Old Winchester 94 carbine

[hoosier4guns]

I posted this elsewhere so I thought I'd post it here. Just looking for opinions. Winchester Model 94 Carbine 30 WCF all original from 1942. No buggered screws, very clean barrel with good rifling, blueing turning to a pleasing patina and the wood is solid and not messed with and some scabbard wear which is normal for a 74 year old gun...the surprise was when I removed the butt plate for a good soaking in Kroil I discovered a note about as old as the gun showing a transfer from one owner to another in Cheyenne Wyoming. Rich.

 

[30-30remchester]

What a nice carbine. It is nice to hear you appreciate honest wear and it sounds like you have no plans on "shining it up". Honest wear has a beauty of it own. The note under the pad is a great addition to the guns history. A little research might locate the original owners. The note is nice but not unique. I have found, names, initials, dates, a back deposit slip, complete addresses, notes and hunting licenses. I have a similar 94, that shows little bluing or finish, from 1932 and a mans name and the town Fairbanks, Alaska on a note under the butt plate of mine. Swiss military rifles often have a slip of paper under the butt plate with the soldiers name and unit number.

 

[Drm50]

I always take the butt plate off any old long gun I get. Have found extra parts, hunting license, notes of owner ship, even
some currency.

 

[s&wchad]

Everything looks correct for a late, pre-war 94 carbine. That's the right Model 55 butt plate and it's not drilled for a receiver sight. I see tang markings, so it's obviously drilled for a tang sight.

Good, unmolested gun!

 

[BigMuddy]

What a neat gun...note and all. The pre 64 94 is my favorite rifle. Ive got one that spends a lot of time in a saddle scabbard. I need to take the butt plates off a few to see just what might be under there.

Dan

 

[Big E3]

That's kinda funny Winchester calls it 30 WCF on the gun, yet the note says 30-30. People obviously were using the 30-30 nomenclature before Winchester. I don't know when they started putting 30-30 on the gun. My 1954 says 30-30.

That's a beauty and a keeper, I wish I could find a nice pre war.

 

[beardeddog]

A very nice gun you have there. Sold my essentially new 1951 model 94 (30-30) last year for $750 Even had the original box. Needed to clean out the safe. Miss it, but don't have time to maintain everything.

 

[boykinlp]

Nice gun and the note is a cool find too. I can't make out the year on the note. What is it?

 

[loknload]

Nice Winchester with a great find!

 

[mmaher94087]

I love the wording on the note: "Route - Via Burlington Lines". That helps date the note as Burlington became Burlington Northern.

 

[kraynky]

I love old guns with honest wear on them too. Old lever guns that show where they were carried, at that perfect balance point just in front of the lever, are really neat. Imagine the miles that rifle has traveled to actually wear the finish off of it. Pretty darn cool. How's she shoot?

 

[ky wonder]

That's kinda funny Winchester calls it 30 WCF on the gun, yet the note says 30-30. People obviously were using the 30-30 nomenclature before Winchester. I don't know when they started putting 30-30 on the gun. My 1954 says 30-30.

That's a beauty and a keeper, I wish I could find a nice pre war.

actually the 30-30 terminology was a marlin thing, they did not want to put anything on their rifles that referred to Winchester so they started the 30-30 marking on their rifles, keeping with the old caliber-powder load tradition

as with most things it was easier and quicker too say 30-30 rather than 30 Winchester center fire so the term stuck

the old Winchesters were good rifles I have a 1948 flat band sitting beside me in the rack as I type this, but I do love the elegance of the old marlin 1893s especially in the deluxe grades.

I was in a fairly large gun store one day a few years back and they had the old flat band sitting there with a very decent pre 64 price tag on it, and the salesman started telling me he could not get ammo for it because it was an obsolete loading, so I dickered him down some more on the price, since I was not going to be able to get ammo for this gun, so when we agreed on the price as we got to the register, I asked for some 30-30 ammo I believe at that time it was in the 6.95 range for a box so as I walked out with my gun at $50 off the sticker and a $6.95 box of 30-30,

at the door I told the guy that 30wcf was 30-30

as I was leaving and after I told him that, he said no it is a different round

I left grinning like a opossum eating bull droppings

 

[Art Doc]

Was Winchester making sporting arms in 1942?

 

[ameridaddy]

I posted this elsewhere so I thought I'd post it here. Just looking for opinions. ..... I discovered a note about as old as the gun showing a transfer from one owner to another in Cheyenne Wyoming. Rich.

Here is some info on those two men:
Name: Howard Ernest Roseberry
Spouse: Bertha L Roseberry
Birth: 18 Jun 1893, Keokuk, Lee Co. Iowa
Death: 15 Jun 1966, Cheyenne, Laramie Co. Wyoming
Residence: 1930 ~1966 Cheyenne, Laramie Co. Wyoming

Name: William Edward Stroehman
Spouse: Louvina Pearl Stroehman
Birth: 5 Jul 1913
Military: US Navy, 24 Aug 1943 - 2 Oct 1945
Death: 15 Jan 1987
Residence: 1936 ~ 1987 - Cheyenne, Laramie Co. Wyoming
Cemetery: Beth El Cemetery
Burial or Cremation Place: Cheyenne, Laramie County, Wyoming, USA

 

[Jessie]

The serial number comes back as 1943-1948. It says no records for those dates.
The best I could make out if its a date at the end was 11-24-4?
Maybe 1944? Maybe my imagination.
It doesn't appear to be an original purchase date since it names the person it was bought from.
???

 

[K Frame Keith]

Very nice carbine. In the early 70's I refinished the stock in my heirloom Winchester 67 (with linseed oil following the instructions from my Marine Dad). I left a hand written note under the butt plate for posterity. I should open it up an take a look at a message in a bottle from my younger self.

 

[hoosier4guns]

Here is some info on those two men:
Name: Howard Ernest Roseberry
Spouse: Bertha L Roseberry
Birth: 18 Jun 1893, Keokuk, Lee Co. Iowa
Death: 15 Jun 1966, Cheyenne, Laramie Co. Wyoming
Residence: 1930 ~1966 Cheyenne, Laramie Co. Wyoming

Name: William Edward Stroehman
Spouse: Louvina Pearl Stroehman
Birth: 5 Jul 1913
Military: US Navy, 24 Aug 1943 - 2 Oct 1945
Death: 15 Jan 1987
Residence: 1936 ~ 1987 - Cheyenne, Laramie Co. Wyoming
Cemetery: Beth El Cemetery
Burial or Cremation Place: Cheyenne, Laramie County, Wyoming, USA

Thank you so much for history of the former owners. I will keep it with the note found found under the butt plate. Again thank you so much. Rich.

 

[alwslate]

Most older Winchesters will have a two digit stamp on the bottom of
the barrel right in front of the receiver that indicates the year of mfg.
You may have to use a bright light to find it after cleaning the old oil
and crud from the barrel but I'll bet it's there.

 

[hoosier4guns]

The serial number comes back as 1943-1948. It says no records for those dates.
The best I could make out if its a date at the end was 11-24-4?
Maybe 1944? Maybe my imagination.
It doesn't appear to be an original purchase date since it names the person it was bought from.
???

Records do exist for serial numbers from 1943-1948. My 94 was mfg in 1942. Winchester did not produce any 94's in 1943. In 1944, 13 were mfg--1945 over 88,000 were mfg, in 1946 over 58,000 were mfg, in 1947 over 59,000 were mfg and in 1948 nearly 148,000 were mfg. No Model 94 saddle ring Carbines were mfg from 1940-1964. This info is from the Winchester polishing room records which are ledgers the company kept showing the date the serial number was applied to the receiver. The Cody Museum in Wyoming has these records. The Maddis production dates are not based on the polishing room records and are often incorrect, sometimes by a few years.I also spoke to some people at the Cody Museum. I appreciate the input and interest. Regards Rich.

 

[beardeddog]

I recall president Eisenhower receiving serial number 1.5 million? for 1950..special presentation piece. Been about 15 years since I read about it. I could be mistaken. Mine had been 1.6... Can't recall exact number of zeros any more