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Winchester 1873 22 Cal carrier photos
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April 15, 2013 - 9:19 am
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I have read several posts that have referred to the Carrier shell length adjustment used to adjust from 22 short to 22 long. For future reference, here is a couple photos of this block. I have a block marked as 22 Short (Serial # 268xxx) and also a 22 Long (Serial # 271xxx) that both have the same adjustment capabilities so they were not only available to go from Short to Long but also from Long to Short.

It would appear that a conversion to "Long Rifle" could be made if the Length Adjuster could be made that was about .097" shorter and use the "long" screw hole mounting position along with a third hole that would need to be bored. The Length Adjuster is made from spring steel. Winchester Bob makes this sort of conversion for $385 along with recutting the chamber and making final adjustments to make it all work properly. Saw a brick of "22 Long" cartridges at the gunshow the other day for $150. Wouldn’t take much shooting to pay for the conversion let alone the time spent trying to find 22 Long cartridges…

[Image Can Not Be Found]
View of Length Adjuster mounted in the Carrier showing how the rim of the case will contact it. View of the front of the carrier.

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April 15, 2013 - 3:30 pm
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The problem with shorting the spring to use 22 LR is the spring would be under more stress and would probable break. The way Winchester would do it is like they did with the 22 Extra Long. They put the spring on the opposite side with the screw on the front side and the lug on the spring is machined opposite.

Bob

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April 16, 2013 - 7:33 am
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Hadn’t thought about reversing it. Sometimes the simplest solutions are the best! This would require boring two holes, one for the new Long Rifle position for the lug and a new screw hole that is tapped just ahead of the first two "lug holes". Not sure if the original Length Adjuster could be used as the lug on both of mine are tapered on the back side. Maybe a touch of a welder to add a bit of metal to square it off.

I wonder if there is someone on the forum that does this conversion or has had it done and knows what is involved. Maybe they could enlighten us?

What would be the opinion about what this conversion to shoot Long Rifles would do to the value of an 1873 22 cal? Would it go up or go down? And how much?

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April 16, 2013 - 10:27 am
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Before you start down the "convert to Long Rifle" path, you need to check the twist and bore diameter of the barrel. Many early 22 rimfires used a slow twist that would not stabilize an ordinary 36 to 40 grain Long Rifle bullet. I have 4 such rifles.

I have a couple of early .22 rimfire rifles that do not shoot ordinary .22s accurately. They have .225 & .226" bore diameters. If you find the proper diameter bullets or swage the bullets to a larger size, they do OK.

Early .22 rimfires do not have a "chamber" as made today. They simply have an unrifled section of groove-diameter bore at the breech end. With the 1873 in .22, you should be able to load and chamber a standard velocity .22 Long Rifle cartridge from the top, not using the magazine tube or the lifter at all.

Fire a few of the singly loaded SV Long Rifle cartridges for accuracy at 50 & 100 yards. If the twist or bore is wrong, it will not be very accurate.

IMHO, once you start down the conversion route, collector value takes a dive. If you start with a junker, that would not matter.

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April 16, 2013 - 10:31 pm
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I have a definite "fixer upper" where there were numerous parts missing, the bore is total crap, the magazine assembly has to be replaced, no hammer spring, no dust cover spring, no rear sight, butt stock off a cartridge rifle (not a 22 as it has the slide for the cleaning rod), missing bottom tang stock screw, needs replacement finger lever spring screw, and the whole thing is sort of rusty but more like decayed oil or something on it. Rust is just starting to hit the barrel but was able to steel wool this off.

When I get the new parts, I’m going to have it relined and converted. I need a really accurate shooter which is why I started with this rifle. Lots to fix up and add and not really affecting its value except in the positive way. Since the stock has been messed with, I’m going to have it replaced.

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April 16, 2013 - 11:24 pm
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The way the 73 action works means that it can easily chamber a .22 Long Rifle into a "match chamber", something many other repeaters don’t do well. There are many liners on the market, but some have a lot more accuracy potential than do others. The ones most often used for accuracy are "TJ" liners from a firm in Tennessee and the English-made Parker liners. Parker liners are no longer made, but there seems to be NOS readily available in the US. There are literally dozens of different match chamber designs. I was advised to select a "Benz" chamber for a liner installed in a Winder. I did so, but now wish I had selected something with a tighter fit.

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April 18, 2013 - 10:37 am
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Waterman:

I see there is lots more to think about when relining. I always thought a gunsmith bought a liner from Brownells or somewhere, bored the old barrel, epoxied the new one in place, cleaned off the end, then chambered it in a "standard" 22 long rifle chambering.

I found this listing of different chamberings on a post by John Taylor, gunsmith out of Puyallup, WA that shows a bunch of different types of chamberings.
22_rim_fire_chambers_600pix.jpgImage Enlarger

I see the "Bentz" I think you were referring to, which shows it works well with autoloaders. I see where you mentioned that you wish your chamber was a tighter fit. What issues do you find with that chambering?

Did you also consider rate of twist? Chuck Hawkins had on his "Rifle Barrel" page this formula for the nominal rate of twist for a given bullet diameter, length, and velocity:

rifle_twist_formula1.gifImage Enlarger

I pulled a bullet from a 22lr I had laying around and the length was .453", diameter is .224", and assuming a velocity of 1250 fps. This shows a nominal rate of twist as 13.7 inches. 1:16 may be a bit slow but if you ever shot any of the hyper velocity stuff, it would also work well with them.

I have written an email to John Taylor to see about having my barrel lined. I see where he uses "TJ" liners and is highly recommended on numerous posts on other websites. Will see if he can do the work and for how much.

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April 18, 2013 - 10:43 am
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I also posted this interesting information on how the magazine on the 1873 Winchester 22 works. If you never made it work, it is a bit puzzling. This is just for reference as well.

On the magazine tube, there is supposed to be a small ring that after loading the magazine tube with shells that you pull the small ring towards the end of the tube, which locks the shells in place so that they are now contained within the tube.

Now, when the tube is inserted into the magazine outer tube, when it is just about to be fully slipped inside, this ring engages a restriction within the outer tube that pushes the ring back and releasing the shells so they are now free to be pushed out and into the action.

Without pulling that ring down, the shells won’t stay in and allow you to load the rifle.

Here’s some pictures of what it should look like.

Magazine tube open so that you can load shells into it.
[Image Can Not Be Found]

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April 19, 2013 - 12:28 am
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Gunrunner,
I would not hesitate to have John Taylor do the work on your 73. If it were my rifle, he would be the guy to do the work.

Standard .22 Long Rifle twist has been 16" since the cartridge was introduced in 1887. If you were considering smallbore competition, you might want something different, but out to 200 yards, the 16" twist is just fine.

Target-grade LR ammunition has 40-grain bullets and a MV of about 1140 fps. The lighter bullets & higher velocities are for hunting or plinking and are intended to operate self-loading actions.

If you are after accuracy, the best results come from tight chambers, but within reason. The bullet must engrave the rifling, but should not be gripped so tightly that the bullet is pulled from the cartridge case should you decide not to fire the round.

The Bentz chamber allows easy reloading, but for my Winder, I think the chamber is too loose and too long. I wish I had seen that chart before I had the Winder lined. I would have selected something like the standard Long Rifle match chamber. Bullets are not engraved enough with the Bentz chamber.

With .22 rimfire ammunition, there are large variations in cartridge & bullet size between manufacturers and within the products of any given manufacturer. Many good .22 rifles are very fussy about ammunition. Be prepared to spend a lot of time searching for good ammo & testing same.

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October 25, 2016 - 8:26 pm
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I am new to the Winchester 1873, I picked up some old barreled receivers at an auction, and got the bug doing research. My first completed gun will be a 44 Frankenstein gun, pieced together from the parts from many sources. Ive also picked up a few 22 caliber partial guns, however I am having a much harder time locating parts for those…

I was hoping that someone here had blueprinted some portions, such as the .22 carrier block, or the .22 inner magazine tube. I’ve found picks but little with measurements, or clear parts breakdown… is this kind of stuff taboo? as I hope to build what I cant buy. As well as learn to build the rest in hopes of having options should i need them down the line when parts are only harder to come by.

Jeff Rowe

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October 26, 2016 - 12:28 am
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Jeff,

The only blueprint information I’m aware of is in the “The Winchester 1873 Handbook” By George Stone He made his own drawings and measurements and he does have the parts for the 22 inner tube drawn out. There were 2 different styles of inner feed tubes and he drew the harder one to make in my mind. There was a couple of them come up for sale on Ebay lately and I know they were repoed years ago. He does not have much information on the elevator beside outside measurements but they do show up on Ebay now and then.

Bob

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