Winchester Lever Action Development: Model 1895 

The "Russian Winchesters" have been popular hunting rifles here in Finland. Unfortunately, many have been sporterized and changed to 8,2x54R or 9.3x54R wildcats because of the old moose hunting laws. After WW I most were sold as surplus, the Finnish Army concentrated on Mosins, they discarded the 1895 with same reasons as US Army.

The rifle arrived today and I dialed in the scope just a couple hours ago ru-vid.comUgkxQt2uORDRfFOVSrO4idv4B90ThT6EOnEL . I haven’t shot with a scope in probably 25 years. The X on the left was my target. (the shot almost in the bullseye on the right X was my father in laws first shot after I made adjustments) The two shots circled are my first 2 shots. Then I brought it down - shot once. Then brought it over to the left. From there zeroed it in to dead center. This all was from 25 yards out. Follow instructions carefully when mounting the scope. So far I'm very happy with the purchase.

Very cool series Ian. I have an 1894 carbine in 30-30 and I love it. I always get comments on it when I bring it out to the range. It was nice to learn more about its development.

Why no 1887 shotgun in this series?

Really great series Ian, thank you!

not exactly correct sir. The 40/72 and 38/72 were not existing cartridges but were developed for the model 1895 exclusively and were never chambered in any other Winchester rifle.

Hey Ian, would you ever consider doing a video on vintage flare pistols? Particularly the Webley flare pistols. I recently discovered (and purchased without exercising wise financial prudence) a top break webley flare gun and I think it's very interesting.

I have a rifle point 30 us what cartridge can I put the caliber 30-40 krag ???.

Really like this series, lots of good info as usual. But what aboot the Model 88 lever action.

can you make a video of the Model 1887/1901 lever-action shotgun as well?

I would pay real money for a "peep" sight in the shape of a marshmallo peep.

The 95 Winchester should be one per household

This, a magazine-fed lever-action rifle, is the mathematical inverse to the Marlin Model 60, a semi-auto fed from a tube magazine.

Browning was a genius, there is no other way to describe him.

"It is a far better combat rifle than a mosin nagant rifle" Them fightin' words Ian.

Cool gun. I would love to have one of these in 7.62x54r

last year one day a young man came to see me about buying his Grand Fathers old model 1895 Winchester .He told me his Grandpa had gave him the rifle and he was asking 300 dollars for it.I asked him how he thought his folks would feel about ,him selling it,I diddn't buy the rifle ,and I hope I talked him out of selling the Old gun,I am sure his Dad would give him 300 dollars if he needed it that bad and just keep the rifle.

As always, I love the wild optimism of the adjustable sight. 900 yards! Sure. No problem. I'll get right on that. :)

Daaaamn John Browning, back at it again with the fresh designs.

95th Winchesters are surprisingly common in old Soviet films about Siberia. Maybe there really were a lot of them, or maybe they were specially collected for filming because of their western look.

That was an interesting aside about Browning's semi-auto shotgun that Winchester turned down. Browning also offered it to Remington for sales in the US (FN sold them in Europe). It sold so well that whoever made that decision at Winchester HAD to have ended up kicking himself for letting it get away. The gun Winchester came up with to try to compete, the Model 1911 shotgun, was not a good design, and has the nickname "the widowmaker." Winchester had to design around Browning's patents, and one of those patents was for a charging handle on the bolt. So Winchester checkered a space on the barrel, and (pointing the gun in a safe direction), you grabbed the barrel and pulled it back to charge the gun. Problems came when shooters had a stuck case (more common in the days of paper shotgun shells that would swell up), and place the butt on the ground and try to force the barrel downward, and inadvertently shoot themselves in the face. I read about one of these old guns claiming a victim this way just five or ten years ago. I have a Winchester Model 1911 that used to belong to my grandfather. but the stock and handguard are split, so I've never shot it. Split stocks are quite common with these, as the two fiber washers used as friction rings wear out and fail pretty quickly, and when they go, recoil becomes truly fierce, and often splits the stock -- yet another reason these guns lagged far behind the Auto 5 in sales.

I've read before that Teddy Roosevelt bought a bunch of these to arm the rough riders with during the Spanish War. Dunno if that's true

First and foremost . This is a great site. But.... How about the mod 88. I believe it was the last new lever action for Winchester. Very quick to the shoulder, reasonable accuracy and detachable mag. A 308 goes to the woods with me every season and does it's part. Thanks and keep your great channel ,reviews coming

Really enjoyed your series on the lever actions, from the Henry to this one. I learned a lot from watching them. Thanks!

Ian, I noticed you said this is the last lever action for Winchester. What about the Model 88, brought out in 1955? I have one in .308 and it's a beautiful example of Winchester manufacturing. Thanks for all your great videos, from a confirmed "gun nut" .

As much as I admire John M. Browning's earlier designs I have always felt that the 1895 Winchester was the sleekest. Maybe, if I'm very, very lucky, I'll find one and add it to my little collection of lever action hunting rifles. I do have a couple of questions that arise from conflicting historical references to the 1895. One: Did Winchester ever actually get paid for the many 1895s shipped to Russia? Or did they get "stiffed" like Smith & Wesson did? and Two: since we know that many 1895s were shipped to Russia where are they now? I feel certain that many were damaged or destroyed in combat like many other types of firearms were but surely SOME survived WWI and the Russian Revolution. Every time I've seen any reference to the 1895 and Russia, much like similar references to the numerous S&W revolvers that were shipped to Russia, there is always a footnote of sorts that infers that the rifles and/or handguns simply vanished so to speak. I'm sure I'm not the only one out here that would like to know what happened to the Winchesters and S&Ws that were shipped/sold to Russia. Any clues or ideas about the subject?

Out fishing and I get a Forgotten Weapons notification. Do I fish or watch the video? I watched the video :D

Slightly off topic but appropriate for the series - did anyone else ever attempt the Lebel solution to the spitzer-in-a-tube magazine problem [a guard ring around the primer]?

What about the '88 as a newer development Ian. Crunchy/ Noisy action, but an accurate sporter.

Seeing the loading procedure I can understand why the Russians wanted stripper clips - seems loading is much more complicated and slower then kings gate or even the original Henry. (now you really have to bring a 2 gun : Mosin Nagant against 1895 Winchester)

Now the question, will we see any comparison-contrast with Winchester's chief competitor, the Marlin?

Thanks, Ian, great tour through the lever-action rifles!

Incredible series, Ian, greatly appreciated to see all of the Winchester lever actions. I learned a lot!

This was an awesome series! Learned a LOT about the Winchester family of rifles. Thank you!

Ian, the 1895 isn't the last Winchester lever action. The introduced the Model 88 after WWII.

Winchester: We don't need to put up with this anymore... I mean it's not like this guys designs have been responsible for keeping us relevant and earning money for all of this time. Browning: Ok, see ya. I go to Belgium now. Ah, serves em right though. Winchester basically stole their original design from Henry anyway.

2:58 He did not call it his 'big medicine' ! That's a misquote by several 'authors' who probably mixed up his 'big-stick-foreign-policy' and his 'medicine gun' quote. Roosevelt wrote in fact in his series _"African game trails : an account of the African wanderings of an American hunter-naturalist"_ , published in Scribner's Magazine, vol. XLVI-XLVIII, from Oct. 1909 to Sept. 1910: _'The Winchester .405 is, at least for me personally, the _*_medicine gun_*_ for lions.'_ There you go. Always check quotes before you re-quote them. Most quotes that circulate on the internet were either never said that way or not by the person to whom they are attributed, so rather come from ignorami (yah, that's the correct Latin plural).

I really dig this focus on whole series of firearms rather than one-off videos when given the chance. It really gives a wider overview of a particular topic.

I find the progression of lever rifles to be interesting. Also, Taxation is theft.

I’m gonna be “that guy” all these years later BUT Teddy never called the 1895 “big medicine” the “Big Stick” was his H&H double rifle, his 1895 in .405 Winchester was his “medicine gun for lion” awesome vid and break down either way!

What about the Winchester model 88, with it's hammerless rotary bolt and exchangable box magazine? Or did Winchester buy that design from Sako (the Sako Finnwolf)?

Anyone who makes a reproduction of this rifle will literally drown in cash. Especially if they make a model that takes Russian stripper clips and is chambered in 7.62x54r.

Man, sometimes I miss the 90's...

Apparently a sport version of this rifle was used in white fang 1991 the Disney movie my profile picture is from that movie does anyone have any knowledge on this?

Please consider doing the forgotten Winchester model 88, the "bolt action rifle with a lever".

I have a 1895 winchester in 405 win from 1921 🤠 love it to the moon and back!

Years ago I had a Browning 1895 in 30/06. Wish I still had it. Yes in the 1980s Browning actually reintroduced this rifle.

What about the Winchester Model 88? I think it was the last lever action brought out by Winchester.

I love these series type videos. I know you can only do them when a collector has them but these are the best.

Mines the 38-72 with a fast taper octagon barrel, made in 1898.

Thanks Ian,i was so exited when i saw you doing the Winchester lever series,because i knew you would get to this. My dad owns a Carbine version that his dad had,All tho he keeps it in storage, and it has some rusting spots on the receiver. its just so exiting to see something on this channel that i have seen first hand, i don't know why, and i can't wait to show him this. Keep up the great work!

You forgot about the 1887 lever action shotgun. Not very popular I know, but it's still there. :)

Winchester traded Babe Ruth to the Belgians.

The 40-72 WCF and 38-72 WCF were introduced in 1895 with the rifle and never chambered in any other firearm.

A Russian Winchester 1895 pretty much the Holy Grail of guns for me

Ian, are you not going to do the Winchester 88?

Very nice .... gee I wish I have one in 30-06

Finished watching this whole series in one work day. Thank you gun Jesus.

Excellent series! The multi-part format worked really well in highlighting the evolution of the rifle. The summing up at the end of this episode was also very well done.

Would you go back and build on this series by talking about competitors to the Winchester guns? I would like to see a videos on what became of Henry, Sharps rifles, and most of all Marlin. Thanks for vids, I love them.

Appreciate your entire Winchester lever action rifle series. Highly informative, clearly presented and extremely enjoyable to watch. Gratitude!!

At 7:44 when showing the 30 U.S. marking what are the 2 marks bookending that? What do they mean?

Kind of a beautiful looking rifle I think.

You are not going to do the Winchester 88 from the 1950s?

Thank you, for an excellent series! Can you recommend a good book for further study?

I was under the impression that the R from 7.62X54R stood for rimmed

Absolutely loved seeing the progression of the lever action in such great detail. Thank you Ian. I would like to see more of these types of video series, just not sure if there's anything left that's quite as iconic as a Winchester.

its interesting how these guns get less and less locked up as they evolved. the common complaint about these for military use was that you could get junk in the action when you open the lever but the earlier guns were pretty sealed up, only the 1890s guns started to have lots of room open up when you cycled it

Was there any reason you didn't mention the various reproductions of the 1895, (like the ones by Miroku) when discussing the production numbers? Since they're repros made by another company do they not count? Or are they not really "Forgotten?" As always, love the videos.

I love my .405...Teddy's lion gun but I sold my .30-40. Dumb me.

Then why do some riffles still have a tube magazine's???? Please help

I'm surprised the 1887 wasn't covered during this whole little series.

geez that forend looks like an m1 carbine!

Apologies if you've already answered this question, but are there any benefits to having an octagonal barrel over a round barrel?

Could you cover Marlin's guns from this time period? I've been doing some research about the leverguns Marlin was putting out to compete with the Winchester designs, and I'm having a hard time getting complete information about Marlin's lineup.

I know it's not a rifle, but what about the Winchester 1887/1901?

Does anyone make reproductions of this awesome rifle?

They should have made these to accept stripper clips from begin with. In 1895 I doubt any army would have considered a rifle that requires loading individual bullets.

So let's sum it up: Volcanic pistol 1855 Henry 1860 Win. 1866 Win. 1873 Win. 1876 Win. 1886 Win. 1892 Win. 1894 Win. 1895 That makes a fine collection of a 40 year milestone in gun design. It can become quite huge too, if you get as much variants as possible ... and quite expensive.

I'm sorry to trouble you. I will be Japanese. Sorry for the poor English translated by Google ...! 😓 I have a question this time, so I made a comment. I know that the most famous gun you are using this time is the "7.62x54mmR bullet". However, in the introduction of this gun in my hometown of Japan (Wikipedia), it was stated that there is a model that can use "7.92x57mm Mauser" or "8mm Mauser". Do you know? I really want to know it as one of the materials used for the novel ...! So, I'm sorry to trouble you, but ... please reply ...!🙏

What a super interesting series! Incredibly detailed without ever being boring. That's quality! By the way, the 1873 or the 1892 ai found the most interesting/beautiful.

I still love that rifle. I'm just not sure in which caliber to get one in. 375 Win or 405 Win. Tho I'm leaning towards the 375 Win. Thx!!!! What an elegant design. A true CLASSIC, right there.

I have a 1895 in 405 WCF 80 % condition 26" barrel Lyman rear site with the flip over front good wood no cracks gouges Winchester original widow peek recoil pad .Ser# says made in 1903 but the 405 came in 1904 ? must be a first one off the line I have no idea of the value but wont sell it anyway .The rifle came to me with 6 boxes of western new original amo too .

I HAVE A 95 SRC IN 30/40.IN THE BUTTSTOCK I FOUND A PULL THRU AND A KRAG OILER. Was there a special cleaning rod?

This 1895 Winchester in .30-06 caliber chambering would have been a good rear area rifle for training troops, military police, artillery troops, guards, drivers and other service troops, especially in a carbine form. The U.S. War Department should have come up with a carbine form of the Winchester 1895, probably with a 24 inch or better yet a 20 inch barrel. A stripper clip arrangement could have been made to use the same .30-06, five round ammo clips as the 1903 Springfield. Say for instance, the US National Guard and Reserve troops could have had this carbine version of the Winchester1895 rifle along with many of the active duty rear area troops. The Guard and Reserve troops in the frontline infantry could have turned in their Winchester 1895 carbines for whatever frontline bolt action rifle the War Department could give them, if and only if supplies of new rifles were available. But at least the Guard and Reserve would have had the carbine Winchester 1895 rifle to serve with if called up. This factor could have freed up 1903 Springfields for the frontline active duty infantry. The Savage lever action could have filled a similar role. The lever action Winchester 1895 in carbine form would have worked for the Navy sailors who have a need for a rifle for boarding, guard duty, and for port security etc. The point is the Winchester 1895 rifle chambered in .30-06 in carbine form could have been purchased for Guard, Reserve, and rear area troops and for the entire Navy Department, minus the frontline Marines infantry. This carbine 1895 Winchestr rifle could have worked well in this role. The Signal Corps could have also bought this carbine Winchester 1895 for its troops in the newly created Air Service too. The Coast Artillery, Border Patrol, Cavalry Corps, Military Police, federal civilian law enforcement all would have loved a handy carbine version of the 1895 Winchester rifle. The fact that this rifle served well with the Russian Army in World War One, the Russian Civil War and in the Spanish Civil War speaks to the validity of these statements made here. Such a scheme for the United States would have freed industrial capacity for the War Department and the Marine Corps to equip their frontline infantry with the most desirable bolt action rifle design of their troops needs at the time. This carbine Winchester 1895 rifle would have been perfect for training, and rear area troops providing them with an adequate service rifle. So purchasing a a MILLION PLUS of these carbine Winchester 1895 rifles would have been extremely cost effective, especially if optimized for mass production. These rear area carbine service rifle would have been battle sight zeroed for 300 meters at the factory with a single peep or buckhorn type sight. The idea here is once a soldier zeroed his rifle, no further adjustments should have been necessary or even allowed. The more complex lever action system would have worked fine for these rear area troops who "need something to shoot just in case." These rear area troops wouldn't have had to shoot very often because their workday tasks don't include any regular need for shooting. The carbine version with a 20 inch barrel would have been ideal for getting into and out of railroad cars, ships, vehicles, aircraft or horses. We probably could have used this rifle into the 1930's or even longer for rear area security, training and 2nd echelon troops like Coast Artillery, industrial plant and railroad guards well into World War Two. Winchester had the machine tools ready for use BEFORE the First World War. The War and Navy Department were short sighted in not improving and ruthlessly standardizing this 1895 Winchester rifle design for mass production for rear area troops, security tasks, cavalry, training, Coast Artillery, the Navy Department, Guard and Reserve troops, and countless law enforcement or Border Patrol missions.

A Russian contract 1895 in 7.62x54mmR is one of my "unicorn" rifles I would love to own. I do like the diopter sights!! Brain storm, I wonder how a lever action operation would work with an AR style rotating bolt.

I own one myself chambered in 30-40 Kraig. Gorgeous piece. Serial stamp #469 I’d like to see a video explaining the deference of those first 5k models in comparison to these. Good video

>A far better combat weapon than a Mosin-Nagant Can you hear that? That's the sound of countless Bubba's who swear up and down that their Russian Shit-Stick is perfect for WW3/The Apocalypse crying out in agony.

The actual caliber was .303 not 30/06 or 30/03. I had one in German Nickle Steel for many years. It was a good weapon, not my favorite lever action which was the Winchester 88 in .308

A very interesting video. I had a 94 for many years (albeit post 1964) but have ever had a 1895 in my hands. The 94 had a 'striker transfer' button in the locking block so that a cartridge could not be fired without the block being in complete battery. I'm not able to see that in the 1895. Did it have one?

Don't by a gun by a browning!!!

Never heard of this beautiful rifle before well I live in Carrickfergus Northern Ireland and a vetran due to our daft laws I can't even get an air rifle, even so I carried quite a few ppws over the years . Wee question for you Ian was there any Rifles that fired different calibres of 30 calibre ie one rifle firming 303 306 7.62x54 just a thought,

Query: on the 1894 the transfer bar for the firing pin is located on the locking block. On the 1895 it appears to be on the back of the bolt itself, so what serves as a disconnector on the 1895? love that ancient Lyman sight system.

"We've reached the conclusion to the saga of the Winchester Lever Action Rifle" Winchester 88 "nobody loves me..."

Awesome series with a lot of educational value. I really appreciate you making a complete series on the Winchester lever action design and going into the real engineering reason why each model was created. I wish TV still had interesting programs like you provide.

Yes I remember seeing ads for 95s under 10 dollars in 762×54r I wanted one but had first no knowledge of the round and my allowance was only 25 cents per week for my part of life in the of an American family after WW2

The 30 US chamber marking can be confusing considering they also chambered it in the 30-06. Just sayin.

I had 4 of them. All .303 British. All very very accurate. But heavy for hunting in the Pennsylvania mountains.

Serious question, Why did they not also chamber in 30 06 with Springfield stripper clips?

The 1895 isn't the last Winchester lever design, that would be the model 88. Model 88 is completely its own animal, it isn't a rehash or similar to anything before it.