The Man Who Did The Impossible
Anyone who has been interested in American guns and their history for more than a day is familiar with the story and the designs of the Maestro, the Leonardo da Vinci of guns, John Moses Browning. John Browning was a figure out of legend, with more gun and cartridge credits than seem possible, from rimfire rifles to automatic aircraft cannon.
He was also the mastermind behind the first commercially successful, mass-produced pump shotgun, the 1897 Winchester, which was in production for 60 years, from 1897 to 1957. Over a million of these were made, and they were used by the military, by police, and by sport and competitive shooters. I’m saving a spot in my safe for a nice copy of the 1897 Winchester Black Diamond trap gun, in fact.
Here’s the thing: The most famous shotgun to ever wear the Winchester name outlived and outsold the Browning-designed 1897. That would be the famous Model 12, known as the Perfect Repeater, and its design, interestingly, was derived from the Browning 1897. That is due to the efforts of one man, a Winchester engineer named Thomas Crossley “T.C.” Johnson, the man who accomplished the impossible: He took a Browning design and improved it.
T.C. Johnson was born in Connecticut in 1862. His father, Samuel C. Johnson, was the president of the Yale Safe and Iron Company. T.C. graduated from Yale University’s Sheffield Scientific School in 1884 and immediately went to work for the Winchester Repeating Arms Company, where he would spend his remarkable career, including that one great feat of improving a Browning design.
Winchester’s Perfect Repeater
The Model 12 was indeed an improvement on the Browning-designed 1897. Its enclosed receiver kept out dust and grime. Its feed mechanism was more efficient. And T.C. Johnson indeed produced that rare improvement. Here’s how that went:
Starting with the original 1897 shotgun, Mr. Johnson and his team retained the take-down action mechanism, the six-round tubular magazine, and the slam-fire capacity. In other words, the front end of the gun was essentially unchanged, and why not? It worked. The only quibble I’ve ever had with the Model 12 is its notoriously thin barrel walls, something else it inherited from the 1897.
The changes were primarily to the receiver. Johnson designed an enclosed receiver with an internal hammer, with the magazine loading from the bottom of the receiver and spent shells ejected through a port on the right side of the receiver. The feed system was also redesigned; where the 97 had used a big, heavy lifter to not only feed new rounds into the chamber but to also lock the bolt closed, the new gun used a much lighter shell lifter and instead locked the bolt closed with a lug that locked solidly into the top of the receiver. The receiver itself was machined from a billet of forged steel, making for a gun of immense strength for the time, perfectly capable of handling the new smokeless powder ammo.With this, T.C. Johnson produced the final configuration of the pump-action shotgun, which form persists even today. Pick up an 870 Remington or a Mossberg 500, and it will feed and work pretty much the same way as the Model 12.
Read More: Sunday Gun Day Vol. III Ep. XLVI - Shadow of Greatness, Val Browning
Perhaps because the Model 97 was already being produced in 12 and 16 gauge, the Model 1912, as it was then known, was initially introduced only in 20 gauge. 12- and 16-gauge versions were introduced in late 1913. The 16-gauge guns were built on the 20-gauge frame, making them an ideal compromise between “thump” and handling; my own 16-gauge is light, fast, a joy to handle, but with standard 2 ¾” shells put out a slightly larger shot charge than a 2 ¾” 20-gauge hull, although I admit the advent of a 3” magnum 20-gauge cartridge undid most of that advantage.
Winchester’s marketing department was quick to promote the new pump gun, labeling it “The Perfect Repeater,” which, to my estimation, is a pretty accurate description. A variety of Model 12s were produced, including lightweight versions and “Heavy Duck” guns that fired the very first 3” 12-gauge shells. Trap and Skeet versions were also produced, as were the fancy Pigeon Grade guns, featuring engraving, silver and/or gold inlays, and AAA+ walnut stocks and fore ends.
Read More: Sunday Gun Day Vol. III Ep. XLII - The Magnificent Fabrique Nationale, Gunmakers Extraordinaire
I have three Model 12s of my own in the safe: two field-grade guns in 16 and 12 gauge, which are primarily hunting guns, and a 1940 Black Diamond Trap Gun, the centerpiece of my small collection of pre-64 Winchesters. That’s why I’m still keeping an eye open for a Black Diamond 1897, in fact, so that I might have a matched set.
Yes, I know, collectors can be a little weird.
His Impressive List of Designs
The Model 12 wasn’t T.C. Johnson’s only success story. His other designs for Winchester included:
- Winchester Model 1903, the first commercially available rimfire self-loading rifle.
- Winchester Model 1905, the first commercially available centerfire self-loading rifle. These came in three proprietary calibers, the original Model 1905 coming in either .32 or .35 Winchester Self-Loading. Later, Winchester and Johnson produced two more models based on the same design, the Model 1907 in .351 Winchester Self-Loading, and the Model 1910, in the thumping .401 Winchester Self-loading. The Model 1910, in addition to being well-liked in heavy cover for deer and bear, it was reportedly popular among prison guards.
- Winchester Model 1911, a self-loading shotgun that wasn’t a great commercial success.
- Winchester Model 21, perhaps the finest American-made double-barreled shotgun. Copies of this gun command fancy prices now, and I was once privileged to handle (but not shoot) a true one-of-a-kind, Winchester’s sole prototype of an aluminum-frame Model 21.
- Winchester Model 52 bolt-action smallbore match rifle. I’m also saving a place in my safe for one of these as well.
- Winchester Model 54 bolt-action hunting rifle, which evolved into the Model 70, the “Rifleman’s Rifle.”
This was a guy who made some great guns, the real standouts being the Model 12, the Model 21, and the Model 54, which all gained fame in their own right.
His Legacy
T.C. Johnson passed away in June of 1934, at the age of 72. He left behind a variety of designs, but three stand out: The Winchester Self-Loading series, the Model 54 bolt gun that would be the basis for the immortal Model 70, and the Perfect Repeater: The Model 12 Winchester. For my money, it’s the Model 12 that really, if you’ll pardon the expression, hits the bullseye.
And, yes, I’m still keeping an eye out for that 1897 Black Diamond Trap Gun.
