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Work order — Winchester Model 1897

Taking the firearm apart for a job such as refinishing, and putting it back together to specification. Generated from the Pew-Takedown entry last updated 2026-10-29. Confidence: medium.

Shop difficulty: Tier 3 of 3

81 key-numbered parts, an exposed-hammer carrier that holds the hammer, mainspring, sear and slide lock, and a reassembly with several held springs (mainspring to hammer stirrup, trigger on its spring, extractor plunger) plus keyed wire-spring retainers and a riveted shell guide plate. Many small screws that are not interchangeable. 81 parts (complete Model 97 take-down gun per the Radocy 'Takedown Guide' exploded view legend (keys 1-81); forend wood and buttstock are drawn but not numbered ('Parts Not Shown: Forend Wood and Buttstock'), s). Pew-Takedown's rating, not the manufacturer's.

Bench time: strip ~80 min, rebuild ~120 min (estimate). Actual: strip ______ rebuild ______

Special tools:

• Stock tool or long-shank screwdriver — Stock bolt
• Slim drift — Action slide lock joint pin through the slide-track access hole
• Sharp-nosed pliers and very small probe — Carrier release button wire spring

Watch for:

• Reassembling the carrier lockwork, the mainspring has to be kept engaged in the hammer stirrup, holding the hammer back for tension, while the sear spring screw goes back in. (reassembly; Radocy takedown guide (PDF hosted by indaginibalistiche.it))
• The carrier release button is held inside the receiver by a round wire spring keyed into a tiny hole; it is released by pushing the tip in with a very small tool while moving it with sharp-nosed pliers inside the receiver. (both; Radocy takedown guide (PDF hosted by indaginibalistiche.it))
• The trigger must be pressed down against its spring until the holes line up for the trigger pin. (reassembly; War Department)
• The right extractor plunger and spring are under tension and must be held while the extractor is lifted out or refitted. (both; Radocy takedown guide (PDF hosted by indaginibalistiche.it))
• The carrier only comes out with the hammer cocked, the action slide lock release plunger held in and the carrier pried down through the ejection port. (disassembly; War Department)

Tools

• Hollow-ground screwdrivers — Takedown model adjustment and any screw work.

1. Clear and make safe

1. Point the muzzle in a safe direction and keep your finger off the trigger.
2. Note the hammer position. There is no manual safety on this gun — the hammer is the indicator.
   Warning: Half-cock is a hammer rest, not a safety.
3. Press the action slide lock and pull the forend rearward to open the action.
4. Cycle the action repeatedly, catching each shell, until no more feed from the magazine tube.
5. With the action open, inspect the chamber and look up the magazine tube with a light.
   Warning: Chamber and tube, both.
6. Physically confirm the chamber is empty, then lower the hammer carefully with the chamber confirmed empty.
   Warning: Lower the hammer under control with the muzzle in a safe direction.
7. Remove all live ammunition from the work area.

2. Disassemble

Field Strip — Takedown Models

1. Complete the Clear and Make Safe procedure.
2. On a takedown model, release the takedown screw at the front of the receiver.
   Warning: Solid-frame guns have no takedown joint. Do not force anything.
3. Pull the action slide lock, move the forend partway rearward, then rotate the barrel and magazine assembly a quarter turn and separate it from the receiver.
4. Clean the bore from the breech end of the separated barrel, and clean the bolt face, chamber, and receiver interior.

Remove the carrier group

1. Remove the barrel, magazine and action slide group (take-down gun), or the magazine and action slide group (solid-frame gun), first.
2. Unscrew the carrier pin stop screw, visible in the left top wall of the carrier just to the rear of the hammer tang.
3. Drift out the carrier pin, which runs through both receiver walls just below the carrier seat.
4. Remove the shell guide stop screw from the lower rear extremity of the right-hand wall of the receiver.
5. With the hammer cocked, depress the action slide lock release plunger pin in the right wall of the receiver so the lock does not catch on the receiver wall.
6. Insert a screwdriver through the ejection opening and pry gently on the carrier to start it downward.
   Tip: If the release plunger will not work, put a small screwdriver blade into the cut in the lower left forward face of the carrier and pry the action slide lock inward.
7. Rotate the carrier down and out of the receiver through the lower opening.

Remove the breech bolt group

1. Remove the carrier group first.
2. With the breech bolt fully forward, remove the action slide hook screw from the right forward face of the breech bolt.
3. Reach into the receiver and remove the action slide hook from the left side of the breech bolt.
4. Slide the breech bolt group to the rear out of the receiver.

Remove the butt stock and trigger guard bow group

1. Remove the butt plate screws and the butt plate.
2. With a long-shanked screwdriver, turn the butt stock bolt (now visible in the hole in the stock) counterclockwise to disengage it from the receiver tang.
3. Pull the butt stock to the rear off the receiver.
4. With a pin drift, drive the trigger pin out of the lower rear end of the receiver.
5. Pull the guard bow to the rear out of the receiver.
6. Remove the trigger and trigger spring from the guard bow.
   Warning: Do not remove the stop screw. It limits the rearward travel of the trigger, which must move far enough to disengage the sear from the hammer.

Remove the bayonet attachment and magazine (solid-frame riot gun)

1. Unscrew and remove the three transverse screws from the bayonet attachment.
2. Drive the bayonet attachment forward off the barrel.
   Warning: The barrel of the early solid-frame gun is screwed into the receiver at manufacture and should not be removed.
3. Lock the action by pushing the action slide handle fully forward.
4. Remove the magazine stop screw from the lower forward end of the right side of the receiver.
5. Engage the stud and hole in the end of the magazine plug with an improvised tool (a pin-and-hole tool or a rod bent to an L) and turn the magazine counterclockwise out of the receiver.
6. Withdraw the magazine with the action slide group attached.

3. Refinish

The components the procedures above separate. Coating, masking and cure are outside this database; follow your coating system's instructions. A part the manufacturer marks "factory fit" should not be swapped or reworked.

No manufacturer statement of materials or finish is recorded. Identify each part's material before choosing prep and cure.

The manufacturer's full parts list (20 parts) is on the reference page.

4. Reassemble

Remove the bayonet attachment and magazine (solid-frame riot gun)

1. Reverse the steps of "Remove the bayonet attachment and magazine (solid-frame riot gun)".

Remove the butt stock and trigger guard bow group

1. Reverse the steps of "Remove the butt stock and trigger guard bow group".

Remove the breech bolt group

1. Reverse the steps of "Remove the breech bolt group".

Remove the carrier group

1. Reverse the steps of "Remove the carrier group".

Replace the trigger guard bow group and butt stock

1. Clean, lightly oil and lubricate the parts before replacing them.
2. Seat the trigger spring in its aperture in the guard bow.
3. Place the trigger on top of the spring with its curved end extending downward through the floor of the guard bow.
4. Slide the guard bow into the rear of the receiver, pin hole forward, until the pin holes in guard bow and receiver line up.
5. Press the trigger down against its spring until its pin hole lines up with the holes in guard bow and receiver, then insert the trigger pin.
6. Drive the trigger pin through until flush.
7. Slide the butt stock onto the receiver tang, mating it with the groove in the receiver.
8. Replace the butt stock bolt and washer and screw it down tight, turning clockwise.
9. Replace the butt plate and screw it down snugly.
   Warning: Do not screw a composition butt plate down too tightly; it can crack and the screw threads in the stock can strip.

Replace the breech bolt group

1. Insert the breech bolt group into the rear of the receiver, locking lug forward and down, and push it all the way home.
2. Slip the action slide hook into the left side of the breech bolt locking lug so the boss on the hook seats in the counterbore in the lug and the hook lies in its guideway in the left inner wall of the receiver, point down and to the rear.
3. Replace the action slide hook screw from the right side of the breech bolt and tighten it.
   Tip: The head of the hook screw should protrude from the right face of the breech bolt at least 1/32 inch so that it cams the shell guide down clear of the ejection opening when the bolt is retracted.
4. Slide the breech bolt back and forth several times and check that the hook moves with it.

Replace the carrier group

1. Make sure the breech bolt is all the way forward and the shell guide stop screw is out of the right wall of the receiver.
2. Cock the hammer.
3. Insert the carrier, hammer up and to the rear, through the bottom opening of the receiver and keep moving it rearward until it seats in its recess in the rear wall of the receiver.
4. Press firmly up on the carrier until it is completely home behind the locking lug of the breech bolt.
5. Insert the carrier pin so its groove is on the left side of the receiver and lined up with the hole for the carrier pin stop screw in the left top of the carrier body, to the left rear of the hammer.
6. Replace the carrier pin stop screw.
7. Replace the shell guide stop screw in its hole in the right wall of the receiver just ahead of the trigger pin.
   Tip: This screw has a pin end; its head should sit flush with the face of the receiver.

Replace the magazine and bayonet attachment (solid-frame riot gun)

1. With the hammer forward in the fired position, move the breech bolt forward and lock the carrier behind it by pressing upward on the carrier until it is behind the locking shoulder of the bolt.
2. With the action slide on the magazine, hold the magazine along the underside of the barrel and insert the rear end of the slide bar into the bar opening in the left forward face of the receiver.
3. Push the slide bar rearward so that it enters the cam aperture in the carrier.
4. Mate the magazine threads with those in the receiver, taking care not to cross-thread them.
5. Screw the magazine tightly into the receiver, turning clockwise, until the stop screw holes in receiver and magazine line up, then replace the stop screw.
   Tip: The improvised tool used for removal can be used to tighten the magazine.
6. Slide the bayonet attachment group onto the muzzle end of the barrel with the sling swivel to the rear and the sight up.
7. Mate the hole in the rear of the attachment lug with the stud on the magazine plug, and adjust the attachment until its screw holes line up with the screw grooves in the underside of the barrel.
8. Replace the screws and screw them in tightly.
9. Check the attachment for level seating and for interference of the hand guard with the action slide handle.
10. Pull the action slide to the rear as far as it will go and operate it several times to test the mechanism and the locking of the breech bolt and slide.

Reassembly

1. Align the barrel and magazine assembly with the receiver and rotate it a quarter turn to engage.
2. Tighten the takedown screw until the two halves are snug with no perceptible play.
   Warning: A loose takedown joint is dangerous and will batter the gun. Adjust it rather than shooting it loose.
3. Cycle the action several times and perform the function check.

5. Torque

No manufacturer torque values are recorded for this firearm.

Notes: The manufacturer's documents give no torque value. They say: "Then replace butt stock bolt and washer, and screw down tight by turning clockwise. The butt plate can then be replaced and screwed down snugly." (TM 9-285 Shotguns, All Types (War Department Technical Manual, 21 Sept 1942), PDF p. 31) "Replace action slide hook screw from right side of breech bolt, and tighten." (TM 9-285 Shotguns, All Types (War Department Technical Manual, 21 Sept 1942), PDF p. 31)

Fit or check on rebuild

• Trigger stop screw setting — If it is moved it must be readjusted so the trigger travels far enough to release the sear.
• Takedown joint adjusted tight — A loose takedown joint is dangerous and batters the gun.
• Function check: safety, trigger/sear release, disconnector and feeding with dummy rounds — Standard after any detail strip; a mis-assembled sear or disconnector can double or fail to fire.

6. Function check

• Verify the shotgun is unloaded — chamber and magazine tube — before each step.
• Cycle the action fully and confirm it locks closed.
• With the hammer cocked, engage the safety and press the trigger. The hammer must not fall.
• Disengage the safety and press the trigger. The hammer should fall.
• Load two dummy shells into the magazine and confirm they feed and eject one at a time.
• Confirm the magazine cap or takedown fastener is tight.
• Determine whether your gun slam fires: with the hammer cocked and the trigger held to the rear, cycle the action fully. If the hammer falls as the action closes, the gun has no disconnector.
• Know the answer before you load it.
• On a takedown model, confirm the joint is snug with no play.

If any check fails, the firearm is not safe to fire. Stop and see a licensed gunsmith.

Sources

1. Winchester Model 1897 Shotgun Instructions — Winchester Repeating Arms primary
2. TM 9-285 Shotguns, All Types (War Department Technical Manual, 21 Sept 1942) — U.S. War Department primary
   https://archive.org/details/TM9-285
3. TM 9-285, Shotguns, All Types — War Department primary
   https://archive.org/download/TM9-285/TM9-285.pdf
4. Winchester 97 Takedown Guide (Made Easy series) — parts list and 39-step takedown — Radocy takedown guide (PDF hosted by indaginibalistiche.it) secondary
   https://www.indaginibalistiche.it/utlities/manuali/winchester_97_EN.pdf

Educational guide only. Some information comes from non-authoritative sources. Always consult your manufacturer's manual and a licensed gunsmith. Verify your firearm is unloaded before every procedure. Full disclaimer: https://github.com/Fundamental-build-LLC/Pew-Takedown

Legal notice: this material is third-party information compiled from sources of varying reliability and is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It is not gunsmithing, technical, safety or legal advice, it is not verified or endorsed by any manufacturer, and it must not be taken as fact. Any work on a firearm beyond the routine field stripping described in its own owner's manual should be performed only by a licensed and insured gunsmith. You use this material entirely at your own risk. Fundamental Build LLC and the project's contributors make no warranty of any kind and accept no liability for death, injury, damage or loss arising from its use. Full terms: LEGAL.md.