Hi Chuck:
This is from page 65 of Winchester's Finest, The Model 21 by Ned Schwing:
"After 1960 the point of impact was changed so the gun would shoot dead center. This meant that the barrels on post 1960 Model 21s were bent slightly upward to accomplish this new point of impact. The barrel finishers referred this process as putting "up" the barrels. If one looks down the the barrel of a Model 21 made through 1959 the barrels will be relatively straight. On guns made from 1960 on, the barrels will have a noticeable bend in them. The result is not unlike the shape of a banana, albeit not as pronounced. Nick colomonico, long time Wichester barrel maker, once spent a month adjusting the barrels on a Model 21 built for baseball star Ted Williams, so they would shoot to the owner's satisfaction. Model 21s fitted with ventilated ribs were much easier to regulate because of the additional height of the rib."
Although not related to your question I thought this paragraph was interesting. From page 64:
"After the barrels were browned they were fittted to the frame and again taken to be fired on the 40 yard range. If the gun did not shoot correctly the barrel finished had several options. The front sight could be lowered slightly to make the gun shoot higher, or if the gun shot too high the barrels could be put on a straghtening jack and forced down to give the proper point of impact. If this failed the barrels would be taken apart and the entire process repeated until the gun shot correctly. This was not much of a problem prior to 1960 because the Model 21 was designed to shoot light low and the barrels were straight."
Best,
Mike
Last edited by AmarilloMike; 07/14/08 04:35 PM.
