In 1969 I bought some property in Bradford Co.,PA. A neighbor had a Winchester 71 that was his grandaddy's rifle and had been handed down to him. For the last 25 years I have been trying to buy the gun.
On June 6th, the gentleman turned 86 and to my suprise during a birthday visit he told me he was ready to sell me the rifle.
According to the serial # and the Blue Book it was made in 1936. It is a deluxe rifle with a long tang and a peep sight mounted on the bolt. If I had to guess I would say the rifle is between 50 & 60 % condition, maybe better. The blueing is really good except for the lever which shows some wear.There is also some wear on the metal piece at the front of the forearm where a sling swivel would be attached. The checkering and the finish are in suprisingly good condition for a rifle that was made 67 years ago. I received a full box of Winchester Super Speed cartridges. Unfortunately the box is deteriorated. It describes the cartridges as "Staynless","Non-Mercuric". There is a handwritten number on the box, 4.60, which I assume is the price. There were 2 extra shells so I set out a gallon paint can at 25 yards to see if it would shoot. The shells chambered from the magazine tube and ejected without any problems. More importantly, it was fun to shoot. The round nose shells put 2 neat holes in the center of the can but the damage to the ground beyond the can was impressive. The gun had not been cleaned for a while but after a good cleaning the barrel looks to be in good shape. Now that I have described the gun and it's history I have a few questions.
I am told that Browning is making a reproduction of the 71. If that is the case who is making the .348 ammo ? The gun appears to be in sound condition but considering the age is it safe to shoot the factory ammunition that is being sold today ? I currently own rifles from .338 RUM down to .22-250 and reload for all of them. I thought that I would buy a few boxes of loaded ammo to get the feel of the rifle and also to get the brass. I saw that Midland has loaded ammo for about $45. a box. I didn't see brass for sale.I would appreciate any comments or advice anyone wants to offer. Thanks, Lou
