I know a little bit about the Linda's as I have 2) of them. They are the best shooting handgun I have ever shot. Yes they are big & bulky & even kinda ugly. Definitely an "assault" type look. I love shooting either of mine in the company of gunners who don't care for the looks of them. I have Aimpoint 3000's on both & they both shoot the same. Excellent !
You'd have to shoot with me to even believe them.
I have a load with cast bullets (125 conical) that is unreal.
With the Aimpoints, it will shoot the black out of a target @ 25 yds.
Bowling pins,3" steel @ 100 yds and most anything in between with zero hold-over.
I attribute most of it to the 8 5/16" barrel and the fact that the bolt telescopes over the OD of the barrel as it chambers.
I'd love to put a "terry" length barrel in it (shortened to 15")
I plan to have JDJ do that someday with one of his Shilen's.
As to what I know about Wilkinson history:
Ray Wilkinson (deceased) was the main-man.
I talked to him on phone a few times 15 years ago.
Yes on the Daughters deal....Linda,Terry,Sherry (22rf)
He originally was in gun-valley ... Covina,ca.
The first guns were so marked.
Then he moved to Parma,Id.
My original Linda is a Covina with 00xxxx serial#
My other one is ALSO a 00xxxx serial# but is a Parma.
I have a friend who also has a 00xxxx from Parma.
Mine is the only Covina I have actually handled, but there are surely more around.
I have influenced several around here to buy these guns.
However, around '88 or '89 they were fatlady-housed out @ around $349
These guns serial#'s start with 88 or 89.
My friends got some of these...they look the same...but are cheapened-up.
They are NOT equal to the 00xxxx guns in functionality.
Wilkinson elimated a few machine-cuts in the bolt for one.
This made it cheaper to make, but weakened the extractor.
Also the free-bore in chamber is shorter.
My loads (125 conical) stick in the rifling @ ly OAL.
The cheaper bolt won't extract an unfired round...to flimsy.
The older guns,have a stronger extractor that is re-inforced with a T-bar...newer one eliminated the T-bar.
Old ones have Williams rear sites (adj)
88 89 ones have a piece of tin with a hole in it.
I have more fun with my "good" ones than most of my guns.
They'll shoot.
9mm's are my .22's