Four Fingers Fred Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 First, I did some research here and on the net in general and cannot find a post about a similar problem. So, I got a new Stoeger last spring and sent it to a gunsmith for an action job (not many specialize in Cowboy Action here in Canada). It is now very easy to open. Unfortunately, when i am shooting a stage, often the shotgun's right barrel won't fire. Sometimes the left one won't fire and occasionally neither will fire. If I reopen & reclose the shotgun, 90% of the time it will fire (we had a 4-stage match yesterday and it happened at least once on each stage). It's like the hammer(s) doesn't cock I can't reproduce this problem dry-firing or when i take my time and I have no clue what the problem is. I sent it back to the gunsmith in September and he couldn't find any problem. Any advice? (except shooting slowly!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. M. BROWN, SASS # 27309 Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 Could be the ammo used. Some brands have shorter firing pins than others which causes problems with Federal Shells/primers (domed) which also sit farther down inside shell. Primers with (flat) surfaced primers appear to be more reliable, ie Winchester, Remington and others. Ran into this problem with a shooter using Federal this past weekend. Changed ammo and problem cleared. This would be what I would check first. JM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Four Fingers Fred Posted December 13, 2021 Author Share Posted December 13, 2021 I'm shooting AA Low recoil. Also, when i pull the trigger(s), it's like the hammer isn't cocked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.S. Sooner, SASS #73526 Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 I would check to see if hammers are cocking. Use some snap caps or spent shells to see if its cocking and striking the primers by putting some masking tape over the primer area. I may have used a small piece of post-it note paper to check mine. Could be dirty or worn. I had to have ramps in the forearm welded up to add material so mine would work. I guess you could have the cocking levers welded to add material and re profile the levers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Payne Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 Started out with 2 Stoegers, & had that problem with both. After much troubleshooting, figured out that the firing pins were mushroomed. And, just to make it interesting, the titanium replacements I installed didn't fix the problem. I put the micrometer on them & saw that the length of the replacements was less than stock ones. So, I bought some stock replacements & installed them. Worked great! Later on, the problem occurred again, & turned out to be some Noble Sport primers I had bought at a gun show. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tex Jones, SASS 2263 Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 I would suggest that you take it back to the smith that cleaned it up and explain the problem. It's probably better than trail and error. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutmeg Ryder, SASS # 74966 Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 Not that this is your particular problem, but touching the trigger at any time from opening until closing will will very easily release the sear and take the hammer off a cocked position. You say when you go slow it does not happen, so the question is, when you go fast is your trigger finger completely out of the trigger guard? One other issue (usually with the second barrel not firing) is the action opening slightly under recoil from the first shot, therefore not allowing the second firing pin to reach the primer. Caused by a slightly to light release spring, or worn locking lug. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tequila Shooter Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 Unless you’ve been doing an awful lot of shooting from last spring until now I wouldn’t think that parts would have worn yet, try calling the gunsmith and ask him what he did to it besides polishing, honing and chamfering. If your problem was just with the second (right) barrel I’d think locking lug, if the gunsmith trimmed any springs start with those. After all that with it doing it on both barrels I’d change the firing pins and possibly the release spring. Just my dos centavos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eyesa Horg Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 1 hour ago, Nutmeg Ryder, SASS # 74966 said: Not that this is your particular problem, but touching the trigger at any time from opening until closing will will very easily release the sear and take the hammer off a cocked position. You say when you go slow it does not happen, so the question is, when you go fast is your trigger finger completely out of the trigger guard? One other issue (usually with the second barrel not firing) is the action opening slightly under recoil from the first shot, therefore not allowing the second firing pin to reach the primer. Caused by a slightly to light release spring, or worn locking lug. Merry Christmas buddy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickel City Dude Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 Some would say to send it back to Stoger, But if you do that with the work that has been done on it you may run into a problem. I have heard from other cowboys on the forum that if Stoger gets a gun in like this they will not repair it and have been known to stamp on it "unsafe to fire" then return it to you in worse shape then when you sent it to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lefty Wheeler Posted December 13, 2021 Share Posted December 13, 2021 Some of the above could be your problem. Taking it back would be best but try this first. I'm not sure if the Stoeger does this like the SKB and others, open the gun with a firm grip holding the triggers down, close it holding the trigger and see if it will fire. Holding the triggers releases the hammer and it will not stay cocked on others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Sackett Posted December 14, 2021 Share Posted December 14, 2021 I had similar issues with my Stoeger. It sometimes wouldn’t fire the second shot. Open and close it and the second barrel would fire. The issue with mine was that the locking lug was not traveling far enough forward into the barrel lugs. The recoil would let the locking lug release the barrel lugs just enough that the gun would open just a teenie bit and would not fire. Here are a couple of links that may help. Johnny Meadows has some very good comments on this one and there are some good pictures. Here is a link to a page describing the repair. It’s kinda hard to follow, but stay at it and you’ll hav3 an AHA moment. http://marauder.homestead.com/files/Stoeger2.html What it comes down to is to remove material from the top of the locking lug so that it can travel farther forward, engaging deeper into the barrel lugs. This was a fix for mine, maybe it’s yours too. YMMV Sam Sackett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bailey Creek,5759 Posted December 14, 2021 Share Posted December 14, 2021 If you reload my Smith said to use Winchester Primers only on a Stoeger . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Man Graybeard Posted December 14, 2021 Share Posted December 14, 2021 One simple thing to check…and it DOES happen to Stoegers…pull the stock off and see if the hammers are dragging on the stock. If they are…a little wood removal with a dremel tool and sanding drum are in order. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Ruth Posted December 14, 2021 Share Posted December 14, 2021 Is this a single trigger or double trigger gun? I've heard of single trigger Stoegers having this problem, which is why I bought a double trigger. Never had a problem with firing so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oak Ridge Regulator Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 I had the same problem with my gun and it turned out to be 2 different issues, the first one was the gun not locking up tight, fixed that but it would still miss the second barrel sometimes, I ended up taking out the firing pin inserts and drilling the firing pin holes out one number size and drilled the back side of the inserts app .015 deeper, never had a problem again. Hope this helps Oak Ridge Regulator Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flanigan Flats Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 Make sure you are opening it all the way in a very firm positive way to ensure the gun is cocked. You may be doing so when going slow but not so much when you speed things up.. The wife had a Baikal from one of the smiths that opened/cocked very hard. But it always went bang. But she complained to no end and looked miserable trying to open it. So I installed the Papa Dave cocking levers and presto the shotgun opened great but……. If you did not open it all the way in a firm positive manner it would not fire at least one barrel. Didn’t help the wife’s frustration a bit. She has another shotgun now that doesn’t have any of the above issues and I am happy man again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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