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LOT 1035
Outstanding Special Order Winchester Deluxe Model 1886 Fancy Sporting Lever Action
Rifle with Attractive Casehardened Receiver and Factory Letter - Serial no. 57475, 45-70 cal., 26
inch octagon bbl., blue/casehardened finish, walnut checkered stock. This special order Winchester Model
1886 Fancy Sporting Rifle had its serial number applied on June 17, 1891, per the included factory letter which lists
it as: “Type: Rifle, Caliber: 45/70, Barrel Type: Octagon, Trigger: Plain, Checkered stock, Pistol grip, 1/2 Magazine”, and
“Shotgun butt”. It was received in the warehouse on June 24, 1891, and shipped the same day in order 5946. Removal
of the stock proves that the shotgun butt listing is a clerical error as the left side of the lower tang is marked “99 XXX”
and the assembly number “99” is repeated in the stock inlet and on the crescent steel buttplate. The full octagon barrel
and half-magazine have a blue finish. The bolt and loading gate are bright blue. The forearm cap, receiver, hammer,
lever, and crescent buttplate are color casehardened with fiery case colors. The forearm and pistol grip stock are
highly figured, fancy grade walnut with Winchester “Style H” checkering and a high gloss piano finish. The bottom
of the pistol grip has an ebony inlay. The barrel has a dovetail mounted Lyman “Hunting Front” sight with insert and
adjustable folding leaf rear sight graduated to “10” and marked “1886” at the top of the leaf. The upper receiver tang
is factory drilled and tapped. The top barrel flat is roll-stamped with the two-line legend: “-MANUFACTURED BY THE-
/-WINCHESTER REPEATING ARMS CO. NEW HAVEN. CONN.U.S.A.-” ahead of the rear sight. The caliber “45-70” is roll-
stamped on the top barrel flat just ahead of the receiver. The upper receiver tang is roll-stamped: “-MODEL 1886-”. The
1884 and 1885 patent dates are roll-stamped on the lower tang behind the trigger, and the serial number is stamped
on the lower tang between the tang screws.
CONDITION: Excellent plus overall. The rifle remains in truly exceptional condition with 98% original the blue and color
casehardened finish. The barrel and half-magazine retain nearly all of the original blue finish. The case colors on the
buttplate have faded slightly but 95% remain, and there are traces of wear on the edge of the heel and some minor
pitting on the buttplate toe. The markings on the barrel and receiver are perfect. The stock and forearm retain 97% of
the original piano finish with some scattered and very insignificant handling and storage marks. The checkering on the
pistol grip and forearm is sharp and shows minimal handling wear. Mechanically excellent. This is a stunning example
of a special order deluxe Winchester Model 1886 Fancy Sporting rifle.
Provenance: The Robert M. Lee Collection; Private collection.
Estimate: 45,000 - 70,000
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