Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Winchester Collectors A 65' 458 riddle

My buddy has a Model 70 458 win mag with barrel and floor plate marked super grade. It has a 21" barrel and is a control round, claw extractor. The stock is not a factory stock. serial is 7839XX

Any thoughts? Custom shop? serial ranger is 65'

I got my hands on it today and I have never seen one like this before, have any of you?

It is a push feed that has a cosmetic non-functioning claw extractor on it?


Barrel is marked super grade and does not appear to have been shortened but is 21". It is set up like a Super Express with the same front barrel sling mount, and has the forward recoil lug.




The cocking piece is larger and has a checkered circle at the very rear too.

Never seen such a thing. My guess is it's a hodged podged gun that someone tried to make something it isn't. Very interesting though.

It's a Frankensteen

The stock it was in. Nice quality, nice wood, nice bedding work. It was someone's dream project rifle.

The bolt is what gets me. A lot of work to make it look like something it is not. My buddy was a little surprised when I pointed it out.

Someone cut the groove for a claw extractor and added a fake claw extractor to an otherwise 1965 Win 70 pushfeed SuperGrade.

I thought the same thing, even before seeing the pictures..

The rest of his buddies were packing pre 64's, he just wanted to fit in... Geez.. That or the camp in Africa only allowed CRF rifles. He may have snuck this one past them...

Check out the back of the bolt at the cocking piece, that is one solid piece. Can't figure that out either.

If you see it with the bolt closed you can't tell it's not a CRF. That would be a GunBroker nightmare.

That is a typical pinned on cap from 1964-1976 or perhaps even later. The firing pin has a groove for the pin and a very short cocking piece / striker or whatever you want to call the heavy back portion of the firing pin.

I have only owned one from this era and it was a model 70 target in 06 and I didn't remember it being like that but I haven't owned it for at least 25 years.

Thanks for clearing that up sbrmike.

The cocking piece on a 1965 30-06, that my buddy owns, looks just like that. However, that is a faux as hell non functional extractor. Some machinist/gunsmith had fun with that one. Or should I say very Macgyver'ish creative streak..

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The cocking piece on a 1965 30-06, that my buddy owns, looks just like that. However, that is a faux as hell non functional extractor. Some machinist/gunsmith had fun with that one. Or should I say very Macgyver'ish creative streak.. [/quote]

It took a minute to sink in when I looked at it and then it was that "why on earth" moment.

Then I tried to imagine that conversation between client and gunsmith about the work on the bolt. It took some time and effort to figure out how all that was going to work for something that is purely cosmetic.

I can see a nice engraved grip cap or ebony fore end but a fake crf? When a guy wants something and has the cash to back it up I guess you don't argue and let them have it.

Just an FYI somewhere along the line the post 64 target models did away with the pinned on cap and went back to the conventional firing pin retaining screw in the shroud due to accuracy/lock time/ or some other reason.

That probably explains it, I was thinking it was the "traditional" configuration but like I said I have only owned the one and it's been a while.

By the way that was one heck of an accurate rifle.

... Things that make you go hmmmmm...