!).
Just find some 16 gauge shells. While not that common, they are in current production, and you should be able to find them if you look.0
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