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Mis-matched wood on 1894?
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Troutdale, OR
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October 10, 2020 - 9:14 pm
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It seems high condition 1894’s chambered in 25-35 are hard to come by.  This one caught my eye but the contrast in wood color/finish on this one me bothers me.  Looking for opinions from fellow collectors please.

https://www.gunsinternational.com/guns-for-sale-online/rifles/winchester-rifles-model-1894-pre-64/winchester-model-1894-rifle-in-caliber-25-35.cfm?gun_id=101523839

Thanks,

Don

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October 10, 2020 - 9:32 pm
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I could never get past the different color wood.

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October 10, 2020 - 10:12 pm
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I could not get past the wood either.  And most appraisers will see it as a negative.  Now, it is common to see Whitney-Kennedy’s with a lighter colored forend wood, but their main components are serialized.  Here’s a picture of one of mine that has original wood:

 

https://i.imgur.com/78qyuf3.jpgImage Enlarger

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October 11, 2020 - 1:06 am
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Possibly a replaced butt stock??  The forearm cap screws seem to be pristine. The screws on the tang sight are well “used”.  Winchester’s assemblers had a very good eye for matching wood, I have a hard time believing it left the factory as seen now.

Erin

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October 11, 2020 - 1:46 am
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Not uncommon for a buttstock to have been switched out.  It happened.  I agree though – I could not enjoy that rifle with the wood as it is.  

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October 11, 2020 - 2:34 am
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Don,

In addition to the mismatched color & finish between the forend and butt stock, at least two of the three sights on that rifle are not original. I suspect that the Rocky Mountain front sight is not original to that rifle. The Lyman No. 1A tang sight was positively added at a later date.

Going back to the stocks, based on the fit, both stocks are likely original. That stated, it appears that the finish on the butt stock gas been “enhanced” a bit.

Bert

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October 11, 2020 - 4:23 pm
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Thanks everyone.  Sounds like everyone shares the same feelings as me.  I agree with Bert that the fit of the stocks are excellent, but something is funky with the finish.  I’ll be passing on this one.  The price seemed a bit high from the get-go as well.

Don

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October 11, 2020 - 5:33 pm
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I would agree, looks like the buttstock has had some added “color” or a lot of oil on it.  The lighting in the photos isnt doing any favors either. 

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October 11, 2020 - 5:36 pm
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1892takedown said
I would agree, looks like the buttstock has had some added “color” or a lot of oil on it.  The lighting in the photos isnt doing any favors either.   

I’m not disagreeing, but it makes me wonder, why?

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October 11, 2020 - 5:59 pm
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I don’t like the fit of the stock. Forend fits much better.

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October 11, 2020 - 6:06 pm
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Chuck said
I don’t like the fit of the stock. Forend fits much better.  

If some stock swapping occurred, it was surely with the buttstock and not the forend.  In general, I would say buttstocks get swapped much more often than forends.

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October 11, 2020 - 6:30 pm
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steve004 said

I’m not disagreeing, but it makes me wonder, why?  

 

Who knows the why, they just are.  As Bert mentioned, the wood looks sharp on both pieces.  At least for me, the forearm looks to have had a lite coat of varnish or similar added as you can see a line built up finish line on the top flat of the forearm and finish flaking where the forearm meets the receiver at the bottom.  Looks to be some hand wear/use in the newer finish on the forearm.   On the buttstock, whether original to the rifle or not, the finish immediately adjacent to the receiver and tang looks close to right color but as that blends into the rest of the stock it gets darker/redder.  On the right side of the buttstock the finish is almost dull looking from about the tang sight back.  On the left side of the buttstock, in the glare of the light, you can see the raised wood grain and shiny finish, usually a tell-tale sign something has been touched up or refinished.  And there looks to be some finish build-up (maybe grime) on the wood edge next to the top of the buttplate.  At least thats what I read into the tea leaves, and could totally be wrong.   Some better lighted photos would help. 

Decent looking rifle otherwise, some blemishes here or there on the receiver.  Id like to have that rocky mtn front and express rear sight in my sight box to try out on some of the carbines/rifles I like to shoot.       

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October 11, 2020 - 6:51 pm
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steve004 said

If some stock swapping occurred, it was surely with the buttstock and not the forend.  In general, I would say buttstocks get swapped much more often than forends.  

And it is a lot easier too.  If someone buys this gun I’ll buy the wrong sights from you.

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October 12, 2020 - 12:13 am
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I don’t think that butt stock fits worth a dxxx. It’s been changed Only My opinion

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October 12, 2020 - 3:05 am
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I really like the gun, just not at $5500. I won’t pretend to know what happened to the wood but something happened and it will be a red flag to any serious collector. 

 

Mike

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October 12, 2020 - 1:38 pm
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Those mismatched stocks would bother me.  Maybe it’s the pictures? 

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October 15, 2020 - 5:43 pm
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$5500 is what you would expect to pay for an antique with a better caliber and better condition.  Although I question the wood it may look better if I had it in my hands?

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