Kimmy likes this one:
The Model 64 was produced from 1933 to late 1957, and from memory well over 65,000 were made, making this rifle not especially rare. (It was re-issued in 1972 for about a year, chambered only in .30-30 WCF.)
What is rare about this rifle is finding one in excellent condition, because like most lever rifles of the era, they were used hard and often. No safe queen, this one.
And as always, you can’t go wrong with the excellent .32 Winchester Special cartridge, which turns the .30-30 “deer” round into a more powerful “black bear” round. Its only drawback, of course, is its scarcity (and therefore 4x the cost) compared to the .30-30 WCF.
That said, just as a dangerous game rifle chambered in .375 H&H is not going to be used that often (and its ammo cost is therefore irrelevant), the same can be said nowadays for a Win 64 in .32 Win Spec — it has become a specialist rifle rather than an everyday one. So if you’re doing a black bear hunt in Pennsylvania or Maine, for instance, you could do a whole lot worse than carrying one of these into the woods.
And I love that breech-mounted peep sight:
I’ve been on the lookout for another Winchester 30-30, preferably newer and better condition than the one I have. Back in the 1980’s, I picked it up at a flea market for $100. Rough looking but straight shooting, perfect work rifle. But I would love another to either serve as backup or just look better.
But damn. Prices today are ridiculous. Over $1600 for the above? Anything close to affordable looks like it got dragged down a gravel road, anything decent costs way more than I’m going to spend.
There’re some Italian replicas out there that look nice, but finding one in 30-30 is impossible and even then you’re looking at $1400 or better. I can only hope Ruger will put out a Marlin in 30-30 sometime before I die. Collectors has the “Dodge Marksman” model for a reasonable price. Maybe I should amble over and take a peek.
Back when our U.P. hunting camp was in operation one of the old timers carried a Model 94 in .32 special. He inherited the rifle from his dad and it had at least 80 years of very hard miles on it. Friend had a box of Kynoch ammunition that dad had bought in Canada when such acts of anti social behavior were acceptable. We couldn’t get the rifle to shoot into a 2 foot square target at about 25 yards and I experienced one of the few hang fires I’ve seen in 50 years of shooting. A trip to town brought the entire stock of .32 special in the local “sporting goods” shop back to camp – two boxes of 1970s vintage Remington. I lost touch with the old timer and he’d be in his late 80s if he’s still with us. If he is alive I’ll bet that he has some of that Remington ammo left. After they figured if the gun went bang those old timers followed the “one bullet, one deer” principle.
When I started hunting deer near Worlds End State Park in Pennsylvania, just about everyone carried a Model 94 in 34 Win Spl. The hunting was in laurel thickets and most shots were at 25 yards or less. The caliber worked just fine for deer and bears at that close range.
The Model 64 is a real looker.
32 Win Spl….can’t type, never wanted to be a clerk.
If the barrel is worn , the .32 Win Sp. will not shoot well AT ALL. I had one in Alaska that was a loaner (to me). could not keep the shots inside a foot square at 50 feet. It has something to do with the cartridge being made to be re-loaded with black powder, or the barrel rifling meant for black powder, or some such- but it was well noted among the older gun writers that there was no tolerance for a even slightly worn bore. Someone more savvy will come along here and enlighten us on the details.
“If the barrel is worn , the .32 Win Sp. will not shoot well AT ALL.”
Nor will most cartridges. The .222 Rem comes to mind…
Just to look at it, I wonder if it was produced to compete with the immensely popular Savage 99?
Looks very similar to my model 71, though smaller boolits.
71 = .348
The early 1970s reissue of the 64 is properly referred to, and is marked on the barrel, as a Model 64A. My father enjoyed Zane Grey books as a younger man and when kiddie me started reading his collection, it was almost inevitable that the rifle that appeared under the Christmas tree when I was old enough to first get a hunting license would be a Winchester in .30-30. That it was a brand new Model 64A was just icing on the cake. That rifle has been wearing a receiver sight for years and the last deer tagged while using it took two hits in the chest for two shots taken at a distance some experts imply that those poor old .30-30 bullets have run out of steam, laid down and died before reaching, much less being able to do more than bounce off deer hide.
I’ve since managed to get a lovely Model 64 Deer Rifle (unlike several other models, Winchester didn’t call the gussied-up version of the 64 “Deluxe” and gave it that other moniker, but many people just go ahead and call it a Deluxe, regardless) in .32 Special. I like to think that the original owner had it for some number of years, treasured it and then was confronted by old eyes starting to betray him, much like I am doing now. Thus the old Redfield 294 scope system (a scout scope from back before Col. Cooper first coined the term). It’s a nice compromise of a setup, with the scope being minimally awkward for handling and the rifle as a whole gives me pleasure to look at. Unsurprisingly, it’s proven to be quite capable at dropping deer.