Manufactured in 1891, this is a fine, desirable example of a documented special order Winchester deluxe Model 1873 in .22 Short. These .22 RF Model 1873s were basically the same as the famous "gun that won the West" without the loading gate. The included factory letter lists the rifle in .22 caliber with an octagon barrel, plain trigger, half nickel finish, and a plain, checkered, pistol grip stock when received at the warehouse on 19 September 1891 and shipped two days later in order number 10557. The top flat of the barrel is marked with the standard two-line address and King's patent marking while the caliber marking is at the breech and repeated on the bottom of the cartridge elevator. The model marking is on the upper tang, and the serial number is on the lower tang. The left side of the lower tang is marked "XX 310 CF" which was peened out at the factory and is additionally marked "336". The stock inlet is marked "4856", and the toe of the buttplate is marked "2". Considering the factory letter and the peened out number, it appears the configuration of this rifle was changed before it left the warehouse, as both the forearm and stock appear to have been fitted to the rifle for quite some time and were not renumbered to match the assembly numbers before it left the warehouse. It is fitted with a German silver blade front sight and an elevation adjustable buckhorn/sporting rear sight. It is mounted with a straight grain, H-pattern checkered forearm and pistol grip stock with an ebony insert and a crescent buttplate.

Fine, retains 40% of the original blue finish with the balance mostly a plum-brown patina and 70% of the original nickel finish with some scattered light flaking. There is a series of minor peen marks on the bottom of the cartridge elevator. The wood is very good with the stock checkering recut, the forearm checkering well-worn, and otherwise some scattered light handling marks. Mechanically fine.