Winchester Collector - Forum: General Discussions & Questions

Anthony on Useless USPS

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 23:37:35 +0000

Steven,

If you have a picture of the 3 that you are missing, send me a PM, with a picture, as I might be able to help a Veteran out, and replace them. If not, maybe, I can send you a few others to put a smile on you're face!

Tony

1873man on Useless USPS

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 22:46:51 +0000

I have had issues with bad handling where I only got the label from the box. and sometimes it was bad packaging. Not enough packing, too small of box or not enough tape. I package boxes figuring a gorilla is going to handle it.

Bob

Buck1967 on Useless USPS

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 22:13:05 +0000

Sorry to hear that Steve and I feel your pain! They are really bad lately. I had a Winchester Fly Rod that took 5 weeks to get to me and we could see it went to Dallas 4 times, Chicago 3 times, Memphis twice and Atlanta twice before it finally made its way to me. I was lucky in that it did finally arrive. I have watched packages sit for 7 to 14 days with no tracking update at all. I will happily pay more to use UPS over the USPS any day of the week!

Steven Gabrielli on Useless USPS

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 20:08:58 +0000

Well they struck again, package shipped to me over a month ago. Seller filed a missing mail report, it showed up to me 10 days later. Three vintage Gun Digests from the 1950s, stolen. Moron delivered me an empty box, taped.

Pete Hynard on Model 1892 in 25-20 rebarrel project

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 14:43:26 +0000

Nice work on the bore photo, Mark.

As you said, the bore isn't as good as mine but it's not that bad. As Mike said, even that level of pitting is enough to be a problem. The fact that your cleaning patches show heavy lead fouling is proof of that.

The bore is certainly good enough to shoot jacketed bullets well but you already know that.

I don't know what to suggest. If the coated bullets are working well, maybe that's the solution.

Pete

MCorrell on Model 1892 in 25-20 rebarrel project

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 13:46:10 +0000

Mike, I use coated cast bullets almost exclusively these days with good results. When I bought this gun we were in the COVID mess and coated bullets for it weren’t available, so I bought lubed cast bullets and the Remington JSP as mentioned previously.

The bore was cleaned prior to shooting included 2 or 3 consecutive applications of Hoppe’s Elite foaming cleaner and then after every trip to the range since. It was very dirty and heavily lead fouled. I was surprised it came out as clean as it did.

TXGunNut on Model 1892 in 25-20 rebarrel project

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 01:19:49 +0000

Mark-

I think with that level of pitting cast bullets may be a challenge. As a rule a properly lubed and sized bullet will not lead a good bore. Sometimes a hard lead alloy will actually lead more than a softer bullet because the harder bullet will not obturate to fill and seal off the bore. Coated bullets are often soft and perform well in worn bores but I haven't tried them.

Have you cleaned the rifle yet? I'm curious about the type and level of fouling.

Mike

MCorrell on Model 1892 in 25-20 rebarrel project

Fri, 24 Apr 2026 00:15:50 +0000

Thanks Pete. Here is a pic of my gun’s bore

it is like this throughout. I wish I had a lifetime supply of the JSP Remington bullets. I found a box of 500 locally for 30 bucks a few years back not long after buying this gun at a local gunsmith. IIRC I have a sample of some coated .259 diameter, 85 grain coated bullets from Missouri Bullet to test when my local range reopens and my health returns.

twobit on Results of the NRA Awards - Houston 2026

Thu, 23 Apr 2026 20:44:16 +0000

Congratulations to both of you. I am glad that I got to stop by and introduce myself. I hope that you enjoyed your visit back to Houston

Michael

Pete Hynard on Model 1892 in 25-20 rebarrel project

Thu, 23 Apr 2026 18:47:37 +0000

Mark, those are exceptional groups you’re getting with the Remington 86-grain JSP bullet. My compliments. There’s nothing wrong with your shooting.

In my own experience, I have never found a cast bullet load that can quite equal a jacketed bullet in accuracy. It is the holy grail. But if your cast bullets aren’t even getting close, something is wrong. If you’re getting keyholing, something is definitely wrong.

You say that your bore measures 0.258” and the Meister bullets you’re using measure 0.258” as well. One option is to try a larger-sized bullet. Cast bullets are known to give their best accuracy when sized 0.001” or even 0.002” over bore size. The idea is to give a tight bore seal but still allow the loaded cartridge to chamber. That’s the reason for the 0.001”-0.002” range. Anything smaller will allow gas cutting and anything larger won’t chamber.

I don’t think bullet alloy is the issue in this case. Soft lead bullets can lead to leading but Meister advertises their bullets as “hard cast”. I have no doubt this is true.

The keyholing you described makes me think bore condition is the problem. Cast bullets like a near-perfect bore. Can you send a bore pic of your rifle? To take the photo I posted, I placed a piece of paper inside the open action, shone a flashlight on the paper and pointed my camera down the muzzle. I used a Canon point-and-shoot, which is not designed for this sort of thing. I had to try different angles and distances back before I got anything I could post. My wife was holding the flashlight for me. It almost drove her crazy.

If your bullets are keyholing, it means the rifling isn't getting the grip it needs and the bullets aren't getting the spin they need. Bore leading can lead to this. A cast bullet going down a rough bore will leave lead streaks behind and the next bullet will leave more. In no time, the grooves fill with lead and the rifling loses its grip. This is more likely to happen as the velocity increases. The question for you is, are you getting leading from your faster loads? When you scrub your bore after shooting, do you see lead streaking on the patch?

If bore condition is the problem, shooting a jacketed bullet might be the easiest and cheapest solution. Hornady still makes a 60-grain JSP for the .25-50.

Replacing or re-lining the barrel will be costly and it might not give you what you want. In my experience, I have never found a cast bullet that can quite equal a jacketed bullet in accuracy. If you have other rifles with better bores, maybe this is the place to look for the holy grail.

Good luck. Let me know how things turn out.

Pete

Chuck on Results of the NRA Awards - Houston 2026

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 16:48:50 +0000

Your efforts make us all proud to be fellow WACA Members.

TXGunNut on Results of the NRA Awards - Houston 2026

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 15:54:49 +0000

Good job and congratulations! Thanks for putting in all the hard work and making the trek from Billings to Houston to represent WACA.

Mike

Roger Adam on Results of the NRA Awards - Houston 2026

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 13:34:10 +0000

Heather said
Roger and Beth Adam (MT) graciously represented the association at the 2026 Annual Meetings and Exhibits held this past weekend in Houston. Their display, titled The Winchester International Match Single-Shot Rifle of 1913, was very well received.

Roger and Beth were honored with the Best Educational Classic Arms Award, as well as a silver medallion recognizing their exhibit as one of the Ten Best Arms Exhibited at the NRA Annual Meetings.

Thank you to both Roger and Beth for their efforts. We couldn't be happier for their well-deserved win.

Heather Martin
Executive Secretary

Thanks Heather. It was an honor to represent WACA at the NRA annual meeting and exhibits. To win a major display award and a “silver medallion” for one of the 10 best firearms exhibited at this years event was special and unexpected.
The article about the 1913 international match rifle in the recent Collector magazine turned out great as well. Thanks to Brad Dunbar for his help in putting that together.

Heather on Results of the NRA Awards - Houston 2026

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 12:56:27 +0000

Roger and Beth Adam (MT) graciously represented the association at the 2026 Annual Meetings and Exhibits held this past weekend in Houston. Their display, titled The Winchester International Match Single-Shot Rifle of 1913, was very well received.

Roger and Beth were honored with the Best Educational Classic Arms Award, as well as a silver medallion recognizing their exhibit as one of the Ten Best Arms Exhibited at the NRA Annual Meetings.

Thank you to both Roger and Beth for their efforts. We couldn't be happier for their well-deserved win.

Heather Martin

Executive Secretary

Brad Dunbar on Calendar and Featured Winchester Submissions Wanted

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 12:11:07 +0000

Hello

We could use some calendar submissions from WACA members for the next calendar. We can always use submissions for the Featured Winchester page in the back of every magazine too.

The best way to see the type of photos required is to look at our recent calendars and past magazines. Calendar entries need just a few sentences for their captions. The Featured Winchester submissions should have a few paragraphs of text. I can help with both, if needed.

I've added two images from an article in the Winter 2021 magazines that may help you with photos, if needed. Obviously, you can also look at the article in the Winter 2021 magazine instead, pages 50-51.

Please email me with your submissions and any questions. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks again!

brad@winchestercollector.org