The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - .44 Rimfire Henry

Crunchy Frog · February 19, 2012, 12:23 PM

Lots of confusion about names and models.

The original 1860 Henry rifle was made by the New Haven Arms Company (the company run by Winchester that later became Winchester). Olin Winchester named the gun after Tyler Henry who was his shop foreman or plant manager who developed the gun which was a redesign of a previous rifle (the Volcanic). The 1860 Henry was chambered for the .44 rimfire round which was revolutionary in its day but quickly became obsolete when centerfire cartridges were developed. The early Henry had a bronze frame and was later offered with an iron frame.

Uberti makes a modern reproduction of the 1860 Henry chambered in .44-40 or .45 Colt. It's not offered in .44 rimfire since no one makes that ammo. It can be had with a brass frame or a steel frame with a (cosmetic) color casehardened finish.

The brass Uberti replica is sometimes misnamed a "Golden Boy". That nickname belongs to the Winchester 1866 which had a bronze frame (supposedly the Native Americans called the popular rifle the "Golden Boy"). The '66 was an improvement over the Henry that introduced a loading gate on the receiver, a closed magazine tube and a forearm. The original Winchester '66s were chambered in .44 rimfire; Uberti's replicas of the 1866 have a brass frame and are available in .38 Special, .44-40 or .45 Colt.

The next evolution of the Winchester was the 1873 Winchester, "the gun that won the West". It was not made with a brass frame so there's not much confusion there.

Part of the confusion is due to nomenclature used by the (modern) Henry Repeating Arms Company that has NO connection to the 1860 Henry rifle. They don't make a reproduction of the Henry 1860. The (modern) Henry Golden Boy is a .22 rifle that has nothing to do with the Winchester 1866 Golden Boy. Not to say their guns are not good; the rimfire rifles in particular are popular, but the way they throw names around causes some people to be confused.

In summary, you can buy a real Henry if you have tens of thousands of dollars laying around to buy a gun that you can't shoot. Plus it may be golden but it won't be a Golden Boy.

You can buy a Uberti 1860 Henry and have a fair approximation of what a real Henry would be like, except you can shoot it and if you do you might get a burned left hand and realize that you should have bought an 1866 or an 1873 instead. Oh, and it won't be a Golden Boy either.

You can buy an original 1866 with will be an honest-to-goodness Golden Boy but will cost you big bucks and you can't shoot it.

You can buy a Uberti Golden Boy and it will be as close to a real Golden Boy that you can get, and you can shoot it, and it won't burn your hand, and you don't have to look down the muzzle when you load the thing. And everyone will go "oooh" when you pull it out (but they will ask you if it's a Henry Golden Boy, in which case you can now set them straight and probably make them wish they'd never asked).

You can buy a Henry Golden Boy and you'll have a really nice little .22 lever gun. But it won't be a Golden Boy. Well, it is, but it isn't.

You can buy a Henry Big Boy which has a brass receiver but it's not a Golden Boy. But it is a Henry. Just not a "real" Henry or even a reproduction of a "real" Henry.

Or you can forget the Golden Boy stuff altogether and buy a Uberti 1873 because, well, they rule. And you don't have to educate people. As much.

It's very cold and rainy outside; could you tell?

February 19, 2012, 12:23 PM	#24
Crunchy Frog Senior Member Join Date: December 26, 2008 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 591	Lots of confusion about names and models. The original 1860 Henry rifle was made by the New Haven Arms Company (the company run by Winchester that later became Winchester). Olin Winchester named the gun after Tyler Henry who was his shop foreman or plant manager who developed the gun which was a redesign of a previous rifle (the Volcanic). The 1860 Henry was chambered for the .44 rimfire round which was revolutionary in its day but quickly became obsolete when centerfire cartridges were developed. The early Henry had a bronze frame and was later offered with an iron frame. Uberti makes a modern reproduction of the 1860 Henry chambered in .44-40 or .45 Colt. It's not offered in .44 rimfire since no one makes that ammo. It can be had with a brass frame or a steel frame with a (cosmetic) color casehardened finish. The brass Uberti replica is sometimes misnamed a "Golden Boy". That nickname belongs to the Winchester 1866 which had a bronze frame (supposedly the Native Americans called the popular rifle the "Golden Boy"). The '66 was an improvement over the Henry that introduced a loading gate on the receiver, a closed magazine tube and a forearm. The original Winchester '66s were chambered in .44 rimfire; Uberti's replicas of the 1866 have a brass frame and are available in .38 Special, .44-40 or .45 Colt. The next evolution of the Winchester was the 1873 Winchester, "the gun that won the West". It was not made with a brass frame so there's not much confusion there. Part of the confusion is due to nomenclature used by the (modern) Henry Repeating Arms Company that has NO connection to the 1860 Henry rifle. They don't make a reproduction of the Henry 1860. The (modern) Henry Golden Boy is a .22 rifle that has nothing to do with the Winchester 1866 Golden Boy. Not to say their guns are not good; the rimfire rifles in particular are popular, but the way they throw names around causes some people to be confused. In summary, you can buy a real Henry if you have tens of thousands of dollars laying around to buy a gun that you can't shoot. Plus it may be golden but it won't be a Golden Boy. You can buy a Uberti 1860 Henry and have a fair approximation of what a real Henry would be like, except you can shoot it and if you do you might get a burned left hand and realize that you should have bought an 1866 or an 1873 instead. Oh, and it won't be a Golden Boy either. You can buy an original 1866 with will be an honest-to-goodness Golden Boy but will cost you big bucks and you can't shoot it. You can buy a Uberti Golden Boy and it will be as close to a real Golden Boy that you can get, and you can shoot it, and it won't burn your hand, and you don't have to look down the muzzle when you load the thing. And everyone will go "oooh" when you pull it out (but they will ask you if it's a Henry Golden Boy, in which case you can now set them straight and probably make them wish they'd never asked). You can buy a Henry Golden Boy and you'll have a really nice little .22 lever gun. But it won't be a Golden Boy. Well, it is, but it isn't. You can buy a Henry Big Boy which has a brass receiver but it's not a Golden Boy. But it is a Henry. Just not a "real" Henry or even a reproduction of a "real" Henry. Or you can forget the Golden Boy stuff altogether and buy a Uberti 1873 because, well, they rule. And you don't have to educate people. As much. It's very cold and rainy outside; could you tell?