Winchester 190 .22

Picked one up for $90 today, its clean and a .22 so what the heck, right?

Anyone know or have any experience? Looks kind of like a Marlin 60.

I had one many years ago. It was reliable and put squirrels in the pot for me. My brother also had one as his squirrel rifle. It served him for many years but eventually wore to the point that he started having reliability problems with it but that took about 20+ years of use. If the one you bought is in good condition I think you got a good deal.

I grew up with the JC Higgins version of this gun. This one would cycle shorts, longs and long rifle. Very accurate and reliable. The only problem is the pin holding the trigger group loosened after a while. As I remember we were able to get an oversized pin to solve the problem.

They disassemble very much like the Marlin 60.

Many people say that reassembly of the bolt and the recoil spring are difficult and some even put a makeshift guide rod inside the recoil spring to help keep it from kinking up in reassembly. (a piece of coat hanger wire is what you usually find in there).

But it's not needed if you take your time and feed the spring and bolt into position and drop the bolt back down in the recv'r on top of the charging handle. Same as the Marlin.

I think the later Model 290 that took the 190's place did employ a guide rod inside the recoil spring to prevent kinking.
One of the improvements perhaps.
Probably no reason that the 290 guide rod couldn't be used in the 190 but I have never put one in.


Disassembly is by pushing the pin out in the side of the frame and pulling the trigger group out.
The pin you remove does go thru the alloy frame of the rifle . So the holes in that alloy will get enlarged after a while from repeated disassemblys if you're not careful.
You can splay one end of the pin with a hammer on the flat of the bench vise to make it a tighter fit in the frame for a fix. But again repeated disassemblys will again loosen it after a while.
It's not the type of action that needs to be disassembled with every outing.
Oversize pin will work but you likely have to drill or ream the hole in the trigger group also to fit.
Just careful disassembly is the best way and with a punch that does not open the hole in the frame up any. The pin should nearly push out with hand pressure on a punch

Remember to remove the inside mag tube before trying to pull the trigger group out of the frame,, and be careful to protect the small tab on the front edge of the trigger group that locks into the frame. It can get broken off easily.

You can disassemble the trigger group but be ready for lots of springs and stamped parts just like the Marlin.
The 190 used a hammer w/a torsion spring so it's a little easier to take apart.
The Marlin 60 uses a hammer & coil spring w/a strut follower that can take a ride as soon as the unsuspecting mechanic takes the side plate off the trigger group.
The Marlin does have a small hole in the strut so you can capture the spring and hammer, same idea as the Ruger mainsprings. But if you're not looking or unsuspecting,,you'll probably spend some time on the shop floor looking for parts.
Eye protection always,,,I should talk.

If you're not familiar with them, just soak the assembly and air blast it clean and relube is usually all they need.

The gun usually has a heavier than most like for a trigger pull and that can be lightened with some carefull work on the hammer and sear points. But that does demand you take the assembly apart.

The Model 290 was pretty much the same rifle, don't remember if they made a carbine edition like they did of the 190.
We used to get most any parts we needed for these from Numrich when I worked in the shops. But that was some years ago.

Those that owned them always seemed to like them.

Thanks for the great info!

Had one back around 1970 I believe. It was second hand and I often got burned powder specs on my arm due to the fit of barrel to receiver. Heard probably caused by a loose nut of some sort. Hopefully you will not have this problem.

I bought one from an acquaintance a couple years ago for $50.
He didn’t say that it wouldn’t cycle any rounds.
I broke it down and found a .25 acp round was the culprit.
Sheesh!
Since then it’s been a good shooter

mauser9 said:

Had one back around 1970 I believe. It was second hand and I often got burned powder specs on my arm due to the fit of barrel to receiver. Heard probably caused by a loose nut of some sort. Hopefully you will not have this problem.

Click to expand...

The bbl is held to the frame by a collar nut.
The bbl slips into the frame, then the nut which is around the breech end of the bbl is screwed down into the frame and tightened. A shoulder on the nut pulls a matching shoulder on the bbl. The bbl is pulled and locked into position in the frame.
Not meant to be a Quick TakeDown type of system or even one for occasional disassembly by the owner. It was just the way it was designed and put together for the factory assembly line.
A simple press fit bbl shank w/a cross pin seems like it would have been fine like so many other 22's. including that Marlin 60,,but..?

If the assembly is loose, the bbl sits forward & the headspace is way off. Case heads can rupture especially at the firing pin imprint. That's where you get the gas blow back. The entire case heads can fracture too.

A spanner wrench is needed to take the nut off/on. You can make one easily enough by looking at the set-up.
This is seen by taking that metal (or some are plastic) shield cover off of the bbl that is right in front of the rec'vr on top.
To do that, drive the rear sight out of it's dovetail (left to right to take it off) and the cover can be removed.
You'll have to have the forend off and the tube magazine parts off as well to work on the bbl.



Some guns have been tinkered with and the nut has been attempted to be tightened or loosened with a punch and hammer or other gadget means with less than optimum results.
Some are really messed up as far as the wrench slots are concerned. You risk cracking the alloy frame with too much force applied trying to get at the thing.

Some loose bbl fixes in those cases were to Epoxy the bbl into place and hold it back into position clamped steady and straight till the stuff sets.
It wasn't Top Shelf,,but it worked and put the squirrel blaster back in the woods inexpensively.

Replacement bbls used to be available from Numrich. That collar nut is considered a part of the bbl and comes already installed on the bbl as a factory assembly.

Parts were pretty inexpensive as I recall,,but so were the rifles.

A college friend of mine had a 290. His had a trigger pull that would vary from shot to shot. He took it apart and tried to fix it. H accidently made it a full auto! He took it apart again and got it back to normal. He later sold it and bought a Browning BL-22 lever action.

Funny thing about that Browning. He and I went to the downtown Sears store in Birmingham, Alabama and he bought it. The store couldn't find the box and he wound up just carrying it over his shoulder, walking across the parking lot. These days, somebody would probably call out the SWAT team.

2152hq said:

The bbl is held to the frame by a collar nut.
The bbl slips into the frame, then the nut which is around the breech end of the bbl is screwed down into the frame and tightened. A shoulder on the nut pulls a matching shoulder on the bbl. The bbl is pulled and locked into position in the frame.
Not meant to be a Quick TakeDown type of system or even one for occasional disassembly by the owner. It was just the way it was designed and put together for the factory assembly line.
A simple press fit bbl shank w/a cross pin seems like it would have been fine like so many other 22's. including that Marlin 60,,but..?

If the assembly is loose, the bbl sits forward & the headspace is way off. Case heads can rupture especially at the firing pin imprint. That's where you get the gas blow back. The entire case heads can fracture too.

A spanner wrench is needed to take the nut off/on. You can make one easily enough by looking at the set-up.
This is seen by taking that metal (or some are plastic) shield cover off of the bbl that is right in front of the rec'vr on top.
To do that, drive the rear sight out of it's dovetail (left to right to take it off) and the cover can be removed.
You'll have to have the forend off and the tube magazine parts off as well to work on the bbl.



Some guns have been tinkered with and the nut has been attempted to be tightened or loosened with a punch and hammer or other gadget means with less than optimum results.
Some are really messed up as far as the wrench slots are concerned. You risk cracking the alloy frame with too much force applied trying to get at the thing.

Some loose bbl fixes in those cases were to Epoxy the bbl into place and hold it back into position clamped steady and straight till the stuff sets.
It wasn't Top Shelf,,but it worked and put the squirrel blaster back in the woods inexpensively.

Replacement bbls used to be available from Numrich. That collar nut is considered a part of the bbl and comes already installed on the bbl as a factory assembly.

Parts were pretty inexpensive as I recall,,but so were the rifles.

Click to expand...

Great info for current owners. Never knew how to fix mine back then and the gun is long gone. Did not look like the sturdiest built .22 anyway. Ended up with the Ruger 10/22 and recently a Ruger American compact in 22 magnum. Great woods varmint gun with that 18 inch barrel.