Win 1400:;; why so cheap?
Not any particular auction, my own gun included, but it seems like these are especially undervalued.
Trading hands for $200.00???. With VR and 3 tubes?
Is there some kind of fatal flaw with these guns or something i'm missisg?
Trading hands for $200.00???. With VR and 3 tubes?
Is there some kind of fatal flaw with these guns or something i'm missisg?
0
-
you have to follow thru with an auction for it to be a good deal 0 -
When Winchester released this gun, they gave them to numerous gun ranges for promotional purposes to be used as classroom guns etc and the problems were so bad with most of them that word just spread too quickly for Winchester to do anything positive with the gun.
The Model 1400 was never a particularly good seller. This was in part due to the fact that it had to compete with the Remington 1100 which most people would agree is a far superior design. The 1400 has a lot of aluminum, alloy and plastic parts, which are generally going to be more prone to breakage than steel.
Most important is the fact that the firearm has not been manufactured for many years and replacement parts are becoming hard to come by.
As guns go, the 1400 had an extremely short life span. The 1400 was not a good gun, Winchester had lots of problems with this gun, hence it died an early death. Winchester stayed out of the auto business until it's partnership with Browning.
The 1400 was made at the same time Winchester was making the 1200....another gun prone to malfunctions. The 1300, though similar, is a much improved version ofthe 1200. This period was a dark era for most of the Winchester product line. Getting parts for the 1400 is possible, but it's not easy.
One of the most common problems is that the plastic magazine throat will crack/break/wear out over time, and then the gun starts jambing because the shells won't feed properly from the magazine. All parts suppliers are out of them, and nobody is making replacement parts yet.0 -
Yes I own two, never had any trouble, but they don't get any respect, $300 is a high price around here. I have a 20ga and 16ga, the 16 I use as a slug gun, put fiber optic sight on the vent rib, shoots great. If you need a cheap semi, this is the one. parts are hard to come by, choke tubes are very hard to find. I bought a used 16ga barrel cheaper than a choke tube. $50.
as a general hunting gun they are allright, if you plan to shoot skeet or alot of shooting it may not be for you. I only shoot a box or two of shells a year, that may be while I have had no trouble.0 -
Bill Jordan....one of the first shotguns I ever bought was a Win 1400 at it has done the job for me for 40yrs on ducks and geese galore! I, too, can never figure out the reason why it goes cheaper than Rem 1100's and such as I love mine and it has never failed me. Fatal flaw? If so, I have never seen it as mine has never hiccuped one bit. Perhaps it doesn't have the "elite statue" that the Rem's have...don't know but I love my (30" FC) guy![^] 0 -
tsavo; wth does that mean? 0 -
I to have had a Win 1400 for over 30 years I got it for my 16th birthday and I am 53. Never a hick up or problem, gun is in excellent condition.Actually I did have one small problem. The barrel fits so tight I have to tap it out with a fiberglass rod. Took me about 25 years to finally get up enough gumption to work at it. When I did I did not find any rust or real dirt in the mate-ting area. Just some oil. I love my 1400. 0 -
Field and Stream Article
50 Best Guns of all Time (Note: Editor's Picks)
#4 on the list was the Remington 1100
http://www.fieldandstream.com/node/57306
Above article also mentioned the Worst Guns of all time. (Again, Editor's Picks)
#3 on the worst list was the Winchester 1400, main failure was the plastic magazine throat failure, as I mentioned earlier.
Here is what that article had to say about the 1400:
...and the worst guns
#3 WINCHESTER MODEL 1400
When Winchester designed this sleek-looking auto in 1964, it tried to save money by adapting one frame size to several different gauges and thought to take up the slack space in the receiver with plastic inserts, which usually cracked and fell out. That is part one of this story. In 1965, the company embarked on an ambitious program of establishing Winchester-franchised trap and skeet ranges. These ranges were stocked with Model 1400s, and soon the inevitable took place. Operators and shooters alike were driven to a frenzy by the antics of the 1400. I once phoned such a range about something perfectly innocent, and the first sentence out of the owner's mouth was: "IF YOU SAY ONE WORD ABOUT THAT !#@&*% 1400, I'LL KILL YOU!"
That seemed to sum it up quite nicely. (Author's comment, not mine)
........
So, Bill, the answer to your original posting/question 'Win 1400; Why so cheap' is the following:
1) The newly designed gun failed miserably on the trap and skeet ranges when Winchester tried to promote them (1965) in order to gain marketshare on the 1100 strangle-hold on that market segment (That effort really backfired on them).
2) Fatal flaw is the plastic magazine throat/insert. Gun jambs when that part fails.
3) Their re-sale value is less than one would expect because the replacement part is not available.0 -
Bill, I was just stating that GB is a useful and fun place to buy and sell firearms ad firearm related items.
However for it to work, the buyer has to send the seller money, and the seller has to send the item.
that's it[:D]0
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Comments
8 comments