2 old winchester 70's value

L

lowridersvt

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Location
Niagara Falls ont
Hey guys I just got these 2 rifles from a estate of a local guy and I paid quite a bit for them I just wondering what you think the value and how rare are they

first is a early 1956 or late 1955 African safari super grade in 458 Winchester mag it is all original from what I can tell its not in great shape I would say good carried allot but never shot . most of the blueing is gone on the barrel and the stock has some dings but no visable cracks
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second one is a 1958 model 70 Alaskan in 338 win mag sadly the barrel was cut down 3 inchs due to the mounting of a balvar 8a scope. family said it was custom ordered this way for him
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These were part of a match set of him and hers guns with allot of Africa and big game hunting time on them and I got the original travel cases for them even tho they kinda stink

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any help would be great
 
As a Model 70 man I'll give my $.02.

The 338, cut down, is unfortunately, severely diminished in value. I wouldn't give more than $700 for it as it sits. The scope, while interesting, doesn't add much to the value of the whole rifle. Normally a "donor" M70 is worth about $600 so with the scope and stock set (which appears to be in reasonable condition) I'd say $700. Would make a very nice project.

The 458 is tough to judge because of the photos and the fact that I am a sucker for rifles with pedigree. I would be curious to know if it had working time on it which adds to the interest for a crank like me. Unfortunately, it's not worth much to a collector due to the condition, unless the Departed or another previous owner was a hunter of some renown (I'd pay good money for my friend Ian Gibson's 458 Post 64 M70) it's just a working rifle. Where it likely would have fetched $1300-$1500 in very good or excellent condition, in it's present state it's an $800-$900 rifle at the most. Don't get me wrong, I dig the #### out of it, but it's just not that valuable.

Shoot the damned things. Lots. You'll love it.
 
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If you put the African up on the EE at $900, it would be gone in seconds, likely to someone who would flip it for it's true value. The Africans were basically Super Grade rifles that, when new, sold for more than double the price of a standard grade .30-06 or .270. Pre '64's in .458 are just not that common, and even in less than pristine condition I think you're still looking at a $2000+ rifle.

It's a pity they chopped the .338 Alaskan. I'm not sure why they would have thought that necessary to mount the scope?
 
BigUglyMan said:
As a Model 70 man I'll give my 4.02.

The 338, cut down, is unfortunately, severely diminished in value. I wouldn't give more than $700 for it as it sits. The scope, while interesting, doesn't add much to the value of the whole rifle. Normally a "donor" M70 is worth about $600 so with the scope and stock set (which appears to be in reasonable condition) I'd say $700. Would make a very nice project.

The 458 is tough to judge because of the photos and the fact that I am a sucker for rifles with pedigree. I would be curious to know if it had working time on it which adds to the interest for a crank like me. Unfortunately, it's not worth much to a collector due to the condition, unless the Departed or another previous owner was a hunter of some renown (I'd pay good money for my friend Ian Gibson's 458 Post 64 M70) it's just a working rifle. Where it likely would have fetched $1300-$1500 in very good or excellent condition, in it's present state it's an $800-$900 rifle at the most. Don't get me wrong, I dig the #### out of it, but it's just not that valuable.

Shoot the damned things. Lots. You'll love it.
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i would buy either gun without seeing in hand at double those numbers, maybe triple on the 458
 
Is it just me or do the years dont compute. Did the 458 actually come out in 55 or 58. Kind of a 2.5" mag family guy, but i believe the 458 and 338 came out in 1958. So how can the 458 be a 1955 gun and original if its chambered in a caliber that came out three years later?
 
I paid 1500$ for the pair and there is a interesting back story to both . After more research the 458 is a very early 1956 single recoil lug . I guess its first run there was a pair of them his and hers sequential serials. Sadly the hers ones had the stock cut down for her small stature. The story is they went to Africa every year in the 50's and 60's. The 338 was a custom order from a gun smith in Buffalo and was cut down when purchased nobody knows why and it's a 1958 or 59. I knew nothing about them and just wanted a cheap brush gun so I got the 338 and bid on the 458 and got it
 
The 458 is a rare bird and is worth quite a bit even if it's well worn. Those are a supergrade as someone else already said. You won't likely find an original pre-64 458 for sale in Canada so try poking around on Guns International, Gunbroker and Dave Riffle gun sales to get an idea. Just remember that the prices aren't quite the same here. I'd think $2500-$3000 here in Canada.

The 338 isn't quite as rare and the alterations take the value down quite a bit, how much I couldn't really say, it'll depend a bit on the buyer but it's not a collector any more. I want to say $1200-$1500.

At $1500 you did very, very well sir.
 
I get a kick out of these "what's it worth threads. First, they are generally posted either to brag or to affirm the poster's wisdom in making the purchase. I've always felt, if one doesn't know what something is worth, he's better off not buying it. The second intersting thing about these threads is the plethora of low-ball estimates and disparaging comments made; kind of a "sour grapes" response. All rifles are worth what you pay when you buy them and worth more when someone pays more for them.
 
lowridersvt said:
I paid 1500$ for the pair and there is a interesting back story to both . After more research the 458 is a very early 1956 single recoil lug . I guess its first run there was a pair of them his and hers sequential serials. Sadly the hers ones had the stock cut down for her small stature. The story is they went to Africa every year in the 50's and 60's. The 338 was a custom order from a gun smith in Buffalo and was cut down when purchased nobody knows why and it's a 1958 or 59. I knew nothing about them and just wanted a cheap brush gun so I got the 338 and bid on the 458 and got it
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At $1500 ; you got a pretty good deal......enjoy .
 
Why don't you see if you can find a local gunsmith or someone who does firearms appraisal to find out their value. You're going to get numbers all over the map unfortunately when asking on forums. Just to give you an example. Thirty Fourth Edition of Blue Book Gun Values lists the Pre 64 Model 70 Super Grade African as: 100% $8000, 98% $7500, 95% $7000, 90% $6500, 85% $5500, 70% $4500, 60% $4000. All prices are USD. The book does note that one should look for cracked and/or repaired stocks in this series.
 
Leeper said:
I get a kick out of these "what's it worth threads. First, they are generally posted either to brag or to affirm the poster's wisdom in making the purchase. I've always felt, if one doesn't know what something is worth, he's better off not buying it. The second intersting thing about these threads is the plethora of low-ball estimates and disparaging comments made; kind of a "sour grapes" response. All rifles are worth what you pay when you buy them and worth more when someone pays more for them.
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I always thought the purpose of a Forum is so you can ask questions ??

JJ
 
Leeper said:
I get a kick out of these "what's it worth threads. First, they are generally posted either to brag or to affirm the poster's wisdom in making the purchase. I've always felt, if one doesn't know what something is worth, he's better off not buying it. The second intersting thing about these threads is the plethora of low-ball estimates and disparaging comments made; kind of a "sour grapes" response. All rifles are worth what you pay when you buy them and worth more when someone pays more for them.
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I dunno. I know nothing of model 70s specifically, but I know that pretty much ANY pair of 338 and 458 win mag rifles (that are 60 year old winchesters no less) wouldn't be horribly over-priced at $1500. The question then, would be did I overpay by a few hundred bucks, underpay by a few hundred bucks, or get a really good deal??
 
Leeper said:
I get a kick out of these "what's it worth threads. First, they are generally posted either to brag or to affirm the poster's wisdom in making the purchase. I've always felt, if one doesn't know what something is worth, he's better off not buying it. The second intersting thing about these threads is the plethora of low-ball estimates and disparaging comments made; kind of a "sour grapes" response. All rifles are worth what you pay when you buy them and worth more when someone pays more for them.
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your post is the "sour grapes" post in this thread.

OP - great score! they look great and at that price I wouldn't sell either. keep em and have fun!
 
O.P. onwards and upwards!!! You got yourself a slammin pair of boomsticks. Wont the .338 have a velocity in the neighbourhood of the .338federal with the shorter barrel ? Or with todays powders can it pretty much still keep up? Was the original barrel a 26" tube or 24"?
 
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