Firiring Pins (not again) :eek:

USA123456789

New member
My browning xt trap combo has been burning through the firing pins that i have put in it. I have taken my gun to multiple gun smiths and they have said that this perticular serial numbered gun is the worst on firing pins i have ever seen.:confused: idk wether it is the shells i am shooting, the amount of shooting i do or just the pins were bad from the start.

I am on my 5th set of pins and the gun is only 2 YEARS OLD. Help:confused:
 

oneounceload

Moderator
are you using Wolf primers? They have a rep for accelerating firing pin wear, as do Cheddites......

if your smiths are replacing them with quality pins, then it might be the ammo
 

USA123456789

New member
Oneonce. I havent shoot a reload through this gun yet they have tried HEAT TREATED FIRING pins and they still chip and chunk apart. At the ohio state shoot i had not even 400 through s set and they were chiped and chunked all over the place :confused:
 

RoscoeC

New member
At the ohio state shoot i had not even 400 through s set and they were chiped and chunked all over the place

This indicates to me that they are way too hard. Have a good gunsmith make you one out of high speed steel, and draw the temper to a medium hardness. I bet the breakage will stop.
 

BigJimP

New member
You didn't say what kind of ammo you are shooting / but something is very odd here if you keep having the issue and you have replaced the pins this many times. I have a lot of Browning O/U's with thousands of rounds thru them with no firing pin issues, so I'm comfortable telling you it isn't a model specific issue - and in my opinion its a general firing pin condition issue.

I have seen what you're describing happening on Brownings - and other guns - that shoot a lot of chedite primer loads - on reloads and on factory ammo / but the guys that I have seen with these problems changed the firing pins and their loads and the problem went away. I have also seen guns, including many Brownings, that shoot a lot of reloads, with Chedite primers, and the pins have showed no wear at all - including mine.

I suspect Browning went thru a couple of years with some bad firing pins - where they must have been heat treated improperly and I don't know if they were too soft or too hard / and like others suggested, I would try and give them a call and see what they recommend.

But how and why this is still happening to you after you've replace them so many times is really a mystery to me - unless Browning doesn't know how many bad pins are out there in the parts inventory.

All of my primary target guns are Brownings ( 6 XS Skeet models in 12, 20, 28 and .410 ) and 2 XT models for trap ..... all 8 were new guns purchased from 1995 - 2006 / and I purchased a used XT last year that was made in 2005. All 9 shotguns get checked twice a year, at least, and no pin issues on any of them - and from 2005 - 2007, I was using Chedite primers on my reloads in all 4 gagues ( before I heard about/and saw some of the problems caused to firing pins). My primary 12ga guns have at least 4 - 8 boxes a week thru them during that period for a solid 8 months a year so a minimum of 3,200 shells a year thru those guns or at least 10,000 over the 3 year period with Chedite primers....and probably more like 15,000 shells over the period.

I have long suspected the issue may be affected by some of the ammo coming in from overseas - Fiocchi, Rio, etc - with corrosive primers / or something in the primers that is affecting the firing pins. After you talk to Browning / I would suggest you talk to someone like Brownells and see if they have firing pins / or see if Browning will ship you a set of pins - keep the packaging, after you install them, note in a journal what loads you're shooting, etc - so if you have another issue down the road, you can contact them again and see what they say. I'm going to be very dissappointed in Browning if a new set of pins doesn't fix this problem once and for all / or some combination of replacing the pins and springs doesn't solve it for you - I can only imagine how aggravating it must be.
 

BigJimP

New member
Holy cow man ......between the rust problem you've had on this gun / now the firing pin issues ....... have you thought about hiring a Witch Doctor / or getting a different good luck charm ... Something is messing with your carma ..... ( and Halloween is coming ..).
 

USA123456789

New member
Jim i need a WITCH DOCTOR

Bigjim where can i get a witch doctor.lol:)

i have put about i would say two pallets worth of shells through my xt. The brands are Estate made by federal, Federal top guns and gold metals, Remington sts, Nitro 27 and the remington gun club. Most of the shells i shoot are a Federal product.
My brother has a beretta 682 gold e and he hasnt had to replace the pins in his gun yet and he has had it for 4 or 5 maybe 6 yrs now and he shoots more than me idk what is happening with my gun
 

zippy13

New member
Have you checked you gun's dimensions against Browning's standards? Some years ago, a friend of mine had a similar problem with a Berettta 682 and the cure was to take a little off the firing pins using a lathe. I don't recall if it came off one of the ends, or/and if the shoulder was shifted.
 

BigJimP

New member
the Fremont district in Seattle probably has some witch doctors ... just kidding ......

I don't know what to tell you on those firing pins / except its not normal. Did you buy the gun new or used ? Maybe the smith that did the work didn't know what he was doing ... don't know.
 

olddrum1

New member
I would truly contact Browning on this problem.
1-800-322-4626
Thats the number to Bronwing over at Arnold Missouri. If anyone can shed light on this they can. I have had some issues with new Browning shotguns and have always reached resolution of the issue with Browning.
 
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