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March 3, 2020
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A local gun club was selling their loaner rack rifles, and in a sea of Remington’s and Mossberg’s there was a Winchester 75…. so, it came home with me. 
The gun is kind of a wreck and has been well used, but the price was right. Is is missing the magazine and front globe sight, has the wrong butt-plate, and the stock desperately needs to be refinished. The gun and stock are otherwise sound, and there is a Redfield 75 mounted in the rear.
Serial number dates it to 1947.
I’ve been Googling for the magazine and butt-plate, and have a handle on that. But, I was wondering what the “correct” front sight would be….. there is a sight block in the front dovetail, so the missing globe sight would have been a clamp on one as opposed to a Lyman 17 type that fits into the barrel dovetail directly. Any pointers on that?
June 1, 2023
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A Lyman 77 front sight will clamp onto your front sight block. The Lyman 77 is nothing more than an easily removable Lyman 17 sight.
BRP
December 13, 2006
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If the buttplate is “wrong”, do you think the wood was cut back to fit the wrong plate?
March 3, 2020
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Jim F in CT said
If the buttplate is “wrong”, do you think the wood was cut back to fit the wrong plate?
The opposite….. it is a metal butt-plate that is oversized relative to the wood. The stock is in original condition, but the finish is very worn and battered.
March 31, 2009
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John D. said
Jim F in CT said
If the buttplate is “wrong”, do you think the wood was cut back to fit the wrong plate?
The opposite….. it is a metal butt-plate that is oversized relative to the wood. The stock is in original condition, but the finish is very worn and battered.
Oversized butt plate does occur when the stock has been shortened. Maybe not in your case. I was looking at a 69A that had this problem.
July 17, 2012
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Using the Winchester Polishing Room Records, your serial number actually dates it to September, 1942. The available 75 sight packages for that year were:
| 75 TARGET CATALOG SYMBOL | YEARS USED + SIGHTS |
| G7501R1 | 1938-1945, Winchester 99A (front) Winchester 84A Extension (rear) |
| G7505R | late 1940-early 1941, (military contract) Winchester 93B (front) Lyman 57E (rear) |
| G7521R | 1938-1942, No. 8 Telescope with crosshairs (no other sights) |
| G7525R | 1938 – end of production, No sights or telescope supplied |
| G7527R | 1938-1945, Vaver 1175 (front) Vaver 3875 (rear) |
| G7537R | 1939-1947, Lyman 77 (front) Lyman 58E (rear) |
| G7547R | 1938-early 1942, Redfield 63 Globe (front) Redfield 75HW (rear) |
If your rear Redfield 75HW is original to the rifle then the front would have been the Redfield 63 Globe front sight. However, with that late of a production date (September, 1942) it would have been VERY likely to have been produced as part of the wartime contract for US Government training rifles as a G7505R with the Lyman 57E rear and Winchester 93B front sight as Winchester had already halted the commercial production of the Model 75 by that time. Many of those rifles were later sold as surplus from the Army by the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) to gun clubs and other similar entities. Many came with the sights missing and the stocks shortened for use by the Jr. ROTC and CMP affiliated school clubs. Your rifle fits that description.
Pictures would help with your other questions.
Best Regards,
WACA Life Member #6284 - Specializing in Pre-64 Winchester .22 Rimfire
March 3, 2020
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JWA,
Very informative, thanks!
I had pulled the rifle apart and completely detail cleaned it. You’re advising that it was built in 1942…… I think it was last cleaned in 1943. 
Anyway, some pics below, to include the butt plate. I think you might be spot on about it being a possible ROTC Jr rifle – the sling rail slots shows clear evidence of being hand chiseled out towards the receiver to allow for a shorter sling length.
March 3, 2020
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The rifle is completely apart now, and the stock has been stripped of all finish and will soon be ready for refinishing. A replacement magazine is en route from Sarco, and I will be receiving a Redfield 63 front globe on Saturday to complete the rifle.
I still have to deal with the ill-fitting butt plate, and will have a machinist friend make a replacement sling rail that will fit the elongated sling rail slot.
November 7, 2015
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Looking foreword to seeing progress reports on this project, John. My “shooter” 75 Target has a custom stock with lengthened rail, among other “upgrades”. If your stock hasn’t been shortened perhaps you can find a correct replacement butt plate.
Mike
March 3, 2020
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TXGunNut said
Looking foreword to seeing progress reports on this project, John. My “shooter” 75 Target has a custom stock with lengthened rail, among other “upgrades”. If your stock hasn’t been shortened perhaps you can find a correct replacement butt plate.
Mike
GPC has repops, but that decision can wait. I can probably shape the existing one to fit as it is oversized.
April 30, 2023
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Let’s see the stock work in progress!
March 3, 2020
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Jeremy P said
Let’s see the stock work in progress!
OK.
Since this was a club gun, I was not too surprised to see the glass bedding in the channel.
The original finish was pretty scarred up and missing in the high contact points, so I stripped the entire stock down to bare wood. I wanted to remove as little wood as possible, so I touched it up gently with 150 grit, and followed that with 220 grit to smooth it out.
Right now, I have one coat of BLO and 2 coats of WATCO medium walnut Danish Oil finish on it. I applied the BLO first, let it dry, and then followed up with the WATCO. I let the second coat dry until it was almost complete but still a little bit tacky, and then knocked down the shine by gently rubbing it down with mineral spirits. I like the satin look so far, but I will probably follow up with another coat or two after everything dries a bit more.
As stated earlier, the Redfield 63 globe site is on the way, as is the magazine. I was able to scribe and contour the butt plate to fit the butt-stock, so all that remains is to deal with the oversized sling/hand-stop rail groove.
April 30, 2023
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That looks good, love the color.
December 9, 2002
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I am in agreement Jeremy,
As John D. is doing some nice restoration work here on an example that needs it to make a very nice presentable shooter. IMHO!
Anthony
March 3, 2020
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See pic for progress so far. I’m happy with the finish, and butt plate has been contoured to fit the wood. Awaiting front sight and magazine, then off to the range!
December 13, 2006
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John D. said
See pic for progress so far. I’m happy with the finish, and butt plate has been contoured to fit the wood. Awaiting front sight and magazine, then off to the range!
John . . .I’m very suspicious that your stock was shortened a bit (Maybe why the buttplate was oversized).
What is the LOP now? (Your REAR sling swivel looks to be much closer to the buttplate than mine.)
My old 75 Target is 13 1/8”.
March 3, 2020
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Jim F in CT said
John D. said
See pic for progress so far. I’m happy with the finish, and butt plate has been contoured to fit the wood. Awaiting front sight and magazine, then off to the range!
John . . .I’m very suspicious that your stock was shortened a bit (Maybe why the buttplate was oversized).
What is the LOP now? (Your REAR sling swivel looks to be much closer to the buttplate than mine.)
My old 75 Target is 13 1/8”.
Oh, I’m pretty positive it has been shortened.
The rear sling swivel screw on the butt plate side was missing….. apparently because the bottom butt plate screw was hitting it, and apparently whoever did the bob-job just removed the screw instead of fixing the issue. Also, as you mentioned – the butt plate toe was too long, and there were other minor fitment issues with it on the sides. Plus, the hand stop rail channel was lengthened back towards the receiver, presumably to accommodate the shorter arms of a junior shooter.
I have addressed issue 1 and 2, and am in the process of making a replacement rail to fit the new, longer slot. I have not measured the LOP, but it sure feels short.
Between purchase price and parts, I’m into the rifle for about $275. GPC has replacement stocks and butt plates, but I’m not sure I want to invest any more money in this gun….. as least, not before I shoot it to see what’s what.
The globe sight arrived today, and I’m now awaiting delivery of the magazine. I will be sure to post a range report when I take it out for a spin.
April 30, 2023
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Jim F in CT said
John D. said
See pic for progress so far. I’m happy with the finish, and butt plate has been contoured to fit the wood. Awaiting front sight and magazine, then off to the range!
John . . .I’m very suspicious that your stock was shortened a bit (Maybe why the buttplate was oversized).
What is the LOP now? (Your REAR sling swivel looks to be much closer to the buttplate than mine.)
My old 75 Target is 13 1/8”.
Good eye, Jim!
Quite a project victory, John D, looks really good. Love how the stock turned out.
November 7, 2015
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Looks like it ought to, Jim F. At this point it’s all we can hope for. Many of these 75 Target rifles were modified, that’s the nature of competition firearms. Good job, looking forward to a range report. I hope you have some standard velocity match ammo waiting by the door!
Mike
