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Winchester 97 16 gauge with 20" barrel value
kenpuck
Member Posts: 4 ✭✭
Can't seem to find a value for my Winchester 16 gauge, model 97 with a 20" barrel. Riot gun? Was if sawed off or made that way.. Made in 1910. Good condition. Someone wants to buy for $350. Thanks
Comments
Winchester to the very best of my knowledge never made a 16 gauge Model 1897 with a 20-inch "Riot Gun" barrel. So... the chances are better than 99.9% that it has been cut down. One way to confirm if the barrel has been cut down is to look at the choke marking (on the left rear side of the barrel near the take down extenstion ring). If it is marked "FULL" or "MOD", it has definitely been cut down. If it is marked "CYL", then it is remotely possible that it might be factory original.
On a side note, if the gun was manufactured in 1910, it should be marked "MODEL 1897" on the slide bar. If the serial number is <380,000, it can be researched (lettered) through the Cody Firearms Museum. Please be advised that if you used the Blue Book, or any of the online internet websites to come up with the 1910 DOM, you most likely do not have the correct date of manufacture.
WACA Historian & Life Member
I also have one . I'd say sell it. Mine had it's barrel cut down to 20". It was a full choke , long barrel before the conversion. You have a great " cowboy " gun there. NOTE: it shoots the old style
2 9/16" shells.
Ken,
I also have one . I'd say sell it. Mine had it's barrel cut down to 20". It was a full choke , long barrel before the conversion. You have a great " cowboy " gun there. NOTE: it shoots the old style
2 9/16" shells.
Very good NOTE: [^]
The Model 1897/97 16 gauge guns were chambered for the shorter 2-9/16" shell up through 1931.
WACA Historian & Life Member
Thanks for the input. serial #4389xx. It does say model 97 not 1897. Value? thanks
Something is very wrong with the gun if the slide bar is marked "MODEL 97".
Do both serial numbers on the gun match?
Winchester did not change the Model designation stamp from "1897" to "97" until circa serial number 715,000 (approximately 10-years later than when your gun was made).
The first picture is the roll marked stamp on the slide bar of Model 1897 serial number 704769.
This second picture shows how both serial numbers should look & appear on your gun.
WACA Historian & Life Member
So sorry you are right, I have a 1897 12 ga with serial 438xx and my Model 97 is 8749xx. When I wrote them down I crossed the numbers. So now that you know Bert what do you think the value is?
So, if I understand it correctly, you have an early vintage 16 gauge Model 1897 with a cut down barrel?
It is no longer a "collectable" Winchester due to the cut barrel. It is not much of a "shooter" for the same reason, and the fact that it is chambered for hard to find 2-9/16" shells. So, my guess is that it is worth somewhere in the $300 range (+/- $50).
WACA Historian & Life Member