Just got my first Winchester
Posted: Tue Sep 04, 2012 5:22 am
Golly, sure hope I ain't gonna get kicked out of the model 8 site for this, but I'm kinda excited at the moment.
I just sealed the deal on an old Winchester rifle a model 1892! Its all there with a few nicks and scratches.
Intresting thing was, I got it right here in the small Pacific northwest town I live in from the original owners
great grandson. This fellow is a farmer part time and by training a school teacher, with long time family ties in this area.
Lucky for me he's not a "real" gun collecter although he does own a a Harrington/Richardson 22 pistol he keeps for
emergencys. He also has a 1899 model Savage rifle in 30-30 caliber. That rifle I learned was also bought new by his great grand dad in 1909. No info on how much that gun cost or where he got it.
The Winchester is in 38-40 caliber with octagon barrel. Whats remarkable about this old piece is, it has a five digit
serial number which I looked up on the Winchester site. The rifle came off the line around late summer 1893 which makes it about 120 years old! The great granddad was a minister assigned in Spokane, Washington when He was directed to
transfer his ministry to an area along the Canadian border north of the present day city of Bellingham. He bought the rifle from a Montgomery-Ward catalog I learned for $12.00 around 1894. Back in that time as he moved further west, the
Winchester was protection for his family, and of course used to kill game for food. The 1892 is an early Browning design and what a great one it is. The rifle is notably lighter in weight than the Remington model 8 and I really like the ease of carrying it at the center of gravity forward of the trigger without the issue of an ammo box getting in the way.
The rifle will take 15 rounds and of course no stripper clips are needed. As this is my first experience with this model gun I'm still learning, but first impressions are very favorable. Its easy to understand why Winchester sold so many guns in the time Remington struggled with model 8. I got some insight just examining the other guns owned by the great granddad.
They were all lever action. Back in 1909 when he bought the 1899 Savage, the autoloader had been on the market
for several years, still he chose the Savage. I'm thinking perhaps the model 8 was too advanced for him?
Anyway I'm pretty excited with this rifle. Plan to shoot it after getting it checked out. Also gotta say buying from a private owner when you can is the only way to go. No mail issues, no FFL to deal with. The man even let me hang on to the gun for several days while I looked it over. Sweet!
One last thing, I'm really starting to pay greater attention to the old western movies on TV. Almost all the rifles
shown are versions of the 1873 or 1892 model Winchester. Reruns of Wanted dead or alive, the rifleman and
gunsmoke, all feature this old piece, kinda neat. I'm still hoping someday to get an 1873 model Winchester,
with octagon barrel in 44-40. But for now gonna enjoy this one along with the model 8.
I just sealed the deal on an old Winchester rifle a model 1892! Its all there with a few nicks and scratches.
Intresting thing was, I got it right here in the small Pacific northwest town I live in from the original owners
great grandson. This fellow is a farmer part time and by training a school teacher, with long time family ties in this area.
Lucky for me he's not a "real" gun collecter although he does own a a Harrington/Richardson 22 pistol he keeps for
emergencys. He also has a 1899 model Savage rifle in 30-30 caliber. That rifle I learned was also bought new by his great grand dad in 1909. No info on how much that gun cost or where he got it.
The Winchester is in 38-40 caliber with octagon barrel. Whats remarkable about this old piece is, it has a five digit
serial number which I looked up on the Winchester site. The rifle came off the line around late summer 1893 which makes it about 120 years old! The great granddad was a minister assigned in Spokane, Washington when He was directed to
transfer his ministry to an area along the Canadian border north of the present day city of Bellingham. He bought the rifle from a Montgomery-Ward catalog I learned for $12.00 around 1894. Back in that time as he moved further west, the
Winchester was protection for his family, and of course used to kill game for food. The 1892 is an early Browning design and what a great one it is. The rifle is notably lighter in weight than the Remington model 8 and I really like the ease of carrying it at the center of gravity forward of the trigger without the issue of an ammo box getting in the way.
The rifle will take 15 rounds and of course no stripper clips are needed. As this is my first experience with this model gun I'm still learning, but first impressions are very favorable. Its easy to understand why Winchester sold so many guns in the time Remington struggled with model 8. I got some insight just examining the other guns owned by the great granddad.
They were all lever action. Back in 1909 when he bought the 1899 Savage, the autoloader had been on the market
for several years, still he chose the Savage. I'm thinking perhaps the model 8 was too advanced for him?
Anyway I'm pretty excited with this rifle. Plan to shoot it after getting it checked out. Also gotta say buying from a private owner when you can is the only way to go. No mail issues, no FFL to deal with. The man even let me hang on to the gun for several days while I looked it over. Sweet!
One last thing, I'm really starting to pay greater attention to the old western movies on TV. Almost all the rifles
shown are versions of the 1873 or 1892 model Winchester. Reruns of Wanted dead or alive, the rifleman and
gunsmoke, all feature this old piece, kinda neat. I'm still hoping someday to get an 1873 model Winchester,
with octagon barrel in 44-40. But for now gonna enjoy this one along with the model 8.
(Joe, I was TRYING to be patient.)
Just for funsies what town were you looking in, as I have not had a listed number or landline in a long time.