I have what I think is a really nice rod bayonet Trapdoor rifle. Exterior is great, wood is great with clear cartouches. Still some case color on the tang and under the breachblock.
Bore is shiny and sharp.
But....there is an area of pitting in the chamber, about the last 3/4" before the rifling, maybe just into the throat??? Very hard to see in there. There is no damage on the outside of the barrel.
I shot it once with very mild cast handloads, and it shot well, but it leaves quite a bit of damage on the brass. I am still able to extract the brass normally, but it's not optimal.
My camera isn't good enough to get a good pic inside that chamber area.
Here's my dilemma.
1. Retire the old girl from the range.
2. Shoot it the way it is, and accept that the brass won't last as long as it probably could. I use only light cast loads, probably won't be shot more than 50r per year. Biggest worry is damage to the rifle.
3. Have the barrel relined. Fixes the bore problem, but is it too nice a rifle to mess with???

Could really use another set of eyes on this, I appreciate your help.

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