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In 1949 at the age of 16 my father received a new Winchester Model 94 in .30 WCF (now know as .30-.30). They were cattle ranchers in Wyoming & not a day went by that their trusty model 94's were'nt in their saddle scabbards. They used their rifles to eliminate pests (beaver were the worst), scare off an aggressive bull moose, or dispatch a steer that was injured or sick. Yup, tools of the cowboy.

As far back as I remember, my father's 94 was a very cherished possession of his. I too carried the rifle as I got older. I hunted deer & carried it on my horse until it was replaced by a Model 70 30.06 I bought in 1972.

Ten or so years ago, I got the hankering to own a .30-.30 again. I walked into our local pawn/gun store & there sat a new Model 94AE Legacy in the racks. I knew the store owner well, as I was on the local police force at the time. He explained that the gun was ordered by a customer but he never picked it up. They had a reasonable price on it so I took it home. I never used my new 94 for hunting but shot it a few times for sentimental reasons. I now had a .30-.30 like my fathers.

A few weeks back, I visit my 81 year old father as he recovered from a minor surgery. He seemed in good sprits but I knew something was on his mind. He got up & left the room as I visited with my mother & I figured he'd gone to the bathroom. When he came back into the living room he handed me his 1949 Model 94...& said "this is your now- the time has come" " I wanted to give it to you while I was alive". Tears filled my eyes. I was overwhelmed! One of my six sisters (I'm the only boy) who is an avid hunter expressed her desire more than once for this gun. I almost asked my father to give it to this sister & I'd take his Savage Model 99 instead but I REALLY wanted his .30-.30.

It was a special moment in my life I will never forget. I brought the gun home & gave it a good cleaning. Guns are objects that bring back good memories & transport up back into time.

Thanks for listening!

Pix to follow.
 
Last Edited:
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OLD & NEW.
 
Awesome story and congrats on the new inheritance. My story is similar.


This is my Grandpa's Model 94 Winchester rifle:



Per the serial number, this rifle was built circa 1940. At the good old age of 70+ years, she has seen a bit of use.

My 94 Winchester was "grandpas" camp gun. My grandpa and his 2 brothers were sheep herders in central Utah.

The brothers bought the rifle together in 1940, the year of manufacture, and pooled their money in order to buy it. It was a shared resource for the brothers as none of them were particularly wealthy.

I understand the rifle went with them up in the canyons when they were herding sheep to dispatch various predators and kill white tails too.

My Dad eventually inherited it and passed it down to me before he passed away. It has a rich family history and is nowhere in as good of shape as yours......it still functions flawlessly though. Love these rifles and it is a shame they don't make them anymore in USA.

Enjoy!

W94Small_zps1286312b.jpg
 
Awesome story and congrats on the new inheritance. My story is similar.


This is my Grandpa's Model 94 Winchester rifle:



Per the serial number, this rifle was built circa 1940. At the good old age of 70+ years, she has seen a bit of use.

My 94 Winchester was "grandpas" camp gun. My grandpa and his 2 brothers were sheep herders in central Utah.

The brothers bought the rifle together in 1940, the year of manufacture, and pooled their money in order to buy it. It was a shared resource for the brothers as none of them were particularly wealthy.

I understand the rifle went with them up in the canyons when they were herding sheep to dispatch various predators and kill white tails too.

My Dad eventually inherited it and passed it down to me before he passed away. It has a rich family history and is nowhere in as good of shape as yours......it still functions flawlessly though. Love these rifles and it is a shame they don't make them anymore in USA.

Enjoy!
 
Nice story too.
Hey our families may have know each other. My mothers side were all sheep hearders & still are for that matter. They ran & still run sheep all over Utah & Southern Idaho.
Since my fathers side were cattlemen...they never did see eye to eye. Those damned sheep ruin the grange land ya know....
 
It appears many of us are fond (familiar) with sheep. Does that sound bad?
It doesn't help me that I received a good share of my higher education in Montaaanaaa!
 
Well, I guess we need to be thankful for what we have.

I think the only reason my Dad ended up with this rifle is because it was severely damaged when he found it at my Grandfathers "estate sale". It was sitting in the corner with the lever bent 90 degrees out of whack! Also the front site was damaged and the stock was cracked, but serviceable. Evidently, it received the damage while in a scabbard mounted on a horse. Somehow, a tree branch got stuck in the lever, spooked the horse and bent the lever and cracked the stock.

My Dad claimed it and later had the lever repaired by a gunsmith. I imagine some heat was used to bend it back! You can not tell it was repaired now, looks good.

I ended up painstakingly repairing the crack in the stock and some of the wrist damage per advice from the guys on the Leverguns.com forum. Turned out great and the stock is good to go another 70 years. I think I might need to pull her out and oil up the wood now!

My great grandfather ran sheep in Southern Idaho.... A group of Basque folk living out of wagons. Sadly I did not get his ol Winchester to share a picture
 
My Dad's family were sheep herders and farmers down in Sanpete county area of Utah. My Dad left the area and eventually went to the UofO for graduate school in special education.

Naturally, he ended up with 20 acres in Eugene area, complete with cattle, horses and other farming stuff. Once a farmer, always a farmer.

My great grandfather ran sheep in Southern Idaho.... A group of Basque folk living out of wagons. Sadly I did not get his ol Winchester to share a picture
 
For a rifle that rode around in a scabbard that model 04 is in very nice condition. Obviously the owner (your dad) took very good care of his model 94) One of my most prizes possessions is the Model 95 I got from my dad on his passing (also given to me before he died) I was with him in 1968 when he bought it. And theres a whole family story about how the rifle got into the house (past my mom). SO its quite special.

To read the story check this out on OPB's Gun Stories page http://gunstories.tumblr.com/
Its been the first story on the page since I posted it.
 
I have six 94's. One a .22 magnum. One a .375 big bore. And Four pre 64's. And I'm always looking for another. I guess there is a hole in me, the 94 somehow helps fill.

My brother gave me his when I was 17. He loved that gun. And I guess he loved me more.
I sold it a couple years later when I needed money [Trust me I went hungry first]. My brother Shawn died in an accident soon after that. I wish I could find that one again.

Anyways. The 94 will always be more than a gun to me.
 

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