Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Winchester Collectors 220 Swift barrel finish

I bought a transition 220 Swift and the barrel has a matte finish that roughly matches the receiver. I assumed it was a reblue, but it really looked to be too good to be such. Now I am seeing pictures of other Swifts that appear to have the same finish. Is this a reblue or did the Swifts just come with a different finish? Is it maybe one of the guns with a stainless barrel?

Mr Desert, 99% of the swifts were a matt finish that were iron plated so as to be blackened or blued. the finish you see is correct! I will try and take photos of several SS barrels, old timers caled em' mottled. very best on a good en' WinPoor

Thank you. Good to know.

Mr Muledeer, Here is a shot of my almost new 52' std 70 swift with Unertl Varmint 10X, it shows the 'mottled' iron clad, blackened finish.

very best

Mr Mule, Here is a 59' Varminter Swift but the mottled ,iron clad blackened finish does not show up as well, I also have a 56' Varminter in .243 win that shows up much nicer, I seem to recall in Mr Rules book that Winchester changed up a bit in the later 50's with the process, I will have to backtrack and read up again.I used to have a photo memory but the years are letting that pass a bit!

very best WinPoor

Early 50's 220 Swift. 26 inch stainless barrel and matte finish, standard...

Babydoll Shrapnel, I have not found my super pet factory load yet but I started with 30+ yr old Norma and Yellow box Super X hot rod 4110. I bought a case of Hornady grey box 50 or 55 grain ammo from Lock,Stock and Barrel ( someone said they were out of biz now?) in the 90's that was the cats azz, it was not super fast but hot dog dam it was accurate ammo, I went thru 2 cases in an old tang safe Ruger 77 Varmint with an old denver made Redfield 6X18 AO that sent a many a man home minus a few 100 dollar bills from the old Coon Bottom range, just across the FL line North of Tallahassee FL.high dollar Custom rigs , I did not know when I bought the gun new that Douglas made the barrels for Ruger. After 2+K rounds the gun was sub inch but I never hot rodded it! I wish I could get my hands on a couple cases of that old grey box Hornady custom ammo, I want to think it slow poked at 3700+. I take the one hole over speed any day of the year! v best WinPoor

That's the finish. I will have to check my notes, but my memory is mine is a 1946 gun. Some way, i have ended up with several from '46.

DesertMuleDeer..

That is the finish that Winchester used on their stainless barrels. I have 2 Swifts, one a target model and the other with original stainless barrels. I also have 2 .300HH with original stainless barrels, a .264 and a .270.

Nice looking rifle by the way.

Left side of 52' Swift , lighting was better and shows mottled finish better. very best WinPoor

Here is a 59' Varminter in Swift, the light is not the same but I know both guns are bone stock, it just shows the difference in the way things were done in 52' vs 59' , both are 'mottled' but there is a small change, remember real men and women made these guns and each did things a little different!

very best WinPoor

You have a 270 with a stainless barrel?

Here is a 264 win mag that I had the pleasure of being the first fellow to scope and shoot since the WP stamp was put on at the factory. My memory is slipping but it is a first year gun, I can detect a small difference between it and the 52' and 59', I think it is a 61' gun. It will be one of the last to go or I might have em' throw it in the hole in cow pasture ,under the 300 yr old live oak with me! very best WinPoor

I will learn to take gun photos one day!I shoot a rifle a hell of a lot better than I shoot pix!

While we are talking about SS barrels, My Gunsmith in Tallahassee FL, Mark Raines, owner of Masters of Gun & Rod has a Mod 12 Winchester SS Barrel, I saw it with my own eyes last week! The one thing I have learned about Winchester is, if you had the money there is dog dam near anything you could have if you wanted it from them! WINCHESTER was very accommodating if you could get to the BIG sales rep with the correct change!