Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing Winchester Low Wall Dilema

Good day,
Bare with me as this is a bit of a saga. I recently bought a Winchester 1885 Low Wall, chambered in 38-55, yup, thats right. It seemed clear that the barrel had been replaced at some time as it has some tooling marks that I want to have taken out at some time, but it was clear that that had happened some time ago, at least based on the barrel and receiver patina, they looked the same. Out of curiosity I asked Cody Museum for a letter. They took my money and sent me a letter that clearly shows the gun was originally chambered in 25-20.

So Now I have a dilemma, note there is a little bit of play in the breech block, which occasionally contributes to a misfire. That also needs some attention. Question I have for the group is this, where do I take this gun from here? My choices it seems are:
- Leave it alone, shoot low pressure smokeless or Black Powder 38-55 loads, under 20,000 psi and not worry about it, it won't see 100 rounds per year.
- Find an original Winchester barrel marked 25-20 and restore the gun to original specs, thus preserving the value.
- Re-line the barrel/chamber to a lower pressure caliber, such as 32-20, 32-40, and shoot it, not worrying about the Cody Letter or original specs.

Appreciate your thoughts, its a nice gun and I want to hang on to it,
Thanks
Willys guy.

Were it my vintage Low Wall (not a modern Winchester/Browning/Miroku Low Wall) I wouldn't think of messing with it in .38-55 or .32-40. There's a reason the factory didn't chamber them thusly. Sure, sticking with 20K psi loads sounds good on the surface but you're ignoring an important facet - breech thrust. There's a lot more surface area on that size case head compared to .25-20, .22WCF, etc. which translates into significantly more breech thrust upon discharge than what the small cartridges deliver at the same psi. You might get away with a handful of shots per year before it loosens up, or worse, and from the sounds of it that may already be happening. Newton's Third Law of Motion is a bitch (For every action there's an equal but opposite reaction). Best to stick with small cartridges and treat it as if you were shooting it in 1895. Realize that the breech block isn't supported by much, not like a High Wall breech block is. Awfully fun to play with but they ain't no High Wall.

Remember, the steel in these things was a low carbon steel which was simply case hardened. A far far cry from a "modern" Low Wall which is chambered for some truly hot cartridges, and made of wonderfully heat treated alloys.

Lining the barrel to .22 and chambering for .22 WCF (.22 Hornet reamer), marking the barrel as such to throw off the dummies who would want to feed it a diet of hot Hornet loads, and shoot it with cast bullets in the sub-2000fps realm and life will be filled with fun afternoons. .25-20 & .32-20 are a couple other good ones too, as long as high velocity is avoided, but finding brass for them is a daunting & expensive proposition these days. .38 Special comes to mind, but I would cut the chamber short (and custom trim brass accordingly) so that some yahoo doesn't make it go with +P loads. .22LR is always an excellent choice for a Low Wall too.

I have a Low Wall and a Stevens 44 in .22 WCF and it's no big deal making ammo. Also have a Low Wall in .25-20 Single Shot (bored out and re-chambered from .22WCF) and love it, but finding/making brass for it is not for the feint of heart (way different from a .25-20 WCF). My Browning/Miroku Low Wall is chambered for .223 and I load the snot out of it.

Finding and fitting an original .22WCF Winchester barrel, that has a justifiably good bore, is no mean feat in both patience and cost. Cheaper to line the barrel you have. Even re-barreling with an original .22WCF is no guarantee for achieving "original" value - a serious collector will spot it.

Whichever route you go, please have a competent gunsmith do the work who's familiar with the gun, to get a professional assessment regarding the "looseness" of the breech block. It may have already been pounded to death.

Thanks gnoahhh,
I found a guy, Wyoming Gunsmiths in Cody Wyoming, seem to know a lot about these 1885s. Having him evaluate it for damage from the big round, and then will determine which direction to take it. Pleased to hear that you like the 25-20SS, that is one on the list, but I do think the 25-20 is an adorable round. Too many choices, not enough data.
Thanks for the help.

Line the present barrel and have a 25-20 or locate a 25-20 barrel.
Cost is no object when I'm spending your money!