How to clean a Winchester '73

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hi guys,

I've just bought a Uberti Winchester 73 with a 30" Octagonal barrel - and I absolutely love it.

But never having owned a lever action before I don't know what the drill is for routine cleaning. I'm shooting nitro, not black.

Can anyone steer me in the right direction?

Many thanks

Mick
 
One good way is to brace it upside down, action open. Stuff some paper towels inside the open action and then run your wet bristle brush, mop, whatever you use in from the front. Why upside down? This keeps the stuff that you remove from the barrel from dropping inside the action and magazine. That is your basic cleaning.

For a more detailed cleaning: Remove the side plate screw (first time is the hardest) and see how the parts are arranged. Take a picture if you don't have a diagram. Take the links out and you can clean out the insides.

Remove the screw at the front of the magazine (again, the first time is the hardest) and carefully remove the magazine spring for cleaning. Also, clean out the inside of the magazine tube once in a while (not necessary to clean out the magazine every time you shoot). Its an area that is susceptible to rust. Depending on your location, once a year may be fine for the mag.
 
Thank You so much

that's exactly what I was looking for.

I just can't believe that some serious googling didn't produce that info.

best wishes

Mick
 
Note that some newer Uberti rifles have a magazine cap that's brazed in place and is not removable.

Many of these have a screw slot but but the cap on the original '73 and earlier Uberti's was retained by a small screw that passed through the cap from the bottom of the magazine tube.
The slot in the actual magazine cap was simply to aid in aligning the cap for the small screw.
The caps are NOT threaded into the magazine tube.

If there's no small screw, the cap is brazed on.
 
Not to disagree, but my Uberti 1873 (circa 1992) does not have a small screw holding the magazine endcap in place. My magazine tube endcap does have the long slot. It is for a very thin and wide screwdriver.

It is a bear to get out the first time (one might think it is brazed in place). It is however, a finely threaded endcap that screws off and on.

In fact, the first time I tried to take it off, I had to remove the magazine tube from the rifle to get it apart. It is easy to damage the Magazine Tube Bearing Pin if the magazine tube is not properly supported when trying to unscrew the endcap. I avoided this by removing the whole magazine tube assembly from the rifle, then working on removing the endcap.

Perhaps the new ones are brazed on. I can't say as this is news to me. You may want to email VTI gunparts (they carry the Uberti parts) and see what they say in regards to your particular model.

Here are two web pages that might help you out too. The second one has some good photos.

http://marauder.homestead.com/files/Model66.html

http://marauder.homestead.com/files/Winchester_73.html
 
My 1980's Uberti rifle was brazed on and there WAS no slot in the cap at all.

Different manufacturing during different periods, no doubt.
 
Good information about the brazed on endcap. Never had heard of it before. Thanks for the first hand report!

Now I know what to keep an eye out for when looking at a used Uberti.
 
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