Restoring a 1894 Takedown...

[gizamo]

I found this old gun in a pawn shop not to long ago. At some point in it's life the barrel was shortened. Gone was the slot for the take down lever on the mag tube...along with the magazine tube hanger. I'm fortunate enough to have a first rate machinist that has done wonderful things for some of my other older guns. Dovetailing the barrel for the mag tube hanger will not be a problem...nor the milling of the slot for the tubes lever's end. I realize that the forearm is too long for the shortened barrel. But I'm intent on hunting with this gun and it really doesn't bother me. It also lets folks know that the gun has been cut down...

Now for the 20 dollar question ....

Where can I find and purchase a correct diameter hanger for a 30-30 magazine tube?




giz

[pokey]

lots of places have winchester parts,

numrich, midway, winchester bob, etc.

sometimes too many parts, figuring which mag ring you need will be the trick.

you need the over size one so the mag tube will turn.

good hunting.


oh, nice rifle by the way.

[Ben_Rumson]

First let me say what a really cool rifle you have there!
No pro here and can’t say for sure what the 94s have, but I’ve been hanging here long enough to learn that the tube hanger is not hung in a dovetail, rather in something like a screw thread... The hangers have to be twisted out, not driven out like something in a regular dovetail does... Someone will be along to give you the dope on how the cut is made.

[Mike D.]

Hopefully, Mike Hunter will answer this question for you. I do know that the hanger rotates into place and does not have a retaining pin.

[Malamute]

Well, it is in fact a dovetail, but it's cut so that the magazine ring rotates into place.

I don't know if it takes any special magazine ring, if a standard ring is too tight, it could be opened up carefully a few thousandths to provide the needed clearance. Last one I bought was about $10 I think. If originality isnt top priority, you could have your machinist cut the barrel slot with a standard 3/8" dovetail (or whatever size you wanted), then machine the ring's base into a dovetail to match. This would let you use a worn or damaged ring also, tho you could fit the cut to a ring if the ring was worn/damaged. My gunsmith looked at the ring cut in a Winchester barrel and right away said, "Oh, OK, I can do that with a standard cutter". Either way, it shouldn't be hard to replace the ring on your gun. Be sure you get the distance correct from the muzzle so it looks right. I believe most were the same distance, regardless of barrel length, unless it's a very short barrel.

Some short rifles had the fore end the regular length. Most were shorter, but there's no guarantee that a long fore end is not correct in a short rifle. Just depends on what the order specified.

Nice rifle. I like the short rifles looks and handling. As you said, you got it for a working gun, so having been shortened isnt the end of the world, and no doubt, made the price reasonable.

[COSteve]

Actually, the shortened barrel / rifle forearm isn't an issue. I believe that Winchester made a 'Short Rifle' with the rifle front stock and a 20" barrel. Rossi makes a '92 version and Cimarron has a short rifle in their 1873 line.

[gizamo]

The other option would be for me to shorten the mag tube and make it into a half-mag version. Certainly would be cheaper and still look somewhat right...


gizamo

[shawn_c992001]

Nice rifle! I always wanted a take-down rifle.

[Mike Hunter]

The magazine hanger (ring) fits into a rotary dovetail cut in the barrel. It’s a true circle cut with a 60 deg dovetail cutter. Only three ways that I know of to properly cut the dovetail, a mill with a rotary table, a CNC Mill, or a Volostro Rotary Milling Head. I use a Volostro Rotary Milling head.

When your buddy cuts the rotary dovetail. Let him know that depth must be within +/- .003 otherwise the mag tube will not function properly.

The only difference between a standard mag rig and a TD mag ring is that the TD mag ring doesn’t have a hole for the retaining pin. Otherwise they are identical.

Have Fun

Mike

[Griff]

The Mag ring for the .32 caliber & up '73, '92 and all the '94s are the same. Every once in a while you can find those parts on flea-bay. Since Chiappi is making their TD '92s, contact some of the importers and see if they have any parts... Don't forget VTI, item #28, @ $30.00. Good luck.

[gizamo]

Well Gang,

After a few back and forth posts...I shipped the barrel end of the gun to Mike Hunter. I pm'd him after he posted in this thread. Really nice guy to do business with...

I looked at his website and was impressed with his workmanship...

Now the wait begins.

I'll post pics of the gun when he's done...


giz

[Mike D.]

I can guarantee you that Hunter Restorations does first class work. Mike has done work for me in the past and he currently is working on one of my 1886s. You will be very pleased when the gun returns to you.