Winchester Model 1873 .38 WCF 24″ Lever Action Rifle 1875 Antique

SOLD FOR: $1,391.00

LSB#: LSB260711RS007

Make: Winchester

Model: 1873 Rifle

Serial Number: 7742

Year of Manufacture: 1875 / Antique

Caliber: .38 WCF (.38-40)

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

Markings: The upper tang is marked “MODEL. 1873”. The barrel is marked “W.C.F.” near the breech, and the brass cartridge carrier is marked “38 CAL”. The serial number is “7742”.

Barrel Length: 24″

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

Stock Configuration & Condition: The rifle wears a wood stock with a straight wrist and straight comb, and a smooth metal crescent buttplate with a brass trapdoor for the stock compartment. The buttstock has been refinished and still shows chips at the toe and a heavy compression mark on the right side. The LOP measures 12 3/4″ 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 worn rifling, and there is corrosion and erosion throughout. In this writer’s opinion the bore rates 4/10.

Overall Condition: This rifle retains about 10% of its original blue, with the balance toned to a grey patina. The receiver, barrel and magazine tube show handling wear and light surface oxidation consistent with age. 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: The Winchester Model 1873 is often called “The Gun That Won the West”, and early four-digit serial numbers like this one come from the first few years of production, when the rifle was chambered for the .44 WCF. The .38 WCF chambering was introduced several years later, and many early 1873s were updated or rebarreled over their long working lives, so the .38 caliber barrel and “38 CAL” carrier on this rifle suggest it was updated at some point after manufacture.

This 1875 example retains about 10% of its blue, the action functions correctly and the bore rates 4/10. The buttstock has been refinished and still shows toe chips and a compression mark. It is an early, four-digit serial Model 1873 for collectors of frontier-era Winchesters.