Transforming that neglected wall hanger back into good shooting condition.

by Paul Mazan

Many old guns, especially those made during the black powder era, have been relegated to wall hanger status. In many cases this is because they were not well maintained during their working life. Although they may be mechanically sound their barrels and chambers have rusted to a degree that no longer allows chambering the rounds they were designed for.

When a customer brings one into the shop it is necessary to take the time to carefully examine the firearm for structural integrity. If the gun is sound you may be able to return it to a shootable condition simply by cleaning up the interior of the barrel. The fast and simple solution is to simply tell the customer that he has a wall hanger not suitable for restoration. In some cases this is really all you can do, however, if the pitting isn’t too bad there are tools that can clean up the bore and chamber.

Read more in our April 2015 issue. Back issues are available.

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