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Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 670
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OP
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Posts: 670 |
Winchester patterned the Model 71 as an alleged improvement on the 1886, using the 348 WCF- sloped to aid in extraction. The originals are still out there-inherited rifles that are not always appreciated for what they represent-the finest hunting lever gun once made. Do not be discouraged by an extra hole, or a slightly scratched finish. These are bargaining chips on price, and do not affect the rifle's utility. To determine an early L tang M-71, the SN usually will fall below 16,000. The trigger on half-cock, will not move.It will on later rifles. Some early standard rifles had bolt peep sights. For Alaska hunting, many M-71 rifles were carried by hunters and guides for hunting at mid range for caribou,deer-moose and bear. The 348/M-71 combination works well with Woodleigh-Hawk-Alaska Bullet Works bullets if you have to back a bear down on the trail or the gut pile. Guides also used fast actioned 71s in the 450 Alaskan wildcat. They needed a fast heavier caliber rifle that protected their clients. Handloader Magazine had one of the finest tributes to the Model 71 -featuring the rifle coming to the rescue of a figurative hunter deep in the North snow country facing down a charging bear.
Keep your nose to the wind, and your eyes along the skyline.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena-not the critic"-T. Roosevelt There are no atheists in fox holes or in the open doors of a para's aircraft.....
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Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 204
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My 35/348 and 450 Alaskan 71s are sure killers. Very handy, very accurate. Thank you 450 Fuller
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Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 670
Campfire Regular
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OP
Campfire Regular
Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 670 |
You are right, Moose. Back in the late 50's good bullets for the .348 were hard to come by. The 35/348 was a good answer because Nosler had 358 partitions.
Now-we really have a choice in bullets. I have a 450 Alaskan and a 450 Fuller on pre-War early 71s.Along the Kenai and in other serious brown bear country, the 450s are the way to travel. Bear spray may not work.
The 348 Ackley Improved is another good one. It pushes a 250 gr Hawk at about an honest 2375-2400 FPS. I killed a nice Alaskan moose in 2007 with that cartridge using a 270 gr Hawk bullet. Great sectional density for the big stuff. With the Woodleighs-Swifts-Hawks, the 348 Ack Imp is starting to shine in the Model 71.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena-not the critic"-T. Roosevelt There are no atheists in fox holes or in the open doors of a para's aircraft.....
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Joined: Nov 2015
Posts: 573
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Nov 2015
Posts: 573 |
The 3rd and 4th guns from the top are my two Mod 71's
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Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 48,036
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 48,036 |
Winchester patterned the Model 71 as an alleged improvement on the 1886, using the 348 WCF- sloped to aid in extraction. The originals are still out there-inherited rifles that are not always appreciated for what they represent-the finest hunting lever gun once made. Do not be discouraged by an extra hole, or a slightly scratched finish. These are bargaining chips on price, and do not affect the rifle's utility. To determine an early L tang M-71, the SN usually will fall below 16,000. The trigger on half-cock, will not move.It will on later rifles. Some early standard rifles had bolt peep sights. For Alaska hunting, many M-71 rifles were carried by hunters and guides for hunting at mid range for caribou,deer-moose and bear. The 348/M-71 combination works well with Woodleigh-Hawk-Alaska Bullet Works bullets if you have to back a bear down on the trail or the gut pile. Guides also used fast actioned 71s in the 450 Alaskan wildcat. They needed a fast heavier caliber rifle that protected their clients. Handloader Magazine had one of the finest tributes to the Model 71 -featuring the rifle coming to the rescue of a figurative hunter deep in the North snow country facing down a charging bear.
Keep your nose to the wind, and your eyes along the skyline. Some early deluxe models had bolt peeps too: This one belongs to my buddy gunner now:
I try to stick with the basics, they do so well. Nothing fancy mind you, just plain jane will get it done with style. You want to see an animal drop right now? Shoot him in the ear hole. BSA MAGA
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Joined: Aug 2012
Posts: 2,913
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Aug 2012
Posts: 2,913 |
Love me those 71's Pure artistry!
It was Jerry "Mad Dog" Shriver (SFC E-7)who said: "No, no, I've got them right where I want them -- surrounded from the inside." http://www.macvsog.cc/1969.htm
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Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 11,264
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 11,264 |
Most prized rifle I have.
In the East,they are devastating on large hogs and Black Bears.
Gun Shows are almost as comical as boat ramps in the Spring.
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Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 1,581
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 1,581 |
It took me a while to fully appreciate the Model 71. My first day off the bench I wondered what all the fuss was about. Mine is accurate at 2MOA or better with numerous loads, the action is smooth but so is the action on all of my well used levers, the ballistics (standard 348) good but by modern standards not awe inspiring.
Now after about 1 year of use and a successful moose hunt under my belt I can say that this rifle grows on me continually unlike any rifle that I have ever owned.
Getting off the bench and into field positions reveals the wonderful balance and pointability. My father a 2nd generation Saskatchewan homesteader was a late convert to rifles from shotguns. He settled on a 24" Marlin 30-30 with a pistol grip. He would talk about how nice it pointed. Every year we went out he would put a 170 grain silvertip through the chest of his deer and it would be over. 1 year...1 shot. He would have loved the model 71. When you get off the bench you realize the old 71 comes up fast, balanced and on target and the pistol grip and stock design is wonderfully comfortable and aids in control.
The ballistics in the original 348 are also wonderfully balanced. A 200 grain bullet at 2500fps or a bit more is actually very capable if you match bullet construction to fit the game. The 200 Swift is fully Bison ready. The 200 Flextip 300 yard capable with some nice 6-7" groups at that range on my last outing. Recoil in an 8 pound rifle is very reasonable and easily handled by my 14 year old. On my moose hunt my 800 pound bull did not move one step after taking a high shoulder strike with a 200 Flatpoint. If you like more bullet weight a 250 grain at 2250-2300fps is no slouch.
The tactile feeling of working the action is nigh irresistible. It's not just smooth, it's the combination of smoothness, tight lock-up and the snick-snick, sound that just feels right. As an added bonus load your rounds a bit hot and you have the lever pop open telling you to back down a bit. Handy!
I like the ad that suggests the Model 71 is a "Universal" rifle. Pretty much sums it up and it is evident that the Model 71 was a product of love by the older generation of Winchester craftsman, with an unbroken pedigree stretching back to the 19th century. Stock by Whelen and team, cartridge design by Gerlich, action redesign by Winchester. When you pick up an old Kelly True Temper or a Finnish Pukko you realize that you are holding a design that evolved over generations of refinement by people who used their equipment every day. The 71 gives you the same sense. I guess the best one word description is, Beautiful.
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Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 48,036
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 48,036 |
I try to stick with the basics, they do so well. Nothing fancy mind you, just plain jane will get it done with style. You want to see an animal drop right now? Shoot him in the ear hole. BSA MAGA
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Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 14,807
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 14,807 |
When I started out deer and bear hunting in 1953 and with my own hand loads I looked at those Win. levers however they lacked scopes and I wanted a scope to see the 3" minimum antler on a Vt. buck.
The 99 Savage can easily mount a rifle scope. That was my choice for a woods rifle and a good one.
Those Win 71's can't.
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Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 1,581
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 1,581 |
Well I like the Savage 99 too. I have one in 284 that seems to think it should shoot like a bolt gun. I'd give the 71 more style points though the 99 is in there pitching.
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 20,810
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 20,810 |
The 71 is the coolest of levers. Have always thought about getting one.
laissez les bons temps rouler
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Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 14,408
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 14,408 |
my old neighbor had a deluxe model. he told me he bought it at the Legion in the 60's for something like 75 bucks. i never knew anything about them until he showed me his. when he died his son got all his guns except for an old beat up sxs and a arasaka which he left my boys. his son is a non hunting over educated yuppy so i am sure that 71 didn't last long at his house.
i am not a fan of winchester lever guns but i wish i had offered to buy that 71 but it seemed highly inappropriate to ask at the funeral and thats the last time i saw the guy.
My diploma is a DD214
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Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 48,036
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 48,036 |
When I started out deer and bear hunting in 1953 and with my own hand loads I looked at those Win. levers however they lacked scopes and I wanted a scope to see the 3" minimum antler on a Vt. buck.
The 99 Savage can easily mount a rifle scope. That was my choice for a woods rifle and a good one.
Those Win 71's can't.
I'd rather hunt deer with this than a damn savage 99:
I try to stick with the basics, they do so well. Nothing fancy mind you, just plain jane will get it done with style. You want to see an animal drop right now? Shoot him in the ear hole. BSA MAGA
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 9,100
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 9,100 |
I like them both !!
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Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 4,959
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 4,959 |
Damn, just damn!! Every time I see Loggahs gun room my envy hormones go through the roof! (but don't stop posting them)
Charter Member Ancient order of the 1895 Winchester
"It's an insecure and petite man who demands all others like what he likes and dislike what he dislikes." szihn
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Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 670
Campfire Regular
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OP
Campfire Regular
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Posts: 670 |
One of the strangest Model 71s I have came by accident from a grandson of the original owner. He wanted to sell it, but as soon as they asked a few questions-prospective buyers ran away like he had typhoid. Seems it had a scope and an unusual mounting system. Nobody was interested... He read out "Lyman Alas" on the scope-and I bought it since the scope was worth half of the asking price. The Mount is the Weathermatic-Detroit. Very rare from the 1950s and it WORKS. Most ingenious mount, returns to zero every time and the iron sights are visible just under the scope in case its real foggy rain and you need to shoot....a Lyman Alaskan on a M-71. And I have killed deer with the setup. Francis Sell in Oregon would have liked it. So for those who think the Model 71 can't wear a scope, THINK AGAIN......for old mossbacks with tired eyes, just the ticket for a snow or rainstorm caribou-deer hunt.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena-not the critic"-T. Roosevelt There are no atheists in fox holes or in the open doors of a para's aircraft.....
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Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 204
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 204 |
Handled a 71 couple of weeks ago with a weaver side mount. Fairly difficult to get a cheek weld with that setup. Plus it ruined the way a 71 handles.
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Joined: Dec 2016
Posts: 652
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That's a gun room! I thought it was a gun shop. I was going to ask for directions! NICE
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Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 2,332
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
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Posts: 2,332 |
I like them both !! I want to party with you sir. Edit - I will gladly provide the paper towels to mop up my drool.
Last edited by micky; 02/08/17.
“Lighten up Francis”
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