Today's purchase!

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Brought home a Winchester Model 59 12 gauge today. For those who don't know the 59, it's a lightweight version of the Winchester Model 50 with the same short recoil system utilizing a floating chamber. A floating chamber designed by none other than David Marshall "Carbine" Williams, the former moonshiner who designed the short stroke gas piston of the M1 Carbine. That's the funny thing above the magazine tube in the pic with the barrel removed. The Model 59 had a lightweight aluminum alloy receiver in place of the Model 50's steel receiver as well as a lightweigh barrel made of a thin inner steel tube wrapped in 500 miles!, yes 500 miles of fiberglass micro filament that was bonded and polished to look like blued steel. It's a 28" barrel and it feels like it weighs less than a pound. The whole gun weighs slightly under 6.5lbs. By comparison my 18" barreled Maverick 88 weighs 7lbs. Only about 82,000 Model 59's were made between 1960-1965.

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Last edited by Kyle1990 on Wed May 24, 2017 9:27 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Re: Today's purchase!

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Marlene wrote:Let us know how bad it hurts :yahoo:
Will do. Winchester liked to tout how much recoil reduction there was with the floating chamber. We'll find out tomorrow afternoon. I hear the Model 50 which is not really a whole lot heavier has very soft recoil. I still doubt I'll find another 12 gauge that's as soft shooting as my Browning A5.

Re: Today's purchase!

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I got to shoot it a couple hours ago, pretty soft recoil for a 6.5lb 12 gauge. Definately less recoil than my 7lb Maverick with the same shells. Though not as soft as my Browning A5 which is what I figured. It's a slight let down for a reloader, shells get chucked about 15 feet out of the gun, my A5 only ejects them about 5 feet. I find it interesting that Winchester advertised it as lacking the Brownings "Double shuffle" due to the reciprocating barrel on the A5. Strangely enough I've never noticed that double shuffle feeling with my A5 but there seems to be a double recoil energy with the Model 59. I'm guessing the first hit is the floating chamber recoiling and the second is the bolt moving rearward.

Re: Today's purchase!

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TheViking wrote:I have a Model 50 Ultralight which is pretty much the same gun. The system does a great job of reducing recoil, can shoot that all day and it's damn reliable.
I looked at a 50 ultralight when I bought the 59 yesterday but the 59 was in far better shape for $50 more. That 50 had definately been hunted with hard, and probably used as a boat oar and a door stop. Also I was after the weird factor of the fiber glass wrapped barrel.

Re: Today's purchase!

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TheViking wrote:Huh. Mine doesn't have that. 30" steel barrel with fixed full choke, aluminum receiver. Still marked "Model 50". Good shape for the age.
The fiberglass barrel was only on the 59, that, the gold colored trigger assembly, and the faux receiver engraving are the only differences between the 59 and 50 featherweight.

Re: Today's purchase!

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Kyle1990 wrote:
TheViking wrote:Huh. Mine doesn't have that. 30" steel barrel with fixed full choke, aluminum receiver. Still marked "Model 50". Good shape for the age.
The fiberglass barrel was only on the 59, that, the gold colored trigger assembly, and the faux receiver engraving are the only differences between the 59 and 50 featherweight.
Ah, gotcha! Learned something new today :-D
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Re: Today's purchase!

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TheViking wrote:I'd be a little cautious about fiberglass that old, though.
From what I've read it's a non issue as long as it's not cracked or delaminating. In Winchesters original tests it prooved to be stronger than their steel barrels. For having a paper thin steel liner it sure seems thicker than that looking at the muzzle, at least 1/16" which is nearly what a normal shotgun barrel is at the muzzle.

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