Home Forums Birds & Dogs Shotguns Winchester 23 XTR Pigeon Grade SXS 12 gauge

I have a 1982 Winchester 23 SxS 12 gauge with 28" barrels. It was the last year that the Model 23 had fixed chokes. Would it hurt the value of the shotgun to have screw in choke tubes installed? I was thinking I might have Briley machine it for Invector Plus choke tubes since I already have them. The shotguns fixed chokes are full and modified.

I had the same gun with the 28 inch MOD and Full chokes, I had the barrels re-choked to IC and light- Mod and never looked back.

Talk to Briley. Bet the Invector Plus is not an option as I believe those chokes were designed for the over-bored (larger diameter) Browning barrels. I'd get them to put Briley Thinwalls in your M23 if you want interchangeable chokes, or as noted above, just get it opened to IC on the right barrel and M on the left for most upland hunting. If just grouse hunting in the woods, go Skeet in the right and IC in the left barrel.

Yes, I spoke to Briley today and they said they would mic it for the Invector Plus but if that wasn't possible they would do the thin walls. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't killing this guns value by adding the interchangeable chokes. You know like adding a butt pad to a prewar Model 70.

Briley Thin Walls are the way to go, and won’t hurt value. The Invectors are out as they require swelling the barrel. Even if it were safely possible, value would surely take a hit.

Thin walls are not acceptable for steel shot, AFAIK, and that would compromise the value quite a bit, IMO.

I use my 23 with steel and would open it if needed before any other consideration.

I have the same shotgun and I wouldn’t open the choke. For the few shells used for close range hunting, I use spreader loads. Cheap loads with softer shot also open the pattern a bit.

I would not touch it, full over mod is great. I would spend some time shooting it before I altered the gun and to answer the question IMO it would take away from value.

What are you doing with the gun?

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I kind of feel funny giving advice to anyone who own's such a nice shotgun. Brownings and Berettas are about as nice of shotguns I own, nothing like your Pigeon Grade Winchester. With that being said, if I had such a shotgun I would just enjoy it as it was. As already stated, those are probably my go to chokes when bird hunting anyway. One of the joys of gun ownership is that really good firearms can be had today at more than reasonable prices. Get yourself a "B" gun with screw in chokes if you think you need more versatility in choke patterns. Whatever you do, I'm sure you will enjoy being the guardian of that fine shotgun for many years before someone else may get to enjoy it in the distant future.

I was thinking of using the shotgun for Sporting Clays and also some pheasant hunting. I was thinking of getting the Briley Thin Wall VX tubes which can shoot all shot types. I have a Beretta over and under and a Browning Maxus for Sporting Clays but I don't have a side by side.

It’s perfect for roosters and sporting. Plus I find those chokes to be more open than marked. Spend some time with the gun, put it on paper, run half a dozen flats through it before you start messing with chokes. You might, Probly, will find it’s perfect as is.

I will give it a try the way it is and see how it looks on paper. I will also shoot it sporting clays to see if I need to mess with it.

Unless you are a world class shooter, you'll find M and F dang tight for sporting clays in my experience shooting SC in Colorado and British Columbia...frustrating to say the least. For pheasants it isn't so bad.

On a very tightly choked 16 ga Uggie box lock, I used to take Federal #6 Field Loads, drill a round toothpick sized hole in the crimp, then insert a shortened toothpick from the crimp down to the wad. This created a spreader load with minimal effort for the few shells I fired while hunting...opening the chokes up about one size or so. Polywad spreaders work too, but resulted in a more blown pattern in my experience. YMMV

Good luck with whatever you do to a very nice shotgun. I just took the stock off a friends beautiful 20 ga M23 single trigger last summer to correct a failure to fire the second barrel issue. The gun's internals were extremely well made in my opinion. A good cleaning by spraying with brake cleaner into a plastic pan showed a fair amount to dirt. After lubricating the internals very lightly with Breakfree CLP and reassembly, the gun has fired the second shot perfectly since. I do not think it had ever been disassembled since it left the factory 35 or 40 years earlier.

Unless you are a world class shooter, you'll find M and F dang tight for sporting clays in my experience shooting SC in Colorado and British Columbia...frustrating to say the least. For pheasants it isn't so bad.

On a very tightly choked 16 ga Uggie box lock, I used to take Federal #6 Field Loads, drill a round toothpick sized hole in the crimp, then insert a shortened toothpick from the crimp down to the wad. This created a spreader load with minimal effort for the few shells I fired while hunting...opening the chokes up about one size or so. Polywad spreaders work too, but resulted in a more blown pattern in my experience. YMMV

Good luck with whatever you do to a very nice shotgun. I just took the stock off a friends beautiful 20 ga M23 single trigger last summer to correct a failure to fire the second barrel issue. The gun's internals were extremely well made in my opinion. A good cleaning by spraying with brake cleaner into a plastic pan showed a fair amount to dirt. After lubricating the internals very lightly with Breakfree CLP and reassembly, the gun has fired the second shot perfectly since. I do not think it had ever been disassembled since it left the factory 35 or 40 years earlier.

That’s not true. People need to stop worrying about choke and just SHOOT! That’s the kind of thinking that leads to lost targets.....

My scores at skeet are significantly lower with full choked guns vs skeet or cylinder choked guns. Same birds, same range, same shooter.

And the winner at three of the past four sporting clays shoots I attended this summer shot an IC all the way through in his Beretta A400 Extreme Plus. Plays into your comment on just shooting, not worrying about the choke, but he sure as heck didn't put a full in.

I finally got out and shot this shotgun at a five stand course today. I shot a 21 and then a 23 so not horrible for the first time out. The gun swings very nicely and it doesn’t come up and slap you in the cheek like some shotguns do. If I can shoot it like that I’m just going to shoot it and enjoy it.

Just saw this....those look like Winchester Winchokes....if so they are out there..find them and have Bailey do the work...rare....so value may increase....Or may not after you factor in additional cost..

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...s-with-screw-chokes.cfm?gun_id=101574232

My Winchester 23 was made in 1986 and has Winchokes / original Invector chokes, not Invector Plus. So the Briley route might have to involve Thinwalls. FYI Mike Orlen is also known for this kind of choke gunsmithing and has done good work for me.

Opening the chokes might be an option if you want to shoot steel. IC/LT Mod is a good combo for sporting clays and what Is in my SC gun right now.

Do you reload? If so you could open your choke with softer shot (Eagle) or use spreader wads. Or you could look for the cheapest nastiest promo shells you can find as they probably have the softest lead.