So, I have Mr. Thomas C. Johnson to thank for these guns? I'm a doublegun guy, have been for years, but I appreciate anything that is well made. These guns have great weight and balance (at least certainly in the nickel-steel sub-gauges)and they handle and carry beautifully. They are often overlooked in the racks of the local gunshops, and their prices tend to reflect that. There are times when a third shot is a very useful thing, and when the weather is abysmal they are a very nice option to have on hand.
I would suggest you get the George Madis book on the Model 12- good background on Mr. Thomas C. Johnson and good details on the Model 12- as far as the small gauges are concerned and nickle steel-- IMO-- take a 1921 M12 20 gauge 28" plain nickle steel barrel field grade- unaltered from factory specs-- then take a 1932 M12 20 gauge 28" plain barreled in Winchester Proof Steel, again, as from the factory- have some one blindfold you, and let you mount, swing and then dry fire and cycle the action all you want-- I'll bet you a flat of 20 gauge Big Box store loads you can't tell the difference. I have never encountered a M12 20 gauge made from 1925 to about 1929 with the WRA Stainless Steel barrel, but I would be willing to state that you wouldn't know that blindfolded either- All gun barrel steels have nickle and chromium alloys, for that matter, so does stainless steel-- carbon and manganese and silicone % contents are what constitute the minute differences. Had not WRA "dilly-dallied" for 4 years with the stainless shotgun barrels (and also offered on their M54 BA CF rifle series) and their ill-advised ads for-- "Don't worry if you come in from the rain-you can put off cleaning your Winchester with a stainless barrel until later"" what a marketing blunder- my guess is they would have still developed Winchester Proof Steel (AISI 4140) as they were working on the great and darn near indestructible Model 21 double gun at that same time frame--why then, I would ask, in retrospect, would WRA use the WPS just for the new kid on their block- the M21?? and not also use it for the M12, M54 and later the "Rifleman's Rifle- the Model 70- as well as all the other rifles and shotguns they were producing-
