Winchester Model 1892 carbine manufactured in 1897 per Winchester's serial number records and "The Winchester Book" by Madis. A 1980 dated letter from J.S. Wilkinson of Prescott, Arizona, that accompanies the carbine states that this carbine was from a group of several cases of "Winchester rifles" purchased from the U.S. Customs Service at Nogales, Arizona, c. 1950 by author Roy Dunlap. The carbines had apparently been seized by the Customs Service "25 or 30 years" before they were purchased by Dunlap. The author of the letter states that the "rifles" were new in the original packing cases and that he purchased several of the "rifles" but retained this carbine in "unfired" condition. The letter states that Wilkinson "presumes that the rifles were on their way to Mexico, perhaps to Pancho Villa or some other revolutionary" when they were seized by U.S. Customs. The carbine has a blued barrel, magazine, barrel bands, receiver, and buttplate. The hammer and lever have a casehardened finish. The stock and forearm are straight grain American walnut with a varnish finish. The carbine has a block front sight located behind the upper barrel band and a folding leaf rear sight graduated to 900 yards. A staple-mounted saddle-ring is located on the left side of the receiver. The upper tang is factory drilled and tapped for a rear sight. The top of the barrel is roll-stamped: "MANUFACTURED BY THE/-WINCHESTER REPEATING ARMS CO. NEW HAVEN. CONN. U.S.A.-" in two lines ahead of the rear sight. "44 W.F.C." is roll-stamped between the rear sight and the receiver. The upper receiver tang is roll-stamped: "MODEL 1892./ -WINCHESTER-/ PAT. OCT 14. 1884" in three lines. The serial number, "144967" is roll-stamped across the front edge of the receiver bottom.

Excellent. The carbine is all original and shows only light storage and handling wear. The barrel and magazine retain nearly 98% of the original blue finish. There is light finish loss on the sides of both barrel bands. The receiver, bolt, and loading gate have more than 90% of the original blue finish; there is some thinning on the top and sides of the receiver and some edge wear on the high points. The ejector has all of the fire blue finish intact. The upper tang shows handling wear and the blue finish has faded to a gray-brown patina. Nearly all of the blue finish is present on the buttplate. The hammer and lever retain nearly all of the subdued case colors. The barrel and receiver markings are crisp. The stock and forearm are in excellent condition and retain nearly all of the original finish; wear is limited to a few scattered and very minor handling and storage marks. The action functions perfectly. This is an excellent example of a early production Winchester Model 1892 Carbine with interesting documentation.