Winchester Model 1886 Deluxe. Caliber 33 WCF, Extra Light-Weight Take-Down Rifle with Cody Firearms Museum letter. The Cody letter lists the rifle features as: (1) "33 caliber". (2) "Barrel Shape: Round", (3) "Plain trigger", (4) "Fancy Checkered Stock", (5) "Sights: Lyman front, Lyman rear", (6) "Blank in rear seat", (7) "1/2 magazine", (8) Shotgun butt with rubber buttplate", (9) "Takedown", and (10) "Engraved $4.00, substitute Vignette #3 and #12". The letter states this rifle was shipped from Winchester on July 6, 1908. The rifle has a blue finish with color casehardened hammer and lever. The forearm cap, top of the barrel at the junction with the receiver, sides, top and bottom or the receiver and upper tang are factory engraved with a variation of the Winchester Style 9 engraving illustrated on page 219 of "THE BOOK OF WINCHESTER ENGRAVING" by R.L. Wilson. The left side of the receiver is engraved with a vignette of a grizzly bear and the right side is engraved with the vignette of a bighorn sheep (Vignettes # 3 and #12 on page 221 of "THE BOOK OF WINCHESTER ENGRAVING). The stock and forearm are deluxe, fancy grain walnut with Style H checkering and a subdued piano finish. The stock has a black, hard rubber, checkered, shotgun style buttplate with the Winchester logo embossed in the center. The barrel has a Lyman "Hunting front sight" with colored bead and a factory blank in the rear sight dove-tail. A Lyman folding combination rear sight is mounted on the receiver tang. The left side of the barrel is roll-stamped: "MANUFACTURED BY THE WINCHESTER REPEATING ARMS CO./NEW HAVEN. CONN. U.S.A. PAT. OCT. 14. 1884. JAN. 20.1885." in two-lines ahead of the rear sight dovetail and "-NICKEL STEEL BARREL-/ESPECIALLY FOR SMOKELESS POWDER" in two-lines behind it. The caliber designation "33 W.C.F." is roll-stamped on the left side of the barrel immediately ahead of the take-down collar. The lower tang is roll-stamped with the 1884 and 1885 patent dates behind the trigger and the serial number "144701" behind the rear tang screws.

Very fine as period refinished. The rifle retains 95% of the blue and casehardened finish. There are several shallow scratches and some very light finish wear on the right side of the receiver and takedown collar near the bighorn sheep vignette. The blue finish on the left side of the take down collar is thin. The case colors on the hammer and lever are bright. The stock and forearm are both in very fine condition. The stock has some finish loss on the wrist at the junction with the receiver and some scattered and very minor handling marks. The forearm shows handling wear at the junction with the take-down collar and retains about 85% of the original finish. The checkering on the forearm shows some handling wear. The engraving, particularly the well executed game vignettes, is crisp. This is an outstanding example of a scarce factory engraved, Winchester Model 1886 Deluxe .33 Caliber Extra Light-Weight Take-Down Rifle.