Winchester model 12 value

heronfish said:
If a gun isn't collectable or usable, what is it worth?
Your generic mossberg off the shelf today is a far more versatile gun than a field grade model 12, comes in a new box and hasn't seen decades of use/abuse. And you can buy one of these for around 400.
Your new 500 can now use steel or lead, 2 3/4 or 3 inch and change the choke in a few seconds.

Let's remember that no one wants Model Ts anymore either, and prices on the old girls have crashed from a peak because their is only a small market left. Old, fixed choke 12 gauge pumos are the example of this in the gun world.
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I'm not saying they are worth a fortune. What I'm saying, in regards to the gun which is the topic of this thread, is that if it is listed at $175.00 it will be gone before the seller has a chance to say "send me an emt"!

Regarding the generic Mossberg, or 500 for that matter, I'm one of those who will take the model 12 any day over them. As I said earlier, if you need to have choke tubes then yes, guns like the model 12 aren't for you. But open up the choke on a model 12 and you are good for steel or whatever despite what some might say. And yes, someone will say, "well the forcing cone needs to be opened for a better pattern". If you are missing your target the chances are very great you have other issues besides a forcing cone but it is a good excuse.There are many shooters who stick a modified choke in guns where they can be changed, and never change them anyhow. And if you need 3" look for a model 12 heavy duck or super X super speed. Anyhow, just my opinion but the model 12 is not as useless as people are being lead to believe. If you need the latest and greatest, that is fine and nothing wrong with that. But if you want a classic a model 12 can still fit the bill. And there are lots out there so one doesn't have to buy junk.
 
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heronfish said:
If a gun isn't collectable or usable, what is it worth?
Your generic mossberg off the shelf today is a far more versatile gun than a field grade model 12, comes in a new box and hasn't seen decades of use/abuse. And you can buy one of these for around 400.
Your new 500 can now use steel or lead, 2 3/4 or 3 inch and change the choke in a few seconds.

Let's remember that no one wants Model Ts anymore either, and prices on the old girls have crashed from a peak because their is only a small market left. Old, fixed choke 12 gauge pumos are the example of this in the gun world.
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You clearly have never been to a swap meet in hershey PA or into old cars
You should let these guys know
Cheers
http://www.mtfca.com/clubpages/chapters.htm
 
gunsaholic said:
I'm not saying they are worth a fortune. What I'm saying, in regards to the gun which is the topic of this thread, is that if it is listed at $175.00 it will be gone before the seller has a chance to say "send me an emt"!

Regarding the generic Mossberg, or 500 for that matter, I'm one of those who will take the model 12 any day over them. As I said earlier, if you need to have choke tubes then yes, guns like the model 12 aren't for you. But open up the choke on a model 12 and you are good for steel or whatever despite what some might say. And yes, someone will say, "well the forcing cone needs to be opened for a better pattern". If you are missing your target the chances are very great you have other issues besides a forcing cone but it is a good excuse.There are many shooters who stick a modified choke in guns where they can be changed, and never change them anyhow. And if you need 3" look for a model 12 heavy duck or super X super speed. Anyhow, just my opinion but the model 12 is not as useless as people are being lead to believe. If you need the latest and greatest, that is fine and nothing wrong with that. But if you want a classic a model 12 can still fit the bill. And there are lots out there so one doesn't have to buy junk.
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It's not that they are useless, it is that other new pumps are more versatile and are new. Perception is reality in this case.
 
3macs1 said:
You clearly have never been to a swap meet in hershey PA or into old cars
You should let these guys know
Cheers
http://www.mtfca.com/clubpages/chapters.htm
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There is clearly a shrinking niche market. My grandfather's generation grew up with the model t. He would have turned 90 last year.
The same thing is happening to post war cars and will likely happen to muscle cars. Interests change even if the items dont.
 
heronfish said:
There is clearly a shrinking niche market. My grandfather's generation grew up with the model t. He would have turned 90 last year.
The same thing is happening to post war cars and will likely happen to muscle cars. Interests change even if the items dont.
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As old as the T's may be they still have a strong following. With the muscle cars it is not so much the interest changed. It is the cost of them today the average Joe cannot afford them
That being said there is nothing I have ever driven that gets more attention and thumbs up from all ages than cruising in one's old muscle car
I was lucky as in guns and saved a few :)
Cheers
 
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3macs1 said:
As old as the T's may be they still have a strong following. With the muscle cars it is not so much the interest changed. It is the cost of them today the average Joe cannot afford them
That being said there is nothing I have ever driven that gets more attention and thumbs up from all ages than cruising in one's old muscle car
I was lucky as in guns and saved a few :)
Cheers
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Parallels can easily be drawn.
Your Mustang Boss will always be a collector, as will a pigeon grade model 12. But there are millions of cars from that period that were deemed to have no value and were scrapped.
The cream rose. The same thing happens with firearms. The one everyone owned is not the one anyone wants.
 
heronfish said:
There is clearly a shrinking niche market. My grandfather's generation grew up with the model t. He would have turned 90 last year.
The same thing is happening to post war cars and will likely happen to muscle cars. Interests change even if the items dont.
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You are correct.
And the only reason a Model 12 is called the best 12 gauge ever made, is because Jack O'Connor said it was.
Try telling a lifetime user of an Ithaca 12 gauge pump that his gun is inferior to a Winchester Model 12!
 
H4831 said:
You are correct.
And the only reason a Model 12 is called the best 12 gauge ever made, is because Jack O'Connor said it was.
Try telling a lifetime user of an Ithaca 12 gauge pump that his gun is inferior to a Winchester Model 12!
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Winchester was a master of marketing and O'Connor was firmly in their pocket. How else would a necked-down .30-06 become so popular?
 
613perth said:
Brutal haha even with it being pre 1964?
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To build value in models 12 it's all about rarity, condition and extras. IE: solid or vent rib, unusual barrel length and choking combination, grade (trap, skeet), NO after adds, sub gauges always more desirable due to less made, factory engraving and exhibition wood set etc. Your 32" gun is cool but it is just a working gun ( I like them) with a fixed choke and 2 3/4" chamber. IF your gun is in very good to excellent condition it would be worth more than 175.00 most days.

Darryl
 
To set a price/value on pretty much anything, you need to identifier
- Your potential buyer
- Potential use
- What else is out there to compete with your offering

/*/*/

The price of "used" model 12 has taken a dive because a "new hunter" will demand versatility from his shotgun... You're competing against $350 Remington 870 with screw-in chokes and barrels readily available.

Having chokes installed on a older M12 will set you back at least $100... and I don't even know where you'd find a different barrel for it, never mind finding a gunsmith that could fit it.
 
sillymike said:
To set a price/value on pretty much anything, you need to identifier
- Your potential buyer
- Potential use
- What else is out there to compete with your offering

/*/*/

The price of "used" model 12 has taken a dive because a "new hunter" will demand versatility from his shotgun... You're competing against $350 Remington 870 with screw-in chokes and barrels readily available.

Having chokes installed on a older M12 will set you back at least $100... and I don't even know where you'd find a different barrel for it, never mind finding a gunsmith that could fit it.
Click to expand...

...not to mention that pump guns are for the most part obsolete. Autos rule the field today...and I'm not talking Browning A5's with all them springs, bushings and various machined moving parts.
 
I agree that Pump guns are not obsolete. They are a good buy for an entry level hunter.
Having said that, and much as I love my Model 12 shotgun, plain barrel field models are common, they do not generally have more open chokes and are not generally suitable for steel shot, all of which hurts their value in the marketplace.
Altered and refinished Model 12 Field shotguns are a hard sell, unless the price is cheap, at the gun shows I attend.
 
Mount Sweetness said:
Pump guns are not obsolete
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When I was a kid the most common shotgun in the field was a pump of some sort. Today Benelli, Beretta, A5's, SX1..5 shots in 3 seconds or less...these rule the hunting field. Cant remember the last time I saw a pumpgun on the skeet/trap range or sporting clays...other than in the hands of a "duffer" before bird season...O/U with 32-34 inch tubes run the show. I shoot M12's exclusively. Love them. Like revolvers vs autos...only oldtimers want wheelguns. Pumps are great just for all intents and purposes popular only to the older generation..other than kids with short "shottys" shootin up sh!t at the local gravel pit:shotgun:
 
I too still shoot my M12's. . Have Trap, Skeet and Field guns with solid or vented ribs with deluxe wood. . Model 12's with solid ribs, vented ribs in original condition still hold their value. . Smaller gauges sell faster and for considerably more money. . An original 28 ga in very good condition can fetch between $8,000 to $12,000. . Original correct engraved M12's or Pigeon Grades also sell for high dollars. . It's the plain barrel 12 ga. with after market recoil pads in well worn condition that are the most common and as such sell for considerably less. .
 
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