Wiley
Well-Known Member
I reached Blind Hog status Saturday when I picked up an 'acorn' at my local gun shop. This is a little long but it all has to be said to get the story told.
When I was a teen my best friend had a Winchester Model 37 .410 shotgun that he squirrel hunted with. That was over 40 years ago and I've wanted one ever since. A couple of years ago I started researching this little gun on the web and found out that the early guns, 1936 to 1948 had red enamel in the lettering stamped into the bottom of the receiver and on the butt plate. These are the more desirable 37s and are known as the Red Letter guns. So I started occasionally looking at the online gun auctions and was shocked at what some were bringing.......$400 to $800 in several online auctions. Even the low end was out of my price range.
Last Sunday I was indulging in some adult beverages and logged on to Gunbroker. There were 2 listings for regular model 37s that I took interest in and one was a 'Pigtail" model. This gun was only made in 1936 and 37 and Winchester has no records of any .410 Pigtails ever being made. So I drank another beverage and placed a bid on each gun knowing that I'd probably be outbid and just forget the whole thing. By Monday morning I had won both at very reasonable prices and I was SHOCKED.
Fast forward to Saturday and my dealer calls and says he has received a gun for me from a gun shop in Maryland. I head on up and open the box. It was the Pigtail model and in better than describer condition. AND it's a Red Letter gun. WOW! I still can't believe what a deal I got from another gun shop. They just didn't know what they had and didn't list it as a Red Letter gun. This little gun has the normal finish wear and patina that one would expect from a gun from the mid 30s but has been well cared for and locks up tight as a vice, the ejector works perfectly and shoots like a dream. I'd rate it at 85 to 90% overall. It had been over 40 years since I had held one of these shotguns until yesterday when I picked this one up. The other shotgun has not arrived yet but it doesn't have the bottom of the receiver stamped with 'Winchester' so it won't be a Red Letter and the pics showed it to be an average gun at best.
I won the Red Letter auction at $266 and the other one at $190 and could not be happier about the good luck I had for probably the only time in my life in a gun purchase.
When I was a teen my best friend had a Winchester Model 37 .410 shotgun that he squirrel hunted with. That was over 40 years ago and I've wanted one ever since. A couple of years ago I started researching this little gun on the web and found out that the early guns, 1936 to 1948 had red enamel in the lettering stamped into the bottom of the receiver and on the butt plate. These are the more desirable 37s and are known as the Red Letter guns. So I started occasionally looking at the online gun auctions and was shocked at what some were bringing.......$400 to $800 in several online auctions. Even the low end was out of my price range.
Last Sunday I was indulging in some adult beverages and logged on to Gunbroker. There were 2 listings for regular model 37s that I took interest in and one was a 'Pigtail" model. This gun was only made in 1936 and 37 and Winchester has no records of any .410 Pigtails ever being made. So I drank another beverage and placed a bid on each gun knowing that I'd probably be outbid and just forget the whole thing. By Monday morning I had won both at very reasonable prices and I was SHOCKED.
Fast forward to Saturday and my dealer calls and says he has received a gun for me from a gun shop in Maryland. I head on up and open the box. It was the Pigtail model and in better than describer condition. AND it's a Red Letter gun. WOW! I still can't believe what a deal I got from another gun shop. They just didn't know what they had and didn't list it as a Red Letter gun. This little gun has the normal finish wear and patina that one would expect from a gun from the mid 30s but has been well cared for and locks up tight as a vice, the ejector works perfectly and shoots like a dream. I'd rate it at 85 to 90% overall. It had been over 40 years since I had held one of these shotguns until yesterday when I picked this one up. The other shotgun has not arrived yet but it doesn't have the bottom of the receiver stamped with 'Winchester' so it won't be a Red Letter and the pics showed it to be an average gun at best.
I won the Red Letter auction at $266 and the other one at $190 and could not be happier about the good luck I had for probably the only time in my life in a gun purchase.
Good times.
