Monday, August 19, 2013

Cool Old Guns 1: Winchester model 67 .22 review








I'm going to do a few reviews of some older guns I have laying around.  There is nothing tactical about these guns, they aren't super evil black rifles.  They are still cool and they are still fun to shoot.  I am going to call this series "Cool Old Guns." First up is my Winchester model 67 single shot .22.


I got this gun in one of my various trades on a local Georgia gun trading forum, called The Outdoors Trader.  I got it with the intention of re-selling or trading it down the line.  After messing around with it and shooting it some, I really got to liking this old gun.  Last year, I gave it to my son for his 7th birthday, his first firearm.  He has a blast shooting it, and I still do too.


My son after shooting his .22 the first time.  Not too bad of a group for a beginner!


The model 67 was introduced in 1934 as a less expensive version of the model 60.  Winchester continued to make the rifles until 1963.  It is chambered for .22 short, long, and long-rifle interchangeably.  It is a very basic design consisting of a bolt action that has to be manually cocked for each shot.  The rifles also have a safety which is a rotating sleeve over the firing pin assembly that physically blocks the firing pin assembly from moving forward.  They have a 27 inch barrel, with standard post and notch iron sights.  The stock is removable by one take-down screw, and the entire gun can be disassembled with nothing more than a screwdriver and a couple of punches.



 Closeup of manual cocker
 
Cocked, and ready to fire.  Notice channel that pin on firing pin assembly assembly travels in.

With safety on.  Notice sleeve stops firing pin assembly from moving forward because of protruding pin.




My 67 was made somewhere between 1938 and 1944.  Winchester did not put serial numbers on guns this old so there is no way to track exact manufacture date.  I can only narrow it down that much by the various small design changes over the years.  


 Markings showing gun is able to shoot .22 short, .22 long, and .22 long rifle.


My gun is accurate.  I can routinely hit a 9mm case off of a nail from about 15 yards away standing.  Being a single shot, it forces you to slow down and take your time to get a good shot.  .22s are just plain fun to shoot, and this one is no different.  This is a great plinking gun, fun to try and shoot acorns off of trees or any number of other likely targets in the woods.  I think that calmly walking through the woods with a .22 and a pocket full of ammo is something that is isn't done as much these days, and I think that is a shame.  Back when .22 ammo was cheap and plentiful, I can't tell you how many thousands of rounds me and my friends ran through our .22s.  Nobody got hurt, nobody got in trouble, just good clean fun in the woods behind our houses.

Thanks for reading!  What is your favorite old gun?  Leave a comment and let me know.


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~Tattooed Gunner


3 comments:

  1. Enjoyed the walk down memory lane. I have Grandads Model 60 that I'm currently working on: rebluing, replacing the sights and buttstock. Don't care if it hurts any collector value as it will NEVER be sold.

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  2. My childhood rifle was the same--only different. It was a 69 A, a magazine-fed version of yours. Put a Weaver 4X on it, and accurate at 100 yards.
    Northwoods

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  3. My grandfather gave me his win.67 back when I was 16.I still have it,at 69 yrs. old.I finally installed a marbles bullseye site & higher front sight due to aging eyes.I expect to shoot it for as long as I can.It holds fond memories for me.

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