Opinions on a 1894|Winchester Rifles|Forum|Winchester Collector

Hello all,  I’m new to the WACA forum.  Although I would not consider myself a Winchester Collector I do own a Winchester 1894 from 1953. I do have a small collection of 1911’s.

My Dad recently brought home a Winchester rifle but neither of us knew much about it.  After spending several hours on your forum I believe we figured out what we have.  When we first looked at the rifle we did not see any manufacturer or model listed on it.  A closer inspection revealed a roll mark on the barrel “Manufactured by the Winchester Repeating Arms Co.  New Haven Conn. U.S.A. Patented August 21, 1894″ So that led to at least the barrel was made by Winchester.  A further search of the forum revealed that the reason we couldn’t find a model was that the model roll mark was concealed under a Lyman tang sight.  So bottom line, the rifle turned out to be Winchester 1894 made in 1916 or 1918 depending on where you look.  The serial number is 8345xx.  The gun appears to be in decent shape for its age.  The finish on the receiver is not nearly as nice as the finish on the barrel and magazine.  But looking through the forum that seems common.  The gun has a 26” barrel, crescent butt stock, Lyman tang sight in the rear, blank in the middle and a Lyman front sight, full size magazine and octagon barrel. I would be interested if it is currently in its original configuration and what it is worth.  It is my understanding that the only way to know if it original is through a Winchester letter however this rifle is after the serial number range for a Winchester rifle.  We have no interest in selling it.  Guns seem to come in but never leave.  I’m not sure if that makes me a hoarder or not.

Anyway, I would appreciate any of your feedback.