Chuck said

Bert H. said
There is no evidence that any of the 94/95 hybrids were assembled using 30-03 or 30-40 barrels. 
Quite honestly, I do not believe that by October of 1928 that Winchester had on hand any 30-03 barrels.  While it is not impossible, I also very much doubt Winchester used altered 30-40 (30 Army) barrels as they were still actively manufacturing Model 95s in that cartridge.  Winchester did announce (in their catalogs) that the 30-06 cartridge chambering had been discontinued prior to 1928.
Bert
  

Was the 30-06 discontinued in the Model 95 or did you mean 30-03?
The Military rechambered the 30-03 barrels to 30-06.  It is really hard to find a Military Springfield rifle in 30-03 because of this. 
  

Chuck,

It was the 30-06 cartridge that Winchester discontinued for the Model 95 in the mid 1920s.  It is my belief that the impetus behind doing that was the introduction of the Model 54 bolt-action rifles in that same cartridge.

Just as an FYI, it is not possible to "rechamber" a 30-03 barrel to 30-06 without first cutting the entire chamber off of the barrel.  The 30-06 is simply a 30-03 cartridge with a slightly shorter neck. 

It is perfectly safe to shoot 30-06 cartridges in any original 30-03 chambered rifle, but it is not possible to shoot a 30-03 cartridge in a 30-06 chambered barrel.  The U.S. Army actually rebarreled the Springfield Model 1903 rifles versus rechambering them.

The attached picture shows in order the first three .30 caliber Military cartridges; 30-40 (30 US) on left, 30-03 Gov't center, and 30-06 Gov't right.  Take note that the 30-06 has a slightly shorter neck than the 30-03.

Bert

Bert H. said

There is no evidence that any of the 94/95 hybrids were assembled using 30-03 or 30-40 barrels. 
Quite honestly, I do not believe that by October of 1928 that Winchester had on hand any 30-03 barrels.  While it is not impossible, I also very much doubt Winchester used altered 30-40 (30 Army) barrels as they were still actively manufacturing Model 95s in that cartridge.  Winchester did announce (in their catalogs) that the 30-06 cartridge chambering had been discontinued prior to 1928.
Bert
  

Was the 30-06 discontinued in the Model 95 or did you mean 30-03?

The Military rechambered the 30-03 barrels to 30-06.  It is really hard to find a Military Springfield rifle in 30-03 because of this. 

Production of the Model 55 began on June 30th, 1924.  In total, Winchester manufactured approximately 20,600 Model 55 rifles, with the first 12,002 serialized in their own number range.  

I am currently writing a newly revised & updated article that will detail the production history and statistics of the Model 55.  My original article (published in the Winter 2012 edition of "The Winchester Collector" magazine) is now somewhat outdated.

With the addition of your Model 55 rifle, I now have 1,748 documented specimens (and still looking for more).

Bert

Bert

steve004 said

Bert H. said

steve004 said
This has been a fascinating thread to read - started in 2009!  And as Tony points out, over 14000 views!  I see I made a contribution in 2014, and now here I am, typing another post in 2026.  
My question has to do with the hand-written card that was unearthed.  The card states that 1303 were made specifically from .30-06 barrels.  Yet some were from .30-03 and .30-40 barrels?  What do we know about those?
  

There is no evidence that any of the 94/95 hybrids were assembled using 30-03 or 30-40 barrels. 
Quite honestly, I do not believe that by October of 1928 that Winchester had on hand any 30-03 barrels.  While it is not impossible, I also very much doubt Winchester used altered 30-40 (30 Army) barrels as they were still actively manufacturing Model 95s in that cartridge.  Winchester did announce (in their catalogs) that the 30-06 cartridge chambering had been discontinued prior to 1928.
Bert
  

I thought somewhere I saw reference to some of the M94/95 utilizing '95 musket barrels?
  

30-06 NRA Musket barrels

Bert H. said

steve004 said
This has been a fascinating thread to read - started in 2009!  And as Tony points out, over 14000 views!  I see I made a contribution in 2014, and now here I am, typing another post in 2026.  
My question has to do with the hand-written card that was unearthed.  The card states that 1303 were made specifically from .30-06 barrels.  Yet some were from .30-03 and .30-40 barrels?  What do we know about those?
  

There is no evidence that any of the 94/95 hybrids were assembled using 30-03 or 30-40 barrels. 
Quite honestly, I do not believe that by October of 1928 that Winchester had on hand any 30-03 barrels.  While it is not impossible, I also very much doubt Winchester used altered 30-40 (30 Army) barrels as they were still actively manufacturing Model 95s in that cartridge.  Winchester did announce (in their catalogs) that the 30-06 cartridge chambering had been discontinued prior to 1928.
Bert
  

I thought somewhere I saw reference to some of the M94/95 utilizing '95 musket barrels?

deerhunter said

steve004 said
This has been a fascinating thread to read - started in 2009!  And as Tony points out, over 14000 views!  I see I made a contribution in 2014, and now here I am, typing another post in 2026.  
My question has to do with the hand-written card that was unearthed.  The card states that 1303 were made specifically from .30-06 barrels.  Yet some were from .30-03 and .30-40 barrels?  What do we know about those?
  

I believe those with pinned front sights came from .30-40 barrels and those with dovetailed front sights came from .30-06 and .30-03 barrels.  Not sure if there is a way to distinguish the .30-06 vs. those with .30-03 barrels though.
Don
  

Don,

The under barrel markings would be the best possible source of information.  While Winchester would (and did) remark the cartridge marking on the top (exposed) side of the barrel, I suspect that they may not have removed the cartridge marking on the bottom of the barrels.  If you want to get brave, check to see what is marked on the barrels on your hybrids, and then plesase post some pictures of what you find.

Bert

steve004 said
This has been a fascinating thread to read - started in 2009!  And as Tony points out, over 14000 views!  I see I made a contribution in 2014, and now here I am, typing another post in 2026.  
My question has to do with the hand-written card that was unearthed.  The card states that 1303 were made specifically from .30-06 barrels.  Yet some were from .30-03 and .30-40 barrels?  What do we know about those?
  

There is no evidence that any of the 94/95 hybrids were assembled using 30-03 or 30-40 barrels. 

Quite honestly, I do not believe that by October of 1928 that Winchester had on hand any 30-03 barrels.  While it is not impossible, I also very much doubt Winchester used altered 30-40 (30 Army) barrels as they were still actively manufacturing Model 95s in that cartridge.  Winchester did announce (in their catalogs) that the 30-06 cartridge chambering had been discontinued prior to 1928.

Bert

I am new to this forum -thanks for the add. I recently inherited a firearm that I thought you Winchester enthusiasts would appreciate. It was my great grandfather’s. It’s a Winchester model 55 .30 W.C.F. Serial 701. My understanding is that it was produced in 1924- the first year they were produced. I would appreciate any additional information as I am no expert myself. 

steve004 said
This has been a fascinating thread to read - started in 2009!  And as Tony points out, over 14000 views!  I see I made a contribution in 2014, and now here I am, typing another post in 2026.  
My question has to do with the hand-written card that was unearthed.  The card states that 1303 were made specifically from .30-06 barrels.  Yet some were from .30-03 and .30-40 barrels?  What do we know about those?
  

I believe those with pinned front sights came from .30-40 barrels and those with dovetailed front sights came from .30-06 and .30-03 barrels.  Not sure if there is a way to distinguish the .30-06 vs. those with .30-03 barrels though.

Don

My question has to do with the hand-written card that was unearthed.  The card states that 1303 were made specifically from .30-06 barrels.  Yet some were from .30-03 and .30-40 barrels?  What do we know about those?

Bert H. said

Anthony said
Bert,
Thanks for the extra explanation, as I surly do value that as I'm sure others will!
 
Tony
  

You (and everyone else) are welcome.
As you can most likely tell, I and a "numbers" person.  I have at least 700+ active Excel spreadsheets on my PC, and I add at least a couple more every month.  Some of my Spreadsheets are nearing 30-years old (upgraded of course through the years).  I first began actively creating and using Excel when Office 97 first hit the streets.  In the early years, all formulas had to be manually created (programmed) and inserted.  To this day, I still write all of my own formulas even though Excel now has a few hundred of them built-in.
Bert 
  

  Hey Bert aka numbers guy,

The two type 3 carbines (21.75 bbl dovetailed) are referenced as being part of Gogans survey.

While i assume that he actually held these to survey them, we have not seen pictures to confirm the existence of them.

I would love to see a picture of serials 1033596 and or 1035596 if anyone in our community owns one of them.

Not saying that they do not exist but the other styles are well represented and these not so much.

 Also note the similarity of the serials. typo ?????

 Just observing and trying to learn

 Doug

All points well taken.

Thank you for your input.

FYI, the 1,004,675 number used in my calculation was taken from the Model 1892 synopsis on our WACA website.

Tom

tsbccut said
Thanks again, Michael.
Looks to be about 1.05% (10,549) of total production (1,004,675) by my numbers.
Collector's terms, I know, and most likely subjective, but what are the percentage levels for terms such as "rare" and "scarce" in your opinion? Or is there a standard?
Much appreciated,
Tom
  

Tom,

Speaking only for myself, "rare" is fewer than (10) total specimens, and "scarce" is < 500 specimens.  I would refer to a production total of 10,549 as "slightly uncommon". 

Keep in mind that the total Model 53 production was 15,118, and the total Model 65 production was approximately 7,746.  We do not consider either of those models as "rare" or even "scarce".

Bert