POTD: A 9mm Shotgun? – The Winchester Mannequin 36

Welcome to right this moment’s Photograph of the Day! The Winchester Mannequin 36 is a single-shot, bolt-action smoothbore shotgun launched in 1920 firing the anemic however quiet 9mm Flobert rimfire shotshells. Its 18-inch barrel lacks rifling, producing an expansion akin to a backyard gun for discreet pest management. Although the Mannequin 36 resembles quite a few Winchester rimfire bolt actions of its period, a scant 20,000 have been manufactured over simply 7 years earlier than 1927, doubtless interesting to a distinct segment viewers. Right this moment, packing containers of fifty No. 9 shot Flobert shells can price $1 per spherical, producing a 6-inch sample at 15 ft that’s nonetheless ample for close-range searching with out .22 LR’s ricochet hazards. Whereas the two.75-pound Mannequin 36 works tremendous on stationary tin cans or balloons, its restricted shot payload and 13-inch size of pull render aerial skeet taking pictures a feat requiring luck maxed out. The Mannequin 36 stays an eccentric collector’s merchandise illuminating Winchester’s willingness to experiment between the World Wars.