Gun Dog Forum

Good morning!

I recently bought a 1927 LC Smith. I went out and shot it this last weekend, shoots great but a couple things.

1) The safety has three positions, and maybe not all the positions are functioning correctly but I'm not sure why it has three positions? Thankfully the middle position or the "safe" position works...I just don't get why it can be slid forward or to the rear position.

2) After shooting, the gun is a bear to crack open, it catches on the right shell and pulls the primer right out of the casing.

Thanks for the help!

rkappes wrote:Good morning!

I recently bought a 1927 LC Smith. I went out and shot it this last weekend, shoots great but a couple things.

1) The safety has three positions, and maybe not all the positions are functioning correctly but I'm not sure why it has three positions? Thankfully the middle position or the "safe" position works...I just don't get why it can be slid forward or to the rear position.

2) After shooting, the gun is a bear to crack open, it catches on the right shell and pulls the primer right out of the casing.

Thanks for the help!

I am not familiar with this gun but years ago it was common for the selector switch to be used in order to determine witch barrel fired first if it is a single trigger.

I do not believe the safety involved any connection to barrel firing sequence.

From the LC Smith site:
“Why does the safety on my L.C. Smith shotgun have three positions?

The three-position safety provided great relief to the live bird shooter and trap shooter. When the safety was placed in the “rear” position, the gun was ready to shoot. Upon firing and opening the barrels the safety stayed in the “fire” position. The shooter never had to worry about remembering to disengage the safety before shooting.

When placed in the middle position, the gun was "on safe" and had to be pushed forward to the “fire" position before the gun could be fired. Upon opening the barrels, the safety automatically returned to the "safe" position.

This Combined Automatic and Independent Safety was patented by Alexander T. Brown and Wilbirt Smith in 1886. It was standard on Hunter Arms Company guns from1895 to 1902. Then it became available as a special order option until 1945.”

Secondly, please have someone well versed in LCs and old SxSs check your shotgun for safety...in all measures...before you shoot it further..
There may be no issue or one of poors selection of load but......there would appear no reason to take the chance.

Post that inspection and sign-off...enjoy your Elsie.

rkappes wrote:Good morning!

I recently bought a 1927 LC Smith. I went out and shot it this last weekend, shoots great but a couple things.

1) The safety has three positions, and maybe not all the positions are functioning correctly but I'm not sure why it has three positions? Thankfully the middle position or the "safe" position works...I just don't get why it can be slid forward or to the rear position.

2) After shooting, the gun is a bear to crack open, it catches on the right shell and pulls the primer right out of the casing.

Thanks for the help!

If the gun is pulling primers out of their respective primer pockets when you open the gun, there is something very wrong. Please have it looked at by a competent gunsmith that is versed in sxs's at minimum or well-versed in LC Smiths, at best. Not the time to have the gun looked at by garage variety gunsmith-type-a-friends nor even a competent gunsmith who does not know double guns. It sounds to me the gun is either piercing primers or something is amiss on the breech face. NO ACTION SHOULD BE PULLING PRIMERS OUT OF THEIR POCKETS - EVER. I wouldn't shoot the gun until you have this worked out. Good luck.

Send the gun to Jerry Andrews in West Virginia, or Bill Schwarz in GA. They are both very good smith who will straighten your problem out. Also realize your LC Smith is nearly 100 years old and wasn't meant to shoot today's ultra magnum loads. Once you get it fixed, call RST and buy some low pressure loads from them. Your stock will thank you for it. If it makes you feel better, I shoot RST's through my modern SxS, which is proofed for modern ultra velocity loads, as well. You don't need hyper speed ammo in shotguns, but the marketers will tell you you do, and RST makes very good shells. Just so you know, you never want to shoot steel through your gun, and the metal is very strong, but the wood stocks on Elsie's have a tendency to crack from recoil, that's why you want to shoot low pressure loads through it.

What gauge is your gun? 20 and 16ga guns most likely didn't have 2 3/4" chambers in 1927, so make sure you measure the chambers if it's a 16 or 20. LC Smith 12's most likely had 2 3/4" chambers in 1927.

Thanks for the info everyone, I appreciate it very much!

jetjockey wrote:Send the gun to Jerry Andrews in West Virginia, or Bill Schwarz in GA. They are both very good smith who will straighten your problem out. Also realize your LC Smith is nearly 100 years old and wasn't meant to shoot today's ultra magnum loads. Once you get it fixed, call RST and buy some low pressure loads from them. Your stock will thank you for it. If it makes you feel better, I shoot RST's through my modern SxS, which is proofed for modern ultra velocity loads, as well. You don't need hyper speed ammo in shotguns, but the marketers will tell you you do, and RST makes very good shells. Just so you know, you never want to shoot steel through your gun, and the metal is very strong, but the wood stocks on Elsie's have a tendency to crack from recoil, that's why you want to shoot low pressure loads through it.

What gauge is your gun? 20 and 16ga guns most likely didn't have 2 3/4" chambers in 1927, so make sure you measure the chambers if it's a 16 or 20. LC Smith 12's most likely had 2 3/4" chambers in 1927.

It's a 12 gauge.

hopefully it is dirt or the firing pin spring that has gone bad in the firing pin chamber. if it is protruding when open then that is probably it but you need to be careful if this is the case as it could fire when it is closed. Dirt gets in there and does not allow it to work correctly and some times the springs get messed up or dissolve in there.

P&PGunsmith wrote:hopefully it is dirt or the firing pin spring that has gone bad in the firing pin chamber. if it is protruding when open then that is probably it but you need to be careful if this is the case as it could fire when it is closed. Dirt gets in there and does not allow it to work correctly and some times the springs get messed up or dissolve in there.

Thank you!