The winchester model 1894 essay

The Winchester Model 1894Winchester 1894 model was based on a patent of John M Browning and was the most successful centerfire rifle Winchester ever produced. Winchester purchased the US patent 524, 702 granted to browning on 2nd August 1894, for a lever action repeating rifle.

The new model was announced in the November 1894 catalog as the Winchester repeating Rifle Model 1894. The lever action model soon became famous throughout the world. This model interestingly is still under production. The Model 1894 is unquestionably the most successful center fire lever action model ever produced by Winchester and was followed by the Winchester Model 1895 model. It is familiarly known as the “ Thirty-Thirty” for its most popular caliber, and has been the number 1 deer rifle with generations of American hunters and has sold over 7 million models since its introduction in 1894. One of the main positive characteristics of the Model 1894 that has contributed to its perennial popularity certainly is its eye appeal as most men like its traditional Western styling. Other plus points are its compactness, light weight and its fast handling capability (McNab 162). The model 1894 appeared during a key transitional period when the black powder was on its way to being supplanted buy the high pressure loads of fast-burning smokeless powder.

At the time of 94’s introduction, smokeless power was already being used on the . 30-40 Krag military round but its wasn’t available as a sporting choice. The model 1894 was the first Winchester rifle developed especially or smokeless power and was chambered for the following cartridges: . 32-40, . 38-55, . 25-35 Winchester, .

30-30 Winchester, and the . 32 Winchester special (Michalowski & Taffin 250). Initially, however, the Model 1894 was developed to shoot two popular metallic black-powder cartridges . 32-40 and . 38-55 because of the delay in developing the new smokeless powder calibers, though an year later in August 1895, it became the first American-made repeating sporting rifle to handle a smokeless powder cartridge. To accomplish this, Winchester strengthened the action by using a new steel alloy and by adding a nickel-steel barrel. The rifle was then combined with the .

30 caliber Winchester Smokeless cartridge and hence a new era in sporting firearms began. The rifle was introduced in 1894 by the U. S. Repeating Arms Co.

USRA, of New Haven Connecticut. It went on to become the firearm of choice for homesteaders, hunters, outlaws and lawmen of the Wild West. As a testament to the practicality of its design, the Model 94 has maintained its popularity throughout the decades with few mechanical changes. In fact the Model 94, with its equally celebrated . 30 caliber Winchester Center Fire cartridge i. e.

. 30 WCF is the most popular, widely used, big game hunting combination in the history of sporting team. When the Model 1894 came along, there was no doubt about its purpose: it was a hunting rifle. But it was not just another hunting rifle. Its design revolutionized the firearm industry and set a standard by with all other hunting rifles were to be measured (Zidock. for Popular Mechanics 50). Many hunters consider that while Model 1894 is not the most accurate lever action rifle in existence, it is accurate enough. The Model 94 does not allow for modern  high-pressure cartridges, but when ranges are kept under 100 yards, high pressure cartridges that provide a flat long-range trajectory are not needed.

While at this distance it is not a limitation, Model 1894 does suffer with the limitation in terms of its difficulty in mounting a scope. Short-range hunters also question the need for raw power in a cartridge (Schoby 161). When the Model 1894 was released from, it was claimed that the new rifle/smokeless-powder combination claimed the bullet would have a velocity of more than 1800 ft.

per second and give a penetration of 33 ½ pine board of 7/8 inches thickness. Although it sounded impressive, the new sporting arms combination was a hard sell. Probably the biggest challenge it had to face was the competition against the most popular deer rifle/cartridge combination of the era –the Winchester Model 1873/black-poweder. However, by 1910, Winchester listed the . 30 WCF at a muzzle velocity of 2000 ft.

per second, which meant that it could send a 170-grain, metal-jacketed lead-core bullet 200 yards with a midrange trajectory of just 5 ¾ inches above a straight line. Since game was getting harder to find at the turn of the century and longer shots were becoming the norm, the Winchester combination soon became the sporting arm of choice (Zidock. for Popular Mechanics 51). Each of the Winchester Model 1894 utilized half-cock notch for safety. In itself, a safety that relies only on a notice halfway between the fire anc cocked positions is defective because of its susceptibility to firing upon being jarred due to precipitous engagement. The metal used in this mechanism was also often insufficient for this purpose, resulting in wear of breakage over time, which also enhances the possibility of an unexpected discharge. The Winchester Model 94 takes the prize for the most litigation concerning a single make or model (Baldwin 1-3).

The Model 1894 may be obtained on solid or take-down frame models. It is similar in appearance to Model 1892, but differs in inside mechanism. While the Model 1894 rifle has been discontinues, the carbine itself is still being manufactured (Castles & Kimball 76). From the beginning, Winchester offered the 1894 in two versions: the 20-in. round barrel, for saddle-ring carbines, and the 29-in.

round or half-octagon barrels from the solid take-down rifles. However, others variations of the 94 appeared in the first decade of production. For instance, the Model 94s exist with half-round, half-octagon barrels in lengths from 14 in.

to 36 in. Magazines can be found that hold from three to eight cartridges. And since the slab sides of the firing mechanism were fit for engraving, 94s exist with varying degrees of ornate design and overlays. The Model 1894 never had casehardened receivers as standard. However, according to early records a small number were case hardened. From 1916 until 1963, levers were listed as casehardened, and hammer by this process from 1916 to 1934.

The sling or saddle ring was omitted in 1925 (Zidock. for Popular Mechanics 52; Fadala 269). The Winchester model 1894 has been called the “ Klondike Model” Probably because of its popularity in the Klondike Gold Rush of 1898.

The Model 1894 was the first sporting gun to pass the 1, 000, 000 mark. The millionth 94, chambered from the 30-30 Winchester cartridge and appropriately engraved, was presented in 1927 to President Calvin Coolidge. The 1 ½ millionth model was presented to President Harry S. Truman on 8th may 1948. The 2 millionth was presented to President Dwight Eisenhower in 1953 and the 2 ½ millionth 94 was assembled in 1961. Besides regular yearly productions of five rifles and carbine models, dozens of Model 84 commemoratives have been produced over the years and may fetch hefty prices from collectors. While the value of an original Model 94 built between 1894 and 1937 is about $ 800, the Alaskan Purchase Centennial Commemorative Carbine, which was produced in 1967, is now worth $ 1800.

Other sought-after commemoratives are the Theodore Roosevelt Rifle, the Texas Ranger Carbine, the Wells Fargo carbine and the one-of-a-kind 24Kgold relief model built for the National Shooting Sports Foundation (Henshaw et al. 42). Works CitedBaldwin, Scott; Hare Jr., Francis H; Hare, Francis; McGovern, Francis E; “ The Preparation of a Product Liability Case”, 3rd Edition, New York: Aspen Publishers Online, 1998Castles, WT; Kimball VF; “ Firearms and Their Use”, New York: Kessinger Publishing, 2005Fadala, Sam; “ The Complete Blackpowder Handbook: The Latest Guns and Gear”, 5th Edition; Iola, Wisconsin: Gun Digest & KP Books, 2006Henshaw, Thomas; Kuhloff, Pete; Barnes, Duncan; Hall, Thomas E; Watrous, George R; Rikhoff James C; “ The History of Winchester Firearms 1866-1992”, 6th Edition; Clinton, New Jersey: Academic Learning Company LLC, 1993McNab, Chris; “ Sporting Guns: A Guide to the World’s Rifles and Shotguns”, New York: Macmillan, 2007Michalowski, Kevin; Taffin, John; “ Cowboy action shooting: gear, guns, tactics”; Iola, Wisconsin: Gun Digest ; KP Books, 2005Schoby, Michael; “ Hunter’s Guide to Whitetail Rifles”, Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books, 2007Zidock Alex, “ American Classics: Winchester Model 94”, Popular Mechanics, May 1994 v.

171, no. 5, ISSN 0032-4558, Hearst Magazines