Winchester Model 1893 Shotgun

[Wyatt Earp SASS#1628L]

I'm sure a lot of you know the history of the Model 1893 and how it was improved upon and eventually replaced with the Model 1897. The story goes that Winchester was concerned about the safety of the 1893 with the advent and upcoming widespread use of smokeless powder shotshells and offered to replace any 1893 with a brand new 1897. Most would assume, as did I, that this "recall" of sorts must have happened in conjunction with the introduction of the improved 1893, the 1897. According to one well researched article I found, this is not the case.

 

According to the article, it wasn't until 1901 that Winchester began offering the 1897 replacement. This makes sense as I assume that as more and more smokeless shells became available, the issues with the 1893 began to surface. However, according to the article, only a small percentage of the 1893's were returned for replacement, so maybe a lot of the owners were still using black powder and did not experience any of the smokeless powder related issues.

 

The article goes on to attempt to account for the whereabouts of the remainder of the 34,000(+) 1893's that were produced. I know where two of them are as they currently reside in one of my safes.

 

The Winchester Model 1893 Shotgun – Surplused