Tang holes in a nice vintage .38-55

Win 38-55

Win 38-55

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I have a really nice Winchester Model 1894, octagon barrel .38-55 made in 1896. This rifle is in really nice condition except for two old holes drilled in the tang.

I would like the holes filled, then the lettering re-stamped, and the area of repair browned to match the rest of the tang. Bottom line is that I would like the tang restored such that you couldn't really notice that there had ever been holes there.

I know of a couple gunsmiths in the USA who do careful restoration work like this, but would prefer to get it done in Canada. Any recommendations?
 
I can't say who in Canada would do this kind of restoration, but I can say that you may be hard pressed to get the barreled receiver into the U.S. Since 9/11 the Dept of Homeland Security has been really clamping down on importation of firearms, even for repair. Contact the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, or visit their website and look for a Form 6. That may help.
Have you thought about putting a vintage tang sight back on? I'm assuming that that's why the holes are there.
Chris
 
Winchester 1894's came with the tangs drilled and tapped by the factory. The factory holes should not be drilled through the factory lettering. I put a new Lyman tang sight on mine and it is great. George at Ellwood EPPS should be able to fill and cover the holes if you really want them done.

cheers Darryl
 
Thanks, men, for this info. It is a hassle to send stuff to the USA for restoration, unless it is an antique. I've sent a couple antique's down (Winchesters made before 1898, by BATF standards) and have had no problems, but for guns made after that date it is a hassle and you do have to get a permit before even sending them down.

I will give George at Ellwood Epps a call. I'll be over there this coming weekend, so it may work out well.

In the meantime, if anyone else knows of someone who does nice restorations in Canada, please post it.

Thanks again.
 
Jason Spencer at Gunco can do it. They'll TIG over the holes, their master engraver will recut the lettering no problem and the tang can be rebrowned.

You'll have to call them for cost.

613-224-6266
 
Just another angle - if this gun has any collector value, I would not be doing anything to it! Welding and reblueing will definately reduce its value. My suggestion: get some blued, oval head screws from Brownells to fill the holes.
 
I'm sure a tang sight would be more accurate, but I would still know those holes are there under the tang. I called Jason, and will probably send the rifle off to him. He thinks it is no problem to tig weld the holds, re-engrave any lettering in the hole area, and brown to match the rest of the tang.

By the way, speaking of accuracy, I took my 38-55 to the range today and shot it at both 100 yds and 200 yds, using the semi-buckhorn iron sights, holding the rifle in both hands and leaning on some blocks of wood I piled up.

I only shot one 3-shot group at 100 yds and got a group size of 2 and 3/16", shown below:
38-55-100-yds.jpg


I shot several groups at 200 yds. My best was a 6-shot group of 6 and 1/4" shown below. I think the vertical stringing is due in part to variation in my handloads (avg. 1,581 fps) and in part to the very thin front bead, which is more like a knife edge... I can't tell where the tip is when I'm shooting. The other groups were very similar.
38-55-200-yds.jpg


Here's a photo of the old Winchester, made in 1896:
38-55-thumbnail.jpg
 
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