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November 7, 2015
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I’m not too big on the hot-rodded 45-70 loads. My hunting load is only a little hotter than the Trapdoor level loads but with my cast bullets it’s more than enough for anything I hunt. 1886 is supposed to be about as strong as an 1895 Marlin but I have no desire to endure what my Guide Gun can dish out and I’m not going to push my 1886 either. Millions of buffalo were killed by a big chunk of lead going 1200 fps or less.
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Dan Porcello said
It feels like I am holding a brand new rifle, the fit and finish is amazing. More solid than my modern Marlin 1895 45-70 (Davidson LTD III). The CCH is better than the auction pictures, with much of the lacquer remaining. The barrel looks good, and the action feels super solid,
I agree, the 1886 is such a solid and refined rifle, and has such a pleasing sound when cycled. The same kind of pleasing sound that a finely tuned Harley V-twin has.
You did well on that rifle.
Winchester Model 1873 44-40 circa 1886
Dan Porcello said
Lot 1074 arrived yesterday, here is my youngest holding it. Will get better quality pics on Saturday morning in the better outdoor morning light. Let me know if know if this pic is out of bounds and I will remove immediately. My initial impression in handling this is the rock solid feeling when working the action. I purchased twelve 45-70 A-Zoom snap caps – the magazine holds nine snap caps (which are a hair shorter than my live 45-70 Ammo. I have dry fired it twice by accident, and cycled the snap caps for about 30 shots – they really do fly out of the receiver when cambering a new round, landing three or four feet behind me when ejecting from a standing position. The back site is solid and appears to function normally and is properly lubricated – it feels like it is brand new. I examined the front post site with a 10x jewelers grade loop and it looks like it was impacted – the top two milimeters is slightly bent to the left, but that’s under 10x magnification.It feels like I am holding a brand new rifle, the fit and finish is amazing. More solid than my modern Marlin 1895 45-70 (Davidson LTD III). The CCH is better than the auction pictures, with much of the lacquer remaining. The barrel looks good, and the action feels super solid, I would love to take this out and shoot it. A long time forum member has been PM’ing me, he has been buying and selling Winchesters for 20 plus years so I will ask him give it a full safety assessment. I may also have a well known local smith do a full safety check as well. The fellow forum member lives about 80 minutes to the North of me and a great outdoor range is right between us, hopefully we can meet up there and shoot this, as well as my Model 94 I just purchased from Al. Range report to follow on this rifle once I know it’s safe to shoot.
Dan,
Won’t be long until she’ll grow into that 1886. Let us know how it shoots, and also how the 94 does.
Al
November 7, 2015
Online
You guys are right, there IS something about the way an 1886 action feels.
Kevin Jones said
Dan Porcello said
It feels like I am holding a brand new rifle, the fit and finish is amazing. More solid than my modern Marlin 1895 45-70 (Davidson LTD III). The CCH is better than the auction pictures, with much of the lacquer remaining. The barrel looks good, and the action feels super solid,
I agree, the 1886 is such a solid and refined rifle, and has such a pleasing sound when cycled. The same kind of pleasing sound that a finely tuned Harley V-twin has.
You did well on that rifle.
Thanks Kevin, Lot 1074 did not sell in the October JDJ with 12k-20k guidance. It was lowered to 8-12k this time, I remember looking at the pictures and thinking that this looks like a honest wear rifle, and focused especially on the last sentence: “This is a very pleasant and fine overall antique 1886 rifle with excellent bore and mechanics“
I was looking for a rifle that was first and foremost an excellent shooter but was also nice enough to hang on my office wall. Hopefully this turns out to be mechanically sound and is an accurate shooter. For the first time since my rifle arrive, I got home while it was still light enough to get some decent photos. Hopefully nobody sees any red flags. I have a 12 Mega Pixel Hero 5 if clearer pictures are required, but these did not come out that bad for an old iPhone 5.
November 7, 2015
Online
Nicely done, Dan. I like a rifle with personality, yours has more than any minty 95% gun. I suspect your 1886 has been the pride & joy of two or more people that appreciated the value of a good Winchester. Nobody owns a rifle like this one, but you now have the pleasure of being the custodian of a very nice bit of Americana. Congrats and enjoy!
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