New Shotgun - Winchester 1300 Ranger

[The Janitor]

Decided I needed a new shotgun. It's a 1300 Ranger, almost perfect condition, give a little bit of wear on the slide. 22" barrel with rifle sights on it. The inscription on the barrel reads "Deer Slug", though it is a smoothbore. Never owned a shotgun with rifle sights, so I'll see how I like it. If not, 1300 parts are easy to find. Going to use it primarily for varmints/pests and HD.

Got it for a grand total of about $300 from a pawn shop. A little high, but still reasonable. I'll get some pics up soon!

Anyways, if you have any general information or stories you can share about this gun I'd like to hear it!

 

[Rmart30]

congrats, good guns Ive got one as your describing with the non rifled sighted barrel. Mine works well with the remington slugger slugs.

 

[The Janitor]

Just got a chance to shoot it. After shooting it, Im pretty sure it has a very unconstricted choke, if any. I was decimating glass bottles out of the sky one after another at about 10 yards, and Im relatively unexperienced with a pump. I think this one is a keeper.

However, Im seriously considering an 8 round mag tube. 4+1 just isn't enough capacity for this purpose. Do they take much custom fitting to install, or do they just thread right in?

 

[Fred Fuller]

Several companies used to make magazine extensions for 1300s that thread right on in place of the magazine cap. Some even included barrel clamps as well as the longer magazine springs necessary for them to function properly.

Yep- still out there... maybe from other companies too.

http://www.cabelas.com/link-12/product/0005620210794a.shtml

http://www.choatestocks.com/MagXt.html

Be advised, however, that longer magazines will affect the handling characteristics and 'feel' of the gun. Also, some magazine extensions have been known to provoke feeding problems from time to time. As Louis Awerbuck says, "No magazine is ever big enough." You might try practicing shoot one- load one drills until you got really good at reloading the gun as you run it. It could be you'll like the way the gun handles better without the added weight up front.

lpl

 

[WVfishguy]

I've got a Winchester like yours - 22" slug barrel, rifle sights, etc.

I put an eight shot extension on it, otherwise left it stock. Real nice wood.

It's very, very smooth, easy to shoot, and well balanced. It's a bit large and heavy for a SD gun. But I feel more confident with it than any AR 15 or AK type rifle.

 

[Todd A]

You might try practicing shoot one- load one drills until you got really good at reloading the gun as you run it.

Ditto.... I load my 5+1 500 with only four shells.My extended mag is a sidesaddle with a 25 shell shotshell belt as back-up.

Of course if you got the cash to spend go ahead and get the mag tube.You might like it,might not. It is fun playing with add-ons to see what works for you.

But even if you do get the extended tube still do the shoot one - load one drills.

 

[The Janitor]

I think I'll go ahead and get the extension. If I don't like it, then Im only out a few bucks to ship it back. If I had an 8 round mag, I'd probably still only keep 6 in it, that way I could turn my HD gun into a woodpecker gun by putting different ammo in in front. Or vice versa.

 

[The Janitor]

Pic, as promised. Still want to get some more of other angles and the internals.