Author Topic: Old Winchester (Read 555 times)

Raza · « **on:** December 05, 2003, 04:36:44 PM »

Hey, if you guys were going to buy an old to medium old Winchester Lever-action for a backup rifle (open iron sights) what caliber would you buy? Not a 30-30 ok? 44-40? 38-40? (If that's a caliber). What would you expect to pay for a used one in NRA "good" to "fair" condition? What would you look for as far as the mechanical condition went? Is it possible for the bore to be "shot out," or is that an old wives' tale? Is a faster caliber, say 30-30, more likely to be shot out or have headspacing problems? What else is there to consider?

1860 · « **Reply #1 on:** December 06, 2003, 12:51:28 AM »

There is so much to consider that we need to narrow it down a little. What model Winchester are you looking at?
What is your budget?
How big are your deer and at what range will you be shooting?

The .44-40 will make a dandy shorter ranged deer round but you will have to reload them. The factory offerings are loaded very light so people don't blow up old black powder era Winchesters. 38-40s are also a nice bullet, my personal favorite.

You mentioned "good to fair" condition, in the world of antique winchesters, those terms indicate one in not so good shape as far as shooting goes. You would want one in verygood to excellant condition, that doesn't mean a pristine gun, just one that could be shot pretty well.

Take a look At Gunbroker.com and see what you find, the prices listed there can often be inflated but sometimes a reasonable one slips by.

1860

Raza · « **Reply #2 on:** December 06, 2003, 05:52:36 AM »

Many thanks. I have often heard that rifle barrels (as opposed to, say, shotguns) can be "shot out." Is this true? It seems unlikely to me--I should say, is it true of a 38-40 or a 30-30?

Shorty · « **Reply #3 on:** December 06, 2003, 08:06:05 AM »

A .44-40 or .38-40, and even a .30-30 will rarely be "shot out" from wear. What you will commonly find is bores that have been rusted by the use of corrosive priming (or black powder loads) and poor cleaning. Once that rust is scrubbed out, the bore will look "shot out". Sometimes such rifles will still shoot acceptably.

Winter Hawk · « **Reply #4 on:** December 08, 2003, 02:58:10 PM »

A pitted bore can also be drilled out and relined by a competent gunsmith so it will shoot good again.

-Kees-