Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need help!

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cjsimoh
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Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need help!

Post by cjsimoh »

A friend has this Champion Model 36 shotty that was her dad's and has been hanging in the basement for who knows how long....
It's in fair - poor condition and I'm wondering if it's just a wall hanger now, or if it can be shot safely.
I'm not sure if it's a 10 or 12 gauge, but from my research (there's not a lot of info on-line about these), I don't think they made a 10 gauge in the "Champion" series.
I only own 20 gauges myself, so I don't even have a shell to try in it.

Anyway, here's some pics. The top lever drifts over to the left too far, so it has to be held in roughly the center position to cock the hammer. The barrel locks up to the action good and seems tight.
There are some 12 gauge actions for sale on an auction sight, but the price of a "new" action is probably more than this baby is worth.
I'm worried about the condition of the bore though... very pitted.

What say you?
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Junk Yard Dog
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Re: Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need h

Post by Junk Yard Dog »

Wall hanger. SHotguns are not expensive or hard to find in good working order. There is no need to stress a relic like this. Decoration.
Leave it as it is. The ages have been at work on it and man can only mar it.
Don't hit at all if it is honorably possible to avoid hitting; but never hit soft.
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cjsimoh
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Re: Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need h

Post by cjsimoh »

Thanks JYD.... I figured as much. After looking at it more, it is a bit spooky! It's a cool old shotgun though.
I think I'll just clean it up a bit... get some of the rust off of it, put some CLP on it , oil the furniture and hang 'er back up!
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Re: Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need h

Post by Longcolt44 »

cjsimoh wrote:Thanks JYD.... I figured as much. After looking at it more, it is a bit spooky! It's a cool old shotgun though.
I think I'll just clean it up a bit... get some of the rust off of it, put some CLP on it , oil the furniture and hang 'er back up!
Good choice, let her rest.
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cjsimoh
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Re: Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need h

Post by cjsimoh »

The top lever must have had the loose "drift to the left too far" issue for a while. I saw what looked like a wired jammed between the stock and the receiver tang right next to the lever. It turned out to be a broken off rusted nail. Whoever had this shotgun drove a thin nail in it so that the nail stuck up and kept the top lever from coming over to the left too far. I'm not sure what broke/wore out that would let the lever go to the left too far. Maybe either the lever cam or where the locking bolt connection rod met the locking bolt. The lever seems a bit loose vertically too. Maybe the screw was just loose enough so that the cam didn't engage correctly and it got worn out after repeated use....
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Re: Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need h

Post by entropy »

Junk Yard Dog wrote:Wall hanger. SHotguns are not expensive or hard to find in good working order. There is no need to stress a relic like this. Decoration.

I concur. Give it an honored place on the wall, (If you can, remove the firing pin first) and she can cherish her memories every time she looks at it.

I know what parts wore out to cause the lever to drift like that, but in this case, just let it be.
"Igitur qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum." -Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus

Murphy was an optimist.

A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an
invasion, butcher a hog, design a building, conn a ship, write a
sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the
dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve an
equation, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a
computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly.
Specialization is for insects - Robert A. Heinlien
cjsimoh
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Re: Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need h

Post by cjsimoh »

Well, the wall it is! Any suggestions about how to go about cleaning it up and what to put on it before putting it back on the wall?
I don't think I want to try to get all of the rust/corrosion off of it... it would take forever and I think it would look kinda odd afterwards. Or should I?
The rust isn't powdery or flaky, but if I us a little oil or PB Blaster on it, I'm wiping brown off of it all day long.

I'm thinking of oiling/PB Blasting it a bit, maybe use a little steel wool here and there and then putting a coat of Break-Free Collector's Long Term Preservative on it.
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Re: Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need h

Post by millman »

I would suggest a brass/bronze brush over the steel wool.
“Freedom is the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” George Orwell, English novelist, essayist, and critic, 1903-1950

Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.

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millman
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Re: Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need h

Post by millman »

I have one of these. It is a 1946. My grandmother gave it to my Grandfather for Christmas that year. I think it came from Woolworth's.
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“Freedom is the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” George Orwell, English novelist, essayist, and critic, 1903-1950

Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.

C. S. Lewis
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entropy
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Re: Ivers Johnson Champion Model 36...Have questions, need h

Post by entropy »

Form what I see in your pics, you really don't need to get anything off there; the only rust you would need to remove would be lighter colored (orange) rust and/or rust that is built up above the surface. I don't see any of that in your pics. I'd coat it with: 1.) Kroil, 2.) Ballistol, 3.) Eezox, or 4.) 3 in 1 Oil. Let the first coat sink in good. Then a light second coat, and hang it up.
"Igitur qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum." -Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus

Murphy was an optimist.

A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an
invasion, butcher a hog, design a building, conn a ship, write a
sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the
dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve an
equation, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a
computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly.
Specialization is for insects - Robert A. Heinlien
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