Will Winchester bring back the M94?

[B.D. Turner]

Will Winchester ever bring back the M94? That rifle is as american as apple pie, the hot dog and baseball.

 

[JNewell]

Ask us again when the current license to use the name on firearms has expired and been renewed by FN or licensed to some other firm? IIRC, the license expires some time this year. No one's likely to start up production without some period of time during which they know they'll be able to sell a "Winchester" 1894 - long enough to recoup their investment.

 

[ArmedBear]

Given that Henry is now offering a .30-30 lever gun and Mossberg has apparently announced a forthcoming .30-30 lever gun, it does appear that at least some people think there's room for more than the 336 in the marketplace. Also, Rossi is selling Brazilian-made 1892's (similar gun in pistol calibers), in many variations for higher prices than you might expect, and Uberti is busily selling replicas of various old Winchesters for more than any production 94s ever cost when they still made them.

It would strike me as strange if nobody did reintroduce the 94. HOWEVER, if they're smart, they'll wait and make really GOOD ones, to overcome the "sure ain't what it used to be" reputation of the recent 94's.

 

[Win75]

A current issue of one of the predator hunting magazines has an article about the Model 70 with a pic. The writer says that the 94 will be re-introduced in mid 2009.

The magazine is a friends and I don't remember the exact name.

 

[paintballdude902]

i hope that if they do they make more than the carbine

i would love to pick up a 26 inch octagon case colored

that was my fathers favorite gun before he sold it in the '70s his was made in 1909 i believe but i cant afford the 1-2k for a present

 

[HisDivineShadow]

I'm quite dissapointed Winchester hasn't jumped on the '73, I mean who'd buy a Uberti/Cimarron if you could get a real Winchester '73 for a similar price?

Atleast they are making the 92, but only in those large loop lever configurations and with scrolling. The 92 is much more interesting to me than the 94.

 

[ArmedBear]

Atleast they are making the 92, but only in those large loop lever configurations and with scrolling. The 92 is much more interesting to me than the 94.

"They" are making nothing. Miroku in Japan is making the 92 for FN and selling it as a Winchester.

I mean who'd buy a Uberti/Cimarron if you could get a real Winchester '73 for a similar price?

I sure would, because I'd want the better gun. We'll see what new Winchesters look like; before the plant closed, a lot of people were happily paying more for a Uberti than any "real" Winchester lever gun. And Uberti has only gotten better under Beretta's wing.

Note that many would rather shoot a Krieghoff than a "real" Remington 32, also.

 

[skinewmexico]

Isn't it funny when people talk about Winchester like they're still a company.....

 

[HisDivineShadow]

Oh well I'll just go look at that Rossi then...

 

[uneasy_rider]

"They" are making nothing. Miroku in Japan is making the 92 for FN and selling it as a Winchester.

The Japchesters are better quality rifles than anything Winchester has put out in a long time.

 

[tallpaul]

I just wish somebody would produce the 92/94 series in an affordable takedown like winchester announce right before the closing! I wanted a .44 and a .357 with the 16 inch non ported barrel...

wouls be about an ideal carbine for quite a few of us I believe.

 

[HisDivineShadow]

Armi Sport makes a take down Winchester 92. I want one, but I have a hard time justifying 1000 euros when a Rossi can be had for 600.

 

[ArmedBear]

The Japchesters are better quality rifles than anything Winchester has put out in a long time.

True, but so is and has been a Marlin, for a much better price (assuming you want a rifle, not a Japanese-made wall hanger with John Wayne's picture on it.)

Maybe Norinco should make a Chon Wang commemorative.

 

[Richard.Howe]

I don't know an answer to your question about the M94.

But, the FN factory where the new M70s are produced has made M70s for quite a while, sold under the FN label. It has not made any M94s.

So, I think it's unlikely FN will start making the 94 again.

 

[Gewehr98]

I don't get that reference.

True, but so is and has been a Marlin, for a much better price (assuming you want a rifle, not a Japanese-made wall hanger with John Wayne's picture on it.)

Are you talking about a high-grade Miroku/Winchester with engraving, or the plain-vanilla Miroku/Winchester Model 95 and Miroku/Winchester Model 1885 HiWall like the ones residing in my gun safe that get taken out and fired?

(IOW, they're not all for show and wall-hanging...)

 

[Gewehr98]

BTW...

Did anybody look at how much those Henry .30-30 rifles weigh?

 

[DPris]

On 1-17 in response to an email I sent a contact at Browning, the answer was that nothing has been finalized on the 94.
It won't be this year, but I'd give it a fair chance for next.
Denis

 

[Essex County]

Tons of used ones out on the market already. Good, bad or indefrent. I'm not sure a reincarnation would make it. Angle eject, beefed up recievers and crossbolt safties were all attempts to keep it alive. As much as I love the old 94, I think Marlin keeps it outpaced........Essex

 

[ImARugerFan]

I think you mean will "Winchester" bring back the M94. It's not the same company, nor would it be the same gun.

 

[Cosmoline]

There is no "Winchester" anymore. It's just a trademark. The actual company that made the name a legend was bought out in the early 1980's and what was left of it went belly up a few years ago.

You may eventually see more firarms with that name on them, but they won't be Winchesters anymore than the USRAC rifles were Winchesters.

 

[rcmodel]

The Japchesters are better quality rifles than anything Winchester has put out in a long time.

The Japchesters are better quality then anything Winchester ever put out at any time in history.

I have a Browning 65 .218 Bee, and none of my 1900 vintage 92's or 1950's vintage 94's are even close to the fit, finish, accuracy, or bank-vault closing sound of the Jap lever-gun.

Heck, it don't even hardly rattle when it's open!


rcmodel

 

[ArmedBear]

Are you talking about a high-grade Miroku/Winchester with engraving, or the plain-vanilla Miroku/Winchester Model 95 and Miroku/Winchester Model 1885 HiWall like the ones residing in my gun safe that get taken out and fired?

The discussion was about 92s, not 95's or HiWalls.

 

[Kimber1911_06238]

i do believe miroku will do a remake. like rcmodel said, expect better than winchester quality

 

[ArmedBear]

Gewehr98, yeah, it's ridiculous. Note also the prices.

Marlins are an excellent design and and excellent, well-made 7 lb. gun for $200 less than the Henry. The Winchester 94 was lighter, slimmer and quicker, a carbine design vs. Marlin's more steady rifle-like handling; hence some people preferred them objectively to the Marlin. And some people wanted a "real Winchester". Can't blame them, though Winchesters weren't quite as universal in the real Old West as they were in the movies.

But I can't see any reason to even look at the Henry at that weight and price. Good luck to them. Maybe they're banking on Remington wrecking Marlin and raising the prices a lot, but even then, I wouldn't buy such a beast as the Henry to shoot .30-30. Hell, my 24" .30-06 with a scope weighs about the same, and I consider it to be about as heavy as I'd ever want to carry around.

-----

Miroku can build a gun very well. If they build 94's, they'll probably be nice. It will be interesting to see how much they want for them. It will also be interesting to see if they can really charge a premium for the name Winchester.

 

[Gewehr98]

So you're saying...

The discussion was about 92s, not 95's or HiWalls.

That Miroku never contracted to make any plain-vanilla shooter grade Browning/Winchester Model 92s?