Metal wear in hinged shotguns

[Ltach578]

I was having a conversation last night among our group of regular shooters from the club and the subject of wear and rebuild came up. Most of us are shooting hinged guns, B guns, K guns, P guns and various sub brands of those, even a few of the more expensive Turks, or other quality Italian guns. These are guys that shoot maybe 100 rds a week, most of us with kids or grandkids on the high school team shooting two or three times that amount.

None of us has ever had to have a gun rebuilt other than a spring here or there. Now in going further, we all use either white lithium or red wheel bearing grease on all metal to metal contact points. I guess because we copied each other over the years or whatever.

My question is, if the grease is preventing metal to metal contact, and is changed regularly, pretty much at every cleaning, is there ever going to be sufficient wear to require welding or pin replacement at the hinge or locking block. How many decades at 1-300 shots a week would it take to get there?

For reference I've got a 1965 built Franchi that has 60 years of regular use, I found grease in it when I bought it out of the original owner's estate, and it is clearly well used, but tight, on face with the lever still to the right. His grandson said this was his main gun used for hunting and clay shooting.

 

[Rafiki]

Good question and one that I also have been wondering about. I shoot sporting clays weekly, not always with the same shotgun but I do have a favorite Beretta O/U that gets a lot of use. It gets broken down and cleaned after each session. For years I've been using STP of all things. I just figured that it is a heavy synthetic, extremely slick lubricant so should work well. I have no idea if it helps or hurts but I haven't had any issues yet.

 

[Hunter-Habib]

I’ll add a small observation about vintage English break action shotguns. Matching shot weight alone can’t be an indication of whether or not a particular cartridge is good for a particular shotgun’s service life in the long run.

The two photographs below are of a 1954 made 12 gauge (2.75”) fully choked BSA (Birmingham Small Arms) Model XII which was proofed for 1 1/4 Oz of shot (a 36 gram load).

First picture was taken in October 1st, 2024 (at the beginning of last waterfowl hunting season)

Second picture is taken from 1st May, 2025 (at the end of last waterfowl hunting season).

The shotgun was as tight as a bank vault in October. But by May (13 hunting trips and roughly 260 rounds later), you can clearly see that the shotgun has begun to get slightly “Off-Face” by developing a little bit of a gap between the breech & the receiver. It was also begun to get slightly loose, but shoots otherwise very strong & accurately.

The current owner (a reasonable and educated young gent) followed the proof marks and only runs 1 1/4 Oz loads through it. But he made the mistake of using high velocity American Winchester Super-X 1 1/4 Oz loads (1330 FPS velocity) through it (mostly #6). A less hotter cartridge loaded more in line with 1950s era British service pressures is more desirable.

The owner now uses Sellier & Bellot Fortuna 1 1/4 Oz loads in the shotgun (after having a gunsmith retighten the old gun and put it back “On-Face”). Velocities are a little slower (1263 FPS) but game is still dropping very cleanly.

 

[BeeMaa]

@Ltach578 - It depends. Depends on the brand, how well it's been taken care of and how it's used.

Obviously, any shotgun, regardless of brand requires visual inspection on a regular basis which it sound like you are doing. Having it professional serviced for the top-quality brands will vary from 5K to 10K shells. There are even some that say it isn't required until 12K. But still...it depends.

Most people will not shoot this much in a lifetime, but a competition shooter can easily do this in a year. It also has to do with the original condition of the shotgun and how it's used. If all it sees is a clays range, that's much different than spending time in the muck and mud of a duck/goose blind. And yes, I know several people who use SxS's and O/U's for waterfowl hunting.

Now comes the power factor. Hunting loads and clays competition loads are not the same. The forces applied are much higher for hunting loads, so it stands to reason that they can cause more wear.

In the end, you need to seek the advice of a professional that you trust to do a thorough inspection of the shotgun(s) in question to determine current condition of it and discuss how it's used and how to properly care for it in the future.

Many of the top competitions around the country will have a factory booth set up (Beretta, Krieghoff, Blaser, Kolar, Perazzi, Caesar Guerini, Rizzini..etc) and offer these types of services available for those who wish to use them.

 

[Altitude sickness]

BeeMaa brings up a good point. Add some mud and dust into the metal on metal pivot points. And you will quickly get it loosened up. A separate issue from the pressures exerted.

 

[Hammergun]

There are many factors involved in keeping break action guns tight and on face. Greasing the hinge pin and bolts, using sensible loads for which the gun was designed and keeping the gun clean. I would add another, how the shooter opens and closes their gun. Slamming the gun open or closed will accelerate wear although I will admit dedicated target models like kguns seem to handle this well. I've even seen shooter whipping their guns open and closed with just their trigger hand. Not good. Closing the gun firmly without slamming and opening it in a controlled manner will help make it last a long time.

 

[Altitude sickness]

Stupid question. Can having too much grease in the pivot areas cause a split second of too much pressure between the surfaces before it’s squirted out?

Grease is not compressible. I smear an almost invisible amount on the surface. Would putting a blob on then closing it put too much pressure on the pin.

 

[BeeMaa]

Grease is good and can be bad. Too much will attract dirt, dust and debris. Same for not cleaning it off for long periods of time.

Proper maintenance and care (of anything) will extend it’s useful lifespan.

@Altitude sickness - What you are doing is perfect. Too much grease will result in it being squeezed out through clearances not designed with this in mind. Not sure about accelerated wear, but it’s not a good practice.

I like to use a small paint brush (called an acid brush) to apply the grease so it goes on evenly and exactly where I want it without putting on too much.

 

[Shako Badhan]

A lot is going to be dependent on the shotguns design and where the friction and wear points are as well. Beretta 680 series, SO/DT and K and P guns are all designed to shift the wear to easily replaced parts.

This is not as much the case with older guns like vintage British doubles that required more hand fitting. They are light and built for handling not for strength. It was almost expected that you would send your Holland Royal or Boss pair back for an overhaul every few years.

Proper maintenance and lubrication can extend the amount of time between major services, but not put them off all together.

 

[Hammergun]

I will admit that modern target guns are very durable. I witness the abuse they can take without breaking every week at my club. I am coming at this from a different perspective. I shoot vintage sxs guns - mostly British- some of which are over 140 years old. I've had guns put back on face, locking bolts welded and refit etc. and proper care has prevented problems while I've owned them. I do envy the replaceable wear points of modern guns.

 

[Nevada Mike]

There is also the question of metallurgy. Older, classic guns may not be made with steel that is as wear resistant as modern steels. I have an old Damascus Linder Daly 20 gauge that required a new hinge pin and other work. Likewise a graded 1915 Fox 16 gauge gun. Foxes are great guns to shoot, but are not known for high quality steel. Many Belgian made Browning Superposed guns also need the hinge rotated or replaced after years of use.
I doubt, however, that my Perrazi MX20 will require mechanical service in my lifetime .