Winchester 94 CENTENNIAL 66 LEVER ACTION 30-30 1894

Winchester 94 CENTENNIAL 66 LEVER ACTION 30-30 

1966 was the Winchester Repeating Arms Company's 100th year of operation. To commemorate this occasion, Winchester produced a run of fancy Model 94 rifles. These were based on post 1964 Model 94's actions with a gold plated receiver and forend cap, brass "rifle" (curved) buttplate, saddle ring, and a heavy octagon barrel with a full length magazine that was nicely polished and deeply blued. The straight hand stock was select walnut. All were in caliber .30-30 Winchester.

There were rifle (26") and carbine (20") barrel lengths, and sets of rifle and carbine with consecutive serial numbers were also offered. The point to all of the gold and brass was to make the 1966 Centennial reminiscent of the brass framed Winchester 1866 "Yellow Boy" rifle that was Winchester's first product.

I believe that Winchester intended to make something like 44,000 of these Centennial '66 Model 94's. But a surprising consumer demand, and Winchester's desire to make a buck, resulted in a final combined production total of 102,309 rifles and carbines. The Centennial '66 was quite a hit, and a highly engraved version shared the cover of the 1967 Gun Digest with an equally highly engraved Model 1866 Winchester.

These Centennial '66 rifles and carbines generally showed a high order of fit and finish. The receiver was 24 carat gold plated inside and out, so they were pretty with the action open, too. Here are the basic specifications of the Centennial '66 Rifle:

• Caliber - .30-30 Winchester
• Magazine capacity - 8 cartridges
• Barrel - 26 inch octagon
• Twist - 1 in 12 inches
• Sights - Adjustable semi-buckhorn rear and blade front; tapped for receiver sights
• Length of pull - 13 1/8 inches
• Drop at comp - 2 inches
• Drop at heel - 2 3/4 inches
• Overall length - 44 1/2 inches
• Weight - 8 pounds