Back in 1972, Winchester Repeating Arms, in New Haven, Connecticut was making a valiant attempt to modernize their plant with some pretty nice new CNC milling equipment. In that year, they had taken the design for the old pump-action Model 61 which had been abandoned in '64 as too expensive to produce, and updated it into a look-alike of the Model 94 lever action. The objective, which was refreshing after years of cost-cutting, was to make a premium .22 lever rifle of the best materials. It was to be reliable, accurate and something that could be passed down from generation to generation proudly. And they succeeded. Real milled steel. Traditional half-cock safety. Cut-checkered walnut on some models. Grooved for scope mounting (if you wanted to). It had a take-down feature, and the barrel could be cleaned from the breech. The new rifle was made right, looked right, and performed admirably. It was christened the Model 9422. It was made until 2005, shortly before USRA closed the doors of the old Winchester plant in New Haven. Production figures are unknown, but there were probably around 850,000 made (my estimate). The last ones were special tribute models, of which 9,422 were made, and these were so inscribed on the barrels, together with the horse and rider logo on the right side. They were last offered in the 2006 Winchester catalog.
In early 2006, realizing that these classics would probably never be made again, I wasted no time going down to my local gun store. I found a tribute model, new in the box, complete with accessories, papers and hang tag. I was one happy camper except for one thing. It was a safe queen. I needed a shooter.
Not long after that, I found a shooter, a traditional XTR model, which had the high polish, glossy stock and checkering. It was in excellent condition, and I snapped it up. What a fun gun!
I thought I'd post a picture of the two .22 LR guns. The differences are actually few - the tribute model has a satin stock finish, while the standard model is glossy. A small difference is that the earlier gun has a steel inner magazine tube, while the 2005 model has a brass one. Although it looks like the lower rifle is a bit longer, that's just an optical illusion created by the camera angle.
I don't know if Winchester will ever resurrect the 9422 - if they do it will probably be made in Japan. I'm sure happy that I have mine. If you find one or more at gun shows, you'll be looking at a modern classic, and one well worth considering. Values have taken off in recent years; they were never cheap, so be prepared to do some heavy negotiating.
John
