Does anyone know if anyone makes choke tubes that fit the Winchester 1200 WinChoke system that use a muzzle wrench instead of that worthless little spanner that Winchester provided?
You could also take a look for a nice choke tube wrench, if the choke patterns well for you. Any Mossberg Accuchoke, Winchoke, or Browning Invector (not plus) wrench should work for you. A decent wrench should be under $20 or so.
I have that same wrench as DC51 shows - bought it specifically for my SKB - unfortunately, Briley sent it with 4 lugs, SKB chokes have two.....out comes the Dremel, two lugs go away, wrench works great - runs about $15.....
Personally, I really like extended tubes if I have changeable chokes - makes life so much easier
Went to my choke tube box and pulled one out. I had forgotten about the winchokes with the very short external knurled surface. When I used it, I would finger tighten it then snug it up with a strap wrench. I would also use the strap wrench to take it off.
you might try one of these, should be cheaper than replacing a set of tubes, I've seen them on ebay and gunbroker from time to time. I found this one at a gun show for 10 bucks,
I came across you post while looking for Winchoke tubes for my Winchester Model 1400 12 ga. The tubes are becoming a rarity since Winchester stopped making them some years ago. I have been looking for a skeet tube for 2 years and finally found a source online.
Anyway, I wanted to know if the responses to your post answered your question. Do Carlson choke tubes fit, and are they available in the choke sizes you require?
if you feel you need a wrench - that's ok ....but if you can't get your chokes in or out with just putting a finger inside the choke ....then its too tight / or the choke tube threads or the barrel threads aren't lubed properly. Flush mounted or extended choke tubes --- I put them in and out with just my fingers ( no wrench ).
The only time I've needed a wrench ( and I carry several in my shooting box ..) / is on a friends gun ...when they didn't clean the choke tubes often ...and they got stuck tight in the barrels.
I use Break Free on my choke tubes / clean them every time I shoot the gun.
On a new gun / I seem to find a lot of "grit" in the threads of the barrel / and it takes some persistence to really get it cleaned out with a toothbrush before the chokes run in and out with little or no effort.
Granny, you may have a hard time finding those (sorry) goofy original style Winchoke tubes (though you could try Gunbroker, Auctionarms, etc.), but all the aftermarket choke manufacturers still make Winchoke-compatible tubes. Look at Briley, Carlson, Trulock and others (find them with Google). Midway, Brownells, etc. all sell these.
I got sidetracked on this project and still haven't finished refinishing and repairing the stock, so I've not addressed the need for better choke tubes.
For whatever reason, if I don't snug the Winchester tubes down to a little more than finger tight, they back out. I was shooting trap with friends years ago and put the IC tube in with my fingers. After a box of shells it had unscrewed a good 4 threads.
Mike - I have the same thing with my 28 gauge 1100. Every 3-4 shots, it becomes loose. The threads are VERY shallow and wide (Briley chokes). Even grease didn't help that much. What DID work was wrapping the threads with a layer of white teflon plumber's pipe tape - holds them in place until I take them out - something to consider
You must be right on the difference in threads ---because the chokes on my Brownings or Benelli's rarely move much / although I check them at the end of each round ...to make sure they're tight with finger pressure.