Cutting a Stevens for HD

[WSM]

I grabbed a pretty good condition Stevens model 77h for $153 otd. It's replacing my girlfriend's shotgun that got stolen a few weeks back. Feel free to weigh in on this plan of attack.

I'll be taking the barrel from 27" to 18.5 using a pipe cutter to score a ring and a hacksaw through the rest. I do have an angle grinder but I have yet to read about one being used to cut off a barrel. I'm assuming that's for good reason. I've got a mill bastard file to square it up and a round file to clean up the edges. I'm not entirely sure how to go about putting a new bead on it as I don't solder.

I'd also like to remove about 4" of stock and use a slip on recoil pad. She's a small girl, 5'2.

Am I missing anything other than pictures?

 

[joppaj]

Make sure the spring is good and it probably wouldn't hurt to disassemble the gun for a full cleaning.

 

[august1410]

That model Stevens is a utility gun, not a show piece, so altering it won't really affect the value.

Go for it.

 

[rseymorejr]

I had to straighten out a crooked cut barrel on my Father's Model 97 (that's right a Winchester model 97 that the previous owner hacked the barrel off crooked as hell!)
I drilled a hole in a 2x4 so that the barrel would slide through snuggly.
I clamped the 2x4 in a vise, slid the barrel through to where I had marked it, and slowly cut it off with fine tooth hacksaw (using the face of the 2x4 as a guide.
I cleaned it up a bit with a small file and cold blued it. It turned out pretty good.
The hard part was locating a spot for the front sight bead. When I had fooled around and fount a spot as close to TDC of the barrel as I could I center punched it, drilled a hole with a drill press and tapped the hole.
I then screwed the bead in with a drop of loctite on the threads.
Overall it turned out to be a nice job (even though the bead is not perfectly on the top of the barrel!)

Since you have a bead on it now it'll be easier for you to mark the top of the barrel with a straight edge before you make your cut.
Piece of cake!

 

[WSM]

Make sure the spring is good and it probably wouldn't hurt to disassemble the gun for a full cleaning.

I cleaned the gun as well as I could without disassembly. From what I've read this is one of the most difficult shotguns to disassemble and reassemble, it can be a complete nightmare. The cleaning smoothed out the action a lot and it's running smooth as butter.

 

[BossmanPJ]

Ok first of all your avatar is amazing. But on to the shotgun. Make sure to get the proper measurement by putting a dowel or something down the barrel and measuring 18.5 from the bolt face. That is the proper way to do it not just a tape measure on the outside of the barrel. Other then that it's easy and should be neat when it is done.

 

[WSM]

I've toyed around with the idea of doing a Vietnam replica but that's a little more work and money than I want to put into a gun that might get stolen.

 

[WSM]

I just had to pick a girl that lives in the hood

 

[jimbobborg]

From some advice I got from the SASS forum, cutting the barrels on a Stevens to that length will cause problems when reloading. The weight of the longer barrels keeps the action open while you insert the two new shells. Cut the barrels short and they won't stay open. BTW, nice to see you back.

 

[WSM]

From some advice I got from the SASS forum, cutting the barrels on a Stevens to that length will cause problems when reloading. The weight of the longer barrels keeps the action open while you insert the two new shells. Cut the barrels short and they won't stay open. BTW, nice to see you back.

Interesting, I'll have to look into that. I did take the mag tube out for cleaning and removed the dowel for a total of 4+1 capacity. I function checked after cleaning and I had several rounds fly out as I was loading them. I haven't determined if it's a malfunction or poor design. I'll know when I shoot it :p.

 

[lsw]

From some advice I got from the SASS forum, cutting the barrels on a Stevens to that length will cause problems when reloading. The weight of the longer barrels keeps the action open while you insert the two new shells. Cut the barrels short and they won't stay open. BTW, nice to see you back.

Are you perhaps thinking of a Stevens 311 double barrel?

 

[jimbobborg]

Are you perhaps thinking of a Stevens 311 double barrel?

Yup.

 

[WSM]

Yup.

You had me digging all over the Internet! I was wondering how barrel length could affect a pump action.

 

[jimbobborg]

You had me digging all over the Internet! I was wondering how barrel length could affect a pump action.

Sorry about that, I switch between here and the SASS Wire. I asked a similar question about a Stevens SxS I saw for $400 on the Wire and that's what I was told.

 

[jmiller320]

Why do you need a front bead? Your most likely cutting off all of the choke.

 

[Brickman301]

I've toyed around with the idea of doing a Vietnam replica but that's a little more work and money than I want to put into a gun that might get stolen.

I've been wanting to do this as well, but alot of the parts are now hard to find, and when you do they are expesive. As far as installing a bead, what i have done in the past is BEFORE I CUT THE BARREEL tie a piece of sewing thread to the bead. Put the thread to the center of the bead, then run the thread to the center of the reciever. Most shotguns have ribs so you can find center. Once center is found i use a piece of tape to hold the tread in place. About 1/2'' behind where I want to cut the barrel I use a center punch, to mark the location. After the barrel has been cut I can then install the bead.

 

[WSM]

It's a cute little guy, kinda want to keep it! I'm having trouble squaring up the muzzle. The cut was OK for a hacksaw job but now I feel like I'm chasing high spots and creating new ones.

 

[WSM]

I did make the barrel 20" so I have some left to play with

 

[rseymorejr]

View attachment 150827
It's a cute little guy, kinda want to keep it! I'm having trouble squaring up the muzzle. The cut was OK for a hacksaw job but now I feel like I'm chasing high spots and creating new ones.

My trick with the hole in the 2 x 4 makes for a pretty square cut!

 

[bigdv]

I've done this as well. I used a pipe cutter. Then filed the inside with a round file. I thought about putting a bead on but after shooting it I don't need it. Can actually nail bowling pins with slugs at 50 yards no problem. And in a HD situation I will not be looking for a bead. Will be point shooting.