1895 Winchester

[baker1425]

I just traded into a fairly nice 1895 winchester - I traded into it thinking it was a 3006, because it's marked 30 army. Since 06 did not fit, I am thinking Krag. I am hunting brass.

Am I thinkin right that 30 Army is a 3040 krag?

thanks!

[9.3X62AL]

Yup, "30 Army" = 30-40 Krag. GREAT game caliber, and the 1895 enables use of spitzer bullets if desired. A mid-point between 30-30 and 30-06, a little closer to the '06.

[baker1425]

It's probably strong enough to shoot new commercial stuff? I've got a good load planned for CB and handgun powder for the Krag that I have.

thanks for the quick reply - waiting on the brown truck of happiness to deliver brass - already have dies and boolits -

[45nut]

absolutely yes on new commercial ammo.

[John Taylor]

The 95 is plenty strong for 30-40 but a little weak for the 06. I have had a few in the shop with head space problems in 06.

[9.3X62AL]

John--

Do you think the 1906 load intensities--150 grainers at 2700 FPS--surpass the strength of the 1895? My thoughts were to use a medium/slow-speed powder like IMR-4320 or WW-760 to get there, softening the pressure spike a bit (maybe?).

[floodgate]

An "ol' boy" in the town I lived in in the 1960s had a pair of special-order Winchester 95 Short Rifles (no barrel band, 22" barrel) in '06, and he loaded them HOT!. So hot, he had to go to the local gunsmith every few years and have the bolt face welded up and re-machined, from the primer setback caving it in around the firing pin hole. But they never let go! No, I DON'T recommend anything hotter than factory, maybe a bit lighter for safety..

floodgate

[9.3X62AL]

Kinda my thoughts too, Doug.

All this musing is prompted by a couple NIB 95 repros in a shop in Simi Valley, one each in 30-06 and 30-40. The Rising Sun 95 x 30-40 appealed to me as a possible cast boolit platform for a lot of the same reasons the Win 94 appeals to me--using a 220 grain boolit, original ballistics would be do-able and hopefully accurate with the home-poured projectiles. A Krag would do the same magic, but likely at much higher cost than the repros. And--I need another caliber to reload for like a trout needs a mountain bike. I've chased the Cool Concept Experimentation ghost more than I probably should have already.

[4060MAY]

I have a Blowning 1895 in 30-40, made in 1984, placed 9th in Ranch Dog's postal with a .59 group, 50yds bench open sight.
Won the overall agg. for the year, small bore tang sight, at Tusco 2006. with this gun.
load, 180sp RCBS, sized .310, RX7 at 1750fps.

Mine has no tang safety on it, and for a rear sight I installed a Sharps base and use my BPCR staff, clears the bolt bay .020"

I wouldn't hesitate to buy another one.

[Four Fingers of Death]

I was llloking at a site of a gun store owned by an old friend in Sydney last night and found he has two leverguns that I have always wanted, a 71 Win 348 and an 1895 in 303 British. I'm broke at the moment, I might have to take a loan out on these or start selling. Trouble is all of the stuff I have except some of the old junk is good and I have painstakingput together an armoury of all of the rifles I have ever fancied. I don't feel like selling any of them :(

[9.3X62AL]

The Winchester 1895 was sure chambered in some great calibers....30-06, 30-40, 303 British, 7.62 x 54R for export, and 405 Winchester. A few years back, I had a shot at an original 95 x 405, re-blued but nicely done. The asking price was about four Marlin 95s'-worth, and for once my practical side won out over my weird caliber fascination and admiration of Theodore Roosevelt's "Big Medicine". Those sorts of combined influences have led me down more than one brush-choked path--e.g., C-96 pistol in 30 Mauser/Winston Churchill/Dragon Lady, that last being pointed out by some smart-aleck guys I once shot and hunted with.

[scrapcan]

I have been helping a good friend (and coworker) work the bugs out of a win 95 in 30 US. We have had a devil of a time. would not shoot factory jacketed. I had him slug and his bore is rather large, just a shade over .311. I had a box of jacketed 311 for 303 and cast some 311041 and sized .312 and the world is looking a little brighter. 2 to 3 inch groups are the norm. It took him a good long while to get the bore down to a clean surface. You could hardly see the gooves about four weeks prior. Now it has nice grooves and sharp lands, just a bit oversize.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[John Taylor]

John--

Do you think the 1906 load intensities--150 grainers at 2700 FPS--surpass the strength of the 1895? My thoughts were to use a medium/slow-speed powder like IMR-4320 or WW-760 to get there, softening the pressure spike a bit (maybe?).

Just my own feelings from the ones I have looked at in 30-06, they all had head space problems. I would think if the loads were 45,000 psi or less there would not be a problem.
I had a customer send me a takedown model for a new barrel in 405. Ended up making 2 barrel, a 405 and a 40-72. This is a real strange set up, the 2 cartridges look the same but there is .005" difference in bullet diameter. The 40-72 is a black powder round and is not very hot. When I test fired the rifle I shot the 40-72 first and thought this is sweet. Then I put the other barrel on and that thing will rock you. Tedy must have been a gluten for punishment.
I have a few frame extensions for take down.

[KevMT]

I have a 95 in 30-40 that I managed to talk my father in law out of. It appears to have seen some rather hard use. Despite it's evidently rough life it has held up well to full factory loads. But that steel buttplate and low stock are pretty punishing with full house loads. I can't imagine touching one off that was chambered in 405. :holysheep
In addition to having an oversize and rough bore, my rifle has evidently recieved a lot of cleaning (with a steel rod?) from the muzzle which wore out the last inch or so of barrel. I am hoping that this explains the rather poor accuracy of the rifle. While I realize tinkering with it is akin to blaspemy has anyone tried to counterbore a rifle with this condition?

Kev

[John Taylor]

KevMT, Time to put a liner in so it will shoot again. If you don't like the liner then go with a new barrel and have the lettering done to match the old barrel. There isn't much "collector" value to a gun that is not 90% plus. A properly restored gun will bring as much as a 90%, just look at what Doug Turnbull gets for the ones he does. Fixing an old gun so it will shoot again is not blasphemy, if it were I would need to find a different line of work.
Just for information, there are at least 4 different magazine followers for the 95. The 30-40 will not work for a 405 without doing a bunch of tinkering.

[junkbug]

I did not know rifles chambered for high pressure cartridges could be relined.

What is the limiting factors on relining a sporting rifle, with a relatively slender barrel?

Just to stay on topic, I also have a 1910 vintage 1895 Winchester in .30 ARMY. The bore looks decent, without undue muzzle wear. It has a LOT of jacket fouling in the troughs of the grooves, up against the lands. Almost all the exterior finish is gone, and the forestock has lots of scabbard wear. I look forward to shooting it once I get the bore clean, using a homemade electric solution bore cleaner. I bet its going to kick.

Good luck with yours, baker1425.

Sean

[EMC45]

Relining? Low pressure yes high pressure NO! That's what I've always heard. I would love to find a 95 in 7.62X54R. Export only I know, but if you look at the numbers they were the most produced version. I know I know export only!

[NVcurmudgeon]

Relining? Low pressure yes high pressure NO! That's what I've always heard. I would love to find a 95 in 7.62X54R. Export only I know, but if you look at the numbers they were the most produced version. I know I know export only!

EMC, dunno how old you are, but I can remember when "Ye Olde Hunter" brought in and sold 1895 Winchesters in 7.62 X 54 in the early sixties. More than half of the total production of '95s was for the Czar's army. IIRC the ones sold here were advertised as being in "NRA Fair" condition. I saw a few at gun shows in those days and they didn't look like anything I would shoot, and I was young and crazy back then! After WWI, the Bolshivek Revolution, and maybe WWII, the poor old '95s didn't have a lot of use left in them. The odds of finding a shootable Russian 1895 run from slimsky to nyet.

[frank505]

I have a "sporterized" 95 in Russian. Barrel cut back to 22 inches and most of the wood removed up front as well as the clip guides. Bore is dark and cloudy, still shoots ok with 311284 or NEI 220 rn and wc 860. It has feeding problems, the rounds in the magazine wont climb up for their turn to get shot. I need to find someone who can fix. Any suggestions? I do like it because of my Siberian heritage and would love to hunt with it.

[John Taylor]

frank505, Gun Parts Corp. may have some parts. There are 2 different types of mag springs used on the 95. The early ones use a "V" spring and the later ones used a coil spring. There are 5 different carriers and 5 different cams listed.

[frank505]

Thank you John, I will order a new coil spring, maybe that will fix it and I can chase a whitetail in the creek bottoms this year.

[KevMT]

KevMT, Time to put a liner in so it will shoot again. If you don't like the liner then go with a new barrel and have the lettering done to match the old barrel. There isn't much "collector" value to a gun that is not 90% plus. A properly restored gun will bring as much as a 90%, just look at what Doug Turnbull gets for the ones he does. Fixing an old gun so it will shoot again is not blasphemy, if it were I would need to find a different line of work.
.

You are right of course John. I certainly would be better off to rebarrel. But I have a microbrew taste and a Milwalkees Best budget. I suppose the I was just hopeing to buy some time with the old girl until I win the lottery or something.

Kev