Winchester Model 68

Last updated
Winchester Model 68
Type Rifle
Place of originUnited States
Production history
Manufacturer Winchester Repeating Arms Company
Unit costUS$6.35 (1934, retail); US$8.15 (1945, retail) [1]
Produced1934–1944
No. builtc.98,496 [2] –100,730 [3]
Specifications
Mass5 lb (2 kg)
Barrel  length27 in (690 mm)
Cartridge .22 Short, .22 Long, or .22 Long Rifle interchangeably (standard); .22 WRF (1938-onwards, optional) [4]
Action Bolt-action
Feed system Single-shot
SightsAperture rear sight, hooded post front sight

The Winchester Model 68 was a single-shot, bolt-action .22 caliber rimfire rifle sold from 1934 to 1945 by Winchester Repeating Arms Company. While almost identical to the slightly cheaper Winchester Model 67, it offered an aperture sight.

Contents

Origins and design

The early 1930s were a period of intense competition amongst American rifle manufacturers such including Winchester, Iver Johnson, and Mossberg. In an attempt to win the loyalty of entry-level single-shot rimfire rifle buyers, these companies continuously cut production costs and pared profits down to the bare minimum. Winchester already offered a single-shot rimfire rifle aimed at the competition market, the Model 60A, but it had failed to win significant market share due to its relatively high price and was considered a sales disappointment. [5]

Winchester had already embarked on a program to reduce the production costs of the entry-level Model 60, resulting in the new Model 67, and the design of a similar lower-priced target rifle was a logical next step. As with the Model 60 from which they were derived, the cocking piece at the rear of the bolt had to be manually drawn rearwards to cock the action after closing the bolt, but the new rifles featured a wing-style safety with more easily visible "SAFE" and "FIRE" indications. The front sight of the Model 68 was a Model 97A with a removable sheetmetal hood and the rear sight was a Model 96A, [2] featuring a removable disc, which had a smaller aperture better suited for target shooting. With the insert removed, the sight was less accurate but offered more light — making it better for small game hunting and informal plinking. Both rifles featured a stock made of plain uncheckered walnut with a pistol grip and finger grooves, and both were takedown designs; the barreled action was easily removed by turning a screw under the stock using a penny.

Production

The Model 68 was introduced alongside the Model 67 in May 1934 and both rifles immediately proved popular. The Model 68's sales rapidly outpaced the more expensive but slightly better-equipped Model 60A, which was still being sold from inventory, although production had been placed on hiatus in April 1934. The Model 68's sales eventually undercut the Model 60A to such an extent that production of the latter was never resumed. [6]

Production changes to the Model 68 generally paralleled the Model 67. The finger grooves in the stock were omitted starting in mid-1935, the bolt retaining spring was eliminated in August 1937, and the sear and extractor were modified in January 1938 to throw ejected cases farther when the bolt was opened. An optional .22 WRF chambering was added in April 1938, somewhat later than its 1935 introduction on the Model 67. [7]

Winchester-branded telescopic sights were first offered in 1937. Options were a 2¾-power scope with crosshairs or a vertical aiming post and a 5-power scope with crosshairs. Open sights were retained; the scopes were boxed separately and attached to integral bases on the barrel by the rifle's buyer. The telescopic-sight options were discontinued in 1939. [3]

In August 1943, Winchester management decided to offer the same peep sights used on the Model 68 as options for the Model 67, effectively rendering the Model 68 redundant, although it was curiously not formally discontinued until September 1944. Sales from inventory continued into 1945 and the rifle was listed in the 1946 price list although stocks had already been depleted. Approximately 98,496 [2] to 100,730 [3] Model 68s were produced. The Model 68 was not produced with serial numbers, which were not required on rifles or shotguns made or imported to the United States prior to the Gun Control Act of 1968.

Prices of the Model 68 on today's collector market are comparable to the Model 67, but the relatively rare .22 WRF chambering triples the values of the rifle, a larger premium than the same chambering commands on the Model 67. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Single-shot</span> Firearm that holds one round of ammunition

In firearm designs, the term single-shot refers to guns that can hold only a single round of ammunition inside and thus must be reloaded manually after every shot. Compared to multi-shot repeating firearms ("repeaters"), single-shot designs have no moving parts other than the trigger, hammer/firing pin or frizzen, and therefore do not need a sizable receiver behind the barrel to accommodate a moving action, making them far less complex and more robust than revolvers or magazine/belt-fed firearms, but also with much slower rates of fire.

Savage Arms is an American gunmaker based in Westfield, Massachusetts, with operations in Canada. Savage makes a variety of rimfire and centerfire rifles, as well as Stevens single-shot rifles and shotguns. The company is best known for the Model 99 lever-action rifle, no longer in production, and the .300 Savage. Savage was a subsidiary of Vista Outdoor until 2019 when it was spun off.

The Accuracy International Arctic Warfare rifle is a bolt-action sniper rifle designed and manufactured by the British company Accuracy International. It has proved popular as a civilian, police, and military rifle since its introduction in the 1980s. The rifles have some features that improve performance in very cold conditions without impairing operation in less extreme conditions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire</span> Rimfire cartridge

The .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire, also called .22 WMR, .22 Magnum, .22 WMRF, .22 MRF, or .22 Mag, is a rimfire cartridge. Originally loaded with a bullet weight of 40 grains (2.6 g) delivering velocities in the 2,000 feet per second (610 m/s) range from a rifle barrel, .22 WMR is now loaded with bullet weights ranging from 50 grains (3.2 g) at 1,530 feet per second (470 m/s) to 30 grains (1.9 g) at 2,200 feet per second (670 m/s).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metallic silhouette shooting</span>

Metallic silhouette shooting is a group of target shooting disciplines that involves shooting at steel targets representing game animals at varying distances, seeking to knock the metal target over. Metallic silhouette is shot with large bore rifles fired freehand without support out to 500 meters, and with large bore handguns from the prone position with only body support out to 200 meters. Competitions are also held with airguns and black-powder firearms. A related genre is shot with bow and arrow, the metal targets being replaced with cardboard or foam. The targets used are rams, turkeys, pigs, and chickens, which are cut to different scales and set at certain distances from the shooter depending on the specific discipline.

The Marlin Model 60, also known as the Marlin Glenfield Model 60, is a semi-automatic rifle that fires the .22 LR rimfire cartridge. Produced by Remington Arms in Huntsville, Alabama formerly in Mayfield, Kentucky, formerly by Marlin Firearms Company of North Haven, Connecticut, it was in continuous production from 1960 to 2020 and the company says it is the most popular rifle of its kind in the world. Major features include a micro-groove barrel, a cross-bolt safety, hardwood stock with Monte Carlo comb, and brass or blued steel inner magazine tube. The Marlin Model 795 is a very similar rifle and based on the Marlin Model 60, changed only to accept a detachable box magazine.

The Winchester Model 1894 rifle is a lever-action repeating rifle that became one of the most famous and popular hunting rifles of all time. It was designed by John Browning in 1894 and originally chambered to fire two metallic black powder cartridges, the .32-40 Winchester and .38-55 Winchester. It was the first rifle to chamber the smokeless powder round, the .30 WCF in 1895. In 1901, Winchester created the new .32 Winchester Special caliber with production of rifles starting in 1902.

The Remington Model 597 is an American semi-automatic rifle that was manufactured by Remington Arms at the company's Mayfield, Kentucky and Huntsville, Alabama plant. The .22 Long Rifle version has a removable 10-round magazine, while the magazines for the larger .22 WMR and .17 HMR cartridges hold eight rounds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marlin Model 1894</span> Carbine

The Marlin Model 1894 is a lever-action repeating rifle introduced in 1894 by the Marlin Firearms Company of North Haven, Connecticut. At its introduction the rifle came with a 24-inch barrel and was chambered for a variety of rounds such as .25-20 Winchester, .32-20 Winchester, .38-40, and .44-40. Variants in other chamberings remain in production today.

The CZ 452 also known as BRNO Model Two .22 Rifle is a series of magazine-fed bolt-action rimfire repeating rifles manufactured by the Czech firearms manufacturer Česká Zbrojovka Uherský Brod and imported into the United States by CZ-USA. Most versions of the 452 rifle series were discontinued in 2011 and replaced by the CZ 455, although CZ continues to offer the CZ 452 American in a left-hand model, with the bolt handle and ejection port located on the left side of the rifle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.22 Winchester Rimfire</span> Rimfire rifle cartridge

The .22 Winchester Rimfire is an American rimfire rifle cartridge.

The Winchester Model 54 is a bolt-action rifle manufactured by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. The 54 was the first successful production run civilian centerfire bolt action for Winchester.

The Winchester Model 52 was a bolt-action .22-caliber target rifle introduced by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company in 1920. For many years it was the premier smallbore match rifle in the United States, if not the world. Known as the "King of the .22s," the Model 52 Sporter was ranked by Field & Stream as one of "the 50 best guns ever made" and described by Winchester historian Herbert Houze as "perfection in design." However, by the 1970s the World War I-era design was showing its age and had given way in top-level competition to newer match rifles from Walther and Anschütz; the costly-to-produce Model 52, which had long been a loss leader prestige product by that time, was finally discontinued when US Repeating Arms took over the manufacture of Winchester rifles from Olin Corporation in 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winchester Model 1907</span> Semi-automatic rifle

The Winchester Model 1907 is a blowback-operated, semi-automatic rifle produced by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company beginning in 1907 with production ending in 1957. It fired a cartridge of intermediate power, cycled through a semi-automatic operating mechanism, fed from a 5, 10, or 15 round detachable box magazine located immediately forward of the trigger guard. In size and handling, it is much like an M1 carbine, though the 1907 is heavier and fires a much harder hitting round.

The Winchester Model 1890 is a slide-action repeating rifle produced by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company in the late 19th and early 20th century.

The Parker-Hale Model 82 (M82) is the military version of the Parker-Hale 1200TX target rifle; it was accepted for service by several nations for both military and police use. In appearance and design terms the Model 82 is an entirely conventional sniping weapon. It uses a manual bolt action the same as the classic Mauser 98 rifle, allied to a heavy free-floating barrel chambered for the 7.62×51mm NATO round. The barrel weighs 1.98 kg and is manufactured from chrome molybdenum steel. The Model 82 has an integral four-round magazine and an entirely self-contained trigger unit which can be adjusted as required.

The Winchester Model 69 is a bolt-action .22 caliber repeating rifle first produced in 1935 by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. It was marketed as Winchester's mid-priced bolt-action rimfire sporting rifle, positioned above inexpensive single-shot rifles such as the Model 68 and beneath the prestigious Model 52. Model 69/69A were sold with both a short and Long Rifle 5 shot magazine magazine until circa 1950.

The Winchester Model 67 was a single-shot, bolt-action .22 caliber rimfire rifle sold from 1934 to 1963 by Winchester Repeating Arms Company. Based on the earlier Model 60, the Model 67 was the mainstay of Winchester's inexpensive single-shot rifle lineup. A rare variant, the Model 677, was produced with telescopic sights and no provisions for iron sights.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blaser R8</span> Straight-pull rifle

The Blaser R8 is a German straight-pull rifle known for its radially locking bolt system, modularity and its barrel mounted scope mount manufactured by Blaser. The rifle also features a manual cocking system and a direct trigger. In 2015 there had been produced more than 100,000 complete Blaser R8 rifles.

References

  1. ↑ Houze, p. 164.
  2. 1 2 3 Houze, p. 154.
  3. 1 2 3 Henshaw, pp. 105-106.
  4. ↑ Houze, p. 163.
  5. ↑ Houze, p. 147.
  6. ↑ Houze, pp. 146-147.
  7. ↑ Houze, pp. 160-163.
  8. ↑ Fjestad, pp. 2025-2026.

The first 100 model 68 rifles were serial numbered.[ citation needed ]

Bibliography

  1. Henshaw, Thomas, The History of Winchester Firearms 1866-1992 6th Ed. Clinton, NJ, USA: New Win Publishing, Inc. 1993. ISBN   0-8329-0503-8.
  2. Houze, Herbert G. To the dreams of youth: Winchester .22 Caliber Single Shot Rifle. Iola, WI, USA: Krause Publications, Inc. 1993. ISBN   0-87341-237-0
  3. "COLLECTORS CORNER: Collecting the Bolt-Action Winchester .22 Rifle" http://www.ogca.com/boltaction22rifle.htm
  4. Fjestad, S.P., Blue Book of Gun Values 30th Ed. Minneapolis, MN, USA: Blue Book Publications, Inc. 2009. ISBN   1-886768-87-0.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.