Lot 9: Winchester 1886 Rifle 45-90 WCF

Winchester Model 1886 Fancy Sporting Rifle manufactured in 1894. The rifle is complete with a letter from the Cody Firearms Museum that lists the features as: "Caliber: 45/90", "Barrel Type: Octagon", "Trigger: Set, NM Set", "Checkered stock with pistol grip", "Engraved: $5.00" and "1/2 Gold, Balance Nickel". The letter states this rifle was shipped from the Winchester warehouse on May 15, 1894. The full octagon barrel, full length magazine, bolt, loading gate and lever are nickel plated. The forearm cap, receiver and crescent buttplate are gold plated. The forearm cap, receiver and buttplate heel are decorated with factory No. 10 engraving which features "ornamental scrolls and embossed border work". The left side of the receiver is engraved with a detailed game scene that depicts a whitetail buck and doe with a double line border. The forearm and pistol grip stock are highly figured fancy grain walnut with a high polish piano finish and Style H checkered panels. The bottom of the pistol grip has a horn or ebony inlay. The barrel has standard sporting style front and rear sights. The upper tang is factory drilled and tapped for a rear sight. The receiver has factory double set triggers. The top of the barrel is roll stamped with the two-line legend "-MANUFACTURED BY THE-/-WINCHESTER REPEATING ARMS CO. NEW HAVEN. CONN. U.S.A.-" ahead of the rear sight. The caliber designation "45-90 W.C.F." is roll stamped on the top of the barrel between the rear sight and the receiver. "-MODEL 1886-" is roll stamped on the upper receiver tang. The two-line 1884/1885 patent markings are stamped on the lower tang behind the trigger and the serial number "88125" is stamped in script numerals between the tang screws surrounded by engraved flourishes. Model 1886 rifles with plated finishes of any type are scarce. Rifles with combination gold and nickel plated finishes are extremely rare.

Extremely fine, totally original. The rifle is all original and retains nearly 95% of the original nickel plated finish. Most of the nickel plated finish is present on the barrel; the plating on the lower portion of the magazine shows handling wear. Nearly all of the nickel plating is present on the loading gate and lever; the bolt retains about 25% of the plated finish. The receiver, forearm cap, and buttplate retain about 30% of the delicate gold plating in protected areas. The balance of the forearm cap and receiver have an attractive silver-gray patina. The buttplate shows more wear and has a dark patina with gold plating present along the edges. The delicately engraved scroll and border work and highly detailed game scene are crisp. The barrel legend, caliber and model designation are sharp. The highly figured stock and forearm are excellent and retain close to 95% of the original highly finished piano finish. The checkering is very sharp and shows minimal handling wear. Stock and forearm wear is limited to a few very minor handling marks. The rifle appears to be in excellent mechanical condition. This is an outstanding example of a special order Winchester Fancy Sporting Rifle with the extremely rare combination of nickel and gold plated finish, factory engraving, deluxe forearm and pistol grip stock and double set triggers.