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Old November 18, 2009, 08:49 PM   #1
johnwilliamson062
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THinking about committing a sin

I have a BT99 that has metal in GOOD shape and the stock is all beat up.
It needs to be refinished.
I want a light single shot for hunting squirrel and maybe rabbit/pheasant.

I am considering having the BT99 cut to 18.5 and hard chromed.

Well, it just crossed my mind.
I bought it really cheap, in fact someone has offered me double what I paid for it. I think i may just resell it, but I got this bright idea also.

Last edited by johnwilliamson062; November 18, 2009 at 09:30 PM.
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Old November 18, 2009, 09:05 PM   #2
oneounceload
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OMG....that could get you banned, shot, drawn and quartered, boiled in oil, and that's just for starters......

seriously, if you want a short shotgun, buy some cheap Mossberg 500 / Remington 870 and go from there....if necessary, sell the BT to make it happen

Last edited by oneounceload; November 19, 2009 at 09:39 AM. Reason: stupid spelling errors
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Old November 18, 2009, 09:19 PM   #3
JohnCB7
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That could look really cool, go for it.
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Old November 18, 2009, 09:32 PM   #4
johnwilliamson062
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Well, i want a single shot.
I have an H&R bardner single shot and was considering having it chromed also.
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Old November 18, 2009, 09:48 PM   #5
jaguarxk120
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The hard chroming will cost as much or more than a new Mossberg 500. A new stock can be had for the BT99 cheap. The 500 you can do anything with.
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Old November 18, 2009, 09:59 PM   #6
johnwilliamson062
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I already have a 500.

I think I will sell it.

I keep waiting for one of the old Iver johnson stainless steel deerslayes to come up on gunbroker for this purpose, but none ever do...
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Old November 18, 2009, 10:13 PM   #7
johnwilliamson062
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If I was going to end up with exactly what I wanted I think i would be likely to spend the money, but I think the BT99 will still be pretty heavy once the barrel is cut down. The action itself is a beast.
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Old November 18, 2009, 10:36 PM   #8
Jeremiah/Az
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The BT99 I had kicked like a mule, plus they are made to shoot high for trap. Stocks can be refinished for reasonable prices & they sell pretty easily at a trapshoot.
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Old November 19, 2009, 04:22 AM   #9
Waterengineer
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ONe Oz. says: "OMG....that could get you banned, shot, drawn and quartered, boiled in oil, and that's just for starters......"

---------

.......Then you would be tarred and feathered, then put in stocks in the town square.

Oh, yes, and that would be a sin.
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Old November 19, 2009, 11:52 AM   #10
colostomyclown
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It's sacrilege, but chopped older guns usually make up for it in cool factor. Resell to someone who wants to keep it original. I wouldn't chop it, but I'd be considering it just like you. Look for the Ivers & Johnson or an old JC Higgins pump for that purpose, even though you want a single shot. Pre H&R New England Firearms maybe? Probably going to laugh me out of the thread, but my first gun was a 20 Gauge HR Pardner single shot in '94 or '95. I shot COUNTLESS rounds and killed all kinds of beasties with it without a malfunction that wasn't a result of improper maintenance and was still taking it out shooting when I sold it 6 months ago to a new owner who'll probably get countless more out of it. The patterns were pretty quality too! Look for a used one and modify from there.

Last edited by colostomyclown; November 19, 2009 at 11:58 AM.
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Old November 19, 2009, 11:58 AM   #11
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On a whim you'd destroy a great commercial competition gun so you can have a "neat" rabbit gun...So you'd take a $1,500 to $2,000 gun that you got cheap and can sell for twice what you paid for it and make it a near copy of a H&R single shot $100 shotgun...Is that what you're thinking? Just want to make sure I got it correctly!

I'll give you an H&R Deluxe Single shot Shotgun for it right now, sight unseen...Then again, maybe not...If it is so badly beaten up that the only hope for it is a "wascally wabbit gun" I'd ask to see pictures first...Hell, with it, I can sand the stock and sell that, re-blue the barrel and action and sell those! OK, deals back on and I'll even include an 18½" barrel with it...

You don't want it, sell it and buy 10 single shot shotguns with the money, one in every available barrel length...You don't want it, trade it in for something that you do want--it would make for a substantial down payment on a Perazzi or Krieghoff or Blaser or etc...

You don't want it, donate it to a charity auction for a tax credit...

You don't want it, there are many alternatives available to you but please, whatever you do, don't destroy a true classic trap gun...Paint it pink and give it to your daughter/wife/sister/mistress/gay friend/aunt/cousin but don't destroy it...
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When the human race dies out, it will be because it was brainwashed to be so totally, completely, utterly safe that it no longer dared to keep on living
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Old November 19, 2009, 12:04 PM   #12
johnwilliamson062
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I like my H&R. It is the right weight and even for their best single shot 12 ga I was only set back $140. When I go hunting it is usually for multiple days in a location which is damp. The finish on it does not appear very corrosion resistant, and by that I mean I kept it on the top bunk of my old bed at my parents for a month after I graduated from college with my 22 bolt gun and pistol and it got a spot of VERY light discoloration/rust on it while the other two were fine. A simple wipe with an oil rag removed it, but I lost my confidence in the finish. I was considering using gun kote on it, but that would not protect the bore or the internal mechanisms. It may in all reality be a beater/truck gun, but I don't want it to look like one. I don't think hard chroming over the original finish is even an option.
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Old November 19, 2009, 12:09 PM   #13
BigJimP
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Like others said, when they gagged ...

we'd have to send somebody over there to beat you with the barrel piece you cut off ....... come on man ....you can't be serious ?

Sell it or donate it to a club or something - and take a tax write off... The BT-99 is a very good competition Trap gun and a lot of clubs would be happy to have it as a "loaner" gun for new shooters.
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Old November 19, 2009, 09:25 PM   #14
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I was pondering cutting the fenders off of my Corvette so I can run some huge off-road tires. Perhaps that can wait until after I trim the barrels and stocks from some of my comp guns.
Beam me up, Scotty.
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Old November 19, 2009, 09:30 PM   #15
JWT
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Can't say the idea sound good to me. I would never consider doing anything like that to my BT-99. Being boiled in oil for doing such a thing is not even sufficient punishment - skinned alive, maybe.

The thought of being out in the 'field' hunting with a shotgun that does not have a safety doesn't appeal to me either. Supposed you could carry it 'open' and close it to take a shot but that sound rather cumbersome....
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Old November 20, 2009, 01:56 PM   #16
BigJimP
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JWT - good thought - on the safety issue, or lack of it ....

I have a BT-99 and a BT-100 ....and it didn't occur to me to mention that .... nice catch ..
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Old November 20, 2009, 03:55 PM   #17
mwar410
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I'm insulted

zippy13 compared a corvette to a trap gun
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Old November 20, 2009, 04:04 PM   #18
oneounceload
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Quote:
zippy13 compared a corvette to a trap gun
What an insult to the trap gun...(and I'm NOT a trap shooter)
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Old November 20, 2009, 04:12 PM   #19
johnwilliamson062
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So what are the options for putting a different coating on my H&R. I am not sure what the finish on it now is.
http://www.hr1871.com/Firearms/Shotg...nerScrewIn.asp
I like the way it handles and how it shoots. I am just worried about it developing speckles while I am out hunting for a few days.
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Old November 20, 2009, 04:43 PM   #20
BigJimP
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Oh, oh....here we go now...picking on Trap Shooters and Corvettes......

( I met a young lady - named Tiffany ?? from Scarsdale, NY - many yrs ago, that really liked Corvettes, and guys that drove them, and she had a great pair of --------) ... so I borrowed a Corvette for the weekend from a buddy ....../and we had a great weekend. It worked out ok, but I didn't want either one of them hanging around too long......, all her brains were in her --------, and it just wasn't worth it ..... kind of like a Corvette / and while she was a nice girl.....as I recall the Corvette was a 72 convertible - and it was a pig .... (but I was a young cadet/not an officer or a gentleman yet, and hormonal ...).

I don't know how that relates to Trap Shooters / but its the only good memory I have of Corvettes ....

On the H&R - I would recommend a "rattle can" of Krylon - your preference on color .....
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Old November 20, 2009, 04:52 PM   #21
johnwilliamson062
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I don't want to change the color of the barrel, I want to change its corrosion and wear properties.

If there is something cheap n pink I am game.
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Old November 20, 2009, 04:57 PM   #22
BigJimP
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WD-40 and a rag ...... / or any light coat of oil is all you need. Then just strip it and clean it when you get home or come out of the field / and spray a little more WD-40 on the barrel and wipe it down again.

It should be fine ( sorry about the crack with the rattle can ...)
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Old November 20, 2009, 06:09 PM   #23
Dave McC
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Remember this is a G rated family board, guys.

No more dissing of Vettes or gals named Tiffany.

As for the question at hand, Karma is Karma and chopping that BT99 will get you at least one incarnation as a trap boy at a club full of accident prone, no-tipping, idiots.

Maybe a couple.

If you want a woods runner single shot,get something like.....

An older H&R, NEF, Stevens, Winchester 37A(Sorry,the 37s are all gone to card shooters)or even a Brazilian job like Rossi in the gauge you want.

Fit a premium pad(Trust me) and if you insist, trim the barrel back to the legal minimum of 18".

Find appropriate ammo in 2 3/4",no Maggie Numbs, and have fun with a 4.5 to 5.5 lb tool that redefines the term "Hard Kicker".

As for finishes, Robar, etc, provide a variety of hard, rust resistance surface treatments that work well but will get you back much more than the nominal cost of the arm itself.

A couple things I've noted from seeing these projects for a very long time.....

A single shot with 28" barrel and standard stock is a skosh shorter than a riot barreled 870 also with a standard stock. That 870 is hardly long and ungainly.

The little NEF 12 gauge here has a 28" barrel,handles like Zorro's rapier and weighs 5 lbs, 9 oz. Carries like a walking stick.

It does kick very well, but the standard loads I use are 7/8 oz reloads and the back end has a KickEez attached.

A 20 gauge set up similarly would be slightly lighter and even more nimble.

And a wipedown with a rag and Mobil One keeps it the way it began.

HTH....
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Old November 20, 2009, 06:37 PM   #24
perazzimx14
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If you want a fun single barrel for hunting forget the BT-99 and get a single shot cap lock muzzle loader.
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Old November 20, 2009, 06:47 PM   #25
BigJimP
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My apologies Dave, I'll clean up my act ....
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