Never let pricedo loose in a gun shop

[wallythacker]

Very nice rifle.

I'd have a safe full of Winchesters if they had made them in stainless steel. I've heard many guys say the same thing. So they bought another brand stainless rifle instead. Winchester only has themselves to blame for their demise.

My life is too hectic to baby and care for a fleet of blued rifles.

[pricedo]

Very nice rifle.

I'd have a safe full of Winchesters if they had made them in stainless steel. I've heard many guys say the same thing. So they bought another brand stainless rifle instead. Winchester only has themselves to blame for their demise.

My life is too hectic to baby and care for a fleet of blued rifles.

I own 3 x 94s........1 each from the 3 main Winchester eras.
1) pre-64 (New Haven)
2) post-64 (New Haven)
3) post 2010 (Miroku)

And come to think of it you are right......I don't recall ever seeing a stainless model 94.

[pricedo]

Sighted the 94TE/450 in at 25 yards yesterday at the local pistol range.
This range is an ultra-modern indoor range as part of a sporting goods store complex with the target boards on moveable trolleys so there is essentially no need for cease-fires with 9 firing stations in total.
The target comes to you rather than the reverse at the push of a button on the shooting stall wall.
Unfortunately the range is max 25 yards which is just fine for old geezer die-hards shooting iron sighted leverguns.
The iron sights were dead-on without adjusting anything at 25 yards and not one shot of a coupla 10-shot (factory Hornady 350 grain FPs) volleys I fired strayed outside the 2" circle on the target.
The 20 rounds I fired cycled effortlessly.
What RD said in a previous post about the rimless 450 Marlin round lending itself to easy action cycling was once again confirmed by the 94TE/450 as it had been for the BLR/450 months previously.
I had pre-cycled the action of the 94TE/450 at home in front of the TV & PC till I could cycle it with my baby finger.
The superb Miroku machining resulted in a very short break-in session required to get the action ultra-slick.
The recoil was manageable from a 6 3/4 pound gun due to the Pachmayr recoil pad and the muzzle brake.
I am very pleased with the Winchester (Miroku) 450TE/450 NIB.
The little red Rossi toolbox had about an 1/8" layer of dust on it this morning when I cleaned the den..........the lid has remained closed for a few weeks & aside from being ill for a week or so I've spent my time shooting not fixing.
You get whutcha pay for.

[Ranch Dog]

The report is as expected, I assumed it would be a great shooting rifle!

[pricedo]

I have 3 x Winchester 94s representing the 3 major eras in 94 manufacturing history.

"grandpa" - a proud old pre-64 (1955) built Winchester 94 in 30 WCF which is still slick and accurate as confirmed at the club recently.

"the aristocrat" - the pristine post-64 (1973) brass Indian Yellowhead Commemorative Winchester 94 which is unfired and will likely remain so.......have 2 x very accurate 30-30s (the RG & the pre-64 94) and don't need to fire the Commemorative.......gorgeous black walnut stock and brass barrel bands and butt plate.

"the kid" - the new post-2010 Miroku manufactured Winchester 94TE/450 which I range tested recently.

[Ranch Dog]

All this Winchester talk has made me want a Timber Carbine chambered in 444 Marlin! Trying to fight the urge right now.

[pricedo]

All this Winchester talk has made me want a Timber Carbine chambered in 444 Marlin! Trying to fight the urge right now.

I almost slipped yesterday afternoon in the gun shop hosting the indoor range I shot at when I spotted another pre-64 in 32 WSP. The furniture and bluing looked pristine from across the counter but on closer inspection the receiver was covered with pitting. Too bad cause the price was only $425.
The little screw on the oscillating floor plate close to the forearm is a dead give away for pre-64 1894s. None of the post-64 94s have it.
There are lots of post-64s around for less than $300 if you're interested in press stamped pot metal which I am NOT.
It's either pre-64 or post-2010 for me.

Next time I go in that shop I'm going to take my bore scope & some dummy 32WSP ammo with me and if the gun is still there (not much of a chance of that) and the action & bore are OK I'll talk him down to $350 or $375 using the pitting as leverage.
I've seen Dad remove lots of pitting with WD-40 and a copper/brass wire brush & then use some touch-up bluing to make the gun look good-as-new.
The softer than steel bristles of the copper/brass brush remove the pitting and not the metal or the intact bluing.
If the barrel is corroded it's staying on the rack.

[pricedo]

Just mounted the compact little Leupold 2-7x33mm scope on the Winchester (Miroku) model 94TE/450 with the Leupold QD rings.
Everything fit perfectly and the line of bore and line of sight were very close & it took only a few elevation & windage clicks to bore sight the scope with my trusty old Bushnell Boresighter.

I don't Locktite scope base screws anymore.
What I do is thoroughly clean the threads in the receiver and the base screws with alcohol based de-greaser to purge every molecule of oil and grease off the treads before attaching the bases.
I find an intimate metal to metal friction bond to be superior to Locktite which can crack and crumble under heavy recoil.
The oil people leave on the threads creates the slip surface that loosens screws.

[pricedo]

Just purchased a Winchester model 1894 in 30-30 that was made the same year I was.........$400 (a little steep but I've been looking for a 94 made in my birth year for years and these things don't stay on the rack long).
The gun is in good shape where it counts (action and barrel) and the wood and bluing though worn are respectable (worn but respectable......just like the new owner who is the same age ).
I'm going to get a quote from the gunsmiths (very good) in the store on a complete restoration price.
If it's too much money I'll leave the gun as is OR maybe undertake the restoration as a winter 2013 project.

[Ranch Dog]

Very nice!