Before doing that, I am going to retell the story behind this rifle. in 1929, when my dad was 16, he was at an auction and this rifle was on the block. It is an 1886 Winchester, vintage 1887, 40-82 caliber. The bid was $1.25 and he thought it must be worth at least that, so he bid and wound up getting it for $1.50. The auctioneer took his money and said "here kid, use it for a crowbar." He never shot that gun, and only ever saw one box of shells for it, but at $15.00, it was too rich for his blood. It sat in his closet for years, and I probably worked it more than anyone else because I would sneak in and work the action and wonder what it would be like to shoot.
After he passed on, I got the gun, and I had this itch that had to be scratched. I really wanted to shoot that old gun, but it was not in pristine condition. The rear sight that was on it was one that my dad had taken off a Remington Model 24, 22. In my search for a sight, I showed the gun to several different folks who were knowledgable, and to a man, they, said the receiver is pitted, so it isn't a collector grade, but it should make a decent shooter. The stock was soaked in oil and was just caked black with it. Years ago, I got enough of the oil off so you could at least see some grain in the wood, but there was no real finish on the gun.
After trying different means of cleaning up the receiver, I finally decided to polish it. I used stones to work the pits out, then polished it on a wheel. This might sound pretty brutal to many on this quorum, but my reasoning was this: I have no intention of ever selling the gun. If I leave it in a pitted condition, in 100 years, it will still be pitted. If I clean it up, in 100 years, it will look like someone did something to it a long time ago. Besides that, I hadn't found this forum yet, and didn't know anyone to ask.
![Embarassed :oops:](./images/smilies/icon_redface.gif)
I started shooting the gun almost 2 years ago now, and have had a lot of fun working up loads that will work. Hope you all enjoy the pictoral essay.
Before
![Image](http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg193/Brugeo_4082/1886Winchesters40822.jpg)
After
![Image](http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg193/Brugeo_4082/188640-82RightSideCropped.jpg)
Before
![Image](http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg193/Brugeo_4082/1886Pre-finish4.jpg)
After
![Image](http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg193/Brugeo_4082/188640-82ButtStockHoleRepair1.jpg)
Before
![Image](http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg193/Brugeo_4082/1886ForearmsplitPre-finish11a.jpg)
After
![Image](http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg193/Brugeo_4082/188640-82Forearmcap2.jpg)
After polishing
![Image](http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg193/Brugeo_4082/188640-82ReceiverRt3.jpg)
After polishing
![Image](http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg193/Brugeo_4082/188640-82ReceiverLt4.jpg)
And Finally:
![Image](http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg193/Brugeo_4082/40-82Targets.jpg)