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  #1  
Old 01-28-2012, 07:06 AM
Iowa17Cal Iowa17Cal is offline
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Default Winchester 1885

Howdy,

I had a Browning 1885 Hornet that was very accurate and fun to shoot.

Have been thinking about getting the real deal, as in an original Winchester
1885.

What could I expect for accuracy?

Were the triggers pretty good on these, or just so so?

Thanks for your input.
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  #2  
Old 01-28-2012, 07:39 AM
Iowa Fox Iowa Fox is offline
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I have one in 22K Hornet with a 12x Unertl on it. I purchased it about 10 years ago at Square Shooters in Davenport when they were still in the old building on State St. The serial # dates the action to 1886. The trigger is light and smooth but I have a feeling who ever built it also smoothed the trigger. Its a fine old rifle but it spends its time in the safe. For actual field shooting I much prefer the Contenders, they are lighter, more compact, better triggers, better optics, and overall just a sweeter shooting package. That being said I'm glad I have the Winchester, its a nice old rifle.
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  #3  
Old 01-28-2012, 08:26 AM
Iowa17Cal Iowa17Cal is offline
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What kind of accuracy do you see?
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  #4  
Old 01-28-2012, 11:59 AM
BadgerBob BadgerBob is offline
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I have a buddy that has 3 or 4 old original High Walls that he has had rebuilt in to high pressure cartridges, and they will shoot as good or bad as any modern rifle he or I have. They take lots of work to get them into shape to shoot such a cartridge. Most all of them that I have had, had to be bushed at the very least. If I remember right they had 4 different styles of triggers, plain old single trigger, double set, close coupled double set and single set trigger. With all the interest in Black Powder Cartridge there are folks that make triggers for them, but most of the factory triggers unless messed with are not to bad.

Trying to figure how they would shoot would depend on a lot of things, just like any modern rifle build, barrel, stock fit, optics, craftsmanship all the the things that make a modern gun shoot or not shoot will effect an original single shot the same.

There where an lot of High Walls built for target duty, including a run of rifles chambered in 30-06 for the Perry shooting team, I know where one of those are at, if you could find one stuck away in grandpa's closet you could probably look at getting between 10 and 15K for it, there are some pricie High Walls out there, but IMHO there the classiest single shot out there.

Bob
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Old 01-28-2012, 02:31 PM
Old Hawkeye Old Hawkeye is offline
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If it's a Hornet, I assume it is the Low Wall version. The accuracy potential will be totally dependent on the condition of the barrel. If it was well cared for & stored properly the barrel "could" be in good shape, but obviously it is a pretty old rifle as the Hornet came out in the 20's I believe. The only thing I would add to all the very good insight others have given you is that the Hornet originally came out with a .223" dia. bore. I think it was sometime after WW II that it was changed to the standard .224" bore. I think Hornady still offers .223" bullets for these old Hornets. If yours is a .223" one, unless you can get the right bullets ammo will be a big problem. Do not shoot new factory ammo in it if you have the smaller bore. If it is of collector quality, rebarreling it or modifying it would devalue it substantially.

Last edited by Old Hawkeye; 01-28-2012 at 02:37 PM.
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  #6  
Old 01-28-2012, 03:00 PM
Gary in Illinois Gary in Illinois is offline
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Default .224 bullets in .223 bore

Quote:
Originally Posted by Old Hawkeye View Post
If yours is a .223" one, unless you can get the right bullets ammo will be a big problem. Do not shoot new factory ammo in it if you have the smaller bore.
That has never been my experience using .224 bullets in a .223 bore. I have never heard of a problem using standard .224 bullets in the .223 bore, but then, I haven't heard of everything.
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  #7  
Old 01-28-2012, 03:18 PM
JohnHenry JohnHenry is offline
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A number of years ago I had a shot out 25-20 original low wall rebarreled and refurbished by a very competent smith. Used a quality barrel and chambered in 218 Mashburn Bee. Probably the most frustrating build I have ever had done. Rifle looked great but five shot 100 yard groups were typically 2 1/2 to 3 inches with alot of vertical stringing not uncommom with falling blocks. Ended up trading the rifle on a nice Cooper 38VE in 218 Bee. The Cooper shoots in the 3's but that is 0.3.
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  #8  
Old 01-28-2012, 03:47 PM
Chuck Miller Chuck Miller is offline
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Default original low wall

I've got an original low wall in 22 Hornet and as mentioned it has the factory .223 barrel. Bought it right as the stock was cracked/broken at the tang and the barrel had been drilled for modern scope bases. Other than that it was in pretty good shape, barrel condition was excellent. I've given it a steady dose of .224 and .223 pills and it actually likes the bigger bullet better. Accuracy isn't anywhere near what a modern bolt gun will do, and it does suffer from vertical stringing as it heats up which isn't anything new with the high/low walls. Shooting the 35gr Vmax, bagged up with a T36 it will print about 1.5"-2" groups. Probably the biggest issue on my rifle is the generous chamber, you get the typical bulging on the case sidewalls. I've also got a highwall that someone installed a Winnie 52 barrel on it and chambered it in 22Hornet, it's a legitimate 1" rifle, again with the oblong vertical shaped group, with that 22 rimfire barrel. Triggers on mine are average at best, guess they are factory settings.

Last edited by Chuck Miller; 01-28-2012 at 03:54 PM.
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  #9  
Old 01-28-2012, 03:57 PM
Iowa17Cal Iowa17Cal is offline
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Glad I asked.

The Browning 1885 Hornet shot extremely well.

So was hoping to hear better things about the originals.


Guess I can park this idea
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  #10  
Old 01-28-2012, 04:11 PM
Old Hawkeye Old Hawkeye is offline
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I know that a lot of people shoot the .224" bullets in a .223" bore with no ill effects, but the people at Hornady are adamant about not doing it with their factory ammo. Of course they are liability sensitive & that is why they made the .223" bullets. Not knowing anything about the condition of the rifle or bore, I felt it would be prudent to pass on Hornady's opinion. By handloading you can control pressure levels & avoid the safety issues of firing the oversized bullet. Usually, but not always, the bigger bullets show less accuracy, but each gun will respond differently.
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