Model 94 30/30 never fired

earlc · June 16, 2013, 11:32 AM

I have had a model 94 octagon barrel that I bought 40 years ago from a guy that had never fired it, it has been in my gun cabinet for forty years and still never had a cartridge put in it. The serial number is 30000--5, my question is, is it stupid to think that this gun is going up in value just because it has never been fired? Plus after looking it over carefully, all of those years I the gun cabinet have probably not been any kinder than the rifles that I have been using and actually got cleaned and oiled more often. It was supposed to have been some sort of special edition at the time that I bought it .
At 70 years old I am starting to think about some of my rifles and how much sense does it make for me to continue to keep them if I am not shooting them.
Another that I will post info and pictures of is a model 1884 octagon barrel 32 wcf that my uncle left me, will do it later. Thanks

arch308 · June 16, 2013, 12:52 PM

In my not so expert opinion it is worth more unfired, especially if it is a special edition. I've had friends that "invested" in the likes down through the years but lost track of them and don't know how good the return was. As for myself, I couldn't own a gun without shooting it.
Still, I would get an appraisle before shooting it. Also, if it is worth alot, I'd probably sell it in your circumstances. Is that not why you bought it?

Nice rifle by the way.

handlerer2 · June 16, 2013, 01:05 PM

Beautiful rifle, very nice wood!

This thread brought to mind an old story an associate told, about Elmer Keith.

Elmer had just received a custom made rifle. A friend said" Elmer, don't you think that rifle is too pretty to shoot"

Elmer was supposed to have said " Ever seen a girl to pretty to kiss?" I just thought I would add that cause it always gives me grin. I have never met a girl too pretty to kiss.

jmr40 · June 16, 2013, 01:10 PM

An unfired rifle, with hangtags still on it, in the box with all of the original papers is worth quite a bit if it is an unusual rifle.

Without the box or papers a rifle that is still "like new" will probably sell for almost as much as one that has never been fired. It would lose some value, but not a huge amount.

I can only see a small portion of the rifle in the photo, but it appears to be one of the literally hundreds of Commemorative 94's that Winchester has made over the years. Most don't sell for much, if any more than a standard rifle. Unless you find someone who just wants that edition.

dogngun · June 16, 2013, 02:40 PM

Look online for people selling similar Winchesters...People DO collect them, and you could probably buy a good but not "collectable" 94 with what you get for it and still have a nice amount left over...(I recently bought a post 64 .30-30 M 94 with some wear from use for under $300 as a shooter.)

Works just fine.

I would not shoot it for sure...buy another that you can use.

Check prices on some of these...

http://www.gunsinternational.com/Win...cfm?cat_id=122

Mark

PawPaw · June 16, 2013, 07:38 PM

Your serial number makes it a post-64, probably made in 1967. Those are still fine rifles, but they don't have the collectability panache as a pre-64. There might be a collector out there who values it, but it's simply a nice edition of a rifle that Winchester made in the late '60s. There is nothing particularly wrong with those rifles, I have two of them, and they're both great shooters. Very nice hunting rifles.

On the other hand, that model 1884 (are you sure that it's a Model 1884?, the Winchester records don't catalog such a model) might be worth something, but condition is everything with old Winchesters.

Malamute · June 16, 2013, 11:11 PM

Your rifle is called a "Classic". They were listed in the 1968 Shooters Bible that I have. They were made just before most of the commemoratives came out. They are pretty nice guns, with less of the shiny bright parts and stock medalians that some commemoratives had, with some nice impressed scroll engraving, extra nice finish, and very good grade wood. They dont sell for huge money, but the wood grade alone would cost nearly as much as the gun would be worth of you bought it today from a stockmaker. I've seen a Classic at the Cody Winchester Collectors show, its been there a couple years at $500 or $600. I dont know if its new or not, I never picked it up and looked at it. Very much nicer guns than the common carbines.

Scorch · June 17, 2013, 01:34 AM

You have a late 1960s Model 94 Classic. The 1964-1970 Model 94s had a terrible habit of spitting up their stamped sheet metal carriers. Pretty wood and good condition overall may make it more desirable, but it is still just a $450 gun. New carriers are generally not available for those rifles, so hope you find someone who is interested in looks.

June 16, 2013, 02:40 PM	#5
dogngun Senior Member Join Date: November 18, 2002 Location: South east PA Posts: 570	Look online for people selling similar Winchesters...People DO collect them, and you could probably buy a good but not "collectable" 94 with what you get for it and still have a nice amount left over...(I recently bought a post 64 .30-30 M 94 with some wear from use for under $300 as a shooter.) Works just fine. I would not shoot it for sure...buy another that you can use. Check prices on some of these... http://www.gunsinternational.com/Win...cfm?cat_id=122 Mark __________________ I am another gun-carrying liberal veteran. Last edited by dogngun; June 16, 2013 at 03:08 PM.

June 16, 2013, 07:38 PM	#6
PawPaw Senior Member Join Date: December 24, 2010 Location: Central Louisiana Posts: 3,137	Your serial number makes it a post-64, probably made in 1967. Those are still fine rifles, but they don't have the collectability panache as a pre-64. There might be a collector out there who values it, but it's simply a nice edition of a rifle that Winchester made in the late '60s. There is nothing particularly wrong with those rifles, I have two of them, and they're both great shooters. Very nice hunting rifles. On the other hand, that model 1884 (are you sure that it's a Model 1884?, the Winchester records don't catalog such a model) might be worth something, but condition is everything with old Winchesters. __________________ Dennis Dezendorf http://pawpawshouse.blogspot.com

June 16, 2013, 11:11 PM	#7
Malamute Senior Member Join Date: June 6, 2004 Location: Rocky Mts Posts: 859	Your rifle is called a "Classic". They were listed in the 1968 Shooters Bible that I have. They were made just before most of the commemoratives came out. They are pretty nice guns, with less of the shiny bright parts and stock medalians that some commemoratives had, with some nice impressed scroll engraving, extra nice finish, and very good grade wood. They dont sell for huge money, but the wood grade alone would cost nearly as much as the gun would be worth of you bought it today from a stockmaker. I've seen a Classic at the Cody Winchester Collectors show, its been there a couple years at $500 or $600. I dont know if its new or not, I never picked it up and looked at it. Very much nicer guns than the common carbines. __________________ "Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat." -Theodore Roosevelt-

June 17, 2013, 01:34 AM	#8
Scorch Senior Member Join Date: February 13, 2006 Location: Washington state Posts: 15,248	You have a late 1960s Model 94 Classic. The 1964-1970 Model 94s had a terrible habit of spitting up their stamped sheet metal carriers. Pretty wood and good condition overall may make it more desirable, but it is still just a $450 gun. New carriers are generally not available for those rifles, so hope you find someone who is interested in looks. __________________ Never try to educate someone who resists knowledge at all costs. But what do I know? Summit Arms Services

June 16, 2013, 12:52 PM	#2
arch308 Senior Member Join Date: November 6, 2011 Location: DFW, Texas Posts: 876	In my not so expert opinion it is worth more unfired, especially if it is a special edition. I've had friends that "invested" in the likes down through the years but lost track of them and don't know how good the return was. As for myself, I couldn't own a gun without shooting it. Still, I would get an appraisle before shooting it. Also, if it is worth alot, I'd probably sell it in your circumstances. Is that not why you bought it? Nice rifle by the way.

June 16, 2013, 01:05 PM	#3
handlerer2 Senior Member Join Date: April 26, 2010 Location: Yellowstone Co, MT Posts: 489	Beautiful rifle, very nice wood! This thread brought to mind an old story an associate told, about Elmer Keith. Elmer had just received a custom made rifle. A friend said" Elmer, don't you think that rifle is too pretty to shoot" Elmer was supposed to have said " Ever seen a girl to pretty to kiss?" I just thought I would add that cause it always gives me grin. I have never met a girl too pretty to kiss.

June 16, 2013, 01:10 PM	#4
jmr40 Senior Member Join Date: June 15, 2008 Location: Georgia Posts: 10,808	An unfired rifle, with hangtags still on it, in the box with all of the original papers is worth quite a bit if it is an unusual rifle. Without the box or papers a rifle that is still "like new" will probably sell for almost as much as one that has never been fired. It would lose some value, but not a huge amount. I can only see a small portion of the rifle in the photo, but it appears to be one of the literally hundreds of Commemorative 94's that Winchester has made over the years. Most don't sell for much, if any more than a standard rifle. Unless you find someone who just wants that edition.