June 25-28, 2018 Firearms
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 6/25/2018
Rare ’86 musket with round barrel, full length forearm which conceals the magazine tube, that has a metal nose cap and sgl band with sling swivel. It has square base front sight/bayonet lug and a musket style ladder rear sight graduated to 1,000 yards. Mounted with uncheckered straight grain American walnut with straight stock and musket/carbine buttplate with trap. Bottom of stock has a sling swivel. According to Flayderman’s Guide to Antique American Firearms only about 350 of these muskets were produced and “The ’86 musket is the greatest rarity of all Winchester lever action muskets.” Excellent condition. Barrel retains over 97% of its factory applied finish overall. Receiver retains about 98% of its vivid case colors, a bit softer and duller on hammer and lever. Stocks excellent and near perfect, well fit with typical scattered small dings, dents and scratches typical of 100 years of storage. Accompanying bayonet is silver-grey overall with scattered areas of staining and pitting matching overall condition of musket quite well and fits and locks quite tightly on barrel. Mechanically gun is sound and retains crisp rifling and shiny bore. A stunning example of one of the rarest of all military pattern Winchesters ever made. Factory letter states that serial No. 82404 was shipped on September 15th, 1893 as a Model 1886 .45-70 musket. From the Jim Linton Collection.