A Few Win Pre-64 Featherweights

R

Rod

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Hunting season's a week and a day away so here's my 5 go-to rifles. - 4 pre-64 f/w's and 1 pre-64 heavy hitter

- 1st is Winchester pre-64 F/W, 30-06, with VX3 Leupold, Alumina covers

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- 2nd is Winchester pre-64 F/W, 270, with VX3 Leupold, Alumina covers

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- 3rd is Winchester pre-64 F/W, 308, with Swarovski Habicht

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- 4th is Winchester pre-64 F/W, 243, with VX2 Leupold, Alumina covers

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- 5th is Winchester Stanard Wt, 338 WM, with VX2 Leupold, Alumina covers

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Excellent rifles Rod, first class all the way. Love the stock on that 308 fwt, that reddish colour is classic winchester to me.
Great pics too and thanks for sharing them!
How about similar pics of some of the rest of your winchester collection, for us winchester fans.
 
Excellent collection and photos.
Nice to see the aluminum butt plate stocks on your set vs the later plastic composite ones they finished the FWT run with.
Question regarding the 338 Alaskan. Is that a replacement stock?
Mine has the red rubber Winchester pad factory installed.
 
DOUGLAS D said:
Excellent collection and photos.
Nice to see the aluminum butt plate stocks on your set vs the later plastic composite ones they finished the FWT run with.
Question regarding the 338 Alaskan. Is that a replacement stock?
Mine has the red rubber Winchester pad factory installed.
Click to expand...

I bought the 338 and a 30-06, both standard weights, from the original owner back in the 1990's as he was up in years and no longer hunted. The 30-06 is from 1954 and the 338 from 1959. Both are still in excellent condition. He asked for the 338 to come with a buttplate rather than a pad to match up with the 30-06. Winchester brought out the 338 WM in 1959 with a red Winchester pad but if someone wanted the steel buttplate that was an easy fix as the 338 WM was the short magnum of the day using the standard length action and any standard high comb stock would fit the 338 WM unlike the 375 H&H being the long action magnum..

I shoot the 338 with no problem at all with recoil management. The "NRA Stock" that Winchester used on these pre-64 M70's is an excellent design and very user friendly. My 375 H&H, pre-64, has a solid red pad on the low comb stock. I find the recoil between the two quite different as the 375 recoils straight back and the 338 has an upward recoil. With the 338 you learn right off to keep your cheek planted against the high comb stock. This is one caliber where a high comb stock has a real purpose
 
Thanks Rod. That's some good information there as I've seen photo's of other Alaskan's on line and always wondered.
I agree with your take on the stock design as well. The Winchester design works better for me than a lot of more modern designs.
The low comb steel butt on my 300 H&H fill get your attention if you get a little hasty on the trigger.
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Mine is a 1959 as well.
It's going moose hunting this fall likely for the first time in many years.
 

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Doug both your M70's look in real nice condition. . Your 338 WM is most likely an early one with the solid red Winchester patented dated pad. "June 6,1922". Winchester had begun using a Winchester red ventilated pad around this time frame. Another quirk with the 338 WM is when Winchester begun building the 338 , (late 1958, 1959), they used some receivers that were in stock for awhile and as such a few serial numbers are out of dom sync. Also, quite a few 338 WM have 458 stamped underside by the recoil lug.

I have 5 pre-64 Win magnums - 375 H&H, 300 H&H, 300 WM, 338 WM and 264 WM. Still looking for the 458 WM, they're a tad tough to find. A couple of years back there was one here on EE but was sold before I saw it.
 
Excellent Rod. I have the 338 WM, the 300 H&H and the 264 WM.
You're right about the 458 being a unicorn to find and the 300 WM nearly so.
It does keep us in the game searching for that special one though.
 
I agree Doug it does keep us in the game searching for the ones we don't have and would like to. Took me a long time to find a pre-64 300 WM, they were only built for a few months in 1963. The 458 WM was built only in Supergrade and command a high premium price. If I ever find one I highly doubt I could resist the temptation of purchase.
 
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