I too have a Winchester Model 1894 takedown in .30 WCF.
It too was made in 1899, according to the serial number of 154XXX.
It has a 26-inch octagon barrel and the flip-up Express sights labeled 50, 100 and 200 (presumably feet, not meters).
Before it was given to me, it was refinished. But whoever did the work was a master. None of the markings are buffed out and the bluing is a dark, shiny black. The wood has a nice, oil shine.
However, the bore looks like a gopher hole, the result of years of firing with corrosive primers, no doubt.
Since it has minimal collector interest because it's been reblued, I've sometimes considered having the barrel relined but keeping it as a .30-30. This would, in effect, make it a new rifle without affecting the exterior.
A couple of years ago, I made some reduced pressure loads and tried the ol' girl out. There was no evidence of excessive headspace with these loads, so I tried some Remington factory loads. Ditto, no sign of excessive headspace or sticky extraction.
Whoever refinished it probably checked the headspace and corrected it if necessary.
I used the 50 yard sight and, as I recall, shots were slightly lower than the bullseye. Someday, I'll wring it out at 100 and 200 yards but I'm not very optimistic about any kind of accuracy with that horribly pitted bore.
Anyway, you have a great rifle there. It's fun to show it to guys who think they know guns. Few have ever heard of the takedown Winchesters, let alone seen one.
One know-it-all, in front of other interested shooters, butted in to say that it was an "assassin's gun" made for covert operations.
Muhahahahahaaha!
I straightened him out.
The story I got was that long ago, many hunters traveled by train to their hunting camps. Toting along a full-length rifle was cumbersome.
So, Winchester responded with the takedown models. Here was a rifle that could be quickly broken down and packed in a large suitcase for travel. Also, it discouraged theft if the rifle was unseen.
Once at the camp, the hunter quickly reassembled his rifle, tried a few test shots for zero, and was ready to hunt.
Sounds plausible to me; more plausible than being an "assassin's rifle!" :roll:
I've read that the takedown models are not nearly as accurate as the solid-frame models. Perhaps. Somehow, you can adjust the locking mechanism to tighten it as wear naturally occurs, but I've not had to do this.
This Winchester is so tight that I have to hold the barrel group in one hand and gently push the receiver over with the lever as a fulcrum. Relax, it sounds worse than in actual practice; nothing gets strained. In reassembling, it takes some hand-force to align the barrel with the receiver. I can't imagine it being any tighter and still be disassembled by hand.
At the Salt Lake City gun show a few years ago, I saw a beat-up, scarred takedown Winchester 1894 in .30 WCF. It was in pitiful shape but it bore a price tag of $1,100!
I think that seller was trolling for a sucker.
Out West, the old Winchesters bring higher prices because rich people buy them as decorators for their fancy log homes.
Often, these are the same people who attend gun control functions, vote for gun control advocates and decry logging practices.
They don't equate an old "decoration" as gun ownership and they must think their log homes are made from recycled Perrier bottles. Go figure. They'll pay exorbitant prices for any old Winchester that looks like it was once handled by a real, rootin-tootin' Cowboy!
I know. I've run across a few at gun shows who were looking for decorations.
One rich jerk paid $500 for a Winchester 94 carbine with a saddle ring, and it was a beater! I jotted down the serial number --- which was in the 2 million range --- and looked it up at home: made in 1953!
That saddle ring was obviously added by the seller to give it more appeal and a higher value. Winchester stopped adding saddle rings to regular production guns in the late 1920s, as I recall.
How much is your and my Winchester 1894 takedown worth? I'd guess between $800 to $1,500, depending on the eagerness of the buyer. Perhaps $2,000 if some rich jerk really wanted it.
But I won't sell mine. I enjoy owning it too much.
Let me know some of the features of your rifle. I'd be interested in comparing notes.
