Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Winchester Collectors need to learn more about a mdl 97 win. 16 guage.

as the Fates might have it, i came into a old, rusty 16 ga model 97 shotgun.

it belonged to a young guy's grandfather. it was passed on to him after it sat in a damp basement for a spell. it was no pristine beauty trust me on that. but it did shoot.

i bought the group of sad sacks from the young guy because his double wide trailer pymnt was more important to him than a rack of rusty as hell long-guns.

in short, i bought a box of 23/4 in. shells, maybe federal for it. it'd feed, chamber, fire, extract, etc. but it would NOT eject smoothly. very awkward or un-slick.

is it an early model that uses 2 1/2 inch shells or not? i could jerk the forearm bar, and the hulls would eject but they would eject slowly and poorly. it definitely would not spit them out. it's almost like the ejection port was too short. but it would eject with a hard enough pull on the forearm. the spent shell extracted from the chamber without a glitch. i shot it 3 times and put it up.

what to do?

Try to find some paper shells 2 9/16 I have a old mod 12 16 ga that works with them.george

The 2 9/16 inch shell was standard for early 16's. What's the serial number?

i just knew early on that someone was going to ask that question. the gun is not pristine in any sense. it's a shooter at best.

but it's in a steel case, maybe from wal-mart, that has the round steel keys. there's two locking lugs, with the same key. it's a case, not a safe.

and of course, it came with two round keys. and yes, they've been mis-located. they've been lost in other words. the mdl 97 with the dark walnut stock is living in there with a model 1902 .22 rimfire, and a mdl 59 rimfire. will have to hire a locksmith, or just crowbar the steel door open to get to any of the stuff. it would have to be done anyways, sooner or later. locksmiths around here aren't cheap.

what undersize ammo should i try? where to get it? if it's the full length shell compatible, what else could the problem be?

Shooting 2 3/4 inch shells from a gun chambered for 2 9/16 shells isn't dangerous, but as you've learned, it won't function correctly on a consistent basis. I'd recommend checking gun shows for the correct shells. You can also look online. They're out there, but they're old. As long as you don't plan to use it for personal defense, they'll be fine.

Regarding the case....been there done that! You can get in there with a hack saw and a crow bar. A new one will cost less than a visit from a locksmith, unless you can take it to them. Good luck.

the cost of the locksmith vs. the value of the physical structure is the story line.

so, hunt for some 2 9/16th shells and walk on, or have the mechanical system bored out to allow 2 3/4th inch shells are the options. is that your thinking?

of course i could sell it for the best offer? what might such a beast be worth? the walnut is dark, dark. the metal is rusted and has been a bit cleaned up with 5 ought steel, and i like the gun.

what's the best outcome for a beast like this?

Trying to have the chamber lengthened and possibly the ejection port lengthened, you may end up putting a $200 saddle on a $20 horse. If it's as rough as you say, it may not be worth the cost. If you like it and want to hunt with it, find some 2 9/16 shells. That's a pretty good outcome. As far as price...I'd never say without holding in my hands but I'd say it won't be a lot. People who want Winchesters don't usually want rusty ones or those that have been cleaned up. There's nothing wrong with dark wood unless its oil soaked. Then it may be soft. If you like it. It's worth what it's worth to you. If it were mine, I'd like it and keep it.

thank you for your straight forwardness. that's exactly my thinking also, and i'm not a gun collector by any means. i was more than anything attempting to help a young man meet his mortgage pymnt but not go overboard doing it. the gun does shoot with low-brass over the counter shells 2 3/4 in. shells. but it does not eject well at all.

i think i'll hold on to it, if i can ever get it out of that metal case from wal-mart. thank you for your insights. at least not everybody falls into owning an old mdl 97 win. 16 guage.

One thing I forgot to mention....you can shoot shells shorter than 2 9/16. RST sells 2 1/2 inch shells that will work just fine too.

if i ever do manage to get it out of it's cage by finneese or force, i'll look up some 2.5 inch shells and see how they do. my first squirrels were shot with a 20 guage stevens. we'll see how it progresses.

I've heard that you can take a empty 38 spl case and hammer it into the round lock and turn it, I've never done it but it might work. I also had a mod 97 that was found in a crawl space, it to was a rusty wreck,changed out the ejector and hunted hard for a couple years, you might want to check your ejector it could be your problem.

thanks, sounds like it could work. kind of a made to fit key.

i know it's a vexation because i'm not willing to expend the bucks for a locksmith. i've checked around for someone who sold those type cases, but no luck so far. i'd either buy another one, or just borrow a key overnight.

If the cylinder lock has a number stamped on it, you can probably just buy a new key from a locksmith for $10 - $20 bucks. In fact if you post the number on here, one of us may have a spare key. Ive got rings of keys i no longer even remember what they go too.

that's a good thought. i've tried to look at the stamping on the round, silver colored key slot. there's one at the top and one at the bottom of the door. same keys fit both. at one time i thought i'd found the company that made the cases, but they claimed not them, it was someone else. walmart use to stock the stuff.