Item:
ON9306

Original U.S. Winchester Model 1892 .25-20 Rifle Serial No 8569 - Manufactured in 1892

Item Description

Original Item: This example serial number 8569 denotes the year of production as 1892, that means this is was manufactured in the first year of production!

"The favorite of the Duke". "Fill your hands you . . . " The Model 92 was elevated to the status of movie star for three quarters of a Century by many of the most famous on-screen cowboys. When you saw a movie with John Wayne, or watched The Rifleman with Chuck Connors you knew that the rifle they used was more than a screen prop.

The Winchester Model 1892 was a lever-action repeating rifle designed by John Browning as a smaller, lighter version of his large-frame Model 1886, and which replaced the Model 1873 as the company's lever-action for pistol-caliber rounds such as the .44-40.

This example shows pitting and wear but operationally sound. .25/20 Caliber. Features a very smooth action, half tube magazine, 24" round barrel, hook butt plate, back sight still present but slide ramp absent.

History

When asked by Winchester to design an improved pistol caliber lever action, John Browning said he would have the prototype completed in under a month or it would be free. Within 2 weeks, Browning had a functioning prototype of the 92. Calibers for the rifle vary and some are custom-chambered. The original rounds were the .32-20, .38-40, and .44-40 Winchester centerfire rounds, followed in 1895 by the new .25-20. A few Model 92s chambered for .218 Bee were produced in 1936-38.

The Winchester Models 53 (1924) and 65 (1933) were relabeled Model 1892s. Admiral Robert E. Peary carried an 1892 on his trips to the North Pole., and Secretary of War Patrick Hurley was presented with the one millionth rifle on December 13, 1932.

1,007,608 Model 1892 rifles were made by Winchester, and although the company phased them out by 1945, they are still being made by the Brazilian arms maker, Rossi; by Chiappa Firearms, an Italian factory; by Browning in Japan; and by Winchester in Japan. In its modern form, using updated materials and production techniques, the Model 1892's action is strong enough to chamber high pressure handgun rounds, such as .357 Magnum, .44 Magnum, and .454 Casull. Despite being designed for smaller cartridges, the 1892s dual forward locking-block action is actually stronger than Browning's rear-locked Model 1894.

Popular culture

Although the Model 1892 made its debut after the closing of the American frontier, and the true "Guns that Won the West" were the earlier Models 1866 and 1873, nonetheless the '92 became an indelible icon of Western mythology through its use in hundreds of motion pictures and television shows, standing in for its older siblings. John Wayne famously carried Model 92s in dozens of films and owned several personally, some with the distinctive oversized "loop" lever. Other notable screen 92s were those of Chuck Connors in The Rifleman TV series, and Steve McQueen's "Mare's Leg" in Wanted: Dead or Alive.

Hollywood studios purchased the '92 in quantity because it was in regular production (until World War II) but looked sufficiently like Old West Winchesters to substitute for valuable antiques, and because in calibers .44-40 and .38-40 it could fire, together with the Colt Single Action Army "Peacemaker" revolver, the standard Five-in-One blank cartridge. This latter practice mirrored the real cowboys, who found it convenient to carry a rifle and a revolver chambered with the same ammunition.

Note: This gun is NOT considered obsolete calibre in the UK. Please note that for international shipping, these MUST be shipped using UPS WW Services.

  • This product is not available for shipping in US state(s): New Jersey

    This product is available for international shipping.
  • Not eligible for payment with Paypal or Amazon

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