Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Winchester Collectors Good Deals Thread

The purpose of this thread is to help those of us who appreciate Winchesters to locate and purchase rifles at a good deal. If you see a nice Winchester posted somewhere or know of one locally and you aren't buying it for yourself, then post a link here. Can also make posts mentioning that you're bidding on certain items etc so we don't compete amongst eachother unecessarily. There is a similar thread on Africa Hunting which has been my demise several times, figured I'd try starting one here to help others spend their money.

To kick things off, there are two nice pre-64 custom builds that I'm watching tonight. I don't have the free cash to chase them, but hopefully someone here can win them. To be clear, these aren't mine. Just great deals that I hope someone here can win.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1018377066

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1015996999

Good thread idea
And, the custom builds that you mentioned closed at <1k, IMO, not bad.

I like the 300wby in the first listing, but I believe that stock is a Brown Precision, not a "Mcmillan", as stated by the seller. Sold price was decent. Great combo though. The second rifle, the poor stock is in dire need of repair. I'm actually surprised it sold for so much.

Cool idea fora thread👍🏼

BSA should be blowing this up!

Oh man. I may not want to give up some of my honey holes. Bwaaaaahahaha...

It was/is; you are correct bsa. Someone had asked me about it but I had forgotten to watch the close. Definitely well bought.

I'm keeping an eye on this one, have wanted a simple featherweight 30-06 for a long time.

Pre 64 Featherweight 30-06

That rifle has seen a lot of hard use, but not shot much. The owner doesn't know winchesters very well. Rifle made in '55. If you are looking for a low comb, that has seen a lot of hard use, buy it or bid on it. I'm thinking it will probably go for about $920 or so. At that price, I'd rather have a pristine rifle in a Mcmillan. That's just me though.

I like the thread idea. I also think it would be a good place to post a WTB, or looking for a certain model. I'm sure there are a lot of us here that would help out, if we had what someone else was looking for.

Great Idea for a Thread!

HS 58

$400 😵😵a few yrs ago

Awesome deal on that one. How do you like that Zeiss?

I have recently come across a handful of good deals on post-64 CRF rifles, 7mm Rem Mag, 300 Win Mag and 338 Win Mag. It appears the magnums are a hard sell anymore.

Hell of a lot better than a Nikon 😎

I like those Terra's. Mine are 3-9x42 with RZ6 reticle. Great scopes. I've had one on 10 different rifles. They are pretty tough. Great glass too. I like that fwt. Those are pretty damn classy.

Terra was a good line for the $$$

There's one rifle I can think of that is teetering on a "good deal" status. It's at one of my honey holes and isn't even an original rifle. It's intriguing though. Comes with a bunch of reloading brass, dies, data, etc. etc. It's down to $650.00 at the moment, but I'm thinking I can swoop in and snag it for $600.00. The reason I say it's teetering on good deal status. I've checked it out and the rechamber looks very clean. Rifle still has a lot of rifling, crown is good, retains original sights and front hood, it also has a Leupold scope of some sort on top, if I remember right. It's been a month or so, since I had it in hand. It's rechambered to 25-284, which is unusual. The gunsmith milled the original cartridge markings off, and marked it for the new cartridge. It is a shame that someone did this to a nice 257 Roberts, but it is what it is. Would make a wonderful shooter from what I can tell.

It's funny because in the past, I've started threads about rifles that I thought were good deals. Some of you guys said, that's a great deal, you better snag it!!! Then I either went back to buy it, or found that it was already sold!!! Here's one I bought at the beginning of this year, close to my birthday:

Original Winchester model 70 Heavy Varmint 308w. Made in '96. Paid $600 for it:



This rifle is a shooting machine. It looked to be new/unfired when I bought it. Shoots as I'd expect, after a little glass bedding. Trigger was already perfect, so that was good. Put the rail and scope on and it shoots like this:

Even though those were very poor conditions.

Cold and windy, it shot well:



It shot so well, that I even challenged my fast twist Tikka 22-250 to a duel. That 308 held its own!!



The action on this rifle is smooth, and it is very comfortable to get behind. I could shoot it all day long.

After the Winchester beat up on the little Tikka (skinny barrel, but nonetheless) that day, I had to bring out the big dog. My CTR in the Mcmillan A3. It's in the background (far bench).


I think the Winchester was getting a little full of itself, so it had to be brought back down a little. Showing no bias towards either rifle, I shot them and the winner was:



.........................the Tikka, but only by a small margin. You guys out there searching for great deals, good luck. They are out there, but sometimes you have to be quick. Know what you are looking at, which is hard to do sometimes. We are not all "professionals" here, even I ask questions from these guys when looking at some guns. The Winchester collector forums is a great place to hang out, with many guys in the know. Much appreciated!!!!

Wasn't looking, but found a 1941 30-06 in a laminated wood stock yesterday for $749. Came with the original stock, that had been shortened and recoil pad added. Stock might be worth an extra $200, at most? Although, it's an original clover leaf tang stock, so that may make it a little more desirable because they are harder to find. Didn't examine the rifle or stock very closely, was hoping the original take off stock was more original!! Anyway, the rifle had the transition type safety installed and was also D&T'd. I didn't negotiate a price, but I'm sure, they would have lowered it a small amount. Maybe to $700? Was at the Reno Cabela's if anyone wanted to take a look at it. Looked like it had the original barrel, which is a good thing these days, with some of the rifles that have been posted here on the fire. One in the classifieds in particular. Good deal or not? You be the judge. IMHO, not a real good deal, but could be for someone else??... In the last month, I've seen more original rifles in the $750 price range (at least 3 now), but those were not pre war. Post war rifles.

Side note:
Even though this is not a Winchester, I saw a nice little Remington 722 chambered in the infamous 300 savage yesterday as well, at the same Cabela's. I believe it was $399.99, but could be mistaken. Didn't look too closely at it, but appeared to be a nice little rifle.

BSA, if you left it behind how good of a deal could it be?

Not a great deal for me, but I'm used to paying much less. The last pre 64 270 fwt I bought was only $729, and that one had a $300 leupold on top. I also bought a 270 std wt the same day for $650 or $700, can't remember the exact price. It also had a nice gloss Leupold on top. Those are my kind of "good deals". Others mileage may vary. I will say that neither of those rifles were all original. The std wt 270 had a custom stock on it:



Both rifles shoot better than I had hoped for and they have pristine/like new original bluing and bores. Well, the 270 fwt was well used with bluing missing, but it is still a sweetheart. Someone loved it and took good care of it, but they did hunt it.



Anytime you can buy a pre 64 270 featherweight for under a grand, you are doing well. Original, or non original. Because I got such a good deal on this rifle and scope package, I let the scope go for a very reasonable price and am now into the rifle for $500 even. That to me is a GREAT deal. Anyway you slice it. However, To be blatantly honest, that fwt would be an exceptional deal even at $1,000.00. But, I'm not going to be selling it anytime soon!!

I know you like your all original rifles, but I also have a great appreciation for the shooter grade rifles that you can actually take out hunting and hot have to worry so much about. YMMV.

I've bought better rifles for under $500. But you may not follow along..

I noticed that 06 fwt mentioned earlier ended up going for $1,000.

Screenshots are always nice for reference; the gb link won’t be active for long.

Way over my price point at $1k.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1020027467

BSA, I'd welcome your feedback on these rifles. They're over my price of interest given their condition, but I would be curious what your valuation and thoughts on both would be. Thanks!

Always a little reluctant to post in case a campfire member is bidding; but I don’t see any here. A shooter grade 308 to watch.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1021809420

And where an uncut 308 ended; for comparison.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1020203354

W91,
BSA may have a different opinion but my take is #1 is a well worn example but probably a decent deal; not great but not horrible. About where I expected it to end in this market. #2 is absolute top dollar for that rifle in that condition in this market and I’ll be surprised if he makes that opening bid. My .02

Woodsman, thanks for the question. That rifle screams a lot to me. Someone has hunted it a lot, it is banged and bruised like some get. What I see and speculate is only from my wild imagination, but the rifle itself tells a story about the owner, not just the rifle. I like the sellers description and how he calls it "ol Dependable". That rifle never let that man down, and it outlived him, only to be passed down to someone that will appreciate it. The man that only owned one rifle comes to mind.

Now for pricing. AK and I are usually pretty close in the way of thinking on this. He watches the market as much as I do, maybe even more!! However, I think I get out and stretch the legs more than he does. I find some good local deals, that beat the hell out of most market deals. However, you can't include those in with what the market bears.

The all original low comb 1955 30-06 fwt will probably bring around $1,050.00. Not much over his starting price. It may not sell this go around, but eventually someone will bid on it. We should put it on our watch list and see for sure. That is always fun to do and gives you an idea of where the current market is.

Before checking on what it sold for, I was thinking in my mind that is an $1,100.00 rifle. It's beat up pretty good, but I'm sure the action is very useable. I don't like the pitting and neglect I see, but if one just wanted a 300H&H for shooting and hunting, it would work well for that and you wouldn't have to worry much about beating on it. Or pull the stock, sell it for a couple hundred dollars and throw it in your favorite Mcmillan or Brown PoundR.

It would be a very good platform for a custom though. Those H&H receivers are worth something. Love them for building rifles like my 300wby and 338wm. There are benefits with going with the H&H receiver for a build. So, that rifle looks like it sold for what I valued it at. Sorry I did not see this sooner, I've been out and about..

That rifle will probably end somewhere around $1,200.00. Even though the stock has been cut down considerably. We say it's a buyers market right now, but some things can surprise you. That put together rifle in the other thread is an example. Guys see what looks like a very nice early featherweight, and they get bid happy.

Did not catch a bid. Around again it goes.

Here’s one I’ve been watching. I was thinking about pulling the trigger on it, but I really don’t need a 338. One of my favorite stocks. Some folks don’t like the drop at the comb, but it fits me well.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1018354681

Keep an eye on it. It will probably sell for what I stated. But like I said, it probably wouldn't sell that go around. Eventually it will. I've seen some rifles like it here locally in the $750 range. Been offered deals on some rifles in the $600 range, and I told them to list them on GB. Those rifles sold for close to a grand. One pre war for example. I watched that rifle not sell, locally, for over a year. It started out being priced too high, at $1,200.00 though..

Here are two that I am keeping an eye on and hoping to bid on if things do not get too high.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1021590730

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1020015530

The 243 appears all original from what I can see, while the 300 I think has been reblued, the checkering recut (poorly in places), and the stock refinished.

Pad (stock has been shortened) and bottom metal are not original to the H&H and a Super Grade should have a Redfield Gold Bead front sight not the Winchester 103C that’s on the gun.

I would love to find a shooter featherweight in those price ranges.

Tom, that is a sweet rifle. Very underrated IMHO. Those stocks are very nice. The only thing that one needs is a thicker recoil pad. I'd probably put a 1" decelerator on it. Good ergo's and lightweight, but a hammer of a 338wm. No one has bid on it. At the starting price, I think it's a good deal. Good luck, if you decide to buy it. It has not been shot much and I'll bet it can be a tack driver, with a little bedding and handloading.

The fwt's are harder to find at those prices, but I see std's priced in the $750 range frequently. I did, however, buy a 270 fwt shooter grade a few months ago for $729.99. I then sold the scope that was on it and made $204.00, after figuring in shipping costs. So, that brings the price down to approximately $525.00. That's a great deal as far as I'm concerned. The rifle is a shooter too. The std wt I bought on the same day from a different shop cost me $700.00, but has a nice custom stock on it:

I'll eventually sell the scope that was on it, when I bought it, and then I'll be into this one for cheap. To say it's a shooter, is an understatement:


Those are the kind of "good deals" I search for. They are out there, so keep your eye open. You will never find them, if you don't look for them though.

Good eye Pocono.

Another good deal that I ran across.


Came just as you see it. Paid $575 for the rifle as pictured. Sold the scope for $185.00, and the rings for $35.00. Buyer paid for shipping. Total on rifle was, you do the math.

Now that's a real deal right there BSA.

Thanks everyone for the input on the 243 and 300. Based on feedback here, I'm only pursuing the 243 at this point.

Good luck on that 243 buddy!!

300H&H to keep an eye on:
Pre 64 300H&H

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...ester-70-30-06-sprg.cfm?gun_id=102531753

Not sure why they rate the bore at 80% but that’s a reasonable deal otherwise.

Hopefully you just bought that 243. Looks like it went for $1,110.00. Price with shipping. Not a bad deal.

Not at all.

That rifle is worth their asking price. However, I'm betting someone could go in and get a little better deal on it though.

After tax and shipping it was over my self imposed limit of $1200. Very nice rifle but there will be more and eventually one in my price range. I did pickup a like new 5 digit classic 270 Weatherby for $650 this week though! Pics to follow in a separate thread on that one.

If anyone finds a good deal on an all original Model 71 please let know.

I've seen them, but some of the shops wont do online sales, or ship. Saw one a couple years ago, in a small town gunshop. It was an early 4 digit rifle, long tang deluxe with the original bolt peep in great condition. They were wanting $2,000.00 for it. A good deal in my book for its age and condition, but I did not buy it. They are out there, if you look around.

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/19006777#Post19006777

This one just needs a stock. Pretty good deal on a more rare fwt model.

Sporter classic stainless 300 Weatherby:

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1023140377

Please don't turn this sob into a 280!!!! The 270's are harder to find. The guys that don't understand that, need to look for a different rifle to destroy.

The internet guy there rates things in worse condition then they are, its easier that way vs dealing with customers a gun was shipped to who says "you said 90%, this is 75% at best, give me my money back".

BSA, this gun sold for asking about 20 minutes after the posting went live, at the asking price (they wouldn't have taken less).

Cabela's is running a sale on all used guns until 12/24. If you're a vet or 1st responder (current or retired) the 5% stacks on that discount. If you have the credit card (BP or Cab) this Monday 12/18, there is ANOTHER 10% off on that day only. That all comes off the listing price. So if anyone is looking for deals, get on it quick

A lot of Cabela's/Bass pros stores go down on their listed price. Since this sold so quick at the marked down price, of course they were not going down.

it's my store

So you are saying you don't go down on your prices??? Every gun library manager I've dealt with, has always gone down on their prices.

how about this:

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...ster-70-257-roberts.cfm?gun_id=102535495

Misread serial #, my mistake..

i wouldn't say never, just not that particular rifle that was linked. The pics didn't do it justice, that thing was CLEAN. If i was a collector and not a hunter, I would have snagged that myself. Personally I tend to pay prople more on a narrow margin vs marking something way up then offering "deals" to get to the same price I would price things. I'd rather those who sell to me, get more when they sell to us

I can’t imagine that lasted more than a few hours.

Boy, that rifle belongs in the woods sneaking up on bucks!

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...8-winchester-magnum.cfm?gun_id=102537347

Pretty solid offering.

Boy…. That’s a solid rifle for that money.

Hmm. I wonder who here has a crystal ball???

Sold for $959.99+$50 shipping. $1,009.99. I was off a bit. Not much though.

Not a Winchester, but I ran into a rifle the other day. Some of you guys know I'm crazy, but some of these damn rifles call out to me!! Guys talking about some rifles that have "soul", well this rifle had it. My buddy down at the local gunshop said he tucked it away for me to look at. He wanted to know some info on it. I liked the looks of it, even at 10 feet away. I knew it was an older Remington 700 BDL. Had the fleur de lis checkering on it, and was in nice condition. So he hands it to me and says, what can you tell me about it. I said, I'm not a Remington 700 guy. Anyway, I look at it, and it's a 7mm Rem mag. I look at the serial #, and there are only 4 digits. I said, do you know when the 7mm rem mag came out? He says no. I said 1962, the same year they introduced the model 700. I said that is actually a really cool piece you have there. A first year gun. Anyway, I can buy that for $350, if I want it.

Another one I saw a couple months back at a small hole in the wall gunshop is a Stevens 30-30 bolt action. They only want $275.00 for it. I went to that shop the other day and they still have it. For an unusual rifle, that is a bargain. I don't run across those very often, and I know there are some guys that search those out.

Again, those are not Winchesters, but they are some pretty good deals that are unique, as well as more valuable than what I can currently buy them for. So, in my mind, a "good deal"...

One for a late Christmas gift, $699 for a stainless classic 300.

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...quot-new-haven-conn.cfm?gun_id=102489804

I was pretty happy with this one I purchased this week, but I get it that it's not everyone's cup of tea. Backstory, my two loves are pre64 70s and weatherby cartridges. So anytime I see an old winchester rechambered to weatherby, my interest is peaked. This one spoke to me because of the age and finishes. While I don't have proof of the provenance, I strongly suspect this was a gun rechambered by Weatherby before they made their own guns. Weatherby is obviously known for the high gloss bluing. This barrel with the engraving looks like an original weatherby barrel. And the receiver being reblued with the exact same luster as the barrel certainly seems like something that checks out as could have been done by Roy himself before he was making rifles.

I'll never know for sure, but for $1200, I'm not going to complain either way.

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...-mag-conversion-28-.cfm?gun_id=102537289

Not a classic, which is why it’s still there.

Still a good value if you want a braked 300.

Yep, that is just a stainless pushfeed. But didn't they only make them for a couple years?? 94-95 or something like that? Still, most guys are looking for classics over this type of rifle. Funny thing is there is a huge following for the XTR FWT's, and they are pushfeeds. But much more popular, hence the price tags we see on some of them.

Not all model 70's are in the same boat. The reason why it's frustrating when you see the WTS listings for a model 70, and it reads like this: "Winchester model 70 30-06 for sale"....

Interesting rifle. It's possible that Weatherby did the conversion somewhere around 1947-1949. That would make sense. I've seen some of his conversions, and he was not afraid to use any action to build on. One I saw was an original conversion that was chambered in 300wby, and built off of a m1917 receiver. One hell of a beautiful rifle. It had Weatherby inscribed on the barrel, like this rifle, but the stock was totally weatherbyesque. That is what surprises me about this pre 64, usually Roy would restock the rifles he built. Not leave them in the original stock. Just wasn't his style.

Been a pile of the stainless push feeds on the normal sites recently; including a couple of featherweights (270 & ‘06).

Last year we saw a lot of winlite models for sale for cheap, now it's the stainless pushfeeds huh? I almost bought a winlite last year, just to get a stock and do a swap. Saw some for $700 ish.

Apparently!

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1025383786

This was a good buy.

Not a bad buy at all.

Daggum, learn something new every day. Didn't realize there had been stainless pushfeed modes built.

Nicely done! I don’t know about Weatherby making the gun, but you couldn’t get that gun made for anywhere near that money. William Larkin and Moore is a reputable dealer and they have a lot of nice guns. That certainly appears to be a great gun at a bargain price…

I agree with Shrapnel who in my opinion has impeccable taste and knowledge.

Merry Christmas!

HS 58

This is pretty reasonable even at the BIN.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/1028083220

I need another rifle like I need a hole in my head, but you are right. That is a dang good deal. Even at the bin..

Someone scored a dandy. Wasn’t me - hopefully someone here!
https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...s-30-06-springfield.cfm?gun_id=102554495

Yes sir. That one is pristine. Looks exactly like the one I bought a few years ago, except mine came with a nice leather sling. It also needed a lot of cleaning to look better. This is what it looked like before it was touched.

Only cost $675.00 back then.

Start adding up the value of the scope, mounts and rings, and it's a pretty good deal. Yes, I sold the mounts/rings, and the scope.

That is a good find, if the scope is in really good condition, it adds about $350+ to the value of the rifle. So, really you are getting the rifle for about $750.00.

That's a nice 5 digit though. Hasn't been shot much.. If it were someone here, they probably would have posted it?

Someone was talking about looking for original model 70 pre 64 270 FW. Seems to be a pretty nice example may be a little higher than I would want to pay but then again I have one. If I didn’t I might be willing to pay it.

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...ght-270-winchester-.cfm?gun_id=102559233

There's a little bit going on with that one. The stock has been refinished, the floor plate is not lining up, or latched, for some reason. The crown also looks like it's been touched up. I'd be a little leery of it, and ask for more pics. Because of this, it's priced too high. IMHO.

Not sure if you gents have seen this one but seems like a good price:

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...r-70-270-winchester.cfm?gun_id=102558420

Outstanding deal. I know at least one poster from this site who’s been trying to buy it for a week- not sure if it’s actually still available but worth the effort if so.

Just when you think you know something that is when you get into trouble. I see the floorplate issue you are referring to. What is the giveaway on the stock refinish??

IF I were in that area, I'd be trying to talk them down. I could probably get it down to $675, out the door.. Still a pretty good deal as is though. Generally most Cabela's/Bass Pro's will go down on their listed prices. Just a thunk..

The color, and wood grain bleed through. I've seen other refinished stocks look just like that. Professionally refinished, and you won't see that as much.

An original 1956 stock is going to look more like this one: