1873 Winchester

[tksims]

Hi,
I'm new here and new to lever guns. I presently don't have a lever gun, but am very much interested in the old Winchester and Colt pump lightning rifles. I'm mostly a sxs double shotgun person.
I wanted to get your expert opinion on a gun that i have come across. A 1873 Winchester 32cal. ser.#165207a. What does the "a" stand for? This rifle has a round barrel with a half magazine tube. Are these common with the half mag.? Could someone date the rifle by the serial number? The metal on this gun is very nice, however i wasn't able to inspect the bore. The wood looked to be sanded at one time with two gouges. It also had a flip up front site. Please excuse my ignorance on these old guns, I'm not sure how to describe the site.
The man was asking 1600.00. I thought it was high, and prolly could be haggled some.
Thanks and take care!

[Gun Smith]

Winchester 1873's are sought after collectables. In any collectable hobby condition is everything. You have described an average condition gun. Without seeing it I would guess $1200.00 to $1500.00 value. The serial number shows 1884 as the mfg date. The "A" stands for some modification made during the run. It doesn't add or subtract value in any case. If the magazine tube is the original length it would be considered a special order rifle, as opposed to the standard configuration (full length tube). The flip up front sight may or may not be original. They could come from the factory or be installed later. It would be a Beech or Lyman manufacture. Go to Gunbroker.com and type in Winchester 1873 to view similar guns to compare condition and prices to your gun.