1895 Winchester "Big Medicine" Range Report, pics, video...

[O.S.O.K.]

And free popcorn if you go pop it yourself

OK, got to the range with the 95 today. Happy Mother's day!

Anyhoo, gotta grab the opportunity when you can

I have to say that I really enjoyed shooting this rifle. It does recoil some as you will see, but it's fun!

Here's a pic of it waiting to play at the range:



The ammo:



50 yard target: (3 shots, from bench)



100 yard target: (5 shots, from bench)



And 4 shots (mag full) at 50 yards from standing, rapid aimed fire:



Not too shabby for rapid fire huh? I was thinking "charging rhino! must kill!!!"

And now for the grand finale.... the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4S6UIYQgv0

Watching the video segments for the first time, all's I could think is "OMG, I need to go on a diet"...

Getting old is a booger

[TedH]

That's a really cool rifle, looks like a shooter too!

You know what they say, the camera adds 10 lbs.

[O.S.O.K.]

Thanks. But if it added 40 pounds my problem would be solved

[Old Time Hunter]

I don't know there OSOK, I'd say a few more pounds added on you would have quite an advantage with that built in elbow rest.. At least that is the excuse I use to the wife.

Sure looks as like the .405 has a hell of a wallop. Now that I have two of them, I am going to have to fire one of them.

[Rusty]

I'm impressed... you didn't flinch when you tried to fire it with the safety on.


I bet that feels stout shooting from the bench.

[Pathfinder09]

I beleive bro, I beleive!

[O.S.O.K.]

You know, it was stout but it wan't what I'd call punishing.

I really did like it and plan on shooting it more often.

I may have found my caliber nirvana

[Pete44ru]

Hey, Jac - You (and that M95) ROCK !

FWIW - I've found benching heavies much easier on the old bod, if I rest my elbows on a soft guncase instead of a hard benchtop.

.

[Dave]

Nice shooting and cool vid! Like Rusty said you didn't flinch at all when you dropped the hammer with the safety on.

[KirkD]

I enjoyed the video. It's the next best thing to actually being there. I tried out a friend's original 405 last year, taking about 10 shots through it. It gives a pretty good belt, certainly more than any of my other guns. His had a steel crescent butt, which helps a fellow appreciate the power of the rifle a little more. I really liked it and he was selling it, but it was a little more cash than I could find growing on the cash tree out behind the house.

[O.S.O.K.]

Years and years of shooting - with rifles that don't recoild so much can help you learn to hold steady at the break of the sear

I bet most here that shoot often would do the same.

I promise you that there are rifles that make me flinch...

[O.S.O.K.]

Kirk, I hear you. My 44 Mag Rossi is about all the recoil I want with a well designed and placed cressent BP. It's not bad but its on the edge with 310 grain/1600 fps loads for sure.

[O.S.O.K.]

Hey, I just watched a little documentary on youtube about Teddy's rifle - in this, it mentioned that he collected 11,000 zoological specimens on his African trip. Wow.

[kimwcook]

Pretty cool, O.S.O.K. Nice rifle.

[Rusty]

I don't have any reloading info on the .405 so I went to look it up. They say the round came out in 1904 and was obsolete by 1936. One thing I did notice is that with a 300 grain bullet it is only 200 FPS faster that a .444 Marlin, according to the books. I think the real draw is the '95 action. I'll bet that a 300 grain cast bullet at about 1900 FPS would be a breeze to shoot and make that expensive brass last forever.

You got a great deal on that one, Congratulations!

[jkbrea]

Great post! Beautiful rifle. Recoil pads sure help. I sighted in my 7mm rem mag and 45-70 a couple days ago. Still a little sore.

[olyinaz]

Lovely rifle!

Best,
Oly

[Ravenman]

Your great report saved my day. A real beauty your Winchester 1895

[Alan Wood]

Thank you for posting the video! Nice rifle that!

[Borregos]

Enjoyed that, thanks for posting, nice looking rifle

[O.S.O.K.]

Thanks all.

I have loading data from Hodgdon and it lists 400 grain Woodleigh bullets too -1928 & 1945 fps. It also has a 300 grain Hornady load with Benchmark posting 2404 fps and only 42200 PSI.

This is all in modern 95's or stronger of course.

If I had an original, I'd keep the pressure below 40K which easily allows for original velocity of 2200 with 300 grainers.

Interesting to see that Teddy's 95 was plain Jane with a red rubber buttpad.

[Modoc ED]

Great shooting. Nice rifle too. Looks like you had a fun time. Don't forget to fill us in on your reloads after you shoot them. Thanks for the fun video.

[C. Cash]

Great shooting. Nice rifle too. Looks like you had a fun time. Don't forget to fill us in on your reloads after you shoot them. Thanks for the fun video.

+1 Looks great and thanks for sharing OSOK!

[O.S.O.K.]

Thanks. Its the kind of video that only a gun nut would like

Anybody esle would stop the vid after 30 seconds

[O.S.O.K.]

Here's a shorter version - just of the 4 shots standing - only slowed down 1/2 speed. Just messing around...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwG2gGY-hz8

[Don McDowell]

Well here's something you can shoot for....
Using Rl 12 and the northfork 300 gr ss , clocked at 2350 fps my rifle shot this group (and several similar to it) at 100 yds off of crossticks. The best accuracy I ever got from the Hornady bullets was using Hogdons "youth load" of 4895.

[O.S.O.K.]

Thanks Don. I'm not sure about the Hornady bullets. I usually get excellent accuracy out of them.

Did you do that with the standard sights?

[Don McDowell]

I was using a one ragged hole sight mounted on a spare winchester 94 rear sight, up until the time I put the Lyman 38 repro on the rifle. That 38 is what it's been wearing since 04 or 5.

[O.S.O.K.]

Ah. I have a Pacific Tool sight on my 30 US original 95. I really like it. Its a copy of that same Lyman sight.

I just have a hard time thinking of d/t'ing this rifle.

If I do, will it lower the value? You'd think not - with the $100 sight on it...

But, I'm not planning on ever giving this one up to the grist...

[Don McDowell]

I don't think d&t for the lyman sights will detract any from the value, it's only 1 hole easily plugged with a 10-32 screw.
If your rifle is one of the later editions that's set for the Williams/lyman reciever sight , I think that's the way I'ld go if it's primary use is for mid range target and hunting. The lyman does make shots to 800 yds and beyond more probable.
Leaving the one ragged hole set up on the rifle for hunting use is probably my favored opption, but with the 225+ dollars and long wait involved in getting the lyman sight mounted, that rifle ain't goin nowhere without it.

[Leverluver]

Donb

I was really thinking about the 21 sight for long range p-dogging but the p-dogs are pretty scarce now. Like I don't have other projects (one of them your AI )

[Don McDowell]

Yuppers I'ld like to see some AI results...
I think those Peabody 21's are probably better built than the Ukranian 38's. If you can't find any prairie rats, then maybe you'ld ought to work on some castbullet loads and do some long range levergun bpcr match type stuff.

[Sixgun]

I'll bet that a 300 grain cast bullet at about 1900 FPS would be a breeze to shoot and make that expensive brass last forever.

Thats what I was thinking. The 405 is one I never played with at any great extent. But I've played with many other 40 calibers and the 300 grain bullet at 1500-1700 is fun to shoot and accurate as far as I can see.

With the faster twist in the 405, a 330 grain semi-spitzer gas check @ 1700 would be comfortable to shoot all day and would cost about .15 cents a round. ------------Sixgun

[Leverluver]

Sixgun

A 330 gas check is just what I am working with. 1800 and under is quite pleasant.

Don

The AI will probably be July at least. I'm doing about 35 hrs overtime every week. Hardly time to sleep. Getting too old for that many hours, week in week out. The lever/long range sounds fun but with my schedule something "planned" is hard to pull off.

[O.S.O.K.]

I don't think d&t for the lyman sights will detract any from the value, it's only 1 hole easily plugged with a 10-32 screw.
If your rifle is one of the later editions that's set for the Williams/lyman reciever sight , I think that's the way I'ld go if it's primary use is for mid range target and hunting. The lyman does make shots to 800 yds and beyond more probable.
Leaving the one ragged hole set up on the rifle for hunting use is probably my favored opption, but with the 225+ dollars and long wait involved in getting the lyman sight mounted, that rifle ain't goin nowhere without it.

I don't think mine is the "later". No holes d/t'd on the receiver that would work that I know of...

I installed the Pacific sight on my other 95 myself. It came with the correct drill and tap I think - I have a d/t set anyway.

It was a little scary but it worked just fine.

[Don McDowell]

Remember Mike, you wished for just one more energy boom, and you promised to not let this one go to waste? Look at all the money going into your retirement fund.

[Don McDowell]

Osok another option for sights on the 95, is Marbles has a tang sight that works on the saftied Winchesters. I'm not a fan of tang sights on a levergun at all, but my shooting pardner has one of those sights on his 405 and it works well but he did have to get the taller stem to get the elevation to shoot cast to 300.

[Leverluver]

I'll be the richest dead guy in WY

[crs]

Leverluver and Don,
How far are you guys from Northeast New Mexico?

One place I hunt up there for pronghorns also lets us shoot on the largest prairie dog town that I have ever seen. The rancher tells us that the only time anyone shoots there is after completing an antelope/pronghorn hunt.
So, if you want to try it, we have a couple of openings left for this October pronghorn season. You can usually pot your antelope the first day and then get in two full days of blasting dogs. You can burn a pile of ammo and never put a dent in the PD population.
Any interest? This is a DWWC hunt, but outsiders are allowed.

[Leverluver]

How about just the dogs? I'd rather eat the liners out of my snow pacs than speed goat. The smell of them turn me. There's always about half dozen carcasses (road kill) in the two miles from house to shop.

[crs]

Leverluver,you are missing out on some of the best venison ever! Tell you what, you pay for your antelope, shoot it, tag it, and give it to me and you can shoot dogs the rest of the time!
Actually, the dog shooting is a bonus for the ranchers antelope hunters and some would rather shoot the PDs than the antelope, but no one gets to that part of the ranch free. Now, he might let you pay for the antelope hunt and shoot only dogs, but all my crowd favors the prairie goats so much they want theirs in the cooler before target shooting dogs.
Here is a picture of the ranch managers wife with her first pronghorn:



She is a good cook too.

[Don McDowell]

Antelope is alright for jerky and salami etc, but I get my landowner license here.....

Prairie dogs we just got thru poisoning 3towns......