Manual

19
TO REMOVE A BORE OBSTRUCTION
Use of poor quality ammunition may leave a wad or other shot shell component
in the barrel when fired, and your shotgun may be damaged from subsequent
firing if the bore is obstructed. Dropping a shotshell of smaller than 12 gauge
into the chamber can also create a dangerous bore obstruction. Excess oil,
grease, water, or raindrops may also form an obstruction which could cause
damage and injury. If you suspect that your shotgun may have a bore obstruction
of any kind, excess oil, grease or a shot shell wad in the barrel, or if it may have
been exposed to humid conditions which could cause condensation, or to rain,
mud, or snow which might have entered the bore, open the action and clean out
the barrel. Inspect the bore visually from the breech end to be sure that it is
perfectly clear before firing. (See “Ammunition Warning” p. 10 and “Care and
Cleaning” section p. 23)
A shotgun user should recognize that a lodged shotshell wad is a fairly common
form of bore obstruction. Therefore the following information on how a wad may
become lodged in the bore, and how it should be removed, deserves most careful
reading and heeding!
When firing, a wad may become lodged in the bore if the shell contains no
powder, or the powder fails to ignite and only the primer charge ignites,
producing insufficient force to propel the shot or wad completely out of the bore.
This generally produces an unusual sound, sometimes called a “blooper”, due to
its incomplete report. The shot charge usually is propelled only weakly out of the
barrel. This condition occurs most frequently with reloaded ammunition.
If this situation occurs, proceed as follows with the shotgun pointing in a safe
direction:
a) Press the top lever all the way to the right and open the action completely.
Doing so should eject the fired shell, but check to be certain.
b) Keep the shotgun pointed in a safe direction throughout this process.
c) After making sure that the shotgun is unloaded, inspect the bore from the
br
eech end of the barrel. If the bore is obstructed, insert a proper size
cleaning rod (without a tip or brush) into the bore from the br
eech and
carefully dislodge and remove the wad or other obstruction. If the
obstruction does not readily dislodge, it may be necessary to lightly
tap the
handle end of the cleaning rod. If such efforts fail to dislodge the
obstruction, take the shotgun to a gunsmith. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO
REMOVE A LODGED WAD OR OTHER OBSTRUCTION USING A BLANK
CARTRIDGE, OR A SHELL FROM WHICH THE SHOT CHARGE HAS
BEEN REMOVED, OR BY SHOOTING IT OUT, OR BY ANY MEANS OTHER
THAN THE USE OF THE PROPER SIZE CLEANING ROD AND
REASONABLE FORCE APPLIED TO THE ROD. BE CERTAIN ALL LOOSE
POWDER HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM THE BORE AND ACTION BEFORE
INTRODUCING THE ROD INTO THE BORE. NEVER TRY TO SHOOT OUT
A BORE OBSTRUCTION! See “Bore Obstruction Warning”, p. 18.
d) Reinspect the bore and run a cleaning patch down it to be certain it is free
of unburned powder particles or any other debris. At the same time clean
the action, ejector, and other areas of the mechanism of any unburned
powder grains.