absolutely it is. Refinish job like that are the ones you can spot from 20 foot away at a gun show. Dead give away is the barrel and the receiver are different colors. The receiver is black not blue.
Bob
WACA Life Member--- NRA Life Member---- Cody Firearms member since 1991 Researching the Winchester 1873's
Email: [email protected]
“The guns that aren’t reblued are sitting in collector’s safes and the reblued guns are sitting in gun shores.”
There’s some wisdom right there!
The barrel is plum and the receiver polished black. It’s definitely not a sprayed on finish. The first thing I noticed was the sharp edges on the receiver were soft and the screw holes were flat on one side and rounded on the other. You can see other areas where a buffing wheel got too aggressive.
Thank you gentlemen for confirming my suspicions.
November 7, 2015

Somebody wore out a perfectly good buffing wheel on that gun.
Mike
They left a lot of the original pitting before re-bluing and you can spot the pitting pretty much all over the receiver.
Sincerely,
Maverick
WACA #8783 - Checkout my Reloading Tool Survey!
https://winchestercollector.org/forum/winchester-research-surveys/winchester-reloading-tool-survey/
clarence said
Maybe you’re being facetious, but if not, “Japanned” is merely a slightly ostentatious way of saying “painted black” with lacquer or enamel.
Actually NOT being facetious – I’ve always wondered what was meant by a “Japanned finish”.
So, Thank You to Clarence & TR – Your input was very helpful. D.
David McNab said
clarence said
Maybe you’re being facetious, but if not, “Japanned” is merely a slightly ostentatious way of saying “painted black” with lacquer or enamel.
Actually NOT being facetious – I’ve always wondered what was meant by a “Japanned finish”.
So, Thank You to Clarence & TR
– Your input was very helpful. D.
David, the cachet of describing a product as “Japanned” rather than “painted black” derives ultimately from the high status of Japanese lacquer ware, achieved by dozens of coats of natural lacquer that built up a coating hard & thick enough to be engraved. Needless to say, this elaborate process has nothing to do with the ordinary “Japanned” products mfgd. in this country. It’s comparable to the phony names furriers dream up to disguise ordinary rabbit or muskrat fur.
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