My first 12 gauge pumpgun is a modified choke and I would like to get choke tubes installed for my Son who starts hunting in 1.5 years.

Is there enough meat on a Modified barrel to tap?

Is this a machine job or can it be done with hand tools?

Thanks

Minkman

Briley (http://www.briley.com) will do this, and they will package that service along with their tubes for a nice fee. I would recomend them over most other tube makers.

First question is what make and model is the gun ? Because a tubed barrel for an 870 can be had for less on Ebay than choke tube installation will cost.

Otherwise I'd have Briley install tubes if the gun was worth the expense.

Here's a selection of tube dudes,

Choke tubes

I bought a fixture years ago to install WinChokes in barrels.

Biggest waste of money in my life.

The problem is that unless you have an NEF or some other thick barrel, there is not enough meat on any other maker I have seen, to thread the inside.

I guess Briley would be the way to go because they use a super fine thread and their tubes are very thin.

-Spencer

Shop Cart,

I had two barrels done by Stan Baker years ago that utilized Win Choke tubes or Bakers own version. Neat system and he did great work.

I don't know how but he swaged the barrel end to a larger diameter and then tapped it. Very little material removed it seemed and a perfectly in line choke tube.

Stan died a couple years ago but I do believe his company lives on.

Minkman

I have machined quite a few barrels for choke tubes. Here are a few basics.

Usually there is not enough wall thickness to install factory choke tubes, they are really thick. If it is a pump or automatic most of the time you can install a popular after market choke tube called Tru Choke, they are thinner than most factory tubes but are plenty strong and work very well.

If you have a double barrel with very thin walls you can still machine the barrels for an even thinner tube called Tru Choke Thinwall.

Tru Choke is manufactured by Colonial Arms, a subsidorary of Ralph Walkers well known gun shops.

Average cost is $60.00 per barrel plus cost of the choke tubes. Plain one average $20.00 each.

I have so much rifle work that I have not been doing any shotgun work lately. But I can highly recomend a specialist in choke tube work. Michael Orlen; 79 Salem St; Amherst, MA 01002 (413) 256-1630. He is prompt and his prices are fair. Also he has been doing choke work for a lot of other gunsmiths and gunstores all over the US.

Give him a call, he will fix you right up.

quote:

Originally posted by ShopCartRacing:
I bought a fixture years ago to install WinChokes in barrels.

Biggest waste of money in my life.

The problem is that unless you have an NEF or some other thick barrel, there is not enough meat on any other maker I have seen, to thread the inside.

I guess Briley would be the way to go because they use a super fine thread and their tubes are very thin.

-Spencer

I wish I had read that post two weeks ago.
Brownells indicates that doubles may be too thin, but they didn't say Browning semi autos or Remington pump guns may be too thin for the 32TPI of win chokes or rem chokes.

But the instructions make it clear.
If you don't have .845" OD or more for the last 2" of the barrel, pay another $200 and get a Tru choke reamer and tap.

Talk to Scott Carlson at Carlson chokes in Atwood Kansas.

I thought I could do 13 of 15 barrels, but I can only do 10 of 15 barrels.

Just put the choke tube on the barrel, wrap it good with duct tape and voila, your choke tube is installed. I'd make Bob Vila proud.

I have had it done by Mike Orlen. He is very good, very reasonable and quick. If you go to www.shotgunworld.com then register and enter the forums and look for him under the gunsmithing forum. He will do the work for memvbers at his dealer price which was $35 a barrel for threading, the choke tubes cost $17 each. He can do it on thinner barrels but he has to know the thickness. Some barrels are too thin but they do not have to be thick to install. He installs a thin wall tube for less than half what Briley charges. He installed tubes on a Daly Miroku 20 gauge for me and I had it back in 2 1/2 weeks from the time I sent it. I highly recommend him. BTW, Mike is in Amherst MA, email at michael.orlen@verizon.net .

Metalsmith, I don't know about Bov Villa, but Red Green would be tickled to death with that approach. From his Handyman's Corner, "If the women don't find you handsome, they at least will find you handy."

Red Green is played by Steve Smith, a liberal folk singer who hates hunters and makes fun of them for a living.

But while I was on a missonary work crew overseas, the one thing everyone from every country had in common was retelling duck tape stories from Red Green.

quote:

Originally posted by The Metalsmith:
Just put the choke tube on the barrel, wrap it good with duct tape and voila, your choke tube is installed. I'd make Bob Vila proud.

I think you mean Red Green.

In fact I know it.

Bob Vila would use a 18V cordless choke tapping machine that would require a separate $45 arbor for each barrel you needed to do.

One thing that hasn't been mentioned yet is that you must measure the barrel thickness as several places around as they sometimes are not consistent. I found this out the hard way when the reamer came through the side of a barrel. The steel was nearly .030" thinner on one side.

John, that would have to be way beyond embarassing. I was going to tool up for installing choke tubes until I heard a number of similar horror stories. One high $ gun ruined and your profit for years is gone.

Chic, I made out OK; I'd borrowed the tools to see if it was somethhng I wanted to get into before I dropped a load of cash and it was on an old, beat-up Remington 58 that had already been shortened once so making two inches shorter didn't matter to me. I was VERY lucky.

I decided not to get into that business.