I needed another old .22 like a hole in the head....

[NIGHTLORD40K]

....but for $100, I couldn't resist.
Scored this really clean Stevens Model 66 at the show today from one of my regular pushers.


Originally listed as the No.66 or "Baby Krag" in Stevens advertising literature, these had a rather short production run from approximately 1929 to 1936. This example was produced after Stevens adopted "Model" numbers circa 1935, so it's likely one of the last 66s made before they switched to the simpler 66-A action.


The 66 mechanism has a rather peculiar quirk in that the magazine tube actually reciprocates with the bolt-



Apparently these can be rather problematic when things start getting worn, but this one is practically new inside and out, so Im hoping for decent feeding.
I've got another couple dozen old rimfire rifles competing for range time, so I'm unlikely to ever wear this one out.


It's missing the rear peep, and they go for nearly as much as I paid for the whole gun, but its also dovetailed for a basic leaf sight, so Ill likely just slap a cheap one on it and call it a day.

 

[Oldschool shooter]

Very nice! I love the older 22 rifles.

 

[LoonWulf]

The 66 mechanism has a rather peculiar quirk in that the magazine tube actually reciprocates with the bolt-

Well i guess if they are calling it a baby krag it should have an odd magazine system too lol.

Sweet rifle, i like odd!

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

Well i guess if they are calling it a baby krag it should have an odd magazine system too lol.

Sweet rifle, i like odd!

I found this odd at first since the Krags would have been pretty old by the time the No.66 was introduced in the '30s, but then I remembered they were being surplussed out of Federal service post WW1, and would likely have been common as hunting sporters during the Depression. Stevens probably wanted to cash in on the name recognition, even though the No.66 had nothing in common with a Krag save a bolt handle and grasping grooves, lol.

 

[Pat Riot]

Looks like a fun rifle. Congrats @NIGHTLORD40K

 

[Eutycus]

Very nice! I love the older 22 rifles.

Me too. My first rifle was a Stevens or a Savage, I forget which.I thought I had your Model 66s "little brother" in the 15-A. But I see mine is from a later production run (1937-1947).

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

Very nice find. I love the vintage 22's.

 

[tubeshooter]

....but for $100, I couldn't resist.

Congratulations! This is pretty much the same thing I said with my last .22 rifle. It is an old Savage/Stevens 87B (part of their "gill gun" or "click-clack" family of rifles).

I didn't grab it that day, but I went home and thought about how the Marlin 60 is dead, and you have to look high and low for a nice classic blue and wood .22 rifle nowadays. And how it was likely as good as many things I could buy new at 2x or 3x the money.


It's done great so far. A little too nice and hard-to-fix for me to treat it as a beater, but like yourself I have a number of options to choose from and none of them will get close to worn out in my lifetime I don't think. Hope yours works out just as well!

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

I have one of the ''gill guns'' too.

 

[Eutycus]

Congratulations! This is pretty much the same thing I said with my last .22 rifle. It is an old Savage/Stevens 87B (part of their "gill gun" or "click-clack" family of rifles).

I didn't grab it that day, but I went home and thought about how the Marlin 60 is dead, and you have to look high and low for a nice classic blue and wood .22 rifle nowadays. And how it was likely as good as many things I could buy new at 2x or 3x the money.


It's done great so far. A little too nice and hard-to-fix for me to treat it as a beater, but like yourself I have a number of options to choose from and none of them will get close to worn out in my lifetime I don't think. Hope yours works out just as well!

Not familiar with the term. What is a gill-gun?

 

[mm93]

I got one of those back around 1967 for tuning up a friend's car! He was broke like most of us were, so asked me if I wanted his rifle for my labor and I was glad to do it!
I turned mine into a single shot homemade target rifle and still have it. Although it looks nothing like it did when he gave it to me! I was 17 yrs. old when I did this, so not professional looking, but I still like it.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

I got one of those back around 1967 for tuning up a friend's car! He was broke like most of us were, so asked me if I wanted his rifle for my labor and I was glad to do it!
I turned mine into a single shot homemade target rifle and still have it. Although it looks nothing like it did when he gave it to me! I was 17 yrs. old when I did this, so not professional looking, but I still like it.

Love it!

 

[Slamfire]

Good deal! Take a look at the quality of wood you got in the 1930's on a low priced rifle. Can't get that on a $100 dollar rifle today.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

Not familiar with the term. What is a gill-gun?

Savage/Stevens made a whole series of .22 semi-autos under many model numbers and brand-names (87A being the most common) that featured cooling vents or "gills" on the sides of the receiver -

The bolt would remain open after firing if one held the trigger, slamming forward upon reset. This gave them their other common nickname of "click-clack" guns.

 

[Gary W. Strange]

I am 22 poor myself. I had back and neck surgery in 2019 and can’t shoot large calibers, that has a lot of recoil, more than 5 shots, in a shooting session. I still hunt and sight in but limit my shots with larger calibers. I have taken to shooting rimfires a lot now. A few weeks ago, I went to a gun show. I have been looking for a nice Anschutz 54 action sporter for years. I walked all over the main floor and didn’t see anything I was interested in. Off the main floor, in a smaller side room, there was a few tables set up. I went in and walked up on an Anschutz 1422, in new condition. No scratches, dings or gouges, bluing was perfect. Never even had a scope on it. I ask if I could pick it up and was told it was ok. I looked it over, ask what it was priced. When he told me, I about passed out. I didn’t Jew or dicker, I went to pulling out money. I have put Talley bases, Talley QD rings, and an old US made Burris fullfield, gloss, scope I had been saving for rifle like this. I have not found exactly what it likes and will shoot best, but it has shot everything from bulk to CCI green tag in groups less than a half inch. I have some Eley, Laupa, SK, and RWS I am going to try when I shoot it again. From the date code, it was made in 1988 and is not a Savage import. I was offered double what I paid for it, before I got it to my truck, at the gun show.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

I am 22 poor myself. I had back and neck surgery in 2019 and can’t shoot large calibers, that has a lot of recoil, more than 5 shots, in a shooting session. I still hunt and sight in but limit my shots with larger calibers. I have taken to shooting rimfires a lot now. A few weeks ago, I went to a gun show. I have been looking for a nice Anschutz 54 action sporter for years. I walked all over the main floor and didn’t see anything I was interested in. Off the main floor, in a smaller side room, there was a few tables set up. I went in and walked up on an Anschutz 1422, in new condition. No scratches, dings or gouges, bluing was perfect. Never even had a scope on it. I ask if I could pick it up and was told it was ok. I looked it over, ask what it was priced. When he told me, I about passed out. I didn’t Jew or dicker, I went to pulling out money. I have put Talley bases, Talley QD rings, and an old US made Burris fullfield, gloss, scope I had been saving for rifle like this. I have not found exactly what it likes and will shoot best, but it has shot everything from bulk to CCI green tag in groups less than a half inch. I have some Eley, Laupa, SK, and RWS I am going to try when I shoot it again. From the date code, it was made in 1988 and is not a Savage import. I was offered double what I paid for it, before I got it to my truck, at the gun show.

View attachment 1208216

Beautiful Anschutz!

 

[doubleh]

I can always find room for another old 22, handgun or rifle.

Some where in the '70-'71'year range I sporterized a Krag for a friend. It was mostly just replacing the stock and I put a nice finish on it. We went to a caliche pit that had some big boulders around the top for him to shoot it. He plopped down behind one of those rocks and rested the rifle on it, no padding at all. I just gritted my teeth and didn't say a word. When he finished shooting the bottom of the fore end had a huge scratch in the finish. He didn't appear to even notice.

 

[Remington1911]

The old guns, "even" the old 22's just have a quality to them that is un matched today. You pick it up and you can feel the workmanship behind them, the pride in making that specific machine. It is not like it is today where a bunch of plastic gets heated and pressed into a form, parts stuck on and tossed in a box for 6x what the thing should cost.

Give me another old 22 any day of the week.

 

[Shanghai McCoy]

OK, this got me wondering that, if a gill gun is one of your grail guns, would that make it a "grill" gun..?

 

[Pat Riot]

@NIGHTLORD40K I really do think you need a new metaphor to convey that you don’t need another .22, but you want it anyway.

 

[Pat Riot]

Scored this really clean Stevens Model 66 at the show today from one of my regular pushers.

I was revisiting your OP and admiring your new old rifle. How long is that barrel? Maybe the picture makes it look longer than what it is but it sure looks like a longer barrel than normally found on .22’s today.

Does the receiver have a short 11mm scope rail on it?

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

OK, this got me wondering that, if a gill gun is one of your grail guns, would that make it a "grill" gun..?

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

I was revisiting your OP and admiring your new old rifle. How long is that barrel? Maybe the picture makes it look longer than what it is but it sure looks like a longer barrel than normally found on .22’s today.

Does the receiver have a short 11mm scope rail on it?

It's 24." I dunno why a lot of the old .22s had such long barrels- they really don't pick up any velocity after 18" or so, at least with modern ammo. Might have had something to do with slower powder burn rates prior to WW2....?

Nope, no provision for a scope. Its drilled and tapped at the extreme rear of the receiver for a peep sight, which is missing, and there is a dovetail blank installed on the barrel for a leaf sight. Already have one on the way, hopefully be able to shoot it Saturday.

 

[Jeff olson]

....but for $100, I couldn't resist.
Scored this really clean Stevens Model 66 at the show today from one of my regular pushers.
View attachment 1208112

Originally listed as the No.66 or "Baby Krag" in Stevens advertising literature, these had a rather short production run from approximately 1929 to 1936. This example was produced after Stevens adopted "Model" numbers circa 1935, so it's likely one of the last 66s made before they switched to the simpler 66-A action.
View attachment 1208114

The 66 mechanism has a rather peculiar quirk in that the magazine tube actually reciprocates with the bolt-
View attachment 1208116
View attachment 1208117

Apparently these can be rather problematic when things start getting worn, but this one is practically new inside and out, so Im hoping for decent feeding.
I've got another couple dozen old rimfire rifles competing for range time, so I'm unlikely to ever wear this one out.
View attachment 1208115
View attachment 1208113
It's missing the rear peep, and they go for nearly as much as I paid for the whole gun, but its also dovetailed for a basic leaf sight, so Ill likely just slap a cheap one on it and call it a day.

Thinking hard about a heavy barrel stevens 416 with a Malcom 8x usmc sniper scope. At $700 I'm hesitant.

 

[Ignition Override]

OP: You very lucky man. You Namba Wan good fortune.

Judicious timing smile at you. Go make hole in clay pigeon 100 yard.