The L.C. Smith Collectors Association
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    What to do about pits? Archived Message

    Posted by Drew Hause on August 15, 2014, 4:31 pm

    Nikos' question and John's response got me thinking about adding another FAQ "What to do about pits?" but I'd like more input so whatchathink?


    The management (or non-management) of pitted barrels is a difficult subject, with quite varied opinions among double gun shooters and gunsmiths.

    1. Removing metal doesn't make a barrel stronger - duh
    2. Most American doubles started with thick walls
    3. It is almost impossible to accurately measure the wall thickness at the bottom of a pit
    4. Pits are more common right past the forcing cone (a high pressure area = bad) and the distal barrel (where the pressure is much lower)
    5. I've had barrels that looked terrible in the last 6-8 inches in which the pits were completely removed by honing of only .0015" ie. the bore enlarged from .729" to .732"
    6. Honing is only to be performed by an expert
    7. There must be a good reason that the Birmingham Proof House requires removal of pits prior to re-proof
    8. It is next to impossible to adequately clean a deeply pitted barrel
    9. It is critical that further erosion at the bottom of the pits be stopped (see #8)
    10. W.W. Greener
    http://books.google.com/books?id=3HMCAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA353
    and others
    http://books.google.com/books?id=inQCAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA227
    documented improvement in pattern density in a few guns that had been used extensively, one an estimated 80,000 shots. Greener thought this was from 'burnishing' the bore. This was of course before the era of plastic wads.
    11. The claims that pitting either opens or tightens the pattern by 'retarding the wad' or some other black magic are unproven.

    I'm pro-honing but many are not. With an American gun there is probably plenty of wall thickness to allow removing several thousandth of an inch of barrel wall.
    I also believe if the minimum wall thickness is already too thin to allow removal of the pits, the barrels should not be used, with any load.

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