Make: Winchester 

Model: 1894 Takedown

Serial Number: 183543

Year of Manufacture: 1900 (Winchester Serial Lookup pg. 9)

Caliber: .30-30 Winchester Center Fire (WCF)

Action Type: Lever Action Rifle with Side Loading Gate fed by Half-Length Tubular Magazine

Barrel Length: 26”, Half-Octagonal, Half-Round

Sights / Optics: The front sight is a blade dovetailed to the barrel above the muzzle. The rear sight is a Winchester three leaf express sight dovetailed into the top rear of the barrel. Those three leaves have large “V” notches. The top tang is installed with a folding Lyman aperture peep sight.

Stock Configuration & Condition: The stocks are two-piece checkered walnut with a nosecap, capped semi-pistol grip, straight comb, and crescent metal buttplate. The wood shows mostly light and some moderate nicks, scratches, and compressions, as well as some minor handling and storage marks. There are some patches of loss in the finish. There are no chips or cracks. The LOP measures 12 7/8” from the front of the trigger to the back of the buttplate. The buttplate has areas of scabbing and pitting with mottled patina and finish loss. The stocks are in Very Good Plus overall condition.

Type of Finish: Blue

Finish Originality: Original

Bore Condition: The bore is dark and the rifling is worn but has remained highly pronounced. There is pitting and erosion scattered in the bore. In this writer’s opinion, this bore rates a 6 out of 10.

Overall Condition: This rifle retains about 85% of its metal finish. There is finish wear on the edges. There are some areas of oxidation and patina. There are some areas of thinning and finish loss, most notable on the receiver at the front from handling. There is a patch of pitting on the bottom of the barrel. There is pitting at the muzzle. There are some deeper marks in the metal on the right side of the receiver at the takedown collar and on the collar itself. The lever has finish loss and areas of light pitting. The screwheads are sharp to lightly tool marked. The markings are clear. Overall, this rifle is in Very Good Plus condition.

Mechanics: The action functions correctly. The hammer has a half-cock safety and the lever safety functions properly. We did not fire this rifle. As with all previously owned firearms, thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance standards.

Box, Paperwork & Accessories: This rifle comes with a Winchester letter from the Cody Firearms Museum.

Our Assessment: The Model 1894 was another Winchester lever action rifle designed by gunmaking genius John Moses Browning, and it became one of the most famous and popular hunting rifles of all time. It was the first commercial sporting rifle to sell over 7 million units, and was also the first commercial American repeating rifle built to be used with smokeless powder. It was introduced in 1894 in two black powder cartridges, the .32-40 and .38-55 Win. rounds, but by August 1895 Winchester had developed a different steel composition that could handle higher pressures, and the .25-35 and .30-30 WCF chamberings were introduced. As R.L. Wilson relays in his excellent reference work “Winchester An American Legend”, Winchester’s announcement of the Model 1894 in their November 1894 catalog certainly proved prophetic: “We believe that no repeating rifle system ever made will appeal to the eye and understanding of the riflemen as this will and that use will continue to warrant first impressions.”

This Winchester 1900s Model 1894 Deluxe Takedown Rifle was made in 1900 and is in Very Good Plus condition. It’s chambered in .30-30 WCF, and features a 26” half octagonal, half round barrel, deluxe two-piece checkered walnut stocks, a capped semi-pistol grip, a Winchester three leaf express rear sight, a Lyman aperture peep sight installed on the tang, and a crescent metal buttplate. The factory letter confirms this rifle shipped as a takedown rifle in 30 Caliber with a half octagonal barrel, checkered pistol grip stocks, and a half magazine. This is a gorgeous Winchester 1900s Model 1894 Deluxe Takedown Rifle.