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Hi, my real name is Brian. Known as Big Mak elsewhere or Sportsdad60 on other gun forums. Trish Smith, Bert H convinced me I need to pay to be a member here. 🙂 Born and raised in Minnesota, NRA member since 9 years old. Working for a living in WA state and soon retiring in Montana area, Flathead lake. Two sons grown up, one in college. All 4 of our family shoots rifles and pistols/revolvers so needless to say I’m a reloader too. 🙂
I’ll share my small collection of Winchesters with a question first! Why are Model 54’s worth less than Model 70’s (other than the reason of a floor plate gate )?? I don’t sell rifles, I buy them and hand them down along with their history to the next generation of NRA members but I’m just curious as to why 54s sell so much lower than 70s’.
We have both rifles in the family (2 x 54’s and 1 x 70) and I think they are equally fine rifles and very accurate. A limited number of 54s compared to 70’s would make one thing the 54’s would be highly sought after?
This is one I own, most likely shipped from factory with the Lyman 48W ?
I believe this is 1926.
This one shoots and groups tight too. I tested it along with the other 54 I will post shortly.
More photos here:
https://sportsdad60.smugmug.com/4472-Winchester-Mod-54-30-06-1926/n-s9Cxtc/
You never have to worry about lying if you always tell the truth.
Number 2- 1931 I believe. Model 54. Lyman 47.
https://sportsdad60.smugmug.com/organize/36453A-Winchester-Mod-54-1931-Brian
You never have to worry about lying if you always tell the truth.
Hi Brian-
Glad you took the advice of Trish and Bert. Hopefully this will be a rewarding forum for you. (I need to renew myself within the next month or I’ll be out in the cold…)
Good question about relative collector interest in the M54 versus the M70… If the characteristics that define something as “collectable” are (in no particular order); originality, condition, rarity and desirability, then the M54 wins the “rarity” competition hands down. Yet it loses on “desirability” for no particular reason beyond the legendary status/reputation carried by “The Rifleman’s Rifle” (to steal Winchester’s marketing phrase)…
I only own two M54s, a 1st standard rifle and a carbine, both chambered for 30 WCF…
For shooters, the M54 suffers from the trigger, safety, and bolt handle design (that renders original ones incapable of accepting any contemporary scope sights except for those mounted using the rear sight dovetail and receiver for scope blocks:
For the collector, I think they’re too darned rare to generate a lot of interested parties. Only 50-some thousand made (during the heart of the Great Depression), of which nearly all have been subjected to bolt handle modification (which also ruins the stock) and drilling of the receiver bridge. Add to that some of the catalogued styles, e.g. “Sniper’s Rifle”, “Sniper’s Match”, and “Deluxe Heavy Barrel” were made in vanishingly small numbers, which makes assembling any sort of satisfying “collection” just about impossible. You have to be a real devotee, like Wayne Miller, to get seriously into M54s as a collector.
But they are super nice rifles…
Welcome again,
Lou
WACA 9519; Studying Pre-64 Model 70 Winchesters
Online
[email protected] said
Why are Model 54’s worth less than Model 70’s (other than the reason of a floor plate gate )??
There are other reasons, but for me, THAT one is quite enough! One thing only I admire about them: that correctly-proportioned schnobble, which contemporary builders seldom get right.
Thanks fellas and great write up Louis!
My 21 year old son got a hellava family deal on this Model 70, which I offered up to him, as it was the year I was born, 1960. Not a collector grade by any means but we’re hunters so there is a “no virgins, no safe queens” policy in our collection. It’s my opinion that firearms are like engines, meant to be used to keep them in shape. 🙂
This was part of an estate sale I was assisting with but couldn’t let this piece of history get out of the family.
He’s a grinning SOB everytime he pulls that trigger at the gun club. The first time he grouped 1″ MOA was with this rifle at 100 yards.
You never have to worry about lying if you always tell the truth.
November 7, 2015
Offline
Welcome! Very nice rifles, enjoyed the slide show. Thanks for sharing them with us, thanks to Bert and Trish for getting you to sign up! I don’t have an answer for your question but can assure you it wouldn’t matter if I owned them; like you I’d let someone else enjoy them after I’m gone.
Brian,
Welcome to the WACA forums! Trish & I make a good arm twisting tag team.
For the most part, I am a Single Shot aficionado (go figure), but I do own a few bolt-action rifles, one of which is a Model 54 in 30-06 GOV’T… I do not own a single Model 70 rifle, and have not ever had the desire to change that. I own three Springfield BA rifles; (1) Model 1892 (manufactured in 1895) that was my first hunting rifle (in 1970); (2) Model 1903; (3) Model 1903A3. Both of my Varmint rifles are Remington’s; Model 722 in 222 Rem Mag, and a Model 700 Heavy Varmint in the same cartridge (I really like the triple-deuce mag).
Bert
WACA 6571L, Historian & Board of Director Member
Wow Bert! And here I thought you just had those 3 in your sig!
The 1903 is on my bucket list. Waiting for the right one to come along!
With my two “new” mod 54 aquistions, I noticed one of the safeties swings over 180 degrees when in safe position. The other swings 90 deg straight up and down.
Was there a change in design of safety or was the 180 deg swing over gunsmithed?
Both safeties function.
You never have to worry about lying if you always tell the truth.
[email protected] said
With my two “new” mod 54 aquistions, I noticed one of the safeties swings over 180 degrees when in safe position.
That’s the way it should work, being derived from the Springfield/Mauser safety, except the “safe” & “fire” positions were reversed. On the ’03, the upright position was for removing the bolt, but don’t know if that also applies to 54s, which have a different bolt-release.
My only catalog of the 54 period, 1933, shows that by that time, stocks had a smoothly tapered forearm, without the graceful schnobble!
Thanks Clarence, maybe I’m not pushing the other one far enough over to swing it 180 deg. I’ll check it tonight.
You never have to worry about lying if you always tell the truth.
Welcome to WACA Brian.
"This is the West, sir. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend."
clarence said
[email protected] said
With my two “new” mod 54 aquistions, I noticed one of the safeties swings over 180 degrees when in safe position.That’s the way it should work, being derived from the Springfield/Mauser safety, except the “safe” & “fire” positions were reversed. On the ’03, the upright position was for removing the bolt, but don’t know if that also applies to 54s, which have a different bolt-release.
My only catalog of the 54 period, 1933, shows that by that time, stocks had a smoothly tapered forearm, without the graceful schnobble!
Okay, I think I figured it out, the 1926 rifle has what is called a Buehler safety lever. This was an after market safety. It allowed a 35 degree flip to activate the safety so that a scope could be mounted without interference with the stock 180 deg safety spring.
You never have to worry about lying if you always tell the truth.
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