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Capitalizing on the success of the Spencer pump shotgun, Winchester would use a John Browning design, US patent No. 441390, to dominate the market with the production of their Model 1893. Issues with the design would result in modifications and the production of the Model 1897.
The heart of this shotgun is the earlier Browning modification, US patent No. 356271, to the Spencer design. The carrier of the previous design was downsized and modified to work with a sliding breech-block, but follows the same movement during the action cycle. When the action is closed the carrier abuts the breech-block to lock the action. A safety feature is employed by which the action cannot be opened until the firing pin is moved forward.
Use of the firing pin to control the opening of the action would prove problematic. The issue was that the action was able to be unlocked as soon as the hammer struck the firing pin. Hang-fires were not uncommon with black powder shot shells, but absolutely plagued early smokeless cartridges. If the operator maintained rearward force on the foregrip, through poor discipline or in anticipation of rapid fire, the action could be unlocked before or during a shell’s ignition. Such an out-of-battery discharge could cause damage and was quite unpleasant for the operator.
Additional issues were found relating to the thickness of the receiver and the large opening of the ejection port. The increased pressure of smokeless powder led to parts breakage and cracking. In 1895 customer complaints and litigation prompted Winchester to overhaul the design. Relations between Browning Brothers and Winchester would begin to deteriorate when John Browning refused to participate in redesigning the Model 1893.
By 1901 Winchester had used up its remaining supply of spare parts for the Model 1893. In an effort to reduce costs, Winchester began a program offering to replace a Model 1893 returned for repair with a new Model 1897. Less than 7 percent of guns produced were replaced or broken-up under this program.
Inventor: John Browning, Matthew Browning
Patent Attorney: Earle & Seymour
Assigned: Winchester, June 1890