georef

Just providing an update in case anyone encounters this issue. A little weld on the shell top lip circled above has solved the issue. Adding some height and gently filing the edges into shape and shes back 100%.

Hey Jim, thanks for the reply. The ammo in the picture above is actually just a 12ga snap cap I was using to show the position. The gun has jammed on 2 or 3 common 12ga trap loads. Since I have 2 slides now that both seem to malfunction. I am thinking I might weld (aka a friend who is handy with a welder ) up the little catch on one of them and add a few mm, keeping the shape and angle as much as possible. I assume that these guns weren't always this finicky, and that its just a case of probably more than one worn out part.

Good evening all, I'm trying to get my great grandfathers Westernfield 36 (Stevens 520) back into action and fully functional. It was passed down to me recently and has largely sat under a bed for what I would guess at least the last 40-50 years. Doing some googling leads me to believe it was manufactured in 38-39 (https://www.gunvaluesboard.com/stevens-520-and-520a-identification-guide-2617.html) After a thorough once over and cleaning (im talking pins and springs, this thing was gunky!) there is nearly no rust, and she is smooth as glass after nearly a century of use (im told many Michigan white-tail and pheasant met their end to this old girl). Forgive my poor cell phone pictures My problems started at the first trip out to the range. When going to rack the slide, ive noticed that the next shell has skipped over the shell stop and jammed the action, this is entirely from the recoil, not racking the slide: The normal shell position for proper feeding function is this(I assume): In taking things apart, my first thought was that the slide (https://www.gunpartscorp.com/products/1032990A) was worn down, allowing the shell to skip over the "shell stop". I ordered a new slide from numrich, and sure enough the new piece looked far less worn on the front end: (new part is on the bottom, notice the harder angle at the end of the little shell catch ramp) Thinking I had this thing figured out, I went back to the range today only to have the same issue. Once every 15-20 rounds the shell will skip over the little stop on the slide and jam things up. Im shooting #8 2 3/4 shot, nothing fancy, factory shells. While this is a cherished family heirloom, its always been a working shotgun, and I would like to take it out a few times a year hunting small game, maybe turkey, etc. But I dont want to if I cant count on a follow up shot. Any thoughts? I appreciate any insights you might have!