The letter describes this musket as: "Musket, 45/70 caliber" and states that it was shipped from the Winchester warehouse on September 20, 1893. The Model 1886 musket is the rarest of all Winchester lever action muskets. Experts estimate that total production of Model 1886 musket was just over 350 pieces. Model 1886 muskets are exteriorly rare; most of these muskets were apparently manufactured for export. The musket has a thirty-inch round barrel with distinctive full-length forearm and Model 1876 style forearm tip. The forearm has a single barrel band secured by a band spring on the right side. The barrel has a steel block front sight that serves as a lug for a socket bayonet and a military style tangent rear sight with folding leaf graduated to 1,000 yards (10). Factory sling swivels are mounted on the barrel band and stock. The carbine style buttplate has a sliding brass trapdoor, and the butt trap contains a five-piece, jointed, steel cleaning rod with steel tip. The upper receiver tang is factory drilled and tapped. The top of the barrel is roll-stamped: "-MANUFACTURED BY THE-/-WINCHESTER REPEATING ARMS CO. NEW HAVEN, CONN. U.S.A.-" in two lines between the barrel band and the rear sight. The caliber "45-70" is roll-stamped on the top of the barrel between the rear sight and the receiver. The upper receiver tang is roll-stamped: "-MODEL 1886-". The 1884 and 1885 patent dates are stamped on the lower tang in two lines behind the trigger and the serial number. The musket has the Winchester blue finish on the barrel, forearm tip, barrel band, sling swivels, bolt, loading gate and trigger. The receiver, hammer, lever and buttplate are color casehardened. The stock and forearm are oil-finished, straight grain American walnut.

Excellent. The barrel, forearm tip, barrel band and sling swivel have 95% plus of the original blue finish with scattered wear on the muzzle and some thinning on the sides of the barrel band and forearm tip. The rear sight retains nearly all of the fire blue finish on the elevation bar and leaf spring. Nearly all of the blue finish is present on the bolt, loading gate and trigger. The receiver retains nearly 85% plus of the vivid original case colors. The case colors on the hammer, lever and buttplate are more muted and show light handling wear with 90% of the casehardened finish. The stock and forearm are in in excellent overall condition with 95% of the original oil finish with light handling marks. There is the name or initials "ED" in small punch-marks on both sides of the stock. The mark is about 1 1/4-inch long and 1/2-inch high on the left side of the stock and about 1-inch long and 1/4-inch high on the right side. The markings are not deep, are unobtrusive, and date from the period of use. This is an excellent original example of the rarest of all the rare Winchester lever action muskets.