tws3b2
Member
There were actually two reasons for the Browning/Winchester split. The first was over royalties. Winchester paid one time price for Browning's designs. If the gun was a great success Browning got nothing extra. The straw that broke the camel's back was when Browning designed the first auto shotgun. Winchester did not want to take the chance. If the gun was a failure Winchester would have lost a lot of money and time. And their reputation as a trusted gun maker would have been tarnished. And, if the auto was successful it would have killed the sales of their money making model 97 pump shotgun. Winchester put off Browning for two years. That infuriated Browning. The rest is history. Bad mistake on Winchester's part.