Well,  if nothing else it’s made me get started on the paperwork for an 03 license. By the time the BATmen issue it I should have been able to raise some funds from various Wiley Coyote grade investments I’ve made over time. 

Because I have zero intention to buy another  pig in a poke, one that’s already near brimming, the deed will have to be done in person. My list will provide me with a jury to give thumbs up or down before I pull the trigger  At least those of you still present, breathing, mobile, and sentient.   

No rush.

oldcrankyyankee said

Zebulon said

Tom, I’m adding you to my list of culprits to loudly blame if my wife ever sees the invoice of a really choice 86 LW .33 Winchester. Hartman’s name leads all the rest, so far.

Those rifles seem to be made of forged and milled Unobtainium. 

  

Bill, I will be happy to be on that list. It is always great to be involved with creating a love affair with 86’s. But I have found the 33 in a 24″ barrel is not unwieldly at all, as a matter of fact it is well balanced. So there should be some consideration give to that also. And they are much more available and come in may shapes and styles. lol. Along with varying degrees of cost! Here is one that will make your eyes water and your hands clammy, well it did mine anyway, guess thats why i have it.

P.S. Always hide the invoice in the safe!

  

That is a pretty one!  

oldcrankyyankee said

Zebulon said

Tom, I’m adding you to my list of culprits to loudly blame if my wife ever sees the invoice of a really choice 86 LW .33 Winchester. Hartman’s name leads all the rest, so far.

Those rifles seem to be made of forged and milled Unobtainium. 

  

Bill, I will be happy to be on that list. It is always great to be involved with creating a love affair with 86’s. But I have found the 33 in a 24″ barrel is not unwieldly at all, as a matter of fact it is well balanced. So there should be some consideration give to that also. And they are much more available and come in may shapes and styles. lol. Along with varying degrees of cost! Here is one that will make your eyes water and your hands clammy, well it did mine anyway, guess thats why i have it.

P.S. Always hide the invoice in the safe!

  

oldcrankyyankee said

Zebulon said

Tom, I’m adding you to my list of culprits to loudly blame if my wife ever sees the invoice of a really choice 86 LW .33 Winchester. Hartman’s name leads all the rest, so far.

Those rifles seem to be made of forged and milled Unobtainium. 

  

Bill, I will be happy to be on that list. It is always great to be involved with creating a love affair with 86’s. But I have found the 33 in a 24″ barrel is not unwieldly at all, as a matter of fact it is well balanced. So there should be some consideration give to that also. And they are much more available and come in may shapes and styles. lol. Along with varying degrees of cost! Here is one that will make your eyes water and your hands clammy, well it did mine anyway, guess thats why i have it.

P.S. Always hide the invoice in the safe!

  

Tom,  My normal blood pressure is pretty good but that particular 86 deluxe is giving me arrhythmia. 

I’ll take your advice and not discount a standard rifle in .33,  which, given Bert’s numbers, could make the quest less hopeless — or at least less expensive.  

While I’ve owned, loaded for, and shot the Browning 45-70 enough to appreciate the cartridge,  and have more experience with the 71/.348, it seems to me the old .33 Winchester is in the sweet spot for a lot of Texas hunting. At least, that will be my excuse.

If there’s any chance I ever find one as gorgeous as what you’ve just illustrated, I might ought to pack a small Oxygen kit for emergency use.

Bert H. said
Just to give you fellows a bit more perspective on the production statistics for the Model 1886 33 WCF rifles, the table below is the current breakdown of the Variation totals contained in the survey.

  

Much obliged for the reality check. If those ratios are homogenous across the entire production, the chances of finding a blue-bellied, one-eyed unicorn are better than my coming across a high condition, fancy 1886 ELW .33 in the hands of a willing seller. 

Caliber, bore condition and overall condition may have to be the only criteria. 

Oh, well. I never got the ’58 fuelie Vette either. That’s life. 

IMHO; You would think that with roughly 118.500+ 1886’s in 33 wcf it would be a little easier to find brass & that Hornady would start making their 200-grain bullet again.  

mrcvs said

Bill Yadlosky said

IMHO; You would think that with roughly 118.500+ 1886’s in 33 wcf it would be a little easier to find brass & that Hornady would start making their 200-grain bullet again.  

  

It’s 18,500+, not 118,500+.  But still, with those and some chambered in .33 Winchester in the Marlin Model 1895, you would think that brass and bullets would be much easier to come by.  Email messages to Starline and Hornady are either ignored or are negative in nature.  I’m not sure what the problem is?

  

Oops, I missed my typo when I proof read my post! 

Well, I had intended to do what poor Venturino once described: acquire a .33 WCF die set plus a couple of intermediate sizing dies for the 38 and 40 caliber cartridges also based on the 45/70 case, to limit case loss in necking down relatively plentiful 45/70 brass to .33 Winchester. I believe those were the 38/56 and 40/65 cartridges he was talking about. The initial die cost wouldn’t be too cheap but it would yield an unlimited supply of brass for your rifle and even some friends.  And from what little I’ve seen, headstamped .33 cases are getting too pricey and  seldom to be practical for shooters, if not collectors. 

EDIT:  I just did a quick Web search for 38-56 dies. I didn’t immediately see any single forming or sizing dies for sale but whole 3-die reloading sets were common and not horrendously costly. $45 to $140, used and new. If we take $75 for a good used set and double it for a 40-65:used set, then add in a hundred fifty bucks for a new .33 WCF Redding set, we’re only in $300 to solve the problem of supply, for good.  I would also call the good folks at Redding to see if they might sell a couple of single sizing dies for less than $75 apiece. 

When you consider the alternative – paying collector prices for reloading components – it seems to make some sense. I paid that much just to get a decent supply of new.41 Colt brass!

Zebulon, I have all the above-mentioned die sets & have the ability to neck down 45-70 brass to 33wcf, but I would like to have my brass correctly head stamped if possible. I can do the same for my 32-40wcf & 35wcf but would still like to find correctly head stamped brass for them whenever possible. I am just a little anal that way. I have purchased stretched & sized brass for my Sharps that was made from 348 brass, but they are still head stamped 348.  Bill