Winchester is gone

[2ndAmendment]

The "Gun that won the west." and the dream rifle of every Boys' Life reader of the 50's is gone.

Out With A Bang
The Loss of the Classic Winchester Is Loaded With Symbolism

By Stephen Hunter
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, January 20, 2006; Page C01

A famous ad that most boy baby boomers will recall from Boys' Life, the old scouting magazine of the '50s, showed a happy lad, carrot-topped and freckly like any number of Peck's Bad Boys, his teeth haphazardly arrayed within his wide, gleeful mouth under eyes wide as pie platters as he exclaimed on Christmas morn, "Gee, Dad . . . A Winchester!"

...

And now Winchester is gone too, or at least the most interesting parts of it. The traditional company whose symbol was a fringed rider flying across the plains on a pinto, gripping his trusty Model '73, is finally biting the dust. The entity -- now technically U.S. Repeating Arms, which produces the rifles and shotguns as a licensee of the Olin Corp., which still owns Winchester ammunition -- announced Monday it was closing the plant in New Haven where the rifles and shotguns have been fabricated for a century and a half. Some Winchesters will continue to be built overseas, but three guns -- the classic lever-action rifle of western fame, the bolt-action hunting rifle (called the Model 70) and the Model 1300 pump-action shotgun -- will no longer be manufactured.

...

The Winchester lever-guns mean something to a variety of American imaginations. They have been manufactured in one form or another since 1849. The most abundant variant, the Model 94, has been built more than 6 million times since 1895 with only minor changes. Those 111 years span an era of extraordinary technological development. It's doubtful any other complex machine has a longer record of manufacture. Think about it: Today, in the age of the iPod and robots wandering Mars, essentially the same rattly contraption that felled troopers at the Little Bighorn is still found brand-new and brightly packaged on the shelves of most Western, Southern and Midwestern hardware stores.

...more

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/19/AR2006011903278.html

 

[rack'm]

I'm sure glad I bought my .44 1894 a few years back.

 

[Wickedwrench]

I have my grandfather's old 94 as well as a one I bought new in '87. They are my most cherished possessions.

 

[2ndAmendment]

Son has a '94 in 30-30.

I may have to get a saddle gun in .44 just for collection.

 

[Wickedwrench]

Son has a '94 in 30-30.

I may have to get a saddle gun in .44 just for collection.

Both of mine are 30-30. Granddad's is pretty old. From the 40's I believe.

 

[Vince]

Guess I'll go with this for my next gun.... Henry .44

 

[2ndAmendment]

Guess I'll go with this for my next gun.... Henry .44

Henry makes a good weapon, but <font color="#00ff00">$$$$$$$</font>

 

[huntr1]

That really sucks!

 

[Vince]

Henry makes a good weapon, but <font color="#00ff00">$$$$$$$</font>

Around $700 for the gun I want.

 

[Dutch6]

It sickens me to see these big companies that have been the founders so to speak, go away like this. Is Ford and Chevy next? Surely we never thought the airlines would die off so fast. I always loved the Winchester rifles. They had beauty and character.

 

[RoseRed]

I wonder if Sarah's ghosts will stop building now.

 

[sleuth]

I wonder if Sarah's ghosts will stop building now.

The Winchester mansion is a sight to behold.
I went there twice in '99. Very cool.

 

[RoseRed]

The Winchester mansion is a sight to behold.
I went there twice in '99. Very cool.

I used to work around the corner from it. I have never been in there, it was a tourist thing.

 

[MMDad]

I used to work around the corner from it. I have never been in there, it was a tourist thing.

We used to go to the movies near there, but never went inside. Too touristy.

 

[RoseRed]

We used to go to the movies near there, but never went inside. Too touristy.

Remember Winchester Drive-in? Used to go there all the time.

 

[SeaRide]

Both of mine are 30-30. Granddad's is pretty old. From the 40's I believe.

Mine is 30-30 , passed down from my grandfather.

 

[huntr1]

Kid next door to me growing up was given his great-great-great grandfather's 1894 30-30. The little sh!t has probably either sold it or thrown it away. He was a little liberal most likely ### (he certainly acted like it) back then, anti-gun and pretty much useless to society. He didn't appreciate it when it was given to him. It was in excellent condition, and had a plaque on the stock listing the name and dates of ownership as it was passed down from eldest male to eldest male. His father was killed when his F4 plowed into the side of a mountain in Germany in the early 80's, and he was an infant. He was given the gun at about 14. I can only hope it has survived and he has developed an understanding of its historical value, and cherishes it as I cherish my great grandfather's Remington Model 11 shotgun.

 

[Bruzilla]

I would love to point the finger of blame at Italian companies like AMT that make cheaper copies of model 94s, but I guess the blame falls upon US gun buyers who bought the cheaper knock-offs rather than the more expensive American originals.