Yesterday, I reached the 200 mark in the number of surviving Model 53’s I have recorded in my database. If anyone here has a Model 53, the data for which they have not sent me, I would be most grateful to receive it. This database has proved to be a highly useful exercise, yielding some interesting findings. The big question is how many Model 53 receivers were used to build Model 92’s? The two receivers were identical in every way except for the serial number, which ran from 1 to 10,845 for the early Model 53’s. If anyone comes across a Winchester Model 92 marked on the barrel, with a serial number in that range and an upper tang marking that states,

Winchester
Trade Mark
Made in U.S.A.

Then you are looking at a Model 92 built with a Model 53 frame. These hybrids are very easy not to notice and are often mistaken for early Model 1892’s by the uninformed, or misdiagnosed as frankenguns by others. Early Winchester Model 1892’s in the same serial range had a different upper tang marking that included ‘Model 1892’. I am very eager to get info on Model 92’s built with Model 53 frames. It may help get a better estimate for the total number of Model 53’s produced. Incidentally, later Model 53’s were built with Model 92 frames with Model 92 serial numbers. The earliest number is 962262 which, according to Madis, dates to around 1926 but more likely has a barrel date closer to 1927 or 1928. So it seems that some Model 53 receivers were used to build Model 92’s between 1924 and 1927, but it doesn’t look like Model 92 receivers were used to build Model 53’s until around the end of 1927.

Also, barrel dates are especially valuable, especially those belonging to Model 53’s built with Model 92 receivers. They can’t be used to infer the exact year of build, but they can certainly be used to establish the earliest possible date they could have been built, and they can also be used to reconstruct the final years of the production of the Model 53. Thus far, the latest barrel date I have is 1930, and I only have one of those. It is possible that the last production run of Model 53 barrels was 1930 which may have been adequate for limited production in the final years of the Model 53 builds. Yesterday, I came across what appears to be an earlier Model 1892 that had been been rebuilt and rebarreled with a Model 53 barrel. It raises the possibility that Winchester never used up its remaining supply of Model 53 barrels and may have sold them off. On the other hand, the barrel did have a factory proof PW. I just find it hard to believe that Winchester would mount a barrel that says ‘Model 53’ onto a frame that has an upper tang that says ‘Model 1892’. I also find it hard to believe that someone would take a perfectly good Model 53, remove the barrel, and put it on an older Model 1892. Whatever the explanation, it is likely to be an odd one.