PLs tell me about my Winchester 88

bushmaster1313

bushmaster1313

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Just came back from LGS with a .308 Winchester 88 Serial No. 54XX
LGS says it is pre-64

I asked if there was a Savage 99 in .308 and this is what he had.

I traded up a bit for two guns worth $300 each and I was happy.

Please tell me about the 88, a gun I never heard of before.

How many rounds will the magazine hold?

Can I feed cartridges one at a time into an open bolt with the empty magazine inside?

What type of accuracy at 100 yards?

How do these compare to the Savage 99 in workmanship and reputation?

The gun is in excellent original condition with slight dents to the wood, no scratches and one of my grey hairs in the picture.

LGS said I do not want to mess around with refinishing the wood and I agree.

cimg0377x.jpg


This goes real nice with my 1955 .357:)
 
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I have a Model 88 4 digit serial number.....6851....
Great little rifle...Mine is now a safe queen, having been left to me by my Grandfather.....but I have sent many rounds downrange with it....
My Dad and I took the bolt apart when I was a kid, I URGE you NOT to do that....we took all the parts to a gunsmith for reassembly....
It will serve you well....I only have the one mag with mine....I have a fixed 4 power Weaver scope on mine, and I can shoot about 1.5 inches at 100 yards, usually a bit more, but I never tried to get tackdriver accuracy from it....
As far as reliable....mine is 100%, as long as I don't take it all apart again
 
I was looking for a Savage 99 in .308 because I have 6 boxes of .308 ammo after selling my DPMS LR308. It kept hitting me in the face with the spent cases because I shoot left hand and it had no shell deflector.
 
I have never owned a Savage, but I have owned this 88 since I was 15 when my granddaddy passed, and I have always loved it.....I hope you enjoy yours.....that rifle will do anything reasonable you ask of it, you won't be disappointed....
 
I also have a pre 64 in .308. Have scoped it since this picture. My shoots good too. I have heard the triggers are hard to get right. Mine is a little hard, but acceptable.

IMG_2149.jpg
 
Please tell me about the rail attached to the top of the receiver.

LGS said these were drilled at the factory and the rail would take Weaver rings.

What rings should I get to mount a Leupold M8 4X

Also, there is a flip up rear sight and a Winchester plastic recoil plate
Thank you
Lou
 
sheriffoconee said:
I have never owned a Savage, but I have owned this 88 since I was 15 when my granddaddy passed, and I have always loved it.....I hope you enjoy yours.....that rifle will do anything reasonable you ask of it, you won't be disappointed....
Click to expand...

Wow

What a treasure.
 
actually, mine has the same mount and my grandfather had a tip off mount on it....which is still there today.....
I didn't like it then, and I don't really like it now, but it seems to work...it ain't a precision rifle, at least, i don't think of it as one...but it will shoot a bunch of critters.....
 
With an open bolt and an empty magazine can I drop a fresh cartridge into the chamber and close the bolt?
 
I knew a guy who had a .284 made in the mid-1960's, with impressed checkering. Forget his 'scope and mount, but he let me fire it some and I got about 1.5-inch groups at 100 yards, from a bench..

The work on those I've seen was comparable to equivalent Savage 99's. I think the Savage will shoot about the same.
One or the other will probably fit you better.
 
This has been used little and the action is a bit stiff
Should I squirt in a drop or two of Ballistol or have a smith give it a professional cleaning?
 
They're a bit more complicated than a bolt action. I'd have it professionally cleaned, then lube and preserve with Break-Free CLP. It works better for me than Rem Oil does.

Clean the bore with Hoppe's No. 9 solvent or the similar product from Outer's.

I think the rifle will "wear in" to improved smoothness with use. Just clean and lube, then cycle the action and shoot it some. Triggers on these and other lever actions tend to be less than wonderful, but that's the nature of the beasts.

I think you can get factory-loaded .308 ammo now with Nosler Partition bullets. Those will let you take even elk and moose if you aim well. Try 150 grain bullets for deer and pronghorn, 180 grain for larger game and for defensive carry in bear country.
 
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PM me and when I get home from Afghanistan I will send you a magazine for it (taking for granted I can find it in the "drawer of despair")
 
You have Winchester's innovative "lever action bolt action rifle", where the lever turns the bolt. These guns were a little ahead of their time. They were short action calibers in a lever gun when most people were into bolt actions. My dad traded into a 1963 .284 around 1964 and carried it all over the west. The .284 is basically a short action .280 in a lever gun. Like sheriffoconee said, don't take it apart! That's what my gunshop pal has told me a hundred times. Apparently it's a nightmare to reassemble. I have this gun now along with a 1958 .243. I sold a .308/.243 "Croyner Clip" a while back but still have one for the .284. They are ten shot after market magazines for this gun. I prefer the 99 Savage with a Rotary mag but these Winchester 88's are classy solid guns that look ultra modern even today. You have a great gun with the bonus of first year production. My rather scarce '63 .284 is first year just before 1964 when Winchester went with the pressed basketweave "checkering" pattern.

Here's that .284...
img019.jpg


The 1958 .243...
001-9.jpg


And a 1955 Savage .243 that my dad carved up in the 60's.
DSCN0880.jpg
 
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I have a 88 and a 100, both in .308. The mags are interchangable! I have 2 aftermarket 10 rounders, and they are also interchangeable. Only difference is that an 88 mag will not hold the 100 action open-actually I view that as a+.
Both are quite good shooters, and will hold well under 2", a little better with premium Black Hills 168 gr ammo.
The 100 with the 10 round mags can put out an impressive bit of fire, I would not feel at all undergunned with either of them in any scenario. Trigger on the 100 is a little better I think, but both are quite OK.
Both are great guns and a little bit of history.
 
I shot my first and biggest (254# feild dressed) whitetail buck with a pre '64 M/88 in .308, I have owned several in .243, .308 & .358. Regret letting any of them go especially the .358, they are great rifles.
 
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