Barrel Problem

[eyepatrol]

When cleaning my gun yesterday, I noticed towards the end of my barrel that it had a bludge going around it right where the bottom of the choke would screw into the barrel. I have a Winchester SuperX2 which is in its 4th year.

I've got to check the warranty on it, but is this something to be concerned about? I assume it would be. Not entirely sure how this happened. I shoot 3 1/2" shells using the modified choke.

Any thoughts or comments?

[Hookmaster]

I have heard of barrels bulging like you described that had a fixed full choke with steel being shot from it but not in a barrel with a screw in choke.

[Guest]

If your barrel is bulged.. quit using it immediately. I would be on the phone with the factory in a hurry... warranty or not.

If this happens with another barrel(inspect regularly).. I would be looking for another brand of firearm.

[hanson]

Yeah. I'm not sure how that could be good.

My limited experience with metals tells me that you have to be devoloping some kind of "void" in your barrel if it is bulging out on the outside. Metal pushes & pulls, it doesn't "grow".

Have you been shooting strictly steel or some other non-toxic loads? (Hevi-Shot, Bismouth?) Just curious?

I would be talking to a gunsmith or dealer ASAP.

[shae1986]

The same thing happened to my brothers winchester, not an x2 but it was one of the pump models, dont quite remeber which one, but that is weird. thats why i shoot benelli, i would call the factory immediatly.

[lawdog]

MAJOR problem. I personally wouldn't shoot it in that condition. It needs to replaced ASAP (I don't think there is any fix to that).

[simcox282]

I had the same problem except that I did not notice the bulge until after I shot. Not a good idea. Blew out the barrel 3/4 quarters of the way down teh barrel. Scared me to death.

[eyepatrol]

Well, I took the gun into a gunshop and the guy said not to shoot it again with that barrel (as I had expected). He called in to see what a replacement barrel would cost. OUCH.....$400!!!!!!!!!!! I said FORGET IT! That's more than half the price of the gun!

So, I looked around his store knowing that, after talking with my wife, I had a limited budget (she was pretty upset about the $400 too). I ended up buying a new shotgun. It's a Tri-Star Diana, 3 1/2" 12ga. black with sythetic stock, semi-automatic. Originally priced at $400, marked down to $300, and he gave me $100 for a trade-in for parts on my Winchester. Not that I'm entirely happy about getting a brand of gun I've never heard of, but if it lasts me through this year, then I'll save some money up and next year I'm going big and getting a Benelli.

The gunsmith said I could try sending the barrel in to Winchester, but he's tried that in the past and they haven't done anything about it. He said if I still had the spent shell and the box of shells, that I could send the barrel along with the others to the shell manufacturer and maybe they'd do something about it. But, that would take time and I'd be without a gun for who knows how long. And then it might not pay off either. So, with the season being in full force, and I don't have a back-up gun, I bought this one. Will keep it for a back-up gun after I get a new one next year, that's for sure.

By the way...has anyone ever heard of a Tri-Star Diana shotgun? The shop owner said he's sold a lot of them and hasn't seen any come back, so in some respects I guess that's a good thing. Anyone heard of or own one of these?

Thanks.

[eyepatrol]

Hanson

Strictly steel. Winchester 3 1/2" #2's w/ modified choke for ducks and 3 1/2" BBB for geese. And when I go deer hunting in SW Minn., I put the improved cylinder in and shoot 2 3/4" Rotwells. I've never used those other types of non-toxic loads....too expensive IMO.