Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Winchester Collectors winchester 1885 hi wall 45-70-70

I recently stumbled on to a really nice 1885 Winchester hi wall musket in 45-70. There is no cleaning rod but there is a groove in the bottom of the stock which ends right by the sling swivel a foot ahead of the action. There is no hole drilled further into the stock. It could only hold a cleaning rod slightly over half of the barrel length. Was there a HALF LENGTH cleaning rod that you had to go into the barrel from both ends or is the stock groove just a dummy ????? Gun made in 1887.
Bob-- Archeryking

Received this info from an individual who has great knowledge of 1885’s. “It was not technically a ‘cleaning rod’. Instead Winchester referred to it as a ‘wiping rod’ and it was not full length to the barrel and chamber. It did require wiping the bore from both ends.”