He listened to the advice and made the following modifications to his shotgun. You can read the previous article in The Saga of the Nigerian Shotgun series here. This is a guest post was written by Y-Man. ]

Guys, thanks for all your advice and encouragement, I went shooting again 20 DEC 2009, and I seem to have got my accuracy "mojo" back! It was obviously the sights or lack of causing this accuracy problem. I cannot discount also that different guns might respond to the same ammunition in different ways: especially smooth-bore 12-ga shotguns firing "smaller than bore-size home-made slugs. If you guys remember from previous posts: after my Turkish semi-auto shotgun "died" an unnatural death, I got me a sweet, solid Mossberg 500A, 18.5"Bbl, No choke, No vent rib, tactical heat-shield, 6+1, bead sight, PGO. It was almost new, had never been fired, but had been cleaned and oiled. As usual with me: I wasn’t satisfied with just the bead sight or the PGO, so I have been doing quite a lot of fabrication to get me some GOOD stuff done!

Sights

First, I did some shooting with the factory bead: POOR results even at 30 meters with my slugs. Then I removed the factory bead, and tested using an old Tri-Viz Turkey sight I had: accuracy was still POOR. Then I did something crazy (Temporary, but crazy!) I fastened a simple aluminum tube (From an old, discarded Flashlight) to the barrel: using two clips (The type used for rubber hoses.). I aligned it to the barrel by eye, and off to the range I went! I began getting hit after hit on 1' x 1' steel plate at 40 meters! A few NEAR misses, but if it had been a man-sized target: that would have been DRT!

Of course: the aluminum tube was just a field-expedient "poor man's scope": no reticules (Just center your target within the circle of the tube!) No magnification... But it gave me my confidence back! I also fired a few rounds from 100metres: of course: no hits! I just did it for the fun of it. The slugs going downrange had a lovely "wheeee!" sound to them...

I later improved further on my sights fabrication just today: I got a washer welded onto a hose-clip and welded a bit of steel bolt into the circle to create/ fabricate a "Y-Man Peep sight!" It’s getting better! I will test soon and let you guys know...

See photos of Y-Man peep sights: http://www.flickr.com/photos/44877118@N04/sets/72157623050200929/ A friend and colleague who just went back to Louisiana on Christmas vacation popped into the Bass Pro shop in Baton Rouge, and he has picked up a Bushnell Shotgun scope and a B-Square saddle mount for me...

I fixed the B-Square Shotgun rail mount/ saddle, and the Bushnell Banner Shotgun scope to my shotgun. Everything went on my Mossberg 500A Pump Action Shotgun fine.

But anyone with a sharp eye can see that the scope points UP, and is NOT aligned with the angle of the barrel. I thought nothing of it until I went testing.

I fired 20 slugs, some from as close as 20 feet: NOT A SINGLE HIT! All this on a 1 foot square target!

All the rounds were going below point of aim.

You can see the reason why here:

In addition to this: after a few shots: the B-Square mounting rings got loose. One of the clamps had thrown the thread before: and I had used a simple nut and bolt to hold it tight to the rail. That one held through all the firing. But the one that was factory: broke after 5 shots!

I went home disappointed!

I even gave up completely about the scope, and started doing my usual"out of the box" thinking to set up a "proper" ghost ring sight system for my shotgun.

Then I got some "crazy" ideas. (As usual!): I got rid of the mounting rings, drilled holes in the B-square mount, and used hose clips to hold the scope securely to the mount! I used a little bit of aluminum to raise the back part of the scope to align it properly by putting it between the scope and the rail before tightening.

The fitting is tight and strong. It looks and feels like it could take quite a pounding and not shift nor shake.

To be sure, before going to do any testing (Using up ammo) I did a "poor man’s bore-sighting" first... No laser available: so I used a strong flashlight that has a diameter of 18mm. I switched that on, slotted it into the muzzle: and sighted in with the scope. At different distances: the reticules of the scope centered perfectly on the projected circle of light!

I went testing and accuracy is GOOD! I got a wonderful cheek-weld, and was getting hit after hit on a target (about 11"x 8") placed about 70 yards distant: 70 YARDS! Video Number 3...

Stock

I have finally fabricated a good stock that works. Made originally out of Chrome-Vanadium quality steel rod, it is more of a skeleton stock: fastened at both the top of the pistol grip, and at the bottom of the grip. It works very well. I first padded the steel rod all along the length of it with thick felt, then covered it professionally with strong but soft goat-skin leather (A professional leather-worker did some tight, quality stitching of the leather all round. I also fixed a felt "recoil pad" and worked out a sling... It all works quite well...

Photos of Stock before and after padding

(See stock AFTER padding in the video above)

I have made some videos showing shooting tests that I did with these modifications for which I would appreciate your comments and opinions: both here and on Youtube. Also: there’s a video of my process of converting Birdshot into slugs, using basic tools. (The new key thing is that I have now created a mold out of a piece of barrel from an old shotgun. Since it is from a piece of shotgun barrel without chokes: it turns out a perfect 0.729" slug.)

Check photos here.

Cheers, and happy New Year; y’all!

If you have been reading the blog over the past year you will have seen the incredible ingenuity he has demonstrated in Nigeria, where there exist severe restrictions on guns and ammunition. His previous exploits include Turning Birdshot into Slugs for Self-Defense and Fabricating a Shotgun Stock. ]

I ended up just going back to the basics: and worked on the Pistol-grip. I did not know it was made of a thick plastic that could be drilled, sawed, filed and even melted in some parts to fit.

1. I simplified everything: I just drilled a through hole in the pistol-grip, and filed the edges.

1. Through-hole was about 5mm in diameter.

2. I then got a strong “Y” Bracket made: out of strong but springy steel. I had nuts welded to hold the stock.

1. See the fitting of the bracket to the pistol grip: aligned with the through hole.

1. I put a bolt through to hold bracket, and used spring- washers to hold it. Then fastened grip to Shotgun.

1. Screw Stock to nut onto Y bracket. Note the lower bolt is on nut welded to the regular bolt that comes with the shotgun: the one that fixes the pistol grip (Or stock) to the receiver. I put a bolt there so that the Y-Bracket rests on top, and using a Zip tie: stops the Y-bracket (And Stock) from swinging or flexing upwards.

2. “Perfect” fit. Stock fits. Will later need a reduction in LOP: it’s about 15” right now.

1. Y-man’s “Top folder” below (Just kidding: I definitely would NEVER fire it like this: I would get a mouthful of felt!)

Thanks, ALL of you who guided me there: I will update you when I do some firing this weekend.

Remember I did some modifications to my shotgun, and later to the ammunition I could get? Well, I have gone a few more steps further. I have made three more major (In some ways: crude but safe) modifications to my shotgun: based on what is available here in my country and what I can get.

Firstly, I was in an accident in the 1990s, and lost some muscle tissue from my right arm. This has healed over the years, but my arm is not as strong as it should be. This affects my charging of the semi-auto shotgun: so much so sometimes I am forced to charge with both hands awkwardly. I then thought of getting and fixing a charging handle extension: obviously not easily available in my country, and not easy/ sensible to take the shotgun out to a welder to fabricate something (You most likely would get the welder and his apprentices run shrieking out of the workshop when you pull out the shotgun from the carry-bag...!)

So, I got a grip from an adjustment tab of an office chair, made out of plastic, and "JB-Welded" it to the charging handle. See pictures after the jump. I got some concerns from a few friends: wondering if the plastic adjustment tab would stand much firing/ shooting.

Well, I did me some shooting: a total of 25 rounds of my slugs, and tab is FIRM and helping me so well. I can charge my shotgun much more easily now. Very ugly, but functional!

Secondly, I have been shooting my own "brand of slugs" for some time now, and recently got quite uncomfortable with the lack of good sights on my shotgun. I had been using the bead sight, and on a good day, could get 3" groups at 35yards using the open bead sight. On some bad days, I can barely hit a barrel at 25 yards! I KNOW it doesn’t have to do with the consistency or otherwise of the slugs themselves: they are regular, Foster-type slugs that I cast myself, but the problem is my own aim. I am just not getting it right. The alignment of the bead is just too much for me sometimes. Sometimes, my shots go over, and sometimes into the ground in front of target.

So, I decided to make (Fabricate) or get some proper "rifle-like" sights. A "firearm-enthusiast" friend traveled home to Louisiana on vacation last month, and I asked him to get me some sights. After checking and researching online, I settled for the Truglo Xtreme Turkey Combo from Pro Bass, which is right around the corner from my friend's place in Baton Rouge. I asked him to get 2 sets, which he did.

I then asked him, when he was on his way back, to make sure he removed the parts from their packaging, so that some beady-eyed Customs Officer would not start asking questions. Well, luckily, no one even looked twice at the packages at the airports.

I excitedly worked on fitting them to my shotgun, and discovered that while the rear sight fit perfectly, the front sight had some seatings; none of which actually fit my shotgun accurately. I still persevered, and fit them: rear-sight was okay, and finally front-sight seemed to seat well, bolted to the bead hole, and with a little glue and pliers-manipulation. It seemed firm and I had HIGH hopes.

I went out shooting at the range the other day, and while I was hitting my 12" x 12" target (Half-inch thick steel plates.) quite well (Most shots out of twenty went into a 10" x 10" circle at 38 yards.), the front sight began to jiggle loose. At the end of the day: it was sliding from side to side, while the rear ghost ring remained strong and firm. I got home, and in my usual way, started thinking of ways to get this thing sorted...

Finally: I took a look at the unused second set of sights, which I had initially kept as a spare... Then a brainwave hit me: why don't I fit the SECOND Ghost Ring Sight on the FRONT of the barrel: where the bead used to be?! Then that way you have two rings. Align the two circles (Rear and front) against your target when aiming and you have a good aiming picture! Look through the two rings to your target, and you are ON TARGET!

See pictures...

Finally, I got tired of looking for a place to store my shotgun safely: it came originally as a PGO (Pistol Grip Only.) then I initially did some modification by creating a "wire-type" stock. See link...

This increased the length of the shotgun to about 42": quite unwieldy and difficult to conceal sometimes. (Like when driving to the range: even though I have all my legal permits, it is better to avoid too many questions at the Police checkpoints.) I have long thought about getting or fabricating a collapsible stock, or a folding one. Well, like you know: it is completely impossible to get such a thing in Nigeria, so my "creative-mind" went to work.

I ended up with a stock that can be tightened onto the shotgun for shoulder-firing usage, or off for storage: leaving a much shorter shotgun in Pistol Grip only configuration. I know it takes "forever" to screw on the stock to use it or to screw off the stock to store it: crude and ugly but it works!

UPDATE:

Actually NOT on target! I went to the range to do a test with my “double Ghost-ring sights” and did absolutely the WORST shooting of my LIFE! The two ghost rings aligned okay, but obviously not correctly. At one point: I fired TWICE at a crow, using one of my “slugs” at less than 10 yards, and MISSED both times! ALL shots at my steel 12” x 12” target at 30 yards, and 50 yards MISSED EVERY TIME.

Then to close the day with the WORST news: the firing pin on my shotgun broke! Now my nice Turkish EFE shotgun was wrecked! I don’t think it has to do with my modifications: either to the gun or to the ammo: I really believe it has more to do with the quality of the parts of the gun. Would you believe that the firing pin assembly was of a brittle cast-iron metal and NOT steel!? The Plastic bits for the trigger assembly are weak, brittle PLASTIC!

Well, my EFE Magnum shotgun is useless now: it is not possible to repair it: by myself or a gunsmith (Archeologists discovered the fossils of the extinct Nigerian Gunsmith a few months back! ) The Shotgun makes a good club though: and when used right: a great hammer! (No ammo loaded, of course…) Just kidding!

At least: I have a “happy” ending to my story: I met the supplier of my Turkish Shotgun (A licensed firearms dealer…) and complained to him about how strange it was that my shotgun would spoil in less than one year, not with any really heavy shooting… He was more worried that I could tell the large number of clients I already have showing interest in buying from him: so we came up with a deal:

• I returned the EFE Magnum Shotgun to the dealer (He says he can get it repaired ... Good luck to him!)

• He brought me (At my choosing) a Mossberg 500A PGO 18.5” 7+1 Pump-action Shotgun. I like VERY MUCH! As soon as I travel/ have someone travelling: I will get me some tactical sights (Mossy’s already drilled and tapped!), a sling and a stock. I hope to try some shooting this weekend...

• I paid him a little something extra to cover his costs: About $200. (Y’all would be SHOCKED to know I paid about $1,000 for the Turkish Shotgun originally! You don’t know what you guys are enjoying in the US: buying firearms legitimately for as low as $100!

Phew! All’s well that ends well, I guess… I’m now the proud owner of a more reliable Mossberg 500A pump-action shotgun! I fabricated a “Y-Man” Steel target too! This is just perfect for plinking: you hear the slug ring loud and clear! Half-inch thick steel, a steel rod, a discarded car spring, and voila! It is fixed on a spring to reduce the impact of slugs hitting it, and to reduce/ eliminate the risk of ricochets. The steel plate is painted white: so the impact of slug-hits can be seen using Binoculars.

See below:

Turns out that the only guns you can own in his country are shotguns, and only if you have the money:

I am a firearms enthusiast in Nigeria which has a very strict Gun control law, but which licenses shotguns (Single, double-barrel, pump action and recently: semi-automatics) to responsible, respectable people (actually: who am I fooling: anyone with the money!)

Even paintball, airsoft and air guns are banned! This ban of course does not stop certain criminal organizations in the country stocking up on hardware.

The brand name his shotgun is “Magnum EFE”. I did some googling and could find nothing on the internet. Is is most likely a clone from Russia or Eastern Europe but even then google usually spits out something! UPDATE: Commenter Jarkko says it is from Turkey.

Emmanuel’s Magnum EFE 12 gauge semi-automatic

What I find fascinating is that the shotgun appears to come from the factory with a pistol grip and no stock, yet, has an etching of birds on the side. Is is tactical or hunting? Who knows.

Regardless, even for self-defense, a stock is preferable. Unforuntly unlike in the west Emmanuel cannot just wander into the nearest gun shop to buy an accessory.

Remember I told you I was looking for a stock to add to it? Well, in Nigeria, there are practically NO shops to buy anything related to firearms or the accessories. There’s NO where here I can buy a stock for my firearm. It’s that bad here…Obviously: this would also mean I can’t buy one abroad and bring back.

I think we sometimes forget how lucky we are!

Being a DIY nut he decided to fabricate a stock using a steel walking stick. These walking sticks are apparently all the rage with African chiefs (and wannabe chiefs). The result is a very cool looking wire-style stock.

Click to expand.

Emmanuel’s holding the shotgun. Click to expand

A very ingenious idea. He modeled the angle of the stock after the Benelli M1.

Click to expand.

Used a hot (Red hot!) piece of metal to melt a nice neat hole into the firearm’s pistol grip: positioning hole so the bracket welded on the rod would fit right against the hole through which one bolts the grip to the receiver.

The stock has been tested and work fine.

We read about African gunsmithing but this is the real deal. It just shows what a good job you can do at home if you don’t have a gunsmith on speed-dial Great job Emmanuel and thanks for the photos and information.

Click to expand the photos

The weapons being anything they can find and tactics being kidnapping civilians and attacking oil infrastructure. I have not read of any credible military victories. The “Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta’s” only claim to fame is managing to damage an oil platform 120km offshore.