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LOT 28
Outstanding Documented Antique Winchester Model 1886 Lever Action Rifle in Desirable .45-70
Caliber with Factory Letter - Serial no. 101848, 45-70 cal., 26 inch octagon bbl., blue/casehardened finish,
walnut stock. The powerful Winchester Model 1886 is by far one of the most iconic lever action rifles of all time
and remains popular with collectors, shooters, and hunters to this day as one of the strongest lever action
designs ever developed. This rugged and dependable rifle was invented by prolific firearms inventor John Moses
Browning and was his first repeating rifle design to enter production but was far from his last. Browning’s design
was tweaked for production by none other than William Mason of Colt Single Action Army fame. The Model
1886 kept Winchester at the top of the lever action market. While a shorter action than the Model 1876, the
Model 1886 was able to chamber longer cartridges, including the .45-70 Government, and its stronger locking
block design was able to handle higher pressures even as Winchester made the jump to smokeless powders.
The locking bolts on the ‘86 pass vertically through the bolt securing it firmly in place, and the design was also
sleeker by abandoning dust covers and switching to an internal cartridge elevator. A powerful, dependable rifle
was highly valued in the American West in the late 19th century, and remained desirable for hunters through
the 20th century and on to today. Among its fans in the period was Theodore Roosevelt, who used this model
extensively, including testing samples for the famous Smithsonian–Roosevelt African Expedition, and the
legendary Rough Rider leader also presented Model 1886s to his friends.
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