My first Winchester mod. 1873!

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Hombre
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My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Hombre »

This is the first Winchester Mod. 1873 I bought.
If I should have known what I know today I probably should have run away from it. :shock:
Shortened barrel, shortened magazine, no finish, wrong swivels….
I guess, it is more easy to say what´s wrong with it than what´s correct.
Well, it was my first and after this one I have learned a lot.
Unfortunately, we do not have any Mike Hunter or Turnbull here in Sweden so I guess. I will leave it as it is.
By the way, it was manufactured 1879, the barrel is nice inside and it has a very smooth action. I bet, it is more game taken with it than I will be able to do in my lifetime. :mrgreen:
Well, here it comes!

/Stefan
Sweden
My english is like the rifle, not correct at all :oops: but I hope you can understand what I mean. At least, I am trying my very best.

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rjohns94
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by rjohns94 »

Very nice. Thanks for posting. Those 1873s are awesome
Mike Johnson,

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Borregos
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Borregos »

But..... is it a good shooter??
Pete
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FatJackDurham
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by FatJackDurham »

That is a nice looking gun! When were the changes done? Nothing wrong with a cut gun if you werent the cutter. If you every get sick of it, heck id travel to sweden to buy it!
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OldWin
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by OldWin »

Hombre,

Don't worry a bit about the changes. Like said above, as long as you didn't do it. Some old Winchesters are just cool on their own. You said the bore is good and that is the big one. If it's a good shooter and you get to use and enjoy it you did good. To me at least, that beats some mint condition example that you never enjoy because you are too busy worrying about it.
I have a 73 made in 1887 that someone cut to 20" and cut the magazine to half. The finish is gone and the wood was taken way down but it had a super bore. I bought it for $350 and had enough parts to make the magazine full length and replace the wood. I couldn't buy a repro for what I spent and have a cool original shooter.

You did good! Enjoy.
"Oh bother", said Pooh, as he chambered another round.
rbertalotto
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by rbertalotto »

looks great....a letter from the Cody Museum will tell you if the modifications were done at Winchester.
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3leggedturtle
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by 3leggedturtle »

That is a nice looking '73. It has character, I really like how it looks with the way it looks with the 1/2 length mag tube. What more is needed than a good bore and smooth function. Have fun and enjoy it. 3leg
30/30 Winchester: Not accurate enough fer varmints, barely adequate for small deer; BUT In a 10" to 14" barrelled pistol; is good for moose/elk to 200 yards; ground squirrels to 300 metres

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Old Savage
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Old Savage »

History is history and this is part of it. Enjoy I think it does look cool as someone said. What do you want for it - may very well get a taker here.
In the High Desert of Southern Calif. ..."on the cutting edge of going back in time"...

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gamekeeper
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by gamekeeper »

3leggedturtle wrote:That is a nice looking '73. It has character, I really like how it looks with the way it looks with the 1/2 length mag tube. What more is needed than a good bore and smooth function. Have fun and enjoy it. 3leg
+ 1... :mrgreen:
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Mescalero
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Mescalero »

Your English is fine, just say what you feel,
we will figure it out.
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ollogger
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by ollogger »

Nice looking 73!
its great to find one with a good bore

English is just fine


ollogger
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Griff
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Griff »

It makes it all the more amazing that any of them have survived 134 years WITHOUT being modified somewhat!
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nemhed
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by nemhed »

Mods or no mods, it looks good to me! I hope its a great shooter. Just imagine the stories it could tell, now you'll be part of that history.
Pop Watts
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Pop Watts »

As for the English - do not worry. We Australians have been trying to teach these Americans how to speak English for years, and we are still working on it.

Now, as others have commented, shoot that rifle and enjoy it. Not many people own an original 1873 Winchester but you do. I can see that there have been some "improvements" done on it at some time, but that has happened to a lot of old rifles. I have three original 1873's and only one of them has been modified when the original half magazine was replaced with an after market full magazine. Guess which one I shoot the most and enjoy using the most - the modified one. So shoot some holes in some cardboard and post some pics of how well it shoots.

Pop
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Griff
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Griff »

Pop Watts wrote:As for the English - do not worry. We Australians have been trying to teach these Americans how to speak English for years, and we are still working on it.
Pop
As for Aussie's teachin' us 'Mericans to speak English... from a bunch of Cockney convicts!!!! :twisted: From a Kiwi... what knows the difference between Aussie, Kiwi, Cannuck and the King's English! If I work at it, I can probably insult a few more "types" of English also! Although I will admit, Americans're quite frugal with vowel usage!!! :P
Griff,
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There is a fine line between hobby & obsession!
AND... I'm over it!!
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Hombre
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Hombre »

Thank you very much all of you, for your nice comments. I really appreciate it!
FatJackDurham wrote:That is a nice looking gun! When were the changes done? Nothing wrong with a cut gun if you werent the cutter. If you every get sick of it, heck id travel to sweden to buy it!
I do not know when the changes were done on this rifle. Should I have to guess, it was done a very long time ago. FatJackDurham, you are very much welcome to Sweden, but no the rifle is not for sale. :D

Guys, in your eyes when is a lever gun a candidate for a restoration?
If a lever gun is a candidate for a restoration shall it look like new when the job is done or…?
I must admit that I am very curious on your opinions.
Well, this rifle I will leave as it is and just as you say enjoy it.

Once again, thank you very much for your kind comments.

Best,
Stefan
Sweden
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Griff
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Griff »

Hombre wrote:Guys, in your eyes when is a lever gun a candidate for a restoration?
If a lever gun is a candidate for a restoration shall it look like new when the job is done or…?
I must admit that I am very curious on your opinions.
Well, this rifle I will leave as it is and just as you say enjoy it.
IMO, a rifle is a candidate for a restoration when it's non-operational, and isn't a historically "significant" piece. By that last, I mean, say it were not a Teddy Roosevelt owned gun... or say a serial number 1 of whatever it might be, in other words, just one of the whatever number they built, has suffered some ravages of time. And if I were to have such a piece restored, yes, it would be back to, or maybe better than it might have left it's factory; i.e., engraved, fancy wood, or some type of enhancement. I'd do this to boost it's value a bit, as such a restoration might drop its value; whereas a couple of cosmetic upgrades might improve its saleability... that is, IF I were ever to sell such a firearm.

Just my opinion, I don't believe there's a "right" or "wrong" answer to this... just differing outlooks on the whole "restoration" business.
Griff,
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AND... I'm over it!!
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Sixgun
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Sixgun »

Steve,
Your gun is very "clean" and by that I mean no unsightly gouges or pit marks. I would take a gun like yours any day over one that had 50% blue, but looked like it was drug behind a pickup truck on a gravel road. Your gun is an early second model and alternations are more accepted on an early gun than a newer one, made say, 1898. The wood looks good, along with the wood to metal fit. The alternation of the mag tube and sling swivel was expertly done and most likely, contemporary, which, by the way, does not hurt it as much compared to an alternation done last week by Bubba.

You done well and stop apologizing for your English. Gun people are gun people, no matter where we come from. We stick together and don't condescend our own for minor differences. Now.....if you told us that Obama was your hero, your gonna have a problem. :D -------------------Sixgun
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44-40 Willy
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by 44-40 Willy »

It looks a lot better than the one I had. Mine looked like a mile of bad road. And no problems with your English. It's much better than my Swedish.
44-40 Winchester. Whacking varmits and putting meat on the table since 1873.
pwl44m
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by pwl44m »

First off, there Aint nuthin wrong with Ur English that We caint figger out. I have a very good Mexican Friend that keeps appologizing for His English,heck He does a lot betteren some of or should I say All My Grandkids. I can't understand what They say half to 96% of the time, They say it is Me- go figger-.
Now about that Gun ! Looks good from here. My first and only 73 was a restoration by a Kindergartner by the looks of it (blue over pits and too much buffing) but I figure the price was right and it shoots -32-20- dd U say what Caliber Yours is ? Besides it aint everbody that has a 73 in any condition. :) I saw several at the Reno Gun show last weekend but that is another thread. Shoot it and enjoy it, another will come along and U will be better equipped to make an evaluation (not that there is anything wrong with Yours).
Perry
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JerryB
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by JerryB »

You have a right to be a proud owner of a real 1873 Winchester that looks that nice. Will you use it to hunt with? It would be nice to set at the table with a pot of coffee and let that old rifle tell you some tales. Enjoy it.
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KirkD
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by KirkD »

Those are old modifications made back in the day when that gun was putting meat on the table. They are part off its history and the rifle appears that is was well taken care of. I would recommend that you enjoy it as is, with its history. I'll look forward to a range report. 8)
Kirk: An old geezer who loves the smell of freshly turned earth, old cedar rail fences, wood smoke, a crackling fireplace on a snowy evening, pristine wilderness lakes, the scent of
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FatJackDurham
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by FatJackDurham »

Get a letter from the cody museum first. Try to find out a little more about it before restoration. Like they said, a gun should be ruined already AND have no historic significance before restoring. Its a lesson i am trying to learn. I had a Stevens reblued before i came to appreciate a historic patina, and i probably should have mailed S&W the Lemonsqueezer serial before dissassembly.

I am doing better with my M1910 roller. So, do some due dilligence, and consider carefully why you want to restore it, and what you want the result to be.

Then, have fun. in the end, you are now part of that guns history, too. Make it yours. Some one else in the future will get it and analyze you decisions too.
Hombre
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Re: My first Winchester mod. 1873!

Post by Hombre »

Thank you very much, all of you, for your comments.
I will leave the rifle as it is. I mean, it is complete and besides that, as I said before, we have no one here in Sweden like Mike Hunter or Turnbull.
For those who wonder about the caliber. It is a .44-40 WCF.
A range report will come!

Best,
Stefan
Sweden
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