Winchester Model 1887/1901

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Winchester Model 1887 shotgun
M1887 LH.JPG
Reproduction of a Model 1887
Type Shotgun
Place of originFlag of the United States (1877-1890).svg  United States
Service history
In service1887–present
Used byVarious Law enforcement agencies and Stagecoach companies
Production history
Designer John Browning
Designed1887
Manufacturer Winchester Repeating Arms Company
Produced1887–1899 [1]
1901–1920 (Model 1901) [1]
No. built64,855 (Model 1887); 13,500 (Model 1901) [1]
VariantsM1901
Specifications
Mass8 lbs. (3.6 kg)
Length39¼ in. (997 mm)
Barrel  length20 in. (508 mm), 30 in. (762 mm)

Caliber 12-gauge, 10-gauge
Action Lever-action
Feed system5+2 round tubular magazine
Sights front bead

The Winchester Model 1887 (Dellosso Shotgun) and Winchester Model 1901 are lever-action shotguns originally designed by famed American gun designer John Browning and produced by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The shotgun has become iconic for its use in the 1991 film Terminator 2: Judgment Day .

Contents

Overview

The Model 1887 was one of the first successful repeating shotguns. Its lever-action design was chosen at the behest of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company, best known at the time as manufacturers of lever-action rifles such as the Winchester Model 1873. Designer John Browning suggested that a pump-action would be much more appropriate for a repeating shotgun, but Winchester management's position was that, at the time, the company was known as a "lever-action firearm company", and felt that their new shotgun must also be a lever-action for reasons of brand recognition. Browning responded by designing a breech-loading, rolling block lever-action. To Winchester's credit, however, they later introduced a Browning designed pump-action shotgun known as the Model 1893 (an early production version of the model 1897), after the introduction of smokeless powder. [2]

Shotgun shells at the time used black powder as a propellant, and so the Model 1887 shotgun was designed and chambered for less powerful black powder shotshells. Both 10 and 12-gauge models were offered in the Model 1887; 12-gauge variants used a 2 5/8" shell, 10-gauge variants fired a 2 7/8" shell. [2]

The standard barrel length was 30" with 32" available as a special order. In 1888 a 20" barrelled version could be ordered and Winchester offered the shotguns with Damascus barrels. [2]

Model 1901

By 1900 it was soon realized that the action on the M1887 was not strong enough to handle early smokeless powder shotshells, and so a redesign resulted in the stronger Winchester Model 1901, 10-gauge only, to handle the advent of the more powerful smokeless powder. A 12-gauge chambering was not offered, as Winchester did not want the Model 1901 to compete with their successful 12-gauge Model 1897 pump-action shotgun. Other distinguishing characteristics of the Model 1901 are:

Although a technically sound gun design, the market for lever-action shotguns waned considerably, as John Browning had predicted, after the introduction of the Winchester 1897 and other contemporary pump-action shotguns. Model 1887 production totaled 64,855 units between 1887 and 1901. Between 1901 and 1920, an additional 13,500 Model 1901 shotguns were manufactured before the Model 1887/1901 product line was discontinued. [4] [3]

Reproduction

Top: The complete version of the Winchester M1887. Bottom: The sawed one used in Terminator 2: Judgment Day Winchester M1887 Mares Leg.png
Top: The complete version of the Winchester M1887. Bottom: The sawed one used in Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Over the years, a number of gun companies tried to produce Model 1887/1901 shotguns that could chamber modern, smokeless shotgun shells—largely for the cowboy action shooting discipline—but with little commercial success. Recently however, three firearm companies have successfully produced viable models for the commercial firearms market:

In some countries, gun laws restrict ownership of pump shotguns but are more permissive of ownership of lever-action shotguns.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shotgun</span> Firearm intended for firing a junta of small to medium sized pellets

A shotgun is a long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge known as a shotshell, which usually discharges numerous small pellet-like spherical sub-projectiles called shot, or sometimes a single solid projectile called a slug. Shotguns are most commonly smoothbore firearms, meaning that their gun barrels have no rifling on the inner wall, but rifled barrels for shooting slugs are also available.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Single-shot</span> Firearm that holds one round of ammunition

In firearm designs, the term single-shot refers to guns that can hold only a single round of ammunition inside and thus must be reloaded manually after every shot. Compared to multi-shot repeating firearms ("repeaters"), single-shot designs have no moving parts other than the trigger, hammer/firing pin or frizzen, and therefore do not need a sizable receiver behind the barrel to accommodate a moving action, making them far less complex and more robust than revolvers or magazine/belt-fed firearms, but also with much slower rates of fire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Browning</span> American firearms designer (1855–1926)

John Moses Browning was an American firearm designer who developed many varieties of military and civilian firearms, cartridges, and gun mechanisms – many of which are still in use around the world. He made his first firearm at age 13 in his father's gun shop and was awarded the first of his 128 firearm patents on October 7, 1879, at the age of 24. He is regarded as one of the most successful firearms designers of the 19th and 20th centuries and pioneered the development of modern repeating, semi-automatic, and automatic firearms.

Winchester rifle is a comprehensive term describing a series of lever action repeating rifles manufactured by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. Developed from the 1860 Henry rifle, Winchester rifles were among the earliest repeaters. The Model 1873 was particularly successful, being marketed by the manufacturer as "The Gun That Won the West".

The Winchester Model 1897, also known as the Model 97, M97, or Trench Gun, is a pump-action shotgun with an external hammer and tube magazine manufactured by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. The Model 1897 was an evolution of the Winchester Model 1893 designed by John Browning. From 1897 until 1957, over one million of these shotguns were produced. The Model 1897 was offered in numerous barrel lengths and grades, chambered in 12 and 16 gauge, and as a solid frame or takedown. The 16-gauge guns had a standard barrel length of 28 inches, while 12-gauge guns were furnished with 30-inch length barrels. Special length barrels could be ordered in lengths as short as 20 inches, and as long as 36 inches. Since the time the Model 1897 was first manufactured it has been used by American soldiers, police departments, and hunters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rimfire ammunition</span> Type of ammunition common in low-caliber firearms

Rimfire ammunition is a type of firearm metallic cartridge whose primer is located within a hollow circumferential rim protruding from the base of its casing. When fired, the gun's firing pin will strike and crush the rim against the edge of the barrel breech, sparking the primer compound within the rim, and in turn ignite the propellant within the case. Invented in 1845, by Louis-Nicolas Flobert, the first rimfire metallic cartridge was the .22 BB Cap cartridge, which consisted of a percussion cap with a bullet attached to the top. While many other different cartridge priming methods have been tried since the 19th century, only rimfire and the later centerfire cartridges survive to the present day with regular usages. The .22 Long Rifle rimfire cartridge, introduced in 1887, is by far the most common ammunition in the world today in terms of units sold.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lever action</span> Type of firearm action

Lever-action is a type of action for repeating firearms that uses a manually operated cocking handle located around the trigger guard area that pivots forward to move the bolt via internal linkages, which will feed and extract cartridges into and out of the chamber, and cock the firing pin mechanism. This contrasts to other type of repeating actions such as the bolt-action, pump-action, semi-automatic, or automatic/selective-fire actions. A firearm using this operating mechanism is colloquially referred to as a levergun.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.45 Colt</span> Revolver cartridge designed by the U.S. Army

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Pump action or slide action is a repeating firearm action that is operated manually by moving a sliding handguard on the gun's forestock. When shooting, the sliding forend is pulled rearward to eject any expended cartridge and typically to cock the hammer/striker, and then pushed forward to load (chamber) a new cartridge into the chamber. Most pump-action firearms use an integral tubular magazine, although some do use detachable box magazines. Pump-action is typically associated with shotguns, although it has been used in rifles and other firearms as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.410 bore</span> Shotgun bore designed by Charles Eley and William Eley

The .410 calibre is one of the smallest caliber of shotgun shell commonly available. A .410 bore shotgun loaded with shot shells is well suited for small game hunting and pest control. The .410 started off in the UK as a garden gun along with the .360 and the No. 3 bore rimfire, No. 2 bore rimfire, and No. 1 bore rimfire. .410 shells have similar base dimensions to the .45 Colt cartridge, allowing many single-shot firearms, as well as some derringers and revolvers chambered in that caliber, to fire .410 shot shells without any modifications.

The Winchester Repeating Arms Company was a prominent American manufacturer of repeating firearms and ammunition. The firm was established in 1866 by Oliver Winchester and was located in New Haven, Connecticut. The firm went into receivership in 1931 and was bought by the Western Cartridge Company, a forerunner of the Olin Corporation. The Winchester brand name is still owned by the Olin Corporation, which makes ammunition under that name. The Winchester name is also used under license for firearms produced by two subsidiaries of the Herstal Group – FN Herstal of Belgium and the Browning Arms Company of Ogden, Utah.

Marlin Firearms Co. is an American manufacturer of semi-automatic, lever-action, and bolt-action rifles. In the past, the company, now based in Madison, North Carolina, and formerly based in North Haven, Connecticut, made shotguns, derringers, and revolvers. Marlin owned the firearm manufacturer H&R Firearms. In 2007, Remington Arms, part of the Remington Outdoor Company, acquired Marlin Firearms. Remington produced Marlin-brand firearms at its Kentucky and New York manufacturing facilities. In 2020, Sturm, Ruger & Co. bought the company from bankrupt Remington Outdoor Company.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winchester Model 1892</span> Lever-action centerfire rifle

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antique firearms</span> Firearms older than 20th century

An antique firearm is a term to describe a firearm that was designed and manufactured prior to the beginning of the 20th century. Although the exact definition of what constitutes an "antique firearm" varies between countries, the advent of smokeless powder or the start of the Boer War are often used as cut-off dates. Antique firearms are usually collected because of their historical interest and/or their monetary value.

The Winchester Model 1886 was a lever-action repeating rifle designed by John Browning to handle some of the more powerful cartridges of the period. Originally chambered in .45-70, .45-90 WCF, and .40-82 WCF, it was later offered in a half dozen other large cartridges, including the .50-110 Winchester. Despite being originally designed for use with black powder, the action was strong enough to make the jump to smokeless powder with only minor modifications, and was subsequently chambered in the smokeless .33 WCF cartridge beginning in 1903.

Chiappa Firearms, Armi Sport di Chiappa, is an Italian firearms manufacturing company based in Brescia. It was founded in 1958 by Ezechiele Chiappa as Armi Sport. Total unit production is around 60,000 per year. Its U.S. headquarters are in Dayton, Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chiappa Triple Crown</span> Italian triple-barrel shotgun

The Chiappa Triple Crown is a family of Italian made triple-barrel, break-action shotguns, chambered in 12-gauge, 20-gauge, 28-gauge, and .410-bore. The barrels have a triangular arrangement with one on top and two below. This gives the Triple Crown a single barrel sight picture.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Kirkland, K. D. (2007). America's Premier Gunmakers : Winchester. East Bridgewater, MA: World Publications Group JG Press. p. 64. ISBN   1-57215-104-8. OCLC   220935084.
  2. 1 2 3 Shideler, Dan (7 August 2011). "Winchester 1887". Gun Digest 2012. Iola, Wisconsin: Gun Digest Books. pp. 167–173. ISBN   1-4402-1447-6.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Adler, Dennis (10 November 2015). Winchester Shotguns. New York: Skyhorse Publishing. pp. 88–90. ISBN   978-1-5107-0924-9.
  4. Flayderman, Norm (17 December 2007). Flayderman's Guide to Antique American Firearms and Their Values. Iola, Wisconsin: F+W Media, Inc. pp. 321–322. ISBN   0-89689-455-X.
  5. 1 2 Sadowski, Robert A. (27 October 2015). Gun Trader's Guide to Shotguns: A Comprehensive, Fully Illustrated Reference for Modern Shotguns with Current Market Values. Skyhorse Publishing. pp. 47–48. ISBN   978-1-63450-965-7.

Bibliography