Forum rules
Welcome to the Leverguns.Com General Discussions Forum. This is a high-class place so act respectable. We discuss most anything here other than politics... politely.
Please post political post in the new Politics forum.
Frequent visitor, infrequent poster. I thought you might like to see a picture of a whitetail doe I harvested with a 123 year old Winchester 1873, .38 WCF. Broadside shot at about 25 yards, bullet went through the heart and she dropped after about a 30 yard downhill run. This is the second deer I've taken with this gun and it performed flawlessly, I love this old gun. Made in 1892, it was a special order gun having a 26" barrel, two inches longer than standard. Load was a home cast 180 grain bullet out of RCBS mold 40-180CM, 1:20 tin to lead over 5 grains of Hodgdon Titegroup. Bullet penetrated completely.
I took this deer two days after my oldest son shot his first deer, with a .30-06. The shot placement for both was essentially the same. Dressing the .38-40 deer was a pleasure compared to the 30-06 though, the '06 made a mess!
Good morning and Congratulations !
Thank you for posting this fine photo and the write up. That is one fine 38 WCF 73 you have there. At that range your bullet was well suited for the task. May you be blessed with many a fine day afield with that handsome 73. Nice deer !
I sure hope one day ILLinois will trust us to use pistol caliber rifles to pop corn crunchers. But at least we can use handguns and duplicate BP lever action ballistics. Sure not the same though.
Mike in Peru
A sinner saved by FAITH in the Blood of Jesus Christ &teaching God´s Word in Peru. John 3:36
Tanker 71-74 NRA Life Ready to Defend the Constitution from enemies within and without.
Dan that is a nice doe shot with my favorite cartridge. It is my favorite because I have memories of shooting my Grandfathers 92 rifle has a boy. When I finally got it I was scared to hunt deer with it due to the gun rags stating it was a bad choice. My Dad laughed when I mentioned that and said hit them where they live(lungs) and they die.
As you know it is the case! I was surprised to see the deer I hit stagger and fall quickly.
Love the rifle and the wool. Looks just like the Johnson's I now wear. I have worn two Woolrich's threadbare. Paid 72 bucks for the first one hope the Johnson wears as well.
Thanks for all the congratulations! The best part of the whole deal is spending quality time with my sons and filling
the freezer with good food for the family. Great memories being made.
Man, you guys love the wool! I've gotten about 20 years worth out of that set, the pants are getting tough to squeeze into
and I think they'll have to get passed down next year. They're both Johnson brand and have served me well. I wear it right down
into the teens, below that it's time for the arctic grade coveralls.
The gun (though I love it dearly) has its pluses and minuses. The bore and action are both great, it shoots one hole with the right load
at 25 yards (I sight it in short because I used to use it for cowboy action when I used to have time). The markings are fairly crisp and it
overall has a great look. On the minus side, at some point in its life before it came to me, some fool tried to reblue it with cold blue, you can
see the blotchiness on the receiver. The wood was repaired and refinished at some point and I'm fairly certain that the forend is a replacement.
Still, it does have the long barrel and overall a great look. Due to the minuses, it is a good candidate for restoration and I may do it someday.
Until then, it will continue to serve me well.
Mike in Peru - it was only in the last five years or so that the county I hunt in approved rifles for deer hunting. I grew up using slug guns and handguns
only so I feel your pain on that one. I never thought it would happen here so don't give up hope. The switch to rifles has been a complete success with
no increase in accidents whatsoever. And may God bless your missionary work, I'll pray for you and your ministry.
][/img]
