Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

[Duke W.]

It's the "trigger plate" (housing) for an old Smith and Wesson 916-A 12 ga. shotgun. A few years ago I was disassembling it for cleaning and the bolt that holds the stock to the trigger housing was seized, and when it finally broke loose it was the die cast trigger housing that broke.

I've searched periodically for a replacement, but no luck; gunpartscorp.com lists part numbers for both the bare housing and complete assembly, but they say none are available and the only chance is if they get hold of used or NOS, so at this point it's probably a long shot, and I've replaced it with a more modern piece.

I like the traditional look - wood stock and pump grip, and I'd like to put it back together for "display only", so I want to repair the trigger housing so I can at least lightly fasten the stock back on and hang it on the wall above my fireplace. I will also disable it by removing the firing pin and disabling the pump action as it would be unsafe to fire.

The only thing I can think of is Superglue, but do any of you guys have any suggestions or experience repairing broken "pot metal" die castings.

Duke

[Bob W.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Duke , I have had good luck with Permatex's Cold Weld as it can be drilled and machined.

Bob

[Harry S.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

JB Weld slow set will hold the best. It doesn't care if it's metal, plastic or pottery. If it can grab it will set and hold. It can be sanded and painted when done. I used it yesterday to reattach a stud on the motor in my Krups 889 coffee machine. Like iron now.

[Joe L.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

It's the "trigger plate" (housing) for an old Winchester 916A 12 ga. shotgun. A few years ago I was disassembling it for cleaning and the bolt that holds the stock to the trigger housing was seized, and when it finally broke loose it was the die cast trigger housing that broke.

I've searched periodically for a replacement, but no luck; gunpartscorp.com lists part numbers for both the bare housing and complete assembly, but they say none are available and the only chance is if they get hold of used or NOS, so at this point it's probably a long shot, and I've replaced it with a more modern piece.

I like the traditional look - wood stock and pump arm, and I'd like to put it back together for "display only", so I want to repair the trigger housing so I can at least lightly fasten the stock back on and hang it on the wall above my fireplace. I will also disable it by removing the firing pin and disabling the pump action as it would be unsafe to fire.

The only thing I can think of is Superglue, but do any of you guys have any suggestions or experience repairing broken "pot metal" die castings.

Duke

Duke-----

Another repair option would be the low temperature welding rod available from the Cecil Muggy Company. This can be used with a propane torch and works well on zinc die castings. It might even make a strong enough repair to put the gun back in service.

[Patrick H.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Duke,

You want to double check that model number?

Neither I nor Google nor my firearm sites show a 916A made by Winchester.

[Ed H.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Smith & Wesson, not Winchester.

https://www.gunpartscorp.com/gun-manufacturer/smith-wesson/shotguns-sw/916-a

Good luck!

[Duke W.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Yup, I had a senior moment. It's a Smith & Wesson 916-A, sometimes written 916A. I corrected my original post.

Duke

[Mike M.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

duke: i've had very good results with the following product: Kimball Midwest's Ultra Bond. its a 2 part system, the first being a powder(ultra bond fusion powder), the other being Ultra bond fusion adhesive. the later smells like methylacrelate(super glue). i've drilled and tapped the resultant product when these two items are mixed with good results. regards, mike

[Ed H.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Did you check with Numrich to see if they had the part?

[Patrick H.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Did you check with Numrich to see if they had the part?

They also go by gunpartscorp.com as mentioned in his first post.

Check on gunbroker.com for parts. I see at least two actions.
However, the S&W 916 is not worth much on a good day, so I doubt I would spend much time on it, and I would not buy any parts that cost much money.
I've used Devcon 10110 with good results.

[Gary R.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Not that it helps or even matters but I grew up in New Haven and Winchesters was still in business up until about 10 years ago. They had a huge operation with many mills, firing ranges, and factories. I was told they employed 19k people during WWII, down to under 200 when they closed. Now they're long gone, many of the buildings are converted to smaller business operations but there is still a huge vacant factory and I wonder if there are any old parts sitting on shelves?

[Joe L.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Not that it helps or even matters but I grew up in New Haven and Winchesters was still in business up until about 10 years ago. They had a huge operation with many mills, firing ranges, and factories. I was told they employed 19k people during WWII, down to under 200 when they closed. Now they're long gone, many of the buildings are converted to smaller business operations but there is still a huge vacant factory and I wonder if there are any old parts sitting on shelves?

Gary------


As far as I know, Winchester is still in business. I wonder where they make their products now? Anyone know?

[Leif A.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Gary------


As far as I know, Winchester is still in business. I wonder where they make their products now? Anyone know?

From Wikipedia:

"On August 15, 2006, Olin Corporation, owner of the Winchester trademarks, announced that it had entered into a new license agreement with Browning^[9] to make Winchester brand rifles and shotguns, though not at the closed Winchester plant in New Haven. The production of Model 1885falling block action, Model 1892 and Model 1886lever action rifles are produced under licensed agreement by Miroku Corp. of Japan and imported back to the United States by Browning.^[10]In 2008, Fabrique Nationale announced that it would produce Model 70 rifles at its plant in Columbia, South Carolina. In 2013, assembly was moved to Portugal^[11]
In the summer of 2010, Fabrique Nationale d'Herstal (FN) resumed production of the Winchester model 1894 and the evolution of the Winchester 1300, now called the Winchester SXP.^[12][13]
A number of gun cleaning kits, Chinese folding knives,^[14] tools, and other accessories are also now sold under the Winchester trademark.^[15]"

[John D.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Try PC-7 epoxy. Not the marine one. Two part epoxy that hardens like steel. Takes a long time to set up. Use a heat gun (not a hair dryer) when mixing it.
If you are repairing aluminum mix in some aluminum dust with it. When I resurface a long list of machined castings on the old Fi's I saw the dust for just this purpose. John

[Duke W.]

Re: Suggestions on repairing a broken die casting...

Thanks for all the suggestions, guys. I'll do some Web research on them and, hopefully, pick something up on my next Home Depot trip.

Joe - even if I thought the repair was near "good as new" I would be reluctant to ever fire again. This model has a poor reputation and, the trigger housing is a known weakness, but it will look great mounted above my fireplace,

In the meantime, my Mossberg 590 Tactical is at the ready if ever needed.

Duke