Guys I know I share some stories from time to time. If I get to long winded I apologize but this one is interesting and about safety. This is probably in the wrong forum so feel free to move it if necessary.
A couple of years ago a friend and his family went marsh hen hunting just off of Wadmalaw Island. The son was doing the shooting at the time with a Remington 887 pump. It was the polymer covered all weather pump Remington introduced several years ago. They were getting ready to run to another spot so the boy tried to unload the shotgun. Somehow a live shell got stuck in the chamber. When he tried to pump the gun to remove the shell the pump would not budge. He decided then to try to remove the barrel which he did easily. On the 887 the bolt remains with the barrel when the barrel is removed. He laid the receiver down on the seat and as he did the barrel slipped from his hand, fell, and hit the gunnel of the boat. When it hit the gunnel it fired the whole load of number 6 shot into the guys upper thigh making a quarter sized hole. The pellets hit and broke his femur. Luckily his dad was a rescue swimmer in the Navy and was able to stay calm, apply a tourniquet, call 911, and get his son to the ambulance waiting at the boat landing. Luckily the boy survived though he has severe nerve damage in that leg now. He also has approximately 185 number 6 pellets still in that thigh. He was very lucky.
Of course law enforcement was quite confused by the story and got Remington involved. They just couldn't believe the accident happened the way they said it did. With Remingtons help they finally determined that the accident did indeed happen the way they were told. Because the bolt stayed with the barrel and basically locked in, any blow to the firing pin would fire the round in the chamber. That is what happened when the barrel was dropped and the rear of the bolt struck the gunnel. I'm not sure if Remington took steps to prevent this from happening again or not. I just thought you guys might find the story interesting. Particularly if you happen to own an 887.
A couple of years ago a friend and his family went marsh hen hunting just off of Wadmalaw Island. The son was doing the shooting at the time with a Remington 887 pump. It was the polymer covered all weather pump Remington introduced several years ago. They were getting ready to run to another spot so the boy tried to unload the shotgun. Somehow a live shell got stuck in the chamber. When he tried to pump the gun to remove the shell the pump would not budge. He decided then to try to remove the barrel which he did easily. On the 887 the bolt remains with the barrel when the barrel is removed. He laid the receiver down on the seat and as he did the barrel slipped from his hand, fell, and hit the gunnel of the boat. When it hit the gunnel it fired the whole load of number 6 shot into the guys upper thigh making a quarter sized hole. The pellets hit and broke his femur. Luckily his dad was a rescue swimmer in the Navy and was able to stay calm, apply a tourniquet, call 911, and get his son to the ambulance waiting at the boat landing. Luckily the boy survived though he has severe nerve damage in that leg now. He also has approximately 185 number 6 pellets still in that thigh. He was very lucky.
Of course law enforcement was quite confused by the story and got Remington involved. They just couldn't believe the accident happened the way they said it did. With Remingtons help they finally determined that the accident did indeed happen the way they were told. Because the bolt stayed with the barrel and basically locked in, any blow to the firing pin would fire the round in the chamber. That is what happened when the barrel was dropped and the rear of the bolt struck the gunnel. I'm not sure if Remington took steps to prevent this from happening again or not. I just thought you guys might find the story interesting. Particularly if you happen to own an 887.
