Posted by Lloyd on December 4, 2007, 10:01 pm, in reply to "Re: Reloading 20 ga."
PA Sportsman:
Are you so sure that the 20 of which we speak is 2 1/2-inch? If it was a OO gun (pre-field grade) then, 2 5/8 maybe. But, I'll bet it's digested plenty of the 2 3/4-inch variety over the years. The 2 1/2-inch stuff hasn't been around the USA all that long, and the plain truth is that Elsies all over this country have been forced to deal with what was available for better than 50-years at this writing (I have a mental picture of Revdocdrew cringing about now!). That's why they (and all the other American guns) generally weigh a bit more, to deal with the prevailing American habit of shooting whatever was available. Heck, I shoot modern, light 2 3/4-inch 20-bore loads out of a 5 3/4-lb damascus gun from 1892. Mind you, it's in English proof for just such a load. My point is this: the utility of your new toy will be sorely limited in most of the old home state (what part of PA do you hail from anyway?) and just about everywhere else simply because you can't get the 2 1/2-inch stuff at the old Five & Dime. I'm not advocating the hot stuff for any older gun (and you won't need it for Ruffies) but light, standard 20-gauge loads are generally available everywhere, making guns that handle them far more practicable over the long run.
I've gone down the hand-loaded, 2 1/2-inch trimmed-case road (for my first damascus gun) and it's a genuine, world-class pain in the arse. If this gun is indeed 2 1/2-inch, open the chambers to 2 3/4-inch and be done with it. Forgive me, but the endless hand-wringing on this webpage over this very subject about drives me to drink. Unless you're living in the rarefied air of the collector's world (a fool's paradise, where nothing ever gets shot), that gun is just another tool, albeit a beautiful one, and it needs to do the job you bought it for. You will love it all the more when it does.