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hansol
.224 member

Reged: 15/08/08
Posts: 33
Loc: British Columbia, Canada

Boxlock safety mechanism - How good?
#140961 - 22/08/09 08:10 AM

Hey guys,

Just wondering if I can get some info on how reliable/bombproof the safety is on a boxlock action. And yes, I know the whole "never trust a safety" and watch muzzle direction and what not, so no worries there. I'm just curious how is stands in relations to other actions.

For example, I would say the wing safety on a mauser setup is pretty much infallable, vs. a savage bolt action where (with a bit of tweaking of course), I can get the firing pin to drop with a vigorous shake of the rifle. The crossbolt safety on lever guns I would also say is bombproof too. So just curious where the boxlock fits in.

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450_366
.400 member

Reged: 17/01/07
Posts: 1068
Loc: Sweden, west-coast.

Re: Boxlock safety mechanism - How good? [Re: hansol]
#140962 - 22/08/09 08:45 AM

This depends on the safety on the boxlock, theres different ways to do it. The easy way is to hold the sear down (i think) but to be safe theres a lug that grips the hammer if it falls anyway on some of them.

--------------------
Andreas

"Yeas it kicks like a mule he said, but always remember that its much worse standing on the other end"

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Bramble
.375 member

Reged: 29/07/06
Posts: 950
Loc: England

Re: Boxlock safety mechanism - How good? [Re: hansol]
#140971 - 22/08/09 10:49 AM

Quote:

Hey guys,

Just wondering if I can get some info on how reliable/bombproof the safety is on a boxlock action. And yes, I know the whole "never trust a safety" and watch muzzle direction and what not, so no worries there. I'm just curious how is stands in relations to other actions.

Trusting your life to the safety on a boxlock i.e. Guarenteeing that the sears will not trip, would rate with shagging the wife of a Sargent in the SAS, on a high wire, above the Grand Canyon, with a film crew present.

They are not, except for a very few exceptions hammer blocking, just trigger blocking.

Regards

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hansol
.224 member

Reged: 15/08/08
Posts: 33
Loc: British Columbia, Canada

Re: Boxlock safety mechanism - How good? [Re: Bramble]
#140972 - 22/08/09 10:53 AM

LOL I think that is the most eloquent piece of writing I've seen in a while. Much appreciated, as it certainly sheds some clarity.

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mehulkamdar
.416 member

Reged: 09/01/04
Posts: 3688
Loc: State of Ill-Annoy USA.

Re: Boxlock safety mechanism - How good? [Re: Bramble]
#140983 - 22/08/09 01:56 PM

Bramble,

Didn't Tony White of T R White Gunmakers in the UK patent an intercepting sear safety for boxlocks very recently? I just checked, but his website is down at the moment - from what I recall, some British authorities hailed it as the most significant development of the boxlock action since it was first designed by Anson and Deeley.

Good hunting!

--------------------
The Ark was made by amateurs. Experts built the Titanic.

Mehul Kamdar

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Fritz
.224 member

Reged: 13/04/03
Posts: 34

Re: Boxlock safety mechanism - How good? [Re: mehulkamdar]
#140991 - 22/08/09 06:02 PM

Merkel has a double safety with common trigger block and a hammer catch, that indeed works. Some fifteen years ago I had a Merkel boxlock shotgun. A winterday I fell on wet ice and dropped the unloaded gun, and broke the stock. I had nothing to do but to put the pieces of the gun in the backpack and go home. At home I examined the the gun, and discovered that the hammers had disengaged in the sears, but were safely caught by the hammer catch. Even if the gun had been loaded, it wouldn't have fired.

Now I am not a Merkel fan, as the gun was clumsy and loved to rust even on dry days, so I sold the gun and haven't missed it a single moment. However, it was a gun from the eighties, the downfall of the communist era.

Other vintage german makers and also Husqvarna had a double safety in most of their boxlocks.

Fritz

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tinker
.416 member

Reged: 12/03/05
Posts: 4835
Loc: Nevada

Re: Boxlock safety mechanism - How good? [Re: Bramble]
#140994 - 22/08/09 09:24 PM

Bramble-

Quote:

...shagging the wife of a Sargent in the SAS, on a high wire, above the Grand Canyon, with a film crew present...

This definitely paints an entertaining picture!
Thanks for the image.

Cheers
Tinker

--------------------
--Self-Appointed Colonel, DRSS--

"It IS a dangerous game, and so named for a reason, and you can't play from the keyboard. " --Some Old Texan...

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450_366
.400 member

Reged: 17/01/07
Posts: 1068
Loc: Sweden, west-coast.

Re: Boxlock safety mechanism - How good? [Re: Bramble]
#140996 - 22/08/09 09:41 PM

Quote:

Trusting your life to the safety on a boxlock i.e. Guarenteeing that the sears will not trip, would rate with shagging the wife of a Sargent in the SAS, on a high wire, above the Grand Canyon, with a film crew present.

They are not, except for a very few exceptions hammer blocking, just trigger blocking.

Regards

They promised they wouldnt show the film to anyone.

--------------------
Andreas

"Yeas it kicks like a mule he said, but always remember that its much worse standing on the other end"

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DUGABOY1
.400 member

Reged: 02/02/03
Posts: 1340
Loc: TEXAS USA

Re: Boxlock safety mechanism - How good? [Re: hansol]
#141061 - 24/08/09 10:22 AM

Quote:

Hey guys,

Just wondering if I can get some info on how reliable/bombproof the safety is on a boxlock action. And yes, I know the whole "never trust a safety" and watch muzzle direction and what not, so no worries there. I'm just curious how is stands in relations to other actions.

For example, I would say the wing safety on a mauser setup is pretty much infallable, vs. a savage bolt action where (with a bit of tweaking of course), I can get the firing pin to drop with a vigorous shake of the rifle. The crossbolt safety on lever guns I would also say is bombproof too. So just curious where the boxlock fits in.

Takeing into account what you say you already know, then IMO you are aware that the only safety that is 100% reliable, no matter the action type is an unloaded rifle!

The one that comes closest to that condition when loaded is the Krieghoff double rifle. It completely relieves the striker springs making the rifle perfectly safe to carry fully loaded, as long as you say you point the rifle at only things you intend shooting! The Blaser is safe to carry loaded, but is unsafe in ways that have everything to do with the way the Blaser works being intirely different from the Krieghoff. However that is a subject for a different debate!

--------------------
..........Mac >>>===(x)===>
DUGABOY1, and MacD37 founding member of DRSS www.doublerifleshooterssociety.com
"If I die today, I have had a life well spent, for I've been to see the Elephant, and smelled the smoke of Africa!"

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JPK
.375 member

Reged: 31/08/04
Posts: 734
Loc: Chevy Chase, MD

Re: Boxlock safety mechanism - How good? [Re: hansol]
#141065 - 24/08/09 01:55 PM

For almost a century, box lock makers have been installing intercepting safetey sears on their better grade box locks.

An intercepting seafety sear, also know simply as safetly sears or secondary sears, prevent the hammer from falling and striking the firing pins unless tha appropriate trigger has been pulled.

Most sidelock shotguns and rifles have intercepting safety sears.

You can determine if a box lock has them by looking to see if there is a screw toward the bottom of the fence or ball of the action.

See phots at Hollowell's web site: http://www.hallowellco.com/abbrevia.htm

JPK

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DUGABOY1
.400 member

Reged: 02/02/03
Posts: 1340
Loc: TEXAS USA

Re: Boxlock safety mechanism - How good? [Re: JPK]
#141100 - 25/08/09 10:43 AM

Here is a picture of the intercepting sear of a side lock!

--------------------
..........Mac >>>===(x)===>
DUGABOY1, and MacD37 founding member of DRSS www.doublerifleshooterssociety.com
"If I die today, I have had a life well spent, for I've been to see the Elephant, and smelled the smoke of Africa!"

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