Lot 27: Excellent, Un-Issued Winchester Model 1873 Musket

Winchester Third Model 1873 Musket manufactured circa 1903. The musket has the distinctive 30 inch barrel with full-length forearm, three barrel bands, block front sight base that serves as a lug for a socket bayonet, military style folding leaf rear sight and carbine buttplate. Sling swivels are mounted on the middle barrel band and the stock. The frame has the Third Model integral dust cover rail and dust cover with serrated edges. The buttplate has a sliding brass trapdoor. The barrel, magazine, barrel bands and frame have the Winchester commercial blue finish. The hammer, loading lever and buttplate are color casehardened. The oil-finished stock and forearm are straight grain American walnut. The top of the barrel is roll-stamped with the two-line legend "WINCHESTER'S REPEATING ARMS. NEW HAVEN. CT./KING'S IMPROVEMENT PATENTED MARCH 29. 1866. OCTOBER 16. 1860." between the lower barrel band and the rear sight. The caliber "44 W.C.F" is roll-stamped on the top of the barrel at the breech. "44 Cal." is roll-stamped in script letters on the bottom of the brass cartridge elevator. "-MODEL 1873-" is roll-stamped on the upper tang in fancy letters with foliate devices at either end. The serial number "570079B" is stamped in script numerals on the lower tang between the lever latch and the upper tang screw. The musket has the original jointed steel cleaning rod in the butt trap. This musket is one of approximately 700 Model 1873 Muskets shipped to Nicaragua in September 1903. Some of these muskets were apparently never uncrated. During the 1950s these muskets were discovered in the original crates in un-issued condition and were returned to the United States for resale.

Excellent. The musket is all original, apparently not issued and shows only very limited storage wear. Finish wear is limited to some scattered and very small spots of discoloration on the barrel in front of the upper band and several very minor spots of pitting or discoloration on the receiver and dust cover. The blue components retain nearly 98% of the original finish. The hammer, trigger, lever and lever latch have close to 100% of the original finish with strong case colors. Nearly all of the case colors remain on the buttplate. The stock and forearm are in excellent condition and retain nearly all of the original finish. Wear is limited to a few very minor storage marks on the forearm and right side of the stock and some very faint rub marks on the left side of the stock near the buttplate. This is an excellent example of a Winchester Model 1873 Musket in un-issued condition.