Make: Winchester
Model: Custom Model 64 Deluxe “Deer Rifle”
Serial Number: 1895565
Year of Manufacture: 1952
Caliber: .219 Zipper
Action Type: Lever Action Rifle fed by a half length Tubular Magazine
Barrel Length: 26” Round
Sights / Optics: The front sight is a brass beaded blade dovetailed to a textured, ramped base forged to the front of the barrel. The front sight has a protective hood. The rear of the barrel is installed with a dovetail flat. The bolt is installed with a broken base of a bolt mounted rear sight.
Stock Configuration & Condition: The stocks are two-piece checkered walnut with a beavertail forend, capped pistol grip, straight comb, sling-plate mounted in the belly (the other is dovetailed to the nosecap), and a checkered steel shotgun-style buttplate. The stocks have been refinished and there are some pools of stock refinish present.Areas of the wrist are shy to the tangs and receiver. There are some compressions, dings, and scratches, mostly under the finish. The checkering is strong but has been obscured a bit by the refinish. The LOP measures 13 1/8" from the front of the trigger to the back of the buttplate. The buttplate has scattered areas of pitting and scabbing, and has also been refinished. Overall, the stocks are in about Very Good condition.
Type of Finish: Blued
Finish Originality: The barrel is not original to the receiver, but the finish on both those parts is original.
Bore Condition: The bore is bright and the rifling is sharp.There are a few small spots of minor pitting. In this writer's opinion, the bore rates an 8 out of 10.
Overall Condition: This rifle retains about 85% of its metal finish. A portion of the barrel shank is exposed in front of the receiver, and that portion remains bright without finish. There are areas of plum finish surrounding the front sling mount at the edges where it is dovetailed into the nosecap. The rear sight filler and extractor have mottled discoloration and appear to have been previously cold blued. The rear sight is broken and only the base remains mounted to the bolt. There are some areas of finish loss and thinning that have taken on discoloration. There are some areas of surface frost. There are some little nicks and hairline scratches. There is standard operational wear. The screw heads range from sharp to tool marked with strong slots. The markings are clear. Overall, this rifle is in Very Good condition.
Mechanics: The action functions correctly. We did not fire this rifle. As with all previously owned firearms, thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance standards.
Box, Paperwork & Accessories: None
Our Assessment: At a time when more people were traveling by motorcar and railroad than by horse and stagecoach, Winchester thought a lever action rifle based on the Model 94 (it would fill the gap between the 26” barrel sporting rifle and the 20” barrel carbine) would sell like hotcakes. The Model 55 was introduced in 1924, but never sold particularly well, and was discontinued in 1932 when it was superseded by the Model 64. The Model 64 was a redesign of the Model 55 with a longer magazine tube, and made with a solid frame only. The Model 64 stayed in production until 1957, with a total of only 66,783 manufactured, making it one of the rarer Winchester lever action models.
This Custom Winchester Model 64 Deluxe “Deer Rifle” is in Very Good condition, chambered in .219 Zipper, and features a 26” barrel, which is a factory original that was custom installed, 85% of its mostly original blued finish, a half length magazine tube, the “deluxe” checkered stocks (which have been refinished along with the buttplate), capped pistol grip, and sling mounts at the front and rear that distinguish the “Deer Rifle” from the “Standard Rifle”, and a bright bore with sharp rifling. Winchester introduced the .219 Zipper cartridge specifically for the Model 64 in 1937 as their entry into the varmint rifle market; the cartridge was a .30-30 case necked down to take .22 caliber bullets. In the 1950s, .219 Zipper barrels remaining in inventory could still be ordered on Model 64s, but the exposed, unfinished barrel shank on this rifle has led us to determine this is a custom made piece mating a factory original barrel to a factory original receiver/stock set, and was likely crafted by a skilled gunsmith.
RIFLE