Cleaning / restoration tips
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CaptainJack
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Sun May 03, 2015 3:02 pm
Cleaning / restoration tips
Hi, I am new to the forum and have identified my grandfathers shotgun as an 1894! I am looking for tips on how to restore or clean up the metal parts and damascus barrel pattern without damaging it. My the way, was this design just for decoration or was there another purpose for it? Thanks
Re: Cleaning / restoration tips
First -- welcome!
Cleaning the metal parts is fairly straight forward. For light soil and buildup I usually use a fairly tame solvent such as mineral spirits, soft rags, q tips and a tooth brush. There are of course commercial cleaning products on the shelf at any gun store etc. The goal is to remove the "crud" and not the finish.
I assume you are asking about the purpose of the Damascus pattern. During the period (1894 - 1910) the '94 was in production many (most?) high quality SxSs were offered with Damascus barrels. These patterns varied from a simple twist to very very complex with the price increasing accordingly. The beauty and workmanship was, and still is, prized by gunners. I think that had it not been for the destruction of the barrel industry during WW1 in Belgium we would still have new guns offered with Damascus barrels as an option.
In the case of the '94, it was offered only with Damascus barrels for the first year or so of production. The '94 was later offered with Remington or Ordinance steel barrels in addition to Damascus barrels. All barrels were Nitro powder safe -- at least for the powders of the day. When loading rounds for my 1894s and 1900s, I limit the loads to 5000 psi or less.
Lastly - are you sure you have an 1894 or is it a 1900? Confusion sometimes occurs because both have the same1894 patten date stamped on the forearm iron. The S/N for an 1894 will begin with 1 while the 1900 will begin with 3.
Cleaning the metal parts is fairly straight forward. For light soil and buildup I usually use a fairly tame solvent such as mineral spirits, soft rags, q tips and a tooth brush. There are of course commercial cleaning products on the shelf at any gun store etc. The goal is to remove the "crud" and not the finish.
I assume you are asking about the purpose of the Damascus pattern. During the period (1894 - 1910) the '94 was in production many (most?) high quality SxSs were offered with Damascus barrels. These patterns varied from a simple twist to very very complex with the price increasing accordingly. The beauty and workmanship was, and still is, prized by gunners. I think that had it not been for the destruction of the barrel industry during WW1 in Belgium we would still have new guns offered with Damascus barrels as an option.
In the case of the '94, it was offered only with Damascus barrels for the first year or so of production. The '94 was later offered with Remington or Ordinance steel barrels in addition to Damascus barrels. All barrels were Nitro powder safe -- at least for the powders of the day. When loading rounds for my 1894s and 1900s, I limit the loads to 5000 psi or less.
Lastly - are you sure you have an 1894 or is it a 1900? Confusion sometimes occurs because both have the same1894 patten date stamped on the forearm iron. The S/N for an 1894 will begin with 1 while the 1900 will begin with 3.