How to tell if forcing cone opened on 1897? - 05/26/23
So I've got an 1897 Winchester from 1922 in 12ga 2 3/4" chamber, it's a takedown with a 28" barrel. Marked as a mod choke but I believe someone cut 2" off the barrel as a dime rolls down the whole way with ease. Thought I remembered reading somewhere that if the forcing cone was still set up for a roll crimped shell instead of star, the plastic would have been shredded where the crimp was when firing. Took it out today with some cheap federal target shells from Walmart to put a few rounds through and see what it did, there were no tears in the plastic whatsoever. I'm hoping to put slugs through it on occasion, but iirc the older, shorter cone for the roll crimp is the reason why they don't recommend it on original due to causing a pressure spike.
Is the fact that the plastic was untorn on the target shells a sign that I should be fine to run slugs on occasion, or are there other tests I could do myself to see if the cone has been lengthened before bringing it to a gunsmith? Intending to boil and card it but I want to hold off until I know if the cone should be modified or not.
Is the fact that the plastic was untorn on the target shells a sign that I should be fine to run slugs on occasion, or are there other tests I could do myself to see if the cone has been lengthened before bringing it to a gunsmith? Intending to boil and card it but I want to hold off until I know if the cone should be modified or not.