1886 Winchester 45-70 Reline/Rebore ?

[barnaclebill]

I was slugging my 2 Original Winchester 45-70 rifles and the first on had beautiful rifling but the slug from the 2nd one was much harder to push through and it emerged from the chamber almost smooth. Very little rifling was on the slug. Now, here are the questions

1..Will re-boring lower the value?
2..Will Re-lining lower the Value ?
3..Under what circumstances would you choose re-line vs Re-bore ?
4..If it is a straight shooter is it inadvisable to use this rifle with a smooth bore ?
5..How do you choose a bullet size with an almost smooth bore ?
6..Both rifles are in beautiful condition........Do I just leave them alone and not mess with them?
Thanks BB :cbpour:

[Boz330]

Depends on whether you want a shooter or looker. I had an 86 40-82 relined by Redmond and it is almost impossible to see, but I bought it for a shooter and didn't care if the value was hurt.

Bob

[missionary5155]

Greetings On that second rifle.. I would fire a couple TIGHT fitting Boolits at about 1200-1300 fps... it may STILL shoot beyond your expectations. If not nothing lost. BUT if YES !! Then I would try Paper Patching... Again you loose nothing and maybe SAVE $300. So if NOTHING works in Cast TRy a couple jacketed...(UGH) But again you may be surprised. There are always 3 round balls with 10 grains Unique.

[Jon K]

Smooth bore........well, my vote would be to Barrel Liner.

Jon

[fishhawk]

i also would try shooting it first. might surprise you and nothing lost if it doesn't shoot. steve k

[barnaclebill]

Depends on whether you want a shooter or looker. I had an 86 40-82 relined by Redmond and it is almost impossible to see, but I bought it for a shooter and didn't care if the value was hurt.

Bob
It is already a looker and now I want to shoot it. I will take it out this week and give it a try. Do you think the re-lining hurt the collector value?
Thanks BB

[Boz330]

It is already a looker and now I want to shoot it. I will take it out this week and give it a try. Do you think the re-lining hurt the collector value?
Thanks BB

On mine it didn't make any difference since the previous owner refinished the stock and started on the metal. I restored it in the original type finish. I only gave $400 for it and I wanted a shooter so it really didn't make any difference to me. There are smiths that specialize in restorations that don't affect value. Someone else that collects would be more knowledgeble than me on that..

Bob

[Parson]

If your rifle is worth something in the $1000 range, relining will not affect the value. If your rifle is realistically worth something in the $2000 range it may affect the value for some collectors but not by much, if it is worth maybe $3000 or more than collector value may take a hit. If the bore is really bad chances are it is not really worth that much but every collector is different, some collect shooters and pay good money for the right one, others want only near perfect and would not give a reline a second look

[Bent Ramrod]

Good advice here, in all cases. And remember, you're a collector too; go with your instincts and what you want. I think if it was mine, it would have to be a real museum piece outside, a deluxe model with special options and personally shot out by some famous historical personage (with documentation), to keep me from having it relined.

On the question of rebore vs reline, it depends to an extent on what caliber you want. With a .45-70, you're pretty much at the limit of your options for reboring. The .50-110 is about your only rebore option, and if the barrel isn't heavy enough for a hole that size (tinfoil-thin under the sight and magazine dovetails), you may not have even that. It would have to be relined to get back to the original or any smaller caliber. I would say that unless you have to have a .33 Winchester, a .38-56 or a .40-82, it would be better to reline back to the original caliber, .45-70. The feed mechanism is already set up for that, as are the barrel markings.

[barnaclebill]

Good advice here, in all cases. And remember, you're a collector too; go with your instincts and what you want. I think if it was mine, it would have to be a real museum piece outside, a deluxe model with special options and personally shot out by some famous historical personage (with documentation), to keep me from having it relined.

On the question of rebore vs reline, it depends to an extent on what caliber you want. With a .45-70, you're pretty much at the limit of your options for reboring. The .50-110 is about your only rebore option, and if the barrel isn't heavy enough for a hole that size (tinfoil-thin under the sight and magazine dovetails), you may not have even that. It would have to be relined to get back to the original or any smaller caliber. I would say that unless you have to have a .33 Winchester, a .38-56 or a .40-82, it would be better to reline back to the original caliber, .45-70. The feed mechanism is already set up for that, as are the barrel markings.

Good Advice
Liner----If it does not shoot straight that is what I will probably do.
Thanks
BB

[Just Duke]

Are they for sale sir?

[barnaclebill]

Are they for sale sir?

I sold 3 guns when I was a kid 50 years ago

1911 new surplus Colt .45 parkerized
New 30-40 Kraig....At least I still have another.
Japanese ??? Switch blade bayonet whatever

I now regret selling them

Instead of buying CDs from a bank anymore I have cashed them all in and buying guns. Lever guns I really like. Much more fun than Stocks, Bonds or CDs.

OH! To answer your question----------------------------------NO! :bigsmyl2:

But-----Do you have some for sale?
BB

[Just Duke]

Smart man! ;)
I have 3 Winchester 1886/Miroku's.

[barnaclebill]

Smart man! ;)
I have 3 Winchester 1886/Miroku's.

Will you sell them to me sir?[smilie=w: