[littlejoe872]

Went clay shooting on a friend's property with a few buddies and our boys. Only thing I had to bring was my old Winchester 1897 12 Guage I got from my father-in-law many years ago. Not only did the old Winchester do much better than I expected, but after a shaky start, my son was shooting pretty well by the time we had shot up all the clays. He was hitting about 50% by the time we were done. So, I happened into a gun shop in my new hometown in Arkansas, and the owner had a very nice Winchester 1200 12 Guage, with a 28" choked barrel, wood furniture, and nice bluing. He wants $325.00 for it. I didn't walk out with it because he was 10 minutes from closing, and his card reader was down, and the atm was far enough away that it wouldn't be practical to get cash, and get back to the shop. I am going to go back in the morning, with cash, and then I'll have an adequate bird gun next time we go clay shooting. Any info/opinions on the 1200 would be greatly appreciated.

 

[neophyte]

littlejoe872: Sir; sounds like a wonderful day
Do follow up with the “Winchester”
And experiences

 

[mauser9]

Sounds like a fun day. Matter of fact tried my Winchester 1300 which is similar last week for trap but did not do too well. Screw in chokes with mine and had a full choke tube that day. Been a pretty decent gun so far but not a ton of mileage on it. Back to the Rem.1100 next Sunday for trap anyway.

 

[jerry]

Sounds like a fun day. Matter of fact tried my Winchester 1300 which is similar last week for trap but did not do too well. Screw in chokes with mine and had a full choke tube that day. Been a pretty decent gun so far but not a ton of mileage on it. Back to the Rem.1100 next Sunday for trap anyway.

I’ve always wanted a 1300. Speed pump!


Sent from my iPhone using Gun and Game mobile app

 

[chesterwin]

Looks like you guys had a great time. I'd love to see some good pictures of that 1897. Be cautious about the "slam fire" feature. Enjoy the 1200 and take good care of that 1897.

 

[runfiverun]

you can buy a brand new wood stocked 1300 for around 300 bucks if you look even sort of hard.
[I have put about 3,000 rounds through the one I bought the wife about 3 years back, and it still looks like new]

now there are model 12's, model 120's and model 1200's.
the key is knowing which is which.

a model 12 weighs about 36 lbs unloaded and is probably worth the 325 if in decent shootable shape.

a 120 or 1200 not so much.
nothing wrong with them [god knows how many miles and rounds I have put on and through a 1200] they just ain't 325$ guns.
but they will shoot steel shot, whereas the 12 won't.
find him a brand new 1300..

 

[shanebrews]

My Father had somehow come to have great-grandpa's Winchester 1897. I don't remember him shooting it more than a handful of times and he certainly never put it in my hands. It was a safe queen. He swapped it for something else a few years ago.

And the first pump I ever had was a 1300 'Ranger'. It was a good shotgun. I hunted with it several seasons and dabbled in shooting clays. I don't recall why I parted with it.

 

[mauser9]

you can buy a brand new wood stocked 1300 for around 300 bucks if you look even sort of hard.
[I have put about 3,000 rounds through the one I bought the wife about 3 years back, and it still looks like new]

now there are model 12's, model 120's and model 1200's.
the key is knowing which is which.

a model 12 weighs about 36 lbs unloaded and is probably worth the 325 if in decent shootable shape.

a 120 or 1200 not so much.
nothing wrong with them [god knows how many miles and rounds I have put on and through a 1200] they just ain't 325$ guns.
but they will shoot steel shot, whereas the 12 won't.
find him a brand new 1300..

Glad your 1300 has held up through so many rounds. Bought mine back in 99. It is an Upland version with a 24 inch barrel. Nice walnut on it and lightweight but the trigger not nearly as crisp as my 1100. Added the deer smoothbore barrel for Fosters which is a plus. Might do a trade-in if I find a wlanut 11-87 in 20 gauge.

 

[SUBMOA]

LittleJoe872 , From your post, I don't know the age of your son , but be advised that Arkansas game and fish state sponsors a youth trap program. It is usually run through the schools but I have seen others sponsoring it as well . It might be something that your son may be interested in. There is usually parents assisting as well. You may wish to check that out.

 

[littlejoe872]

He's 13 now. He'll be 14 in March. We'll have to check out with his school. He may be interested, and if so, I'd gladly help out.

 

[littlejoe872]

Here's pics of the 1897. It's pretty much in the condition I received it in, with the exception of having the barrel crowned. At some point in the life of this gun, it was shortened from a 28" choked barrel to this. It's pretty much just a scatter gun now. I only shoot #8 bird shot out of it. I'm aware of the slam-fire feature of these guns. I've never tried it because it is so old, I'm afraid it will break something. Looked up the serial number, and believe it was made in 1905.

 

[ChaZam]

I'm with runfiverun on the $325 price tag on a used model 1200 probably being too high based on what I see locally. Decent guns for sure and the Winchester 1200's, 1300's, and 1400's fit me pretty good so consequently I shoot them better than some other brands.
Glad you all got to bust a few clays...

 

[chesterwin]

Here's pics of the 1897. It's pretty much in the condition I received it in, with the exception of having the barrel crowned. At some point in the life of this gun, it was shortened from a 28" choked barrel to this. It's pretty much just a scatter gun now. I only shoot #8 bird shot out of it. I'm aware of the slam-fire feature of these guns. I've never tried it because it is so old, I'm afraid it will break something. Looked up the serial number, and believe it was made in 1905.

Keep an eye on ebay if you want to get a new front end for that beauty. They don't have a 12 at the moment, but here's a 16. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Winchester...650512?hash=item23dacbe390:g:YewAAOSwEM1fAOMa

 

[runfiverun]

the new 1300 is a pretty close copy of the old 1300.
I think you could even swap some parts around if you changed out sets of components.

my old black shadow 1300 from the early 90's is chugging along like a champ.
the choke has been stuck in there for well over 20 years and it throws a kind of Egg shaped pattern from when I tried to remove it.
I'm on my second butt stock too.
no matter... LOL.

I still haul it around dove and grouse hunting, and it see's time down at the trap range on a frequent enough basis most everyone there knows it's mine when they see it on the rack.
nobody makes any more comments about it being sort of painted with a green blotchy appearance from it's time out in the salt marshes.
I hesitate to even venture a guess at the number of times it has been fired,, 50+K wouldn't be over estimating, and 70 or so would be closer to the truth.

 

[maddogg]

you can buy a brand new wood stocked 1300 for around 300 bucks if you look even sort of hard.
[I have put about 3,000 rounds through the one I bought the wife about 3 years back, and it still looks like new]

now there are model 12's, model 120's and model 1200's.
the key is knowing which is which.

a model 12 weighs about 36 lbs unloaded and is probably worth the 325 if in decent shootable shape.

a 120 or 1200 not so much.
nothing wrong with them [god knows how many miles and rounds I have put on and through a 1200] they just ain't 325$ guns.
but they will shoot steel shot, whereas the 12 won't.
find him a brand new 1300..

Wow- How shells does that gun hold?

 

[runfiverun]

well you gotta get a little creative..

 

[don5544]

I went to a sporting clays match once with my at the time 14yo son. All i had for myself was a pump 12ga shotgun and a 20 ga double for my son.

The little #@$%$$# out shot me. He had never fired a shotgun before. He did have about 5 little old men giving him tips on how to beat me.

We had a GREAT father son day. We both went home smiling.

 

[Dutch]

Old shotguns didn't hold their value well. My guess is it's because of the lead ban when hunting waterfowl. Plus the thread-in chokes on modern stuff. I have a few old Ithacas I bought when I was a kid and the prices on them are depressing.

I strongly recommend something with thread in chokes and a steel safe barrel. I use a modern 20 gauge with replaceable chokes when I hunt bird or clay. A Mossberg SA-20 can be purchased NIB for under $500 out the door and is a fine shotgun for the casual sportsman.

 

[maddogg]

well you gotta get a little creative..

Does holding your junk help with trigger control or is it a new ''CLAP'' man stance?

 

[runfiverun]

it does double [plus] duty.
first off it insures you keep the gun sideways through simple ergonomics.
secondly it keeps your pants up [nothing worse than having your pants fall down during a gun fight]
plus as a bonus holding your junk protects it from incoming rounds.