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LOT 1039
Very Fine Antique Special Order
Winchester Deluxe Model 1873 Lever Action Rifle with Desirable Casehardened Receiver
and Factory Letter - Serial no. 304794, 32 WCF cal., 24 inch octagon bbl., blue/casehardened finish, walnut
stock. This is a very fine example of an antique, special ordered, Winchester deluxe Model 1873 rifle. The
included factory letter lists the serial number as applied on July 30, 1889, and lists the rifle in .32 caliber with an
octagon barrel, plain trigger, checkered pistol grip stock, and casehardened finish. It was received in the warehouse
on October 15, 1889, and shipped on November 4, 1889, in order 5000. According to noted Winchester historian
and author George Madis, approximately one in every 600 Model 1873s was ordered with special wood and one
in every 700 had checkering. Madis does not list the rarity of casehardened finishes, which are seen fairly often on
deluxe rifles, but are comparatively very scarce when viewed in the context of total production. This rifle has the third
model receiver featuring the integral dust cover guide and the dust cover with grip serrations at the rear, which has
a blue finish. The top of the barrel is marked with the two-line address and King’s patent marking, as well as the caliber
marking at the breech, which is repeated on the bottom of the cartridge elevator. The upper tang is marked with the model
designation, and the serial number is on the lower tang, perpendicular to the direction of the tang itself. The left side of the
lower tang is marked “2758 XXX”, with “2758” repeated in the stock inlet, and the inside of the buttplate unnumbered. It is fitted
with a blued “Rocky Mountain” blade front sight with a platinum inlaid center line, which was almost certainly special ordered, an
elevation adjustable No. 24 notch rear sight, and a, likely special ordered, combination peep sight mounted on the upper tang. It is
mounted with a finely figured, deluxe, H-pattern checkered forearm and pistol grip stock with an ebony insert on the bottom of the
grip and a crescent buttplate.
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