Should I get a Winchester 63 or 61???

[yosemitesam64]

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[blitzen]

I'd go for the model 63. My dad had one since I was a kid but it was stolen a couple years ago. Very nice gun. Get on and lock it up, when not shooting it.

 

[ClayinAR]

I think the 63's are the best 22 ever made. Winchester made a few a few years ago. Didn't sell well; I think they were selling for around $500. All that machining. No sheet metal there. The Taurus copy is not well regarded; no scope groove.

I had 5; sold some to buy a Dillon 550. Wish I had waited til I had the money.
Still got 2; one was my Dad's. It was very beat up. I sent it to Simmons about 25 years ago and had it completely refinished, new wood, etc. Simmons would not sleeve it. They said it shot as good as they would expect from their sleeve. Just passable. But a beautiful gun.
The other one I kept was a late model. It has a scope groove. Only made those about the last year or 2 of manufacture. 1957 or so.
Very, very reliable.
The blowback action is the same as the 351 Winchester.
You cant go wrong with one of these.

 

[Davek1977]

I'm in possession of my grandfather's Winchester 62A, which still accounts for a few cottaontails every year.....such a light, handy rifle...

 

[Art Eatman]

A fella really oughta have one of each of the 61, 62 and 63 series. My wife has a 63, and I keep mumbling...

 

[Onmilo]

Shorter and more reliable because it has a straight line feed and does not use an elevator to lift cartridges from the tube magazine to the chamber, there are far fewer parts to wear out.

The Model 61s have an appeal if you also favor Model 12s and Model 42 pump shotguns but they are also longer than they need to be and prone to jamming if they have been heavily used.
They are also quite overpriced on the used gun market because of the collector appeal, running about $300 more than what you will pay for a comparable Model 63 semi auto.

What they will do, if they are working correctly, that a Model 63 will not is feed shorts, longs, and long rifles, High Velocity or Standard Velocity, that is if you want to risk ringing the chamber with a big diet of shorts and provided that hasn't already been done.

Model 63 rifles function best with high velocity loads and avoid CCI Stingers, the case is longer than most Model 63 chambers, same goes for the 61s and 62s.
The longer cartridge case can lead to firing out of battery with the usual split case and ejecting hot gas and material along with occasionally blowing the extractor off the rifle.HTH

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

I've used stingers in mine with zero problems. I don't shoot a lot of them due to the price, but never had a problem. A .22 headspaces on the rim so it's a non issue. While the case is longer than a standard lr the oal is the same.

 

[rcmodel]

I am the proud owner of a 1890 .22 WRF, two 1906's, a 62A, and a 61.

Of them all, the 1906's are my favorates, although the 1890, 61 & 62A are more accurate.

The 1890 octagon barrel is too long & heavy, and the 62A, and hammerless 61 are too long to be truly handy.

rc

 

[Uncle Mike]

Of them all, the 1906's are my favorates, although the 1890, 61 & 62A are more accurate.

Yep...I'll agree!

RC, has that 62A gone breakdown on you?

 

[rcmodel]

Nope!
Works just as good as the day it was made in 1953.

As a matter of fact, I have probably had 5-6 of them through here, and an additional 30 or so 1890's and 06's in the last 15 years.

I have a friend who scours the country and buys every Winchester pump he can find. Then brings them to me for complete action stripping & cleaning, etc.

I can honestly say I have never really seen one that wasn't a complete rust bucket basket case that didn't work perfectly after a good cleaning.

About the most common broken part is the tiny flat spring on the lifter. And I suspect all those get broke while somebody was fooling with it while they had it broken apart for cleaning.

rc

 

[yosemitesam64]

To clarify..I have a choice between a pristine 61 or 63...................................

 

[SwampWolf]

Doesn't it really come down to whether you want a semi-auto or a slide-action? That would seem to be a personal preference that only you can decide.

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

Back in 69 I used a Winchester .22 pump to hunt jack rabbits in Ut. Thank you Mr. Browning.

 

[cisco11]

Yosemite,
Model 63, no doubt!
chuck

 

[Offfhand]

Don't forget the M-62! They have a special charm all their own.