Rebarreling an 1873 Winchester with another 1873 Winchester barrel

[ole pizen slinger]

I am thinking of purchasing a barrel that was taken off of an 1873 Winchester 3rd Model chambered in 38-40. I am buying it to go on my 1873 that is chambered in the same cartridge but has a pitiful bore. What can I expect with regard to mating the new barrel to my action? Will it time up or will I have to retime the barrel? What about headspace--I would expect to have to do some chamber work if it must be retimed. Any advise would be helpful and appreciated.
Sincerely,
Barry C Jolly

[modified5]

I don't know if I have just been extremely fortunate or what but every 94 Winchester I have put a used barrel on has timed perfectly.
I would think they install them then cut the dove tails and band grooves since trying to time the threads the same on every one would be a nightmare but that has been my experience.
With the 94's I like for the extractor groove to be just starting to line up before I tighten it up. YMMV

[John Taylor]

Did the same thing on a 73 that is in 32-20 and it timed up fine.

[bob208]

the old winchesters were timed. i tried some take down models i have and they interchanged.

[pietro]

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The chances are pretty good that the barrel should swap right in w/o any issues, but it's still a chance - and IME there's no way to definitely know for sure (100%) that it actually will, until it's tried.


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[KCSO]

With the rimmed cases in the Winchesters I have had no problems at all. Just take out the old one and screw in the new one.

[Outpost75]

As FYI, John currently has of mine a 1940 manufacture date Winchester Model 70 which had a salt &peppery barrel from having been used with chlorate primed ammunition. I lucked into a postwar, but pre-1964 pulloff .30-'06 barrel from a kind gent on this forum, and the late 1950s barrel turned right on, lined up and headspaced on the prewar receiver. Winchester knew how to do this.

[Ballistics in Scotland]

I'd be very surprised if it doesn't time correctly. I think they put the rollstamps, dovetail cuts etc. where they came to the top and bottom in a threaded holder identical to the receiver. To a collector, who is unlikely to ask himself what Tyler Henry would have wanted done, it would reduce the value - maybe more than lining in the original chambering, although others will know more about that than I do.

[victorfox]

keeping the old barrel just in case a trade appears in the future would help keeping the collector value? •0ƒ6 so you'd have matching parts then...