Winchester Model 12

Winchester Model 1912 shotgun
Winchester Model 12 12-gauge pump-action shotgun manufactured in 1948
Type	Shotgun
Place of origin	United States
Service history
Used by	United States Army United States Navy United States Marine Corps
Wars	World War I World War II Korean War Vietnam War
Production history
Designer	T.C. Johnson John M. Browning
Manufacturer	Winchester Repeating Arms Company
Produced	1912–1964, with special production runs until 2006
No. built	nearly 2,000,000
Variants	See text
Specifications
Caliber	12 gauge, 16 gauge, 20 gauge, 28 gauge
Action	Pump-action
Feed system	6-round tubular magazine (see text for more details)

The Winchester Model 1912 (also commonly known as the Model 12, or M12) is an internal-hammer, pump-action, shotgun with an external tube magazine. Popularly named the Perfect Repeater at its introduction, it largely set the standard for pump action shotguns over its 51-year high-rate production life. From August 1912 until first discontinued by Winchester in May 1964, nearly two million Model 12 shotguns were produced in various grades and barrel lengths. Initially chambered for 20 gauge only, the 12 and 16 gauge versions came out in 1913 (first listed in the 1914 catalogs), and the 28 gauge version came out in 1934. A .410 version was never produced; instead, a scaled-down version of the Model 12 known as the Model 42, directly derived from scaled drawings of the Model 12, was produced in .410 .

The Model 1912 (shortened to Model 12 in 1919) was the next step from the Winchester Model 1897 hammer-fired shotgun, which in turn had evolved from the earlier Winchester Model 1893 shotgun. The Model 12 was designed by Winchester engineer T.C. Johnson, and was based in part on the M1893/97 design by John M. Browning, in that it used a sliding forearm or "pump action" to cycle the mechanism. It was initially available in 20 gauge only (12 and 16 gauge guns were not sold until late 1913). The Model 12 was a very successful internal hammer pump-action shotgun.

Its tubular magazine was loaded through the bottom of the gun. Empty shotgun shells ejected to the right. Depending on the particular wooden plug installed in the magazine, two, three, or four shells could be stored in the tubular magazine. The magazine holds six 2¾-inch 12 ga. shells, when no plug is installed, unlike most shotguns of today which hold four or five shells.

With forged and machined steel parts, the ultimate reason for discontinuation in 1964 was that it was too expensive to produce at a competitive price. The primary competition at this time came from the much less expensive Remington Model 870, which had been introduced in 1950. The majority of "modern" Model 12 shotguns manufactured after 1927 were chambered for 2¾-inch shotgun shells only, although some specialized models such as the Heavy Duck Gun Model 12 were chambered for 3" Super Speed and Super X shells (basically a 3" magnum). The early 20 gauge Model 12 guns had chambers that were 2½", and the 16 gauge Model 12's were chambered for a 2 9/16-inch shotgun shell. To add further confusion, some of these early Model 12's have subsequently been modified, with their chambers lengthened to accept 2¾-inch shotgun shells, while others remain in their factory-stock chamber lengths. Careful inspection by a gunsmith is always recommended to determine whether or not it is safe to fire a modern 2¾-inch shotgun shell in older Model 12's.