Is this gun safe to use?

takin said:

I have a winchester 94 in 38-55 that belonged to my great grandfather.
The serial # and the winchester site tells me it was made in 1909.
Is it safe, how do I find out for sure?
Who could I take it to in the Sussex area or do I have to go futher?

Thday by caanks guys

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well tell ya what ,the lee enfield .303 british was manufactured in the late 1800`s used during ww1 and still used today by hunters, collectors,cadets,etc.i would have checked by a gunsmith for its functionability and if its all good then you`re in

My 250-3000 was manufactured in 1915, and I still use it.

Cape Breton Hunter is correct however, take it to a good gun smith. If it has been looked after, it is likely just fine, but would be nice to know for sure.

takin said:

I have a winchester 94 in 38-55 that belonged to my great grandfather.
The serial # and the winchester site tells me it was made in 1909.
Is it safe, how do I find out for sure?
Who could I take it to in the Sussex area or do I have to go futher?

Thanks guys

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does it have the hexagon barrel?

takin said:

I have a winchester 94 in 38-55 that belonged to my great grandfather.
The serial # and the winchester site tells me it was made in 1909.
Is it safe, how do I find out for sure?
Who could I take it to in the Sussex area or do I have to go futher?

Thanks guys

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try loading a dud round into it, and unloading it. put a couple in the magazine and just keep playing with it. if everything works properly it should be safe. I have an original model 1894 made in 1894, and it works fine, and was used a lot.

newtothehunt said:

try loading a dud round into it, and unloading it. put a couple in the magazine and just keep playing with it. if everything works properly it should be safe. I have an original model 1894 made in 1894, and it works fine, and was used a lot.

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Gotta disagree with you! Just because it chambers a round and successfully extracts and ejects it does NOT make it safe! The chamber could be corroded, the barrel could be full of rust, dried mud, etc.

As mentioned several times above, he should have a GUNSMITH check it out.

No reason why it couldn't be used , my father in laws old 94 was made in 1907 and it still gets used . The gun I use every fall is pushing 60 .
94/38-55 would be a great woods gun to hunt deer or moose with .
Whatever you do , don't sell it . It was your Great Grandfather's gun , if you sell it you'll kick your ass down the road .
If your worried ask the family when it was used last or take it to someone who knows and get it checked out . If you give it a good cleaning anything obvious should be noticed , only thing a gunsmith is going to do besides this is check the head space (which might be a good idea ).

Thanks for the advice guys
I checked my notes and it was actually made in 1904

No it doesn't have the octagon barrel.
And no I wouldn't sell this gun

The butt plate is missing does anyone have one?

These guys might be able to help you out with the butt plate .

http://www.levergunscommunity.org/

Woolly said:

Gotta disagree with you! Just because it chambers a round and successfully extracts and ejects it does NOT make it safe! The chamber could be corroded, the barrel could be full of rust, dried mud, etc.

As mentioned several times above, he should have a GUNSMITH check it out.

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I don't mean to start an argument, i just want to clarify, the only reason I said to chamber a dud is because the biggest problem the old 94's had, all my relatives have there own, is something to do with the chambering, other than that they were designed to last. but yes he should take it to a gunsmith.