Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Winchester Collectors Just Another Refinished Standard Grade

Thought I'd post a few photos of my '55 .30-06 standard grade, which went in recently for some cosmetic surgery. I found this one sitting on the front seat of a friend's p/u during a hunting trip...it was owned by someone else that wanted to sell it to my buddy. I bought it because it was in nice, but very used shape, and it was in '06. Bore was spotless, but there was rust on the floorplate, and the stock was missing most of the finish. I got it for $500.00.

I had my favorite gunsmith, Justin McMillan, refinish the stock, reblue the triggerguard/floorplate and smooth out, polish and re-cut the buttplate checkering (it was pretty beat up) and recut the stock checkering. Justin, also an M70 pre-64 freak, did the refinish with an eye towards keeping it looking original; we didn't want to make it "better". No re-bedding was done. The floorplate wasn't given a high polish, and the factory mistakes in the checkering were left in. I think it came out quite well.

I sold my pristine '49 M70 because it was too nice. This one's refinished (just the stock and floorplate assembly), so I can use it. It's wearing a favorite Lyman 4X Permacenter with a duplex. I shot it before the work; nice round 5-shot groups of just over an inch with Win 180 grain factory sofpoints. THIS is the M70 I've always wanted. And it goes well with my other standard grade in .270. It's a working rifle.
Bob