Found an old (1946) Winchester 61 pump-action .22 rifle

[aimedfire]

Wood is perfect and nice but not original, and there is a stamp saying it came from Boyds in 2017. The receiver and barrel has a lot of bluing wear, surface rust, and some pitting. I cleaned it up and and the surface rust is gone. However, the bore is bright, with sharp rifling. And the action is flawless, smooth and perfectly functional.

This is my first 61 and I can see why people like it. I paid $350 + tax for it at a pawn shop.

 

[D Brown]

Very good price, congratulations!

Were you planning on posting photos?

 

[Valmet]

You did very well regardless of the aftermarket wood. 61s are fantastic rifles, some of the finest .22s ever manufactured IMO. A Model 61 with some bowling pins is a ton of fun.

 

[Ole Joe Clark]

Pictures or it didn't happen!!!!!!!!
We love photos of old Winchesters!

Have a blessed day,

Leon

 

[JM4151]

Win model 61.

The price that you paid for the old Winchester is more than fair, even with the problems that it had. I have an old 62 with over 30 K rounds thru it, with very few problems. Great rifles!I also have a 63 that is like new and a model 75 target that I received for my 10 th birthday in 1956.All work flawlessly.

 

[dmthomp32]

That is a solid buy for $350. You get an excellent firearm that will last forever if cared for. Can't beat that and it has the fantastic styling of an old Winchester!

Sent from my Pixel 3a XL using Tapatalk

 

[krsmith58]

congrats , sounds like you did well but can't tell by the photos .kenny , texas

 

[wundudnee]

You did very well. I love Winchester .22s and have many. When I was a kid I wanted a pump Winchester. I am still scratching that itch. As was said above, we need pictures.

 

[aimedfire]

Pics added in original post.

 

[mauser9]

Very nice indeed. They sure put that new Winchester Wildcat to shame!! Can't beat the old craftsmanship way back when.

 

[Babysitr]

Great shooter, good price!. they are fun

 

[SLT223]

Nice! I picked up a minty 1944 a couple years ago. What a fun gun to shoot. You got a good deal on that one.

 

[dave1918a2]

Couple of pics of My 1949 vintage that I traded a model 41 for. Only had $500 in the 41. 2nd best shooting .22 I have. 1933 vintage 52 is the best. You did good on Yours.

 

[italiansport]

Congratulations: Built during a time when Winchester could and would build quality guns!
Jim

 

[Drm50]

I have a nice early model 61. Not grooved for scope. Slick and accurate rifle.

 

[Barrie]

I have owned the model on the bottom of Wududnee;s pic with the 4 nice rifles showing. I kick myself still for selling it off long ago now. Maybe I will get lucky and have another one fall into my hands.

 

[2152hq]

Nice 61. Great price for a shooter with a nice bore. I'd have grabbed that in a minute.

Orig 'take off' wood from another rifle is usually available if you watch Ebay and some of the other Gun Auction/Sales sites.
(There's pre-war style wood and post-war style if you do get in to that)
...But it won't make it shoot any better than it is now!

Nice find!

 

[Ed Fowler]

This is my Mod 61, found her in a box of parts, fore-stock broken into three parts Magazine tube missing as was the butt stock and sights, she was discarded with a bunch of other metal parts of stuff. Started out repairing fore stock and finding magazine tubes and hangers. Butt stock was missing so picked up a blank and added that. Went to shoot her and she could not hold a 4 inch group at 50 yards. I believe someone tried to shoot her with a little ice in the bore and it stretched the muzzle. Relined the barrel and then she would shoot as well as any pump rifle. After the first several hundred rounds A Federal 22 "standard velocity" round

that must have had a supreme overload blew up and send the ejector flying about 30 yards to South. A replacement extractor took about a month to locate and she was back in business. Shoots very well, a delight to carry and one of my prizes, cost nothing to buy, but took many hours to get her going.

A lot of work but I have wanted one since I was a little kid and now I have one and love it.

Safety Note: Never stand to the right alongside of a rifle that ejects rounds to the right, this extractor could easily have injured a person. As those of you who have them know it is impossible to make a mod 61 fire without the bolt being fully closed. Federal will argue with you, but I doubt that many employees at Federal customer service have much knowledge of the action of a Mod 61.

 

[Gene L]

I don't know who designed the 61 Winchester, but the style has been around a long time and produced by various makers. I have a Model 29 Savage, looks just like the 61, takedown. I had to replace the ejector, which was pretty inexpensive. The rifle is an early one, octagonal barrel. I brought the wood up; all it needed was some steel wool and Tru Oil.

I also have a Meriden that looks like the Savage. Now I learn of the Winchester 61, three peas in a pod. I put tang sights on both of them, had to do some extensive barrel work on the Meriden...barrel relined. But I was into it for a fairly low price, so I could afford it and still stay on top. The Meriden has an octagonal barrel, also.

Outside metal is pretty good on both rifles, patina on both but the finish isn't rusted.

On reading the O Post, I searched for who designed this rifle, but couldn't find any info. If anyone knows, I'd appreciate the info.

 

[2152hq]

The M61 was designed by 2 gents in the Winchester R&D Dept.
Harold Crocket (sp?) and Frank Burton

T.C. Johnson was head of the R&D and is sometimes given the credit for the Model 61 design and pat. But it was the above two that did the work and I believe their names are on the patents.

The 61 had to work around existing patented features of the FN Pump.22 already on the market (not often seen and I believe was not marketed commercially in the USA) and Remingtons Model 12.

The *Meriden Model 15 was pat by the two sons (John & ??) of Arthur Savage (Savage Arms Co).
Working for Meriden arms they also have their names on Meridens 12ga Pump shotgun sometimes called the Model 1912.

When Meriden went under never to return to business a the end of WW1/1918,,the pat and rights to mfg the *Meriden Mod1915 22 pump were bought by Oscar Mossberg.
He was just starting his company up in 1921/22 & started mfg the Mossberg Model M & K ( and L ?) .22 pump rifles which were built on that Meriden patent.

The Meriden pump 12ga shotgun I believe reappeared as the Savage model 1921 pump shotgun.
I have a Meriden 12ga pump and the Savage 1921 appears quite alike.
The Savage being designed and pat by Art.Savage' sons the other Meriden pat being sold off in auction may make some sense that the pump shotgun design could have ended up with Savage after WW1.
Often compared to the Win M12, it is more a hybrid of a Remington M10 bolt with a Win12 carrier & side ejection.