New To Me Winchester Low Wall

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rbertalotto
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New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by rbertalotto »

UPS just dropped off a little Winchester 1885 Low Wall that I picked up on GunBroker a couple days ago.

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It needs love but is in much better shape than I expected. Not bad for $495.00!

It needs a barrel lining so I just ordered a liner from TJ and the appropriate pilot drill bit from PTG. It is currently a 32 Short but it will be a 32-20.

The wood is excellent and metal has been reblued. It has a fair amount of pitting under the new blue job, but not too bad.

Serial number is 13554 so I need to research the DOM

The bore is horrible. Worse I've ever seen. Seems they took reasonable care of the outside but never cleaned the bore.

It needs a bit of my TIG welder and then redrilled and tapped to retain the firing pin.
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And I don't believe this is correct...
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I'm sure there was a more elegant way of securing the lever pin?

The wood is pretty nice
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As is the barrel and most of the receiver...
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Since I don't have much $$ into this rifle it might be a good candidate to try case hardening....Ya just can't have enough projects sitting on the bench!
Roy B
Dartmouth, MA
www.rvbprecision.com
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2ndovc
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Re: New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by 2ndovc »

That will be really sweet when it's done! The 32 WCF is probably my all time favorite round.

jb 8)
jasonB " Another Dirty Yankee"


" Tomorrow the sun will rise. Who knows what the tide could bring?"
Pete44ru
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Re: New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by Pete44ru »

.

I like it, Roy - nice grab !


Apparently, Winchester didn't record SN's between 1913 & 1923, so I'm thinking that you''ll have to exterpolate your SN with the production SN's to get an approximate DOM.


.
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Hawkeye2
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Re: New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by Hawkeye2 »

Nice, wish it were mine. While you are at it turn that front sight around too. :D
Chuck 100 yd
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Re: New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by Chuck 100 yd »

I was just going to comment on the front sight being in backwards too. Great little project gun.
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Grizz
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Re: New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by Grizz »

a real beauty and you are the perfect guy to make it right, glad you get to.
gregg
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Re: New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by gregg »

like a lot. nice wood and walnut plus Winchester red. big plus on liner and 32-20. great round.
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Griff
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Re: New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by Griff »

Grizz wrote:a real beauty and you are the perfect guy to make it right, glad you get to.
Be real interesting to see the 'before' and 'after' pics of that piece! :mrgreen:
Griff,
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rbertalotto
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Re: New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by rbertalotto »

I woke up early today and headed out to the shop with my just received 1885 Low Wall.

This rifle started life as a RF in 32 SHORT and I need to convert it to CF for a reline and chamber in 32-20

And I also needed to repair a nasty job someone did on the firing pin retainer screw.

I'll be writing a whole article with loads of pictures on my web site later today.

But here is how it turned out:
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Going into this I knew the firing pin would not be centered on the primer once I finished. I'm surprised the RF pin hit the cartridge as the breech block sits quite low in the receiver.
Once I reassembled the rifle I threw a 32 Short Colt in the chamber with a live primer to see if it went bang....No Joy!
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And it appears to me I'm going to have to make a new link to get the breech block higher and the firing pin centered...Am I correct here?

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Are links available in various lengths or will I need to make one? If available, from who?

Here is a before and after of the firing pin retainer screw:
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I bored it out and used a 1/4-28 bolt as an insert. I had to drill and tap a hole for a 6-48 screw. This was a challeng as the hole needed to be drilled ay an angle to clear the firing pin and not bind.
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Once a bit of blending with 220g sandpaper...don't look to bad!

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Any help on the link issue is much appreciated.
Roy B
Dartmouth, MA
www.rvbprecision.com
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Griff
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Re: New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by Griff »

According to the Winchester & Browning parts catalogs the highwall & lowall versions of the Miroku produced 1885 use the same link. P/n: B3474844 LINK $13.50. All current calibers are centerfire.
Griff,
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There is a fine line between hobby & obsession!
AND... I'm over it!!
No I ain't ready, but let's do it anyway!
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Malamute
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Re: New To Me Winchester Low Wall

Post by Malamute »

Nice find on the gun, looks like it will be a great project.

I wasn't all that interested in them in the past, but the past couple years Ive been gravitating towards them more, just for the fun of shooting. I have a desire for a modern one in 22 Hornet and 25-06, though an old one would also be cool in Hornet or other small round.
"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat." -Theodore Roosevelt-

Isnt it amazing how many people post without reading the thread?
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