Lever action 30-40 army

[King carp]

Collecting stuff is an interesting hobby. My mom and dad sold antiques. They always told their customers to collect something that they liked. That way if the value of what you were collecting came down you still had something that you liked. Too many people bought stuff as investments and were ticked off when it lost value, (beany babies, ertl toys, collector plates, ) the list goes on. If you are happy with your collection it is priceless. It's great to find things that are less than going prices. But that is no guarantee the value will go up.

[psteinmayer]

I suspect one of the reasons the Win 95 didn't get much interest as a military rifle is the lever. When in the prone position, you'd be hitting that lever on the ground during cycling... while a bolt can be easily cycled in position. I'd love to see it happen at Perry though... as well as a Win Lee!!!

[Knute1]

Winchester's largest customer of the Model 1895 was the Russians during WWI. They bought like around 230,000 in 7.62x54R, the same caliber as their Mosin Nagant. They were set up for stripper clips. The Russians that received these rifles were happy with these rifles. Possibly because of the cowboy mystique. They weren't favored by the US Military due to the cocking issues when shooting from a trench, as Paul pointed out. Also, too much of the guts were exposed when cocking, which could lead to dirt getting in the action. This being John Browning's last lever action design was an improvement as it allowed for spitzer bullets. But it came out when bolt actions were coming into vogue and the lever action fans liked the old-styled cowboy guns. The 1895 was a just a bit too new-fangled.

[Culpeper]

I dived into the history of the musket after I bought it which was also around the time I became fully aware of the CMP and the Camp Perry matchs. So I put together five dummy rounds and did some standing loading drills. I found that I would need to up my game if I was going to have any chance beyond a sucky change to get through the rapids. I even drew up a prototype ammo loader to help in the reload. The Russians had the right idea using guides and clips for the russian round.

I am thinking I will bring it to the line anyway since I know I have a snowballs chance in hell of wining the match. :D I guess #71 can wait for the next go round.

[psteinmayer]

Culp You make it to the match this year, and I'll buy you dinner at the Roosevelt Match Dinner the night before the TR Match!!! Now, I must point out, that while the Winchester 95 would be a great addition to the Vintage Match, you still gotta bring a Krag to the TR Match (only Krags and 1903's allowed... and we don't want no more of those stinkin' 03s).

[Culpeper]

Shoot in two matchs?! :o Oh the horror! Whatever shall I do? :D


One thing is certain. Ammo logistics will be easy having one cartridge for both guns.

[Knute1]

King carp, in your initial post you mentioned the testing performed by the US military. Here is a report of testing from 1899, not too favorable. But it is still a cool rifle.

https://books.google.com/books?id=KNINHIjB4PIC&pg=PA151&dq=test+of+the+winchester+rifle+model+1895&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiE4_eX8sXnAhXCKM0KHW_iCJwQ6AEwAXoECAAQAg#v=onepage&q=test%20of%20the%20winchester%20rifle%20model%201895&f=false

[King carp]

After reading that report I am surprised that the Russians purchased as many of those rifles as they did. I know they bought all kinds of weapons from lots of sources. In the early 70's you would see the 1895's that were reimported back here. They all showed heavy use. I guess they were desperate and took what they could get. The 1895's are neat rifles and I guess part of the attraction was their ability to handle powerful rounds in a lever action. Thanks for the link to the tests.

[Knute1]

I believe a lever action cycles faster then a bolt, though the report states otherwise. A stripper clip attachment was made for the rimmed Russian round, Browning would have been able to design one for the rimmed US round. (I am not sure Browning actually designed the 1895 for Military use, but Winchester certainly wanted to push it for a sale.) But the loading of ammunition as submitted without stripper clip capabilities was a drawback.

The lack of a magazine cut-off was not an issue for the Russians as they didn't have it on their Mosin Nagant either. So two big issues of the US military had were not issues for the Russians. Plus, the US Ordnance had its rifle and General Miles was pushing against it. So some of the report had bias as the Krag Jorgensen design was being vehemently guarded against politics and an upset General of the Army for its selection (in my opinion).

[Culpeper]

While in Germany the Mauser is king...

I read through it a second time and have observed the emphasis on dismounting the gun. The M16 platforms could be considered near perfection in that respect.