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Looking for a front bead sight for a model 61 “shot only”. Schwing refers to them on page 66 of Volume II of his book on 61’s & 62’s, but my internet searches are coming up empty.
Hi Renegade,
The Winchester #81 Monel front sight was offered in a variety of heights, the different heights were designated the 81A, 81B, 81C, 81D, 81E and 81F. They came standard with a chrome finish. Some of the 81’s were used on the Model 21 as standard (I think the 81A, 81D, 81E and 81F) and they were probably used on some of the other smaller gauge .22 “Shot Only” rifles as well.
Do you know which Winchester #81 you need? If not, I can look it up for you when I get back home.
Best Regards,
WACA Life Member #6284 - Specializing in Pre-64 Winchester .22 Rimfire
JWA said
Hi Renegade,The Winchester #81 Monel front sight was offered in a variety of heights, the different heights were designated the 81A, 81B, 81C, 81D, 81E and 81F. They came standard with a chrome finish. Some of the 81’s were used on the Model 21 as standard (I think the 81A, 81D, 81E and 81F) and they were probably used on some of the other smaller gauge .22 “Shot Only” rifles as well.
Do you know which Winchester #81 you need? If not, I can look it up for you when I get back home.
Best Regards,
Looking for the ones they used on the “Shot Only” model 61’s but not sure which #81 sight it is.
Thank you in advance for looking….
renegade said
Looking for the ones they used on the “Shot Only” model 61’s but not sure which #81 sight it is.
Thank you in advance for looking….
I am pretty sure I have that info at home regarding exactly which height #81 was used on the 61 in my notes. Did you check C.H. Key’s book “The Winchester Model Sixty One” to see if it is mentioned in there?
After we figure out which height you need then we can work on the problem of finding one.
Best Regards,
WACA Life Member #6284 - Specializing in Pre-64 Winchester .22 Rimfire
JWA said
renegade said
Looking for the ones they used on the “Shot Only” model 61’s but not sure which #81 sight it is.
Thank you in advance for looking….
I am pretty sure I have that info at home regarding exactly which height #81 was used on the 61 in my notes. Did you check C.H. Key’s book “The Winchester Model Sixty One” to see if it is mentioned in there?
After we figure out which height you need then we can work on the problem of finding one.
Best Regards,
Thanks for the effort. I will re-check Charlies book but don’t remember him going into the specifics of that particular sight.
Go Falcons!
Renegade & JWA: The Sight Book notes that Sight 81A Special was used for both the 61 and 67 S.B, which seems to me to be the same as the 81A.
James
jwm94 said
Renegade & JWA: The Sight Book notes that Sight 81A Special was used for both the 61 and 67 S.B, which seems to me to be the same as the 81A.James
I found where Charlie Key said: Front sights are the number 81 bead sight as found on the “Big Sister Model Twelve” on page 23 of his book. Mentioned also on page 36.
Thank you guys for your help…………… should be easier now to find the sight. Suggestions on best resource???
Try Wendel at Outback or Jackfirst.
WACA Life Member #6284 - Specializing in Pre-64 Winchester .22 Rimfire
Hi Renegade,
I am finally back home and got a chance to look at the reference drawings. The 81A for the 61 smoothbore is indeed made from Monel and has a .123″ bead diameter and according to the Winchester drawing has an overall height (including the shank) of .190“. That measurement is on the factory drawing but for some reason Madis did not include it in the Winchester Sight Book sketch. Hopefully that dimension will help identify an 81A if you find one on the loose.
They were originally made from brass wire and the 81A Slave sight was soft steel which should not be confused with Monel. If in doubt you can check it with a magnet.
I thought I had an extra Monel 81A in my spare parts bin but after looking it is an earlier 83A which is a slightly larger diameter than the 81A, sorry.
Good luck with your search.
Best Regards,
WACA Life Member #6284 - Specializing in Pre-64 Winchester .22 Rimfire
Also, forgot to mention that if you want a temporary replacement then purchase separately ($3.99) the .130″ stainless steel bead from this Brownells kit “B” since 300 series stainless steel and fresh Monel look almost identical. I think it is #26 but double-check with Brownells.
At least your 61 will look complete and shootable while you continue the search for an original.
Best Regards,
WACA Life Member #6284 - Specializing in Pre-64 Winchester .22 Rimfire
JW,
You are right about the 81A with the height that you note not showing up in the The Sight Book, but the 81A Special with a height of .123″ is noted and for the 61 S.B. I also take it that the Special was changed from Brass to Monel beginning 9/1/31. Is that how you read it too? What date and reference source do you show for the 81A with the height of .190″ as I would like to update Madis’ info? That said, either one would be correct for the 61 S.B., right?
Also, does this factory drawing reference show the 81A as also being 81A Special?
James
jwm94 said
JW,
You are right about the 81A with the height that you note not showing up in the The Sight Book, but the 81A Special with a height of .123″ is noted and for the 61 S.B. I also take it that the Special was changed from Brass to Monel beginning 9/1/31. Is that how you read it too?What date and reference source do you show for the 81A with the height of .190″ as I would like to update Madis’ info?That said, either one would be correct for the 61 S.B., right?Also, does this factory drawing reference show the 81A as also being 81A Special?
James
Hi James,
Madis lists the diameter of the bead as .123″ as does the Winchester drawing but he does not list a height at all for the 81A Special. His information is all correct regarding the 81A, it is just the height dimension that is missing from his 81A sketch although the heights are shown for several of the other 81 series sketches of different models.
My 81A reference source for the .190 height is a Winchester factory drawing of the 81A dated 1917 (original date 1912) but was updated again sometime around the end of 1931. It does not mention an 81A “Special” but simply calls it an 81A. The drawing revision which changed the original brass wire to Monel is dated 9/1/31 which is probably where Madis got his date from. Also, the thread diameter was increased per a drawing revision dated 11/11/31 so possibly that is what makes it an 81A “Special”? Unfortunately the numbers for the thread dimensions are blurry on my copy of a copy and I can’t read them. I had to use a magnifying glass to read the height numbers on the factory drawing, maybe that is why Madis omitted them?
Hope that answers your question but it probably raises more……
Best Regards,
WACA Life Member #6284 - Specializing in Pre-64 Winchester .22 Rimfire
Great answer! Thank you. It sounds as if the 81a Special might be the last designation for the 81A.
I found the thread dimensions I couldn’t read on the 81A sight drawing on a separate drawing, they are specified as .0916-56, WRA Co. Std. and the barrel is tapped 1/8″ deep.
Also, the drawing just indicates it is an 81A, there is no mention of “special”
Hope that helps.
Regards,
WACA Life Member #6284 - Specializing in Pre-64 Winchester .22 Rimfire
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