Abert Rim
05-26-2023, 01:25 PM
Guys, I have been watching for years for a Model 8 in .25 that I could afford. I spotted one Sunday at Guns International and reached out to the seller, Collectors Firearms of Houston, TX. The deal was done and the rifle arrived Wednesday, very well-packed.
When I dug it out of the styrofoam peanuts, I was very pleased: wood sound, metal finish almost uniformly that olive blue shade, just a bit of freckling and a quick glance down the bore with a light in the receiver suggested that it might clean up very nicely. "Good bore, strong rifling" had been their description.
But alas, when I pulled the barrel assembly off and ran a bronze brush soaked in Hoppe's down the bore, I hit a wide spot near the muzzle. Fearing the worst, the borelight confirmed a badly rung bore about inch 17 of the 22 -- and three more shallower rings between the first one and the muzzle! I have never seen multiple rings like this.
So on Thursday, I sent photos and an e-mail to Collectors Firearms with the comment that the bore they described as "good" would be described by most riflemen as "ruined," and what incentive would they offer for me to keep the rifle rather than return for a full refund.
The most straightforward option would be to shoot it and see if it is accurate; one never knows. The second option would be to counterbore the barrel down to the first ring. The next most drastic option would be a reline and rechamber, but that would be very expensive. And no machinist in his right mind would attempt to turn, mill and rifle a duplicate. Browning designed for things to work; the machining needed to make the parts seemed secondary.
Anyway, I suggested it would cost about 25 percent of the purchase price to ship the barrel to a gunsmith and have it counterbored. Collectors agreed and promptly refunded the amount this morning.
I felt compelled to lay out this case first to note how easy it can be to innocently overestimate rifling condition. One would think sellers would at least run a patch down the bore of used firearms they consign or resell, but I cannot count the number of times over the years when I have examined a rifle for sale whose bore had scarcely if ever been cleaned, and I used to bring put a cleaning rod and patches in the truck when going on the hunt at gun and pawn shops.
I of course could not examine the bore of the Model 8 before purchase, but at first glance it looked OK to me, too. I do not believe Collectors intentionally inflated the bore condition.
The second point is simply to congratulate Collectors on their prompt, courteous and fair customer service. I would buy from them again without hesitation -- except to confirm bore condition is as described.
Here are a couple of images of the Model 8. Dies, brass and bullets arrive next week so I will be able to load a sample of cartridges for testing. If the results are encouraging, I will see about loading some gas-checked cast to try in it.
https://i.postimg.cc/rKPS9Xnq/image-67175937.jpg (https://postimg.cc/rKPS9Xnq)
https://i.postimg.cc/5XQ877TL/image-67176705-2.jpg (https://postimg.cc/5XQ877TL)
https://i.postimg.cc/xkrMWGV7/image-67195393-3.jpg (https://postimg.cc/xkrMWGV7)
When I dug it out of the styrofoam peanuts, I was very pleased: wood sound, metal finish almost uniformly that olive blue shade, just a bit of freckling and a quick glance down the bore with a light in the receiver suggested that it might clean up very nicely. "Good bore, strong rifling" had been their description.
But alas, when I pulled the barrel assembly off and ran a bronze brush soaked in Hoppe's down the bore, I hit a wide spot near the muzzle. Fearing the worst, the borelight confirmed a badly rung bore about inch 17 of the 22 -- and three more shallower rings between the first one and the muzzle! I have never seen multiple rings like this.
So on Thursday, I sent photos and an e-mail to Collectors Firearms with the comment that the bore they described as "good" would be described by most riflemen as "ruined," and what incentive would they offer for me to keep the rifle rather than return for a full refund.
The most straightforward option would be to shoot it and see if it is accurate; one never knows. The second option would be to counterbore the barrel down to the first ring. The next most drastic option would be a reline and rechamber, but that would be very expensive. And no machinist in his right mind would attempt to turn, mill and rifle a duplicate. Browning designed for things to work; the machining needed to make the parts seemed secondary.
Anyway, I suggested it would cost about 25 percent of the purchase price to ship the barrel to a gunsmith and have it counterbored. Collectors agreed and promptly refunded the amount this morning.
I felt compelled to lay out this case first to note how easy it can be to innocently overestimate rifling condition. One would think sellers would at least run a patch down the bore of used firearms they consign or resell, but I cannot count the number of times over the years when I have examined a rifle for sale whose bore had scarcely if ever been cleaned, and I used to bring put a cleaning rod and patches in the truck when going on the hunt at gun and pawn shops.
I of course could not examine the bore of the Model 8 before purchase, but at first glance it looked OK to me, too. I do not believe Collectors intentionally inflated the bore condition.
The second point is simply to congratulate Collectors on their prompt, courteous and fair customer service. I would buy from them again without hesitation -- except to confirm bore condition is as described.
Here are a couple of images of the Model 8. Dies, brass and bullets arrive next week so I will be able to load a sample of cartridges for testing. If the results are encouraging, I will see about loading some gas-checked cast to try in it.
https://i.postimg.cc/rKPS9Xnq/image-67175937.jpg (https://postimg.cc/rKPS9Xnq)
https://i.postimg.cc/5XQ877TL/image-67176705-2.jpg (https://postimg.cc/5XQ877TL)
https://i.postimg.cc/xkrMWGV7/image-67195393-3.jpg (https://postimg.cc/xkrMWGV7)