Rifleman Q & A: Model 1894 Peculiarities

by
posted on December 19, 2018
pecular.jpg

Q: Can you help identify peculiarities of my Winchester Model 1894, chambered in .32 Spl., with serial No. 1781XX. The sights are of a variety I have not encountered on Model 1894s, and the proofmarks are unfamiliar as well.

A: The marks are the proof and view marks of the London Proof House. This shows that your gun was once sold in England. It does not necessarily mean that the gun was shipped from the factory to England, but it could have been. The proofmarks just tell us that, sometime in the life of the gun, it was sold, new or used, in England and, therefore, had to pass the proofing system.

The front sight looks to me like someone just took out the short factory blade and inserted a longer, homemade blade.

The rear sight is the Winchester Model 34 Express sight. This reinforces my thought that your gun may have been ordered from the factory with that sight, which was popular with British hunters who went off to India or Africa. I’m not sure from the photo, but it looks like the middle flip-up blade may be missing.

The factory records for your Winchester Model 1894, provided by the Cody Firearms Museum, indicate there is nothing unusual about the carbine, and its manufacture date is 1903. The “Order number T106303” issued would give all the information about the customer, etc., but all of the shipping records are missing from the collection and appear to have been discarded by Winchester or one of the firms that later bought the Winchester company.

--Michael F. Carrick

Latest

Military Armament MAC DS pistol right-side view black gun on pebbles.
Military Armament MAC DS pistol right-side view black gun on pebbles.

Military Armament Corporation Introduces New MAC 9 DS Models

Military Armament Corporation expanded its line of M1911-style, double-stack handguns with its new Double-Stack Duty, D-Comp and Comp designs.

Preview: MTM Case-Gard Ruger 10/22 Extended Mag Can

Made in the U.S.A., the O-ring-sealed Mag Can from MTM Case-Gard stows one of the most important parts of the semi-automatic carbine—the magazine—twelve BX-25-pattern extended magazines, to be exact.

Gun Of The Week: EAA Witness2311 Brat

Built on M1911 principles and imported by European American Armory Corp., the EAA Girsan Witnesss2311 Brat is a unique take on the double-stack, 2011-style pistol.

The Armed Citizen® March 28, 2025

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

John C. Garand: His Compensation & Other Accomplishments

Much gratitude has been, and is given, to the man who created the M1 Garand. But folklore suggests John C. Garand did all the work for free. Let us dispel that notion.

John Rigby & Co. Celebrates 250th Anniversary

John Rigby—born in 1758—founded his famed gunmaking firm, John Rigby & Co., in 1775, and year 2025 marks the company's semiquincentennial celebration.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.