Just bought a Winchester Model 94 in 30-30

[johncanfield]

A lady friend of my wife wanted to sell a Model 94 that had been in her family since new (serial number shows it was manufactured in 1927), so she brought it over last night so I could look it over. I have always loved lever guns and would really like to have one so I did some research on the pre-war 94s. She had it appraised at a LGS and he put the value on it at $500.

The stock has been decorated/embellished with some brass designs which I thought would greatly detract from its value. Also almost all of the bluing has been worn off but apparently Winchester had technical issues with the bluing flaking off in a few year period which includes 1927. So I offered her $350 and we finally settled on $400, I didn't drive too hard of a bargain because she needed the money - it was a win-win for both of us. I finally got a lever gun and she got some cash.

I did shoot the gun before I made the offer and it seems to be very accurate; the bore looks clean the action seems to work okay.

[03Lightningrocks]

Sounds like you got a good deal on a rare rifle. I have been looking for an older model 94 in thurty thurty. Nice find!

[WildBill]

Sounds like you got a good deal on a rare rifle. I have been looking for an older model 94 in thurty thurty. Nice find!

Poetic Justice - I gave my 30-30 to a friend for helping me move to Texas.

[Oldgringo]

Congratulations!

I bought new one from Sears Roebuck in 1963 (pre 64) for $83.00. It took me nearly a year to pay it off. I wish I still had it. *sigh*

[03Lightningrocks]

By the way. You probably already know this but I will toss it out there anyway. If I had that gun I would leave it exactly as is. Put her in the safe and watch the value increase. That "custom" etching in the stock isn't gonna help the value much but trying to "restore" that gun is gonna kill the collector value.

Is that a heart they etched in the stock?

[johncanfield]

By the way. You probably already know this but I will toss it out there anyway. If I had that gun I would leave it exactly as is. Put her in the safe and watch the value increase. That "custom" etching in the stock isn't gonna help the value much but trying to "restore" that gun is gonna kill the collector value.

Is that a heart they etched in the stock?

It will stay in the exact condition as I bought it, there is a lot of character in the way it looks now . The 'designs' in the stock look like they were made with brass pins hammered in the wood to make the outlines. Yes, the one on the left side is a heart complete with an arrow through it, on the other side is a crescent moon and a five pointed star - lots of character there - at least it's not a previous owner's driver license number etched in the stock. I'm also thinking the stock has been refinished, oh well...

[03Lightningrocks]

I wonder if that came from the factory like that? Some kind of "special addition"? I dunno.... Interesting with the pins. If it was done by the first owner, there might be an interesting story behind the design. Maybe a gift from or for a sweetheart, husband, wife... Who knows. It might be neat to know.

Cool find though. I would have been all over it.

[JSThane]

I think that rifle needs to be taken back out to the cornfields for another couple of decades, at least. It's got a lot more venison and a lot more history left in it.

[johncanfield]

I'm going to ask the previous owner about the decorated stock - hopefully she has some background on it. Yup - don't plan on the gun being a safe queen, it's at the very least going to the range, I ordered a few boxes of ammo last night. Speaking of 30-30 ammo - not many deals out there . Couldn't find any domestic ammo under a buck a round.

[WildBill]

I'm going to ask the previous owner about the decorated stock - hopefully she has some background on it.

It looks to me like an amateur job of decorating a plain-looking stock. You're probably lucky that the stock didn't crack. It would be interesting to know who did it and why.

[03Lightningrocks]

I'm going to ask the previous owner about the decorated stock - hopefully she has some background on it. Yup - don't plan on the gun being a safe queen, it's at the very least going to the range, I ordered a few boxes of ammo last night. Speaking of 30-30 ammo - not many deals out there . Couldn't find any domestic ammo under a buck a round.

Maybe I am wrong but it seems with the deer seasons ending across most of the country the supplies of 30-30 will replenish and drop in price.

[JSThane]

It looks to me like an amateur job of decorating a plain-looking stock. You're probably lucky that the stock didn't crack. It would be interesting to know who did it and why.

It probably was amateur, but I don't think it's all that bad, and unless you find a crack starting, I probably wouldn't worry about it. As long as there's nothing stuck through the wrist of the stock, it's probably fine. I've seen a few with brass furniture studs stuck in them.

My guess, and guess it truly is, is that it was probably decorated for a lady. Women might not have been as prominent in the shooting sports in years past as they are now, but some still did shoot, especially in areas where hunting was a necessary part of feeding the family. There's an old J. Stevens bolt-action .30-30 in my safe that used to be my great-grandmother's. She didn't take many deer with it, but only because the rear sight was loose and wobbled all over (family legend has it that she threatened to wrap it around a tree or a fencepost more than once).

[johncanfield]

..My guess, and guess it truly is, is that it was probably decorated for a lady. ...

That's a good guess, I'll try to find out. I might need to cover the stock when I take it to the range .

Doing a little more research I discovered this model is a Saddle Ring Carbine with a 20" barrel but the ring is missing. Carbines made for the western market were the SRC version and for the eastern version they dropped the saddle ring (not enough horses I guess.) All of the SRC versions were 20" round barrels, I think the eastern version had octagonal barrels, or it was an option. Winchester stopped making the SRCs I think around WWII, forgot already what I read .

I have a post on Gun Values Board - maybe in a day or two somebody will tell me how much the value is decreased by the altered stock.

[03Lightningrocks]

..My guess, and guess it truly is, is that it was probably decorated for a lady. ...

That's a good guess, I'll try to find out. I might need to cover the stock when I take it to the range .

Doing a little more research I discovered this model is a Saddle Ring Carbine with a 20" barrel but the ring is missing. Carbines made for the western market were the SRC version and for the eastern version they dropped the saddle ring (not enough horses I guess.) All of the SRC versions were 20" round barrels, I think the eastern version had octagonal barrels, or it was an option. Winchester stopped making the SRCs I think around WWII, forgot already what I read .

I have a post on Gun Values Board - maybe in a day or two somebody will tell me how much the value is decreased by the altered stock.

Sometimes you can get lucky and find an original stock. It gives you something new to do at every gun show you attend. Pay special attention to those booths that seem to have a bunch of junk laid on the table.

[johncanfield]

Trying to find a period stock would be a fun quest. Bert from the Gun Values site already replied - the good news is that I paid what it's worth, the bad news is that it's worth what I paid . From looking at a bunch of valuations on that site, I think the decorated stock has reduced the value of it by at least 50%.

BTW, I found the "official" Winchester serial number list on their web site and according to their records, the gun was made sometime in 1926.