check them closets..

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I think I would remember a beauty like that in my closet ....

Interesting. The 9422 XTR that I had had checkering and I have not seen an XTR without checkering.

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FFL08

that was my dream gun in 1978... dad said no, we have a 22... but I got a 870 20ga the next year... kids change their minds quickly and just move on..

I have a low serial number 9422 XTR made in 1978, the first year the 9422 XTR was made, that also isn't checkered - and it's not supposed to be. They were not checkered in 1978, that didn't happen until 1979.

The 9422 XTR model was dropped in 1989, however at that point all the 9422s received checkered stocks, and that's where both shooters and gunsmiths start to get confused.

For example, last weekend I attended a gunshow and the vendor had a very nice post 1989 9422 with a checkered stock that he was pricing and selling as a 9422 XTR, just because it was checkered.

The giveaway that it wasn't was the lack of brightly polished flats on the lever and the hammer. Those flats are ALWAYS highly polished on an (original) XTR and are NEVER highly polished on a non XTR.

The second thing that must be on an XTR is the barrel marking indicating it is an XTR.

I explained that to him in an effort to get him to come down about $150 on the price. He wouldn't as he was either still convinced it was an XTR because it had a checkered stock, or felt he could still get XTR money for it. Maybe. If I didn't already own three excellent condition 9422s (the 1978 XTR, a 1998 Legacy model and a 2000 Trapper carbine), I might have been willing to slightly over pay for it.

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Another item to look for is a steel versus brass inner magazine tube. From 1972 through late 1978 Winchester used a steel tube, but switched to brass in late 1978. The marketing hype was that the brass tube wasn't prone to rust. However, I suspect it was done due to lower production cost as I've never seen a rusty steel inner magazine tube on a 9422.

I have two in my safe. A standard and a legacy. When I take someone to the range for their first time shooting, I take a 9422. People have seen enough Western movies that they instinctively know how to operate it. No recoil. Not heavy. I think it is the perfect rifle to start someone in the shooting sports. Then I let them fire a magazine through one of my machineguns. I have to get them hooked for life.

Thanks, BB57! I had to go have a look at mine. I thought it was an XTR just because of its checkering. But there's no XTR marking or polished flats. Fine with me, because it shoots like a dream. Apparently it's fairly late with a serial number of F737*** The records I found go to F671391 for the last number of 1994. Extrapolating it looks like an F737*** may have been made around 1999. Do you know when were they were discontinued?

The receivers were highly polished on all of the 9422s, and the wood was very nicely finished as well. Consequently, once they started checkering them, no one really noticed the difference between the regular 9422s and the older XTRs - as you've discovered.

They discontinued the 9422 in 2005, although I think they were still cataloged in 2006 as they sold the existing 9422 stock.

I must have one of the "transition" models from '78-'79. Mine is an XTR, checkered, with a steel tube, in .22 Mag.

IMHO, one of the finest .22 rifles ever made...

I appreciate the background on these rifles, BB57. They are indeed nicely made and it seems most if not all of the shoot well. It's a shame they were discontinued, but business is business. I doubt many folks would pay the price for a 9422 reissue when an AR-22 can be had for $350 or so.

I also have one of the 1978 XTRs with the smooth wood. Probably my favorite .22 rifle. Absolutely love it!
I never cared for any of the Winchester lever guns with checkered stocks. Just don't look or feel right to me.

Sometimes when people start talking about the minutia that make one version of something more valuable to today's collector market, my eyes start to glaze over. Probably a lack of sophistication on my part. Any 9422 is "xtra" good to me, and I think anyone is lucky to have one, even those with an awful-looking laminated stock. Just good rifles, a pleasure to use.

I got this 9422 "XTR" at a pawn shop last September. What a great shooter! Did a little head to head shooting with it this last weekend against my Nephew and his new Henry Golden Boy .22. Pretty evenly matched, shooting off hand (standing) we were dropping 3 1/2" steel rimfire targets at 50 yards, rapid fire. I think the Winchester did it with an extra touch of class.....

The best I ever shot my LR version was with one lot of Winchester 40 grain lead (since long gone) years ago. A buddy a I were out having fun goofing around, he was shooting a Ruger 10/22. Bench rest, open sights (I was younger back then), 10 shot string you could cover with a nickel at 50 yards. My buddy had a scope and couldn't come close to it. He offered to buy it right there, ha ha. I haven't been able to repeat it since so maybe it was a fluke. However, I never could find that exact lot number again back then either.

My son has a Henry. It shoots pretty good but there is absolutely no comparison build-wise...