Home Forums Birds & Dogs Shotguns Winchester model 50 any thoughts

Any experts or owners with experience using the Winchester 50 12gauge?

Looking to pick one up and doing my due diligence first to see if it would be a good fit for me.

Thanks
Mark

I think a poster that goes by the name of “bobski” has had experience with them..perhaps he may see this.

Have used the Model 59 which is a LW Version of the same. Simple design, that makes for a nice field shotgun.

Thanks

I owned one in the mid-60s. A well made and reliable shotgun but because of the recoil spring mechanism or whatever it was in the stock the gun was butt heavy and did not balance well. I sent it down the road before switchiing to M-14s for Uncle Sam.

The Model 59 with the fiberglass barrel was butt heavy...the Model 50 with a regular barrel was balanced fairly neutral..Although, many do prefer a more weight forward feel.

Since 1963, a M50 Featherweight has been my best friend.

Didn’t know they made a Featherweight Model 50....Did it have the aluminum receiver of the Model 59?

My thought is that I saw a M50 Skeet in 20 ga about 15 years ago at a gun show, and I didn't buy it, and I think about that little gun way too much. Our encounter was much too brief and it haunts me to this day.

They handled better than many of today's high-end O/U's and SA's....Not much for looks....but reliable and quick....

Aluminum, yes. Dunno jack about the 59.

The 59 is an aluminum 50 receiver with a thin steel fiberglass wrapped barrel. The 59 was also the first to use choke tubes.

To me the 20ga M50 is the winner. The 12s seem heavy and clunky to me.
Only ones I have extensive experience with was a set of 4 12s that were mounted on brackets that attached to the wing struts of a SuperCub. They were spring mounted with no stocks, had custom built 10 shot tube mags and were fired by 6v solenoids from 1949 Ford Flathead starters. Intended to be used for gunning wolves back in the 50’s or 60’s. Guy said his dad had them built and used them one season before dismounting them, he said they were dangerous as he’d get tunnel vision and forget he had to fly the plane. Pretty neat piece of history, I got them all working and fired them with the switches before they were donated to a museum.

I have a 59 in the closet I gave $10 for. Someday I’ll find a barrel and buttstock and get it running.

Cool story!!!!

Pretty hard to beat the 59 if you're a chukkar hunter (mountain climber)...I rigged mine up with a sling. I can't remember ever having a malfunction, but I kept it clean and dry and lubed with spray graphite. The 50 was my favorite, but pretty heavy, more better for flat country.
Added later, I had a guy who claimed to be a factory trained Winchester serviceman show me how to adjust the buffer spring tension to accommodate my rather perky chukkar loads so that the alloy receiver didn't get hammered when the bolt cycled all the way to the rear...also cuts down on felt recoil.

Decent gun.

Thanks for the input guys. I picked her up today. I paid $390 and She is a beauty. Made in 1956 12ga. and in near perfect condition. One ding on the handguard and the plastic buttplate is cracked at the heal, bluing looks perfect and the bore still has most of the factory bluing. I stripped her down and gave her a good cleaning. Will take her out next weekend to shoot. Bet she will make a good rabbit gun.

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/galleries/15945038/winchester-model-50-12ga