Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Winchester Collectors Winchester Model 100 Semi-Auto

All,
What is the going rate for an 85-90% M100 in .308? It is a later model.

Also, what are your opinions of this rifle? I've heard they are everything from terrible to alright. My understanding is the triggers are pretty bad. Any secrets to making them run well?

Best,
Expat

Lock the action open, run a rope through the bore and tie it to the bow of the boat when it hits the bottom.

No secrets here. They have good barrels that can shoot right with a little bedding in the right spot. They are a biotch to take apart and clean. They have a goofy 2 piece charging handle that may come apart over time, trust me it does happen . If you handload, load them light or you will destroy the extractor (trust me again). Stocks are hard to find, so be easy on yours. I do like the ergos and looks of the rifle. I would have kept mine if it didn't try to rattle itself apart.. How much more do you really want to know about the 100? Also, make sure the firing pin has been replaced. There was a recall on them..

Buy Browning BAR instead.

Second that, Winchester didn't make EVERY rifle terrific.

A+1, I was lucky and have a fair trigger, was my one gun for many years, untold whitetails, gave it to my Dad when I got tired of tracking his 243 shot bucks, I had him on wrong bullets and he was pencil holing them, nothing wrong with the 243 with correct bullets , the last 3 deer he dropped hammer on with my 100 in 308 were bang flop, I shot it for 30 tears and just had the recall done last year!!! LOL , I like mine so that I bought its baby brother the 490, a .22 that was put together in Canada for a few years, talk about a grunter trigger!!! it is a nail driver BUT I can find no gunsmith in the USA that can tune the 490 trigger! the very best WinPoor

I've owned several Winchester 100s and still have 3, 2x308 and 1x243. One of the 308s has been used to kill hundreds of deer in deer reduction shoots, using whatever brand of Fed/Rem/Win 150 grain factory ammo was the least expensive at the time.

The only two problems that I've ever had with Winchester 100s were feeding issues with 284s, they can be VERY magazine sensitive, and broken extractors. I keep three or four extractors, extractor springs, and extractor plungers in the parts drawer just to be on the safe side.

I wouldn't pay more than $500 for a minty Winchester 100 in either 243 or 308. The selling prices on GB are probably a gauge on what they are typically going for.

I make money on win M100s. most owners don't field strip and clean because they a a pain in the okole and as a result-the gas piston rots and then short recoils-slide doesn't move all the way back to eject the fired shell or pick up a fresh shell from the magazine. parts are getting harder to find now like extractors. barrels are pretty much non existant unless you can find someone to custom make on. good luck with yours! Mel

$500 is about right for a .308. A co-worker recently sold a "minty" M100 in .243 on the GB for $850. I've seen a couple of others go for about the same.

FWIW, my co-workers .243 was one inaccurate POS.

My 243 is a great "running" coyote rifle, about 1.5 MOA and 100% reliable.

Straight up, the one I'm looking at is priced WAY too high and I'm going to pass. Also sounds a little too temperamental for my taste. All that said, I really like the size, shape and fit of the M100.

Many thanks,
Expat

Expat, don't get me wrong. I loved my model 100 as well. It was freakishly accurate after I glass bed it. The only disturbing thing on my rifle was when I let my mom shoot it and the charging handle flew off, or should I say the upper half of the 2 piece bastid flew off. It left a very jagged sharp piece sticking out. It was very obvious that it was put together from 2 pieces from the factory. I did love how the rifle handled and felt. JOC wrote about how he actually liked the little m100. Recoil was very gentle and they are a hoot to shoot. Just use Loctite on every screw. Especially the scope mounts/rings. Here's mine (first year model made in 1961):




This is how it shot at 50 yards with factory irons:


This is how it shot at 100 yards after bedding:


Generally it was a 1 moa (for 3 shots) rifle though and the above group was never duplicated again. I call it a lucky group....



I forgot to mention, I paid $350.00 for this one..

Jeez, just go buy a Remington Jam A Matic and be done with it, or pony up for the Browning.

Why? Winchester Model 100s don't have the design flaw that the Remingtons do and the are both lighter and less expensive than the Brownings.

Worst firearm I've ever attempted to use imho.

I guess I'm lucky. I have owned a boat load of them and have never had a problem with them. I currently have three. A post 64 308 that I've killed several deer with ,a pre 64 243 that I've taken a couple of deer with and a post 64 284 that stays in the safe. Accuracy wise they aren't bench rest competition guns but for deer hunting here in Georgia they are fine. I've replaced the firing pins on all the ones I've owned and at the time Winchester would send me a check for $40 each to do it. I call that a win/win. The price for a shooter grade one around here is $450-500. For a real nice one they bring 600 or more depending on pre 64 or post 64 and caliber. When I was a kid I had an old shooters bible from 1968 and it was my wish book. I loved the basket weave pattern and looks of the rifle. I got my first one, which I still have, a post 64 308 in the mid 80s when a guy told me he had traded it in at a LGS. I went down there and traded a Marlin 1884 in 44 mag for it. IT does take three hands to take one apart and if maintanance isn't done on it periodically the gas cylinder will freeze up. That's why you will see them with broken stocks. Where some one tried to take it apart either not knowing the bolt has to be retracted or the bolt was froze up.

You're correct - they have other design flaws that equal or surpass the horrible 742s. For a reason..

If a hunter must have a semi-auto, the BAR is the ONLY one worth ten cents..

Take this from someone who's worked with all of 'em over the last 18+ years..