My "New" Winchester Defender

[SandHill]

I bought a Winchester Defender off Gunbroker. Picked up from FFL on Monday, took it to the range on Wednesday. I think it looks great:



Action was unbelievably smooth and fast. I had never shot one before, but read many reviews about the "speed pump" and it lived up to expectations. I can't believe this gun is 30 years old! Ran a variety of ammo through it with no problems. I found some Remington Express No. 1 buckshot online (Cabelas) and was very happy with the pattern - 16 .30 caliber pellets in a group about 5-6 inches across at seven yards, with the wad in the middle and the pellets arrayed in a highly symmetrical star shape around the wad. No. 1 buck is not easy to find, but Sportsman's guide has Winchester Super X. I am g0oiing to order some and compare.

I bought it from a pawn shop in Florida, 2 J's Pawn & Gun, and it was my first time buying a used gun sight unseen, so I was a little nervous. It was actually better than advertised and came with a soft case in good condition which wasn't even mentioned in the listing. I am more than pleased.

I want to shoot it some more to make sure its reliable, then I plan to use this as a dedicated home defense gun with minimal modifications (light, tritium bead, maybe shorten stock). Sometimes simple is best, ad my tastes run to old school anyway.

[J.R.W.]

Great gun i love mine

[sdkevin]

Shes a beauty! How much?

[Steve_In_29]

Nice find. I bought my Defender new about 25 years ago. I have added to it a bit but am thinking about switching to a different forearm though. A plus is that the 1300s are one of the few shotguns that will handle the Centurion Mini-Buck shells.

[bohoki]

i got a 1200 virtually the same its a neat design

[dkthree]

Nice! Love my 1300.

[SandHill]

Nice find. A plus is that the 1300s are one of the few shotguns that will handle the Centurion Mini-Buck shells.

I also ran some Nobel Minibuck shells I had through it. I am not sure but I believe they come from the same factory in Italy as Centurion. They have six pellets of 00 buck. I had tried them in my Mossberg 500 and they cycled, but you had to work the pump pretty fast or they would flip over and jam in the Mossberg.

They ran great in the Winchester, very smooth. I guess its the solid elevator in the Winchester versus skeletonized in the Mossberg. I have also heard that the Aguila mini shells work fine in the Winchester. If I can find any of those I'd love to give them a try.

With the Nobel, I was able to get eight in the magazine as opposed to the seven its rated for. Couldn't quite get the ninth one to fit. I don't feel that the one more shell is worth it for home defense. I keep thinking about the 16 pellets in the number 1 buck, each only a little smaller than the 00, and still very moderate recoil with 1250 fps. It doesn't seem worth giving up 10 pellets per round to get one more round in.

[BigPimping]

Nice score. Those rock my man.....

[riftol]

I've got a Stevens 320 combo that is Savage's clone of the Winchester.

It has a 28" barrel w/ removable choke and an 18.5" "security barrel."

I love the smoothness of its action.

[Steve_In_29]

I've got a Stevens 320 combo that is Savage's clone of the Winchester.

It has a 28" barrel w/ removable choke and an 18.5" "security barrel."

I love the smoothness of its action.

That is a nice gun but of the Stevens models I prefer the 350 (Ithaca 37 clone). That bottom feed/eject sure is handy. After my grandson racked his action for HOURS (when he was home alone ) it really smoothed up.

[whtl]

Winchester Model 1200

I've had mine for over 40 years. Great shotgun.

[anti]

Very nice! I almost bought one last year from a member here but he decided to keep it before we met up for the transfer. Although I did really want it, I wasn't upset because it's his gun and he can choose to keep it or not.

[echoThreeOneSix]

nice pickup. i like the wood on it.

[deadcoyote]

I got to pick one of these up for $75 in 2004. It was m issue shotgun at my last agency. When I switched it was past its service life so they offered to sell it to me for $75. Damn nice shot gun, ended up selling it to a buddy for $125 as I didn't like how difficult I was to break it down, compared to an 870.

[SandHill]

Stable Mate for Defender

I'm liking the defender a lot. I think it is going to fill the niche for "social" work. Now I'm thinking that maybe I should get something similar for sporting purposes, but with a 28" barrel and interchangeable choke tubes. I would like to be able to shoot trap, skeet, and sporting clays with it, and maybe use it for hunting at some point. I know, I know, I should buy a Browning for these purposes, but I don't want to drop to two grand. I also would like a gun with controls, safety, slide release, feel of the action, etc., as similar as possible to the Defender so I get lots of practice on the same / similar platform.

So here are the options I see:

1. Used Winchester 1300. Probably get one on Gunjoker for $200-$250, plus shipping, FFL fee, DROS, sales tax, etc. Made in US, proven product but the uncertainty of buying used. Should be able to one with decent wood and blued barrel, these things matter to me.

2. New Winchester SXP Field. Slightly more expensive, $349 at Dick's Sporting Goods right now, but no FFL shipping or FFL fee, so not a very significant price difference OTD. Made in Turkey, not certain on quality control, but a new product. I handled one at Dick's and the fit and finish seemed a little crude to me. Wood was not bad for this price point, but it had some sort of matt finish I didn't love.

3. New Stevens 320. Same design, made in China. Haven't seen one, read some iffy reviews. Only about $279, plus shipping, DROS, FFL fees, sales tax, etc.

So, for those who have one of the above, what do you think? Cost is not a significant factor - the final price is not going to be enough different between the three options to matter. The question comes down to new versus used, US manufacture versus overseas. I am not an "American made is always better" type. I know Turkey and China are well cable of turning out quality firearms. But I am bit concerned about quality control and whether there is anyone paying attention to it with these particular guns.

Would really appreciate input form anyone who owns one these, or other options that fit the objectives above. FN maybe?

Thanks,

Sandhill