Winchester Model 63

[UnknownSailor]

Ever had one? Shot one?

I'm thinking of saving up some pennies to try to get a hold of one, and am looking for opinions.

What kind of parts are available for it (buttstock and forend, primarily)?

Are scope mounts still available for it?

 

[cdbeaver]

Model 63

Please escuse my ignorance, but is the Winchester Model 63 a close relative of the Model 63A?

I own the latter, a .22LR take-apart slide action that I bought in 1954.

 

[Jim K]

Hi, guys,

Cdbeaver, I think you are referring to the 62 and 62 A. The 63 (AFAIK there is no 63A) is a semi auto with a buttstock tube magazine and the operating rod sticking out the front of the foreend. It was originallly the Model 1903, the small version of the Model 1905, 1907, etc., and was chambered for the .22 WRF. The 63 is almost identical, but is chambered for the .22 LR.

They were originally made from 1933 to 1958, and some were made around 1997 in a short term revival. I don't own one now, but once did. They are pretty good little guns, but the originals are of more interest today to collectors than to shooters.

I had a Nylon 66 at the time also, and liked it better for a "using" .22 semi-auto, though the workmanship on the old Winchester was superb. ("Workmanship" is not a term usually associated with the Nylon 66, though their reliability is legendary.)

Just FYI, both Winchester and Remington adopted their own .22 RF cartridges in the early 20th century because at that time the quality of .22 LR ammo was terrible. With their own rounds, which they made, the major companies could control ammo quality.

Jim

 

[Mike Irwin]

Taurus is introducing a reproduction of the 63 that looks VERY interesting and is relatively inexpensive, as well.

I'm trying to track one down.

 

[cdbeaver]

wrong gun

Pardon my stupidity. It was, of course, the Model 62A I had in mind. I also owned a Model 03 in .22 WRF for a few years. The cartridges kept bulging in the chamber so I sent it off for a new barrel.

That didn't cure the problem. Had to buy the correct cartridges to get the thing to shoot properly. Had been using 22 RRF! Dang. Think I was 17 or 18 at the time. Haven't learned a lot since.

 

[Drue]

I have one of the 1903 Winchester .22 Autos. It was my grandfather's gun and the first gun that I ever fired. When I was a teenager, you could find the ammo in gunshops but not in general sporting goods stores. Old Western Scrounger sells newly manfactured .22 Win Auto ammo but it is $12.50/box, 25% more than Tenex. I picked up a brick and shoot the old girl once in a while to remember the good old days. I will have to find one of the new Tarus models.

Drue

 

[Art Eatman]

UnknownSailor, the Gun Parts Corporation, successor to Numrich Arms, could probably have parts. I've seen ads in The Gun List for other companies advertising parts for older weapons.

Some 63s had some sort of integral mount built in. The majority did not, and drilling and tapping for scope mounts dramatically reduces the collector value. Even in relatively poor shape (no finish but reasonably shootable), they seem to bring around $300 or a bit more.

Art

 

[UnknownSailor]

I went to gunbroker.com, and there were about 5 for sale, for right around $300. I am looking for a shooter, but if the Model 63 will devalue that much if I shoot it, I might pass for something that would retain it's value better.

I settled on the Model 63 after reading Unintended Consequences, if you can believe it.

 

[Art Eatman]

Yeah, I wanna try that upside-down trick.

Art