Kimber_45 Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 Well, I have an old Winchester 1300. Despite the age, it offers several good traits to me in HM, including a lightweight aluminum receiver and lifter that requires no welding. I put a fiberoptic front sight, magazine tube extension, and short LOP Speedfeed stock on it. I patterned it and my shot hits dead center now... they were off terribly with the original furniture. Also, when I do my part, I can hit steel out to 100 yards (YAY!). Not too shabby for a smoothbore fossilized dinosaur. All great. Problem is that the barrel is 28" long, and its on the heavy side for me to swing quickly. Shotgunning in 3Gun is challenging enough. The long barrel makes it even harder (READ: slower.) Winchester 1300s are no longer made. That means barrels and aftermarket parts are hard to find. Sure, I can still find new replacement barrels in a couple place online, but they're 26" or 18.5" and $200+. Ouch. Too long, or too short, and too expensive either way. I want something more in the vicinity of 20" to 24". It was hard enough finding a mag tube extension I liked... I finally settled on an ATI and its perfect. Nevermind that I had to dig into the bowels of the Internet and websites that no one has ever heard of just to unearth one in stock. That was bad enough. Barrels are worse. They're simply unavailable. Thoughts? Options? Should I drink the KoolAid, throw the 1300 in the street, and get a SuperNova instead? I'm considering having my 28" cut down and rethreaded... I fear what it might do to my careful fitting and ability to hit far flung slug plates. Also I'm not sure how the gunsmith would handle the vent rib. The rib stands taller in toward the center of the barrel, shorter toward the muzzle end. If he just hacks the barrel down without adjusting the rib, well. The sight picture will probly change a bit.. as will my POI. Boo. My POI will change anyway if I make any changes to the gun... I am having a hard time accepting it. I've been putting up with this conundrum for two years, and I'm still feeling indecisive, since there seems to be no answer that I wil like. Input will be appreciated anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSnSC Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 (edited) Get rid of it and get a Nova... Now thats out of the way, Ive had a few 1300's and I recently picked up a 1300 Camp Defender. Always wanted one, found one for a good price, and snatched it up. If you can find one of the 22" VR turkey barrels, they are about perfect for 3 gun. Just keep cruising Gun Broker till one shows up. The Nova is really easy to load, but other than that I don't see the allure. Mine shoots slugs WAY left, the action isn't near as smooth as my 870 or 1300, and it points about like a shovel. I'd like to play with the Super to see if the adjustable stock would change my opinion. Until then I'll keep shooting my 870. Edited October 30, 2013 by LSnSC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
co-exprs Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 Do the SXP barrels fit? If so, they have a VR turkey barrel for the SXP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Anderson Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 Sell it and get what you want. The 1300 isn't worth the cost of cutting the barrel and retreading it. If you really want another 1300 buy one with the right barrel. If you want a Nova buy a Nova. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimber_45 Posted October 31, 2013 Author Share Posted October 31, 2013 Get rid of it and get a Nova... Now thats out of the way, Ive had a few 1300's and I recently picked up a 1300 Camp Defender. Always wanted one, found one for a good price, and snatched it up. If you can find one of the 22" VR turkey barrels, they are about perfect for 3 gun. Just keep cruising Gun Broker till one shows up. The Nova is really easy to load, but other than that I don't see the allure. Mine shoots slugs WAY left, the action isn't near as smooth as my 870 or 1300, and it points about like a shovel. I'd like to play with the Super to see if the adjustable stock would change my opinion. Until then I'll keep shooting my 870. The Defenders have a good reputation. They're well liked all-around by people that have them. A Defender might have been a better option for me too. I found my 1300 at a gun show and snatched it up. Yes, I overestimated the availability of replacement barrels. I sure did not care at the time. I just needed an inexpensive 12 ga pump, and I needed it immediately, in order to take advantage of my first few opportunities to shoot 3 Gun. So I got what I needed and I regret nothing. It was phenomenal. And I like the 1300 anyway, regardless of my complaining about it. It performs accurately and reliably. That is more than some guys can say about their Benelli M4s when on the clock. As a side note, if your Nova is shooting way left, the stock is probably too long on ya. I had that issue on my 1300 with the original stock. A shorter stock fixed the problem. Shotguns gotta fit if you want to hit what you aim at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimber_45 Posted October 31, 2013 Author Share Posted October 31, 2013 Sell it and get what you want. The 1300 isn't worth the cost of cutting the barrel and retreading it. If you really want another 1300 buy one with the right barrel. If you want a Nova buy a Nova. Yes. I could get a 2nd 1300 for the cost of the gunsmith work... or even for the cost of a replacement barrel. You are right of course. There really aren't any other options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimber_45 Posted October 31, 2013 Author Share Posted October 31, 2013 Do the SXP barrels fit? If so, they have a VR turkey barrel for the SXP. Don't think so... I think the mag tube ring is in the wrong place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSnSC Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 I have a 1300 turkey gun that I won at an NWTF sporting clays shoot several years ago. It has a 22" VR barrel with win chokes. Ive seen them on gun broker for $300 or less. The Camp Defender has a 22" win choke barrel with rifle sights. I like them both, but will continue to run my 870. Its action is slick as snot, it shoots where I'm looking and I have no problem keeping a mag full of slugs on an IPSC at 100 yds. I honestly don't know how that could be improved upon. I may be at a slight disadvantage reloading, but I don't feel it has held me back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polymerfeelsweirdman Posted November 1, 2013 Share Posted November 1, 2013 (edited) I like both the 1300 and the nova 1300 feels less "clunky" to me and just has a good feel to it nova has some nice features like the mag disconnect, it is still made, and there is aftermarket support that being said, a used 1300 can probably be gotten for not much more than $200 so whatever you do, just buy whichever shotgun you want with the barrel length you want from the get go because barrels for both the 1300 and the nova are disproportionately expensive compared to the cost of the actual shotgun if I were getting a pump shotgun it might well be the supernova (assuming I can get the barrel length I want) because it can take different furniture Edited November 1, 2013 by polymerfeelsweirdman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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