Win Ranger 120 - upgrade or trade?

[honkeoki]

I am the proud owner of a Winchester Ranger 120 that I bought after reading the posts on this site. It has a 28-inch vent rib barrel and a 3" chamber.

But what I want is an HD shotgun -- 18-20" barrel.

In your opinion, should I buy a Defender barrel kit and upgrade the shotgun I have -- maybe sell the 28-inch barrel on Gunbroker when I'm done?

Or would it be more cost-effective for me to trade in the Ranger for what I want?

All advice is welcome. I'm a novice at this.

Thanks,
George

 

[Poodleshooter]

Upgrade as it's probably cheaper than buying new. It's also useful you want the flexibility of a shotgun that will perform hunting duties as well,though that doesn't sound like what you really want. If you don't hunt, you might as well get a dedicated HD shotgun such as a Mossy 590,the defender, or an 870 variant.
I use a Mossberg 500 with a 28" screw in multi choke barrel, a 24" rifled barrel for slugs and an 18" barrel for home defense. I switch them out and add or remove accessories as needed. It's all the shotgun I really need.

 

[Preacherman]

You might find it difficult to get a barrel for that model of shotgun. Gun Parts Corp. is sold out of barrels for the Ranger 120, and they don't list anything shorter than 24".

If you want a general purpose & sporting use shotgun, by all means keep that one "as is", and buy another for defensive use. If you don't need a general purpose shotgun, trade it in on a new weapon - one with better availability of parts, which can be equipped with a second barrel for sporting use at a future date, if you so desire.

My recommendation would be a Remington 870 in a pump gun, and the Winchester SX2 as a semi-auto. The latter is available in competition form with extended magazine for defensive use, or in an even shorter and handier version under the FN brand as their Semi-Auto Police model. Highly recommended.

 

[honkeoki]

Thank you for your advice -- it is, as always, appreciated.

Gun show coming to town next weekend!

 

[Poodleshooter]

I had a Ranger 120 as a kid. They should use the Winchester 1300 barrels. Barrels should interchange just fine.