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New Owner, Questions About My Model 81

Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2019 9:49 am
by ksmitty117
Hello everyone, I recently purchased a Model 81 in 300 Savage and I have some questions that I am looking for answers for. Looking to identify the tang sight, what the three holes on the left hand side of the receiver are/were for, and if the iron sights are factory or have been upgraded. The date code on the barrel is September 1948. It appears the wood has been clear coated and to the touch, it almost feels like the metal has a clear coat on it? I'm having a difficult time figuring out if the finish is original and it's just hardly used and well kept, or if it has been restored at some point. Overall the internals are extremely clean and the barrel jacket has no signs of wear. I’m really just trying to collect as much info as I can on it. If there are other threads on this forum that could help me out, please direct me to them. Thanks in advance.

Re: New Owner, Questions About My Model 81

Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2019 9:51 am
by ksmitty117
Additional images...

Re: New Owner, Questions About My Model 81

Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2019 11:44 am
by jack1653
Hey ksmitty,

Welcome to the forum! Happy to have you among us. Congratulations on your purchase. The 300 isa good round and you can still buy it.

I will try and answer some of your questions. The rifle has been reblued. The bluing is not the typical slow-rust that you will find on these rifles. The charge handles is normally polished and not blued. I can also see bluing on the barrel receiver which is again normally polished.

The woodhas been sanded and refinished. This is evident when you look at the fit of the stock to the receiver. The sanding was more agressive than necessary and results in the stock not have a good fit to the metal. This does not affect the shooting of the rifle and is more of a cosmetic issue.

The three holes on the left side of the receiver was for a sigt mount, but I can’t tell you what the name of the sight is at this point. There are several brands of tang sights and you should be able to find the name on the side of the base of the sight. The most common is the Marbles and they had sveral models.

I hope this helps answer some of your questions. If you have more questions and we will try and get you an answer.

Re: New Owner, Questions About My Model 81

Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2019 7:56 pm
by ksmitty117
Jack, thank you for the information! I had the feeling upon purchase that this was someone’s project gun. Nonetheless, I am excited to own it and looking forward to shooting it.

Re: New Owner, Questions About My Model 81

Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2019 9:44 pm
by Phyrbird
I may be wrong but the screw holes on left look like for the Williams 5D sight.
A pretty Lady, the finish is better than typical factory. The renovation looks nice...
Welcome :)

Re: New Owner, Questions About My Model 81

Posted: Fri Feb 15, 2019 5:51 am
by Roger
Sir, I'm not perfectly sure,but it looks like the Tang peep sight is a Lyman. It appears to be in decent
shape. And I have to concur with Jack on all the rest of the gun.I hope it shoots as well as all the ones I have.
Thanks for your time
Roger

Re: New Owner, Questions About My Model 81

Posted: Fri Feb 15, 2019 5:20 pm
by ksmitty117
Gentlemen, thank you for the insight. I highly appreciate it. Looking forward to a day off work to take it out.