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October 27, 2012
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I have seen original Model 54s with blued bolt bodies as well as those with polished bolt bodies. Is there any information on the proportion of blued vs. polished M54 bolts, and was there any correlation with time periods when bolts were blued or polished?
February 18, 2011
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The earlier style model 54 bolt was blued and the later (NRA style stock improved) model bolt was most often (but apparently not always) polished. This comports with my sampling of these nice rifles across the serial spectrum. I don’t know at just what point the changeover was accomplished, but presumably sometime after the introduction of the NRA stile model. Still, in the ‘never say never’ category, it should be remembered that the Model 54 was of the era when Winchester could be very accommodating of special orders and that fact may be reflected in such as factory polished bolts.
May 24, 2012
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iskra said
The earlier style model 54 bolt was blued and the later (NRA style stock improved) model bolt was most often (but apparently not always) polished. This comports with my sampling of these nice rifles across the serial spectrum. I don’t know at just what point the changeover was accomplished, but presumably sometime after the introduction of the NRA stile model. Still, in the ‘never say never’ category, it should be remembered that the Model 54 was of the era when Winchester could be very accommodating of special orders and that fact may be reflected in such as factory polished bolts.
Early blued bolts would make sense to me, since the Model 54 followed the custom ordered production Winchester Sniper Rifle Type No. 1 & No. 2 guns, which they built on the Springfield 1903 action, and they had blued bolts, unless specified differently.
