Lot 9: Winchester 1873 Rifle 22 short

Winchester manufactured approximately 19,552 Model 1873s in .22 short or .22 long between 1884 and 1904. They were the first repeating rimfire rifles manufactured in the U.S. and are easily identified at a glance by their lack of loading gates and the use of a removable magazine tube. This is a Winchester Model 1873 that was manufactured in 1887 with the dust cover base integrally machined as part of the receiver. The top of the barrel flat ahead of the rear sight is marked with two-line address/King's Improvement marking, and "22 SHORT" is at the breech. The upper tang is marked "MODEL. 1873" flanked by floral designs. The serial number is on the lower tang, and the bottom of the brass cartridge elevator is marked "22 CAL/SHORT." It is equipped with a dovetailed pinched blade front sight and an elevation adjustable semi-buckhorn rear sight and is mounted with a smooth forearm and straight grip stock with a crescent buttplate.

Very good plus overall. The rifle retains traces of the original blue finish in the protected areas and otherwise has a brown patina with some light oxidation. The wood has some slivers and chips absent, normal ding and scratches, and dark tones. The pin is absent from the magazine tube ferrul. The action functions very well, and the markings are crisp.