Fox Collectors

I just noticed that one of my ejector guide rods on my 12 gauge AE is broken. Of course, the broken part is stuck in the barrel. What does repairing this involve? How necessary is it to fix this? I was shooting it this last weekend and did not have any problems.
Thanks,
Jeff

Hi Jeff,

I've had this same thing happen to me on three different Foxes, and the most important thing is to get the broken pin out as soon as possible. I've done this several ways, and have been lucky enough to get it out each time. The first time I took a small but high powered magnet and drew the pin out. The second time I used an air compressor to blow air in the hole, and it backed the pin right out. My suggestion would be to get the pin out ASAP, then stop shooting the gun until it can be fixed. Once the pin is out, its a relatively easy repair for a Gunsmith. A new pin can be made (just make sure the Gunsmith doesn't make it too short), and i believe it's just silver soldered in place. Dan Rossiter at Custom Stocks and Steel did my last one. Closing the gun without the support of that rod puts stress on the rest of the ejector, and could lead to more breaking than just the pin.

Mike

Mike,
Thanks for your response. I talked to my local guy and he has a TIG welder - would this work as well as silver solder?
Jeff

Hi Jeff,

On the 20ga fox that Dan fixed for me, the ejector pin had come through the face of the ejector, probably due to someone drilling out the pin through the face in the past. I didn't notice this and closed the gun, bending the pin against the top of the breach. The drilling had left very little metal on the side of the ejector, and Dan micro tig welded a new pin in place, and built up the side of the ejector. You can find 12ga ejector parts, but not 20ga, so Dan really came through. On this one I think silver soldering was how it was done originally, but if you have someone who really knows what they are doing with a tig welder, it should probably be stronger in the end that soldering.

M.