What Did I Buy This Time???

[steveyacht]

I just purchased a Winchester Model 75 at a gun show yesterday on a whim. Looks like a nice sturdy rimfire that is in very good condition with some sort of adjustable peep sight on the rear and a hooded globe type sight on the front and is drilled and tapped for scope mounts, these are set a long way from each other.

I know that this is no Model 52 but is it a good shooting, accurate gun that may be good enough to get started in hunter class SB Silhouette? Or as a loaner gun for friends? (As long as I put some decent glass on it)

[Daddio!]

Hi steveyacht,

Did you buy a 75T or 75 Sporter? The 75T was an entry level target rifle and had a 28" long straight barrel. The 75 Sporter had a 24" tapered barrel.

[steveyacht]

I have the Target Model. Seems like a solid rifle. Will be taking out to range next week to see what happens.

[yankee]

The 75 was a good rifle and yours probably still is. I bet you didn't pay $53 for it. It says the barrel is tapered just a bit so it should be OK in the hunter class. It may be close to weight. It may be drilled for scope bases on the barrel which was for the old style of scopes and these would be spread out maybe 8 to 10 inches. Better yet it may be drilled on the receiver for the more modern type scopes. You may be able to get another stock to play with, hollowing it out and cutting on it to try to make it a bit lighter. That way you won't disturb the original stock. Have fun.

[boats]

Nice rifles,

50 years ago my Junior Rifle club saw a lot of them in use. Considered top equipment, I was shooting a Stevens 413 at the time, not even close to the Winchester 75 in accuracy. Of course the Winchester 52's and Remington 37's were top of the line but we saw few of them.

Our club Silhouette match I run a "free rifle" class, iron sights not competing with rule conforming Silhouette rifles. Score them separate. See all sorts of old target rifles including 75's I shoot a M 1922 MII Springfield. If it's drilled for Unertl style blocks 7.2 inch spacing you can buy a new MVA B5 reproduction of the Winchester B5 Scope that fits right and works very well.

Regulation Silhouette If it makes weight and trigger & has some barrel taper ought to shoot just as well as the new Anschutz 64 multi purpose rifles. Weight could be a problem with a modern scope, the B5's are light and should help.

Don't alter it.

Boats

[GTKF]

My first rifle, as a Christmas gift, was a model 75 when I was 12 years old. 40 years later when I started shooting silhouette it was what I had so I used it, but in Standard class. The model 75 target will not make weight in Hunter and the barrel is too long for Hunter (26" max).