Winchester M73 Value

[wsfbernie]

Yeah, I know another "goldminer". I bought this rifle in the 90's from the grandson of the original purchaser. It has serial 28XXX. The grandson was a WWII
vet and alcoholic. His family had disowned him. I was still in the Army and we had been friends since I was a child. I continued to visit him. His grandfather
was required to purchase the rifle for forage and protection on their westward migration in a wagon train. It was built in 1879 and has several custom
features (verified by Cody=30" barrel, set trigger). It has been well taken care of and even has the original cleaning rod. No repairs and appears to have never been taken apart since it left Winchester nearly 150 years ago. About 60%+ of the original blue. Apparently, it was used as a hunting rifle for several generations. I made a video of the grandson and I discussing this weapon before the grandson passed. Sooooooooooooooooo, here's the quandaAttachment 50137Attachment 50137Attachment 50136Attachment 50137ry.
I am selling to a trusted friend (NRA life member, Republican, well-educated, retired AF, etc.) but we don't know what value to put on it. I'm in my mid
seventies and have always had physical problems, 20 mins. to 20 years as I say. I've checked some auction sites so I know it's not common. What's really rare about this rifle is that it does not appear to be touched since it left Winchester. Also, its western history. It's the real deal. Mostly I collect military arms so I don't really have an interest in this rifle, but I know it is a real find to the right person. It's not going up for auction, and I have a good home for its
future life, but we just aren't sure of an appropriate value. Any advice or direction is helpful. Right now I've assigned a value of $5,000. What do y'all think? TX!B

[lyman]

can you post pics?

your 1873 Winchester

antique, (1879)
guessing 44-40?

not sure on how common a 30" barrel is, but a set trigger is not common

with out pics it is hard to say, but I have sold some 1873's recently that were a bit common for between $1700 and $2500 (less desirable calibers like 25-20 and 32-20) that were antiques

yours will likely be at the high end or higher

[barretcreek]

Find out if you can access actual sale prices from the auction houses (Rock Island, J.D. Julia and others) and compare your rifle to what they have sold. Wm. Larkin Moore and Sons in Scottsdale may give you some information on finding sale prices.

[Johnny P]

Check Guns International to see if they have anything close to what you have.

The dust cover was changed from sliding in a mortise to sliding on a rail between the 27,000 and 31,000 serial number range. If your rifle has the mortised cover it increases the value. That is where photos would sure help, as a 60% original finish with mortised dust cover could sell in the $5000 range.

[lyman]

Find out if you can access actual sale prices from the auction houses (Rock Island, J.D. Julia and others) and compare your rifle to what they have sold. Wm. Larkin Moore and Sons in Scottsdale may give you some information on finding sale prices.

keep in mind the prices shown include buyers premiums, and sometimes taxes paid

[Johnny P]

The gun with the buyer's premium is the value someone paid to own it.

[jon_norstog]

Winchester used to keep records of all its '66 and '73 rifles by S/N. Maybe you can find out some more. In any case that rifle sounds like it could be a museum piece or at least very-well documented. It should not go for a run-of-the-mill price.

jn

[RCS]

I have a Winchester 1873 also with a 30 inch barrel oct barrel, chambered in 38-40 Win. My father bought it from a
pawn shop outside of Fort Sheridan in 1936. Back in 1990, I did get a factory letter from Winchester which only stated
where the rifle was shipped and when it was manufactured (1891). Attempted to gather information on the value of my
rifle, best estimates where between $2500 and $3000

[Johnny P]

I still have some factory "letters" that were sent on postcards. I think the new letters indicate when the rifle was delivered to the warehouse, the shipping date, and the configuration.

[RCS]

photos of a factory letter on my father's model 1873 rifle, I had a friend who
was a member and he got the letter for medscn3218.jpgdscn3217.jpg