POTD: Try it on For Size – Winchester Model 21 Try Gun
Sam.S 05.22.23
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a really neat piece by Winchester. This is a Winchester Model 21 Try Gun. Try guns were not a super common thing back in the day but the folks that had it made a really lucrative business out of it. A try gun is a gun that has a unique adjustable stock that a gunsmith may fit a gun to a person. This way they could take the measurements and create a new stock that would fit someone perfectly.
“This is an example of a “try gun” which was used for sizing custom stocks to their eventual owners. This may be the try gun used by the factory to size clients for purchasing a custom Model 21. The buttstock has multiple inlets with screws that when turned allow for multiple adjustments to the stock. Some of these being length of pull, comb height, and drop at heel. The forearm is a standard checkered beavertail. 2 3/4 inch chambers and cylinder/modified chokes. The included FN America Certificate of Provenance identifies the shotgun by model and serial number, stating that it was previously a part of the Winchester Factory Collection where it was maintained by U.S. Repeating Arms.”
Lot 3860: Factory Collection Winchester Model 21 20 Gauge “Try-Gun” – Documented Winchester Factory Collection Winchester Model 21 Double Barrel 20 Gauge ‘Try Gun’ Shotgun with Certificate of Provenance. (n.d.-aa). Rock Island Auction Company. photograph. Retrieved May 21, 2023, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/76/3860/factory-collection-winchester-model-21-20-gauge-trygun.
