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LOT 1030
Scarce Documented .50 Express Winchester Deluxe
Model 1876 Lever Action Rifle with Factory Letter - Serial no. 37893, 50-95 Express cal., 22 inch
octagon bbl., blue/casehardened finish, deluxe walnut checkered stock. Manufactured
in 1883, this deluxe Winchester Model 1876 .50 Express lever action rifle with Cody Firearms Museum letter states the
rifle was shipped from the Winchester warehouse on November 16, 1883. The letter describes the rifle features as
“Casehardened, Express caliber, Barrel shape: Octagon, Plain trigger” and “Checkered stock with pistol grip”. The rifle has a blued, 22 inch, full-octagon barrel, (not
mentioned in the letter) half magazine and shotgun butt. None of these features are mentioned in the factory letter, but appear correct. The forearm cap, frame, dust
cover, hammer, lever and shotgun buttplate have a color casehardened finish. The forearm and pistol grip stock are fancy grain walnut with “Style H” checkering and a high
polish “piano” finish. The pistol grip has an ebony inlay. The barrel has a sporting front sight with nickel-silver blade and a sporting rear sight with checkered edges. The third
model frame has an integral dust cover rail and dust cover with serrated edges. The top barrel flat is roll-stamped with the two-line legend “WINCHESTER’S-REPEATING ARMS.
NEW HAVEN.CT./KING’S-IMPROVEMENT-PATENTED-MARCH 29.1886. OCTOBER 16.1860.” ahead of the rear sight. The caliber designation “50 CAL” is stamped on the top barrel flat between the rear sight and the frame. The top of the dust cover is roll-stamped “WINCHESTER EXPRESS/.50 CAL. 95 GRNS” in two lines. The brass cartridge elevator is stamped “50- 95” in script letters. “{MODEL 1876}” is roll-stamped in fancy letters on the upper tang. The serial number is stamped in small digits on the lower tang between the lever latch and the rear tang screw.
CONDITION: Fine. The rifle retains 30% of the original blue and 50% color casehardened finish. There
is minor edge wear on the barrel flats. The casehardened finish on the forearm cap, frame, dust cover,
lever and hammer have faded slightly but retain strong case colors. The buttplate has a dark patina
with some light pitting. The rifle has scattered minor surface discoloration and some light pitting on
the metal surfaces. The stock and forearm are both fine overall with sharp checkering. Most of the high
polish piano finish remains intact. The stock and forearm have a number of minor handling marks.
All of the markings are crisp. Mechanically excellent. This is a solid representative example of a scarce
and very desirable Winchester Model 1876 deluxe .50 Express rifle; one that is undoubtedly a true
documented .50 Express deluxe 1876 Rifle.
Provenance: The Gateway Collection.
Estimate: 20,000 - 35,000
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