GUN SPRING 2017
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 4/11/2017
EXTREMELY RARE FACTORY ENGRAVED, JOHN ULRICH SIGNED SPECIAL ORDER DELUXE WINCHESTER MODEL 1894 TAKEDOWN LEVER ACTION RIFLE. WINCHESTER 1894 266180 32WS MODERN; C&R Cal. 32WS. Very rare Winchester with tapered 26″ oct bbl, full magazine, Beach patent gold plated combination folding front sight, Winchester graduated tangent rear sight & Lyman combination tang sight. Mounted with 3-4X center crotch, flame grain American walnut with "D" carved forearm & capped pistol grip stock with crescent shaped buttplate. Receiver is wonderfully engraved by John Ulrich and signed on the bottom tang. Engraving is nearly full coverage on the receiver in #4 pattern which consists of the very large vignette of a hunter shooting from behind a tree in the background and a dying bull elk and a wounded bull elk in the foreground. Right side has the smaller vignette of a grizzly bear on a rocky promontory. Both vignettes are surrounded by extremely well detailed foliate arabesque patterns with fine shaded background. Top of the left vignette has multiple borders and the right side is surrounded on 3 edges with latchhook borders. Engraving extends over the top of the receiver, onto the top tang, bottom edges of the receiver, floorplate, lever & hammer. Bbl extension and about 1″ of the bbl are engraved to match. Rear edges of the receiver, front edge of bbl extension, over chamber area of the bbl edges of floorplate and forend cap have fine gold wire inlay. Top of buttplate has matching engraving with gold wire inlay. Screw heads, most unusually, are all engraved, including those on tang sight. Accompanied by a Cody Firearm's Museum records office work sheet which identifies this rifle in Cal. 32WS with oct bbl, plain trigger, fancy pistol grip stock, graduated peep and Beach sights, takedown, "D" carved and engraved $24.00. Received in warehouse December 23, 1905 and shipped same day to order number 37912. Pg 172 of Winchester Engraving, R. L. Wilson pictures two other Model '94 rifles both of which are identically engraved, one of which has identical gold wire inlay. One is SN 222901 and the other is SN 308993. Engraved Winchesters in and of themselves are rare. Very highly engraved arms are even more rare. Add in the engraver's signature & the very rare gold inlays, rare Cal. and rarely seen 1901 patented graduated sight which George Madis states on pg 432 of The Winchester Book "made specially for Model 94 rifles chambering the smokeless high velocity loads, this type of sight will be seen occasionally on the Model 94", and it becomes incredibly rare. Couple that with exceptional high condition and this example is off the charts rare. CONDITION: Exceptionally fine. Overall, the metal retains about 97-98% crisp orig factory finish with only light sharp edge wear and on bottom of receiver and lower tang area thinning to plum. Lever and hammer retain bright case colors, some muted with light staining. Stocks are sound and crisp retaining sharp checkering and virtually all their orig piano varnish finish with minor cosmetic nicks and scratches. Buttplate retains muted case colors with moderate pitting at heel and toe, the only significant defect in condition noted. Mechanics are crisp. Bright shiny bore, may have been fired but if so very little. 50832-3 JS (80,000-120,000)