Iver Johnson, doesn't lock up tight

[Mad_Dog]

I've got my great-grand-daddy's Iver Johnson Champion, 12-guage single shot top-break shotgun, and am pondering getting it into shooting shape (for use with home-rolled BP shells only).  It opens fine, the hammer/trigger seem to work properly, and the bore/chamber look (relatively) clean.  My only worry is that when you close the action, it can jiggle a little side-to-side.  I haven't taken it apart yet, since it's not entirely obvious to me how it comes apart (there's a lever thingy on the right side of the action, but i'm not sure if the pin pulls out or if the lever flips up and then the pin screws out).

Any advice/insight would be appreciated!  Is it worth taking to a gunsmith to try to tighten it up?  Does a little bit of looseness matter?  Should I just hang it on the wall instead?

-Mad Dog

[St. George]

Regrettably - your best bet is to pick out a nice wallspace and get a couple of pictures of Grandpa framed.

No 'smith around here will work on one, and I suspect that that's going to be the case where you live, too.

Now that being said - I'm absolutely certain that there'll be some who will say that it can be squared away, and given spares and some knowledge, I'm sure it can - but at what cost?

Good Luck!

Vaya,

Scouts Out!