Winchester 1876 Centennial .45-60 28″ Octagon Lever Rifle 1884 Antique

SOLD FOR: $1,932.00

LSB#: LSB260711RS002

Make: Winchester

Model: 1876 Rifle

Serial Number: 52776

Year of Manufacture: 1884 / Antique

Caliber: .45-60 WCF

Action Type: Lever action rifle with a toggle-link breech, fed from a tubular magazine.

Markings: Standard Winchester Model 1876 factory markings. The serial number is “52776”.

Barrel Length: 28″, octagon

Sights / Optics: The front sight is a blade dovetailed to the barrel, and the rear sight is a V-notch semi-buckhorn leaf dovetailed to the barrel.

Stock Configuration & Condition: The rifle wears a wood stock with a straight wrist and straight comb and a smooth steel crescent buttplate with a brass trapdoor for the stock compartment. The buttstock has been refinished, and the left side of the forend is cracked. The LOP measures 13″ from the front of the trigger to the rear of the buttplate. The stock is in Good condition.

Type of Finish: Blued

Finish Originality: Original metal; refinished buttstock

Bore Condition: The bore is grey with defined rifling, and there is corrosion and erosion throughout. In this writer’s opinion the bore rates 6/10.

Overall Condition: This rifle retains about 5% of its original blue, with the receiver and barrel toned to a grey patina. The metal shows handling wear and light surface oxidation consistent with age. The buttstock has been refinished and the forend has a crack on the left side. Overall, this rifle is in Good condition as an antique.

Mechanics: The action functions correctly. We have not fired this rifle. As with all used firearms, a thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance standards.

Box, Paperwork & Accessories: None

Our Assessment: Winchester introduced the Model 1876, nicknamed the “Centennial” for the nation’s 100th anniversary, as a larger and stronger version of the Model 1873 able to handle full-power rifle cartridges such as the .45-60. It was the first Winchester lever action built for big game and was carried by hunters, the North-West Mounted Police and Theodore Roosevelt himself. Fewer than 64,000 were made.

This 1884 example has a full 28″ octagon barrel in .45-60 WCF, a brass trapdoor buttplate and a semi-buckhorn rear sight. The receiver and barrel have toned to a grey patina with about 5% blue remaining, the bore rates 6/10, and the buttstock has been refinished while the forend shows a crack on the left side. It is a sound, antique Centennial for collectors of frontier-era Winchesters.-C.M.