Gary Reeder
I sorta cheated on you, with doubts that anyone on here
Wednesday, February 11, 2026, 21:28

could answer this 3rd gun. It is a J.C.Higgins model 66 12 gauge, one of the first semi autos sold by Sears in the J.C.Higgins line up. The gun had belonged to my Dad and had been stored in a damp garage in St. Petersburg Florida. Five years after he died I got his guns back and they were in terrible shape. That shotgun was almost solid rust, along with a 1911 45 Auto. I was determined to bring them back to at least somewhat decent condition. The 1911 was pitted so bad that all I could do was buff most of the pits out and blue it.
The model 66 was bad but not pitted as bad so I was able to bring it back to somewhat good condition. To cover some small pits I engraved it and re-blued it. My Dad enjoyed hunting for quail and ducks so I engraved waterfowl and other wildfowl. I shoots almost as new so I kept it in my collection.







I was pretty sure nobody on here would recognize it as the model 66 J.C.Higgins. I just threw it in to see what comments I might get.

This was in 1965, dove hunting around our pond. I was 20 then.