Home Forums Birds & Dogs Shotguns broken browning gold

I've got a problem with my browning gold. To fix it, I need to know one thing about how it works.

That tube with the spring in the stock...there is a plunger at the top end of it that pushes the spring down when the action opens.

The tube has a bit of a ridge on the inside, about a 1/2 inch from the top. My question, is the ridge not supposed to be there at all, allowing the plunger to move all the way up/down the tube, or is that ridge supposed to limit the upwards / forwards travel of the plunger.

I'm trying to figure out which to replace - tube, plunger or both. I'll be taking it to a gun smith to have the work done, but I want to know what I'm talking about when I take it in to him.

Thanks in advance..

Failure to feed or failure to fire? Approximately how many shells have gone down the barrel? If under 10,000 and it has been reliable until now, and a long ways from Canada, I would say it is not the spring or tube. Over 10,000 and the spring may need replaced.

How old? The originals had some problems that needed worked out.

I know that at times the plunger on those guns can crack and bind.
Here is a drawing of the parts for that gun.

http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=0/sid=408/schematicsdetail/Gold_12___20_Ga

It's about 10 years old. Probably only a couple thousand rounds through it at most. The problem is not the spring. The problem is the plunger (part 2 from the Brownell's figure) binds when it should go down the tube (part 5).

I know I am late to the party on this one.

There is a ring/ridge in the action tube to prevent the plunger from leaving the tube.

Have you taken it completely down and cleaned the tube?

Once cleaned did the plunger move freely thru the tube?

Have you checked free travel of the bolt assembly with the plunger and spring removed?

Have you changed anything recently that might have caused the problem?

I have several of the tubes, plungers, retainers, and springs from new or near new guns, I replace all mine with Sure Cycles, not just the Browning, but the Benellis, Winchesters and Berettas too, most of my shotguns spend there time in nasty conditions and I never want to have a FTE or FTF 4 hrs from home.