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What is the value of this Winchester Model 1890 w/ Ingravings

5K views 14 replies 10 participants last post by  doug herbert 
#1 ·
I have a Winchester Model 1890 .22 short.. Can you please estimate the value of this rifle? I looked up the serial number 288653 in the Winchester site states it was manufactured in 1906. It has the octagonal barrel . The wood is in good shape, and seems hand carved..looks like aftermarket but professional ( maybe Indian ), bluing looks good to me.. The rifle cycles fine and the bore is in good shape with rifling visible and sharp. I have attached pictures as well. Serial number is on both pieces.
From what i have read this is the third model due to the year.
 

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#2 ·
I don't see any kind of markings other that the carvings. Please put up a few more pictures of the markings on the gun, not the wood. The experts are probably going to need them to give you any real value.

The carvings on the stock, in my opinion, add no value to the gun and might even take away some value. But then, I am not one of those expert.
 
#3 ·
With a gun like this the carvings will detract from both the value and the ability to sell the gun. Everyone wanting to buy it will want to pay less since the wood has been carved. A true value can not be assigned to a gun like this since it's appeal is very limited and it is now more or less one of a kind. I suspect at a gun show it would have an asking price of 5 to 7 hundred dollars on it. The receiver has turned brown and the barrel looks like it retains a good bit of blue. A model 90 will only go so low before it sells unless it is just plain wrecked. A bare minimum on this gun would 3 to 4 hundred dollars in my opinion.
 
#4 ·
I know the carving detracts from the collectors value and even seems a little crude, but I like it. It is a little piece of Americana, folk art even. It is a shame you have to sell it, I think that would be the cats meow over the fireplace.
 
#5 · (Edited)
I think you have some artistic value on that one. I would be proud to own it over a worn original in about the same shape. It looks like it was done in the period. Some might think it detracts while others will find value for its artwork. I bet it goes for well over $1000. I am betting a young man was pretty proud of that over a 100 years ago. I wonder how many birds it shot. It tells a story of a different time that many wish they belonged to. Great Stuff! Pull that out at the range and it will draw a crowd. Think of the young man hunting elephant in his mind in 1906 while he carves it under a tree. That's the one you sell and later wish you never had. A Boy and His Gun.
 
#6 ·
Thanks guys for all your input. I do plan on keeping the weapon. Thanks for the awesome mental picture Russ. Do you think I should send this to Indian art sites ? Maybe they can pin it to a certain tribe. Gdmoody..what type of markings are you looking for ?
 
#8 ·
Maybe it was an old indian, and that's a baby mastadon.

Unless you can track down some provenance on it that ties it to a known artist or
famous person, the carvings reduce the value. Hit the auction sites to see what they are selling for.
Saw a clean un-molested '90 in the rack at a local shop last week. about a 80% gun. Asking
price was $795. It had been there a while.
 
#10 ·
In answer to when it was manufactured, September 1906, and it is a Second Model versus a Third Model. The Third Model was introduced in 1908.

As for the value, I suspect that it will be difficult to find an interested buyer willing to pay more than $600 for it.

Bert H.
 
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