Pre-1964 Model 70 264mag Need Advice

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Aeterna

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I recently realized I have had a rifle for years that might actually be a collectors item. I am posting here to see if anyone here knows more about these than what I can find on google.

I have a Winchester Model 70 Featherweight 264mag with the Monte Carlo stock. I have only fired it a handful of times and the person that had it before me (grandpa) told me he never shot it.

From the research I have done it seems this is something special that maybe I shouldn't be shooting? I will try to post a pic but it looks almost identical to the one in the link below. Thanks in advance for your help, hopefully there is someone in here that knows about these.

https://a4.pbase.com/o6/36/184436/1/73686638.OuTxKQNl.win70GH1.jpg
 
Given that it was Grandpa’s, I would shoot it and keep it forever. Those kind of guns need to stay in the family.


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Absolutely, I wasnt thinking about selling it. I just wanted to be sure it shouldnt be in a case or something lol? I dont want to be abusing something that should be left alone.
 
From what I can determine Pre-1964 Featherweight Model 70s in 264 were made in 1962 and 1963 only. That being the case, that particular configuration is somewhat uncommon. This would put the serial number in the range of 545447 to 581470.

It likely has four drilled and tapped holes on the top of the receiver to mount scope bases (two in front and two holes in back). Sometimes guys mounted scope bases on the left side of the receiver, requiring holes to be drilled there. Such holes were not done at the factory and substantially reduce value.

The life of 264 Mag barrels were not real long (perhaps a thousand rounds give or take), particularly if fired with maximum loads. As a result, many no longer wear the factory barrel.

Enjoy your very nice rifle.
 
Most hunter's won't put 1000 rds through a rifle in a lifetime. If they own two rifles, even longer. Then what makes a barrel burned out? Friend of mine in Montana years ago had a 700 Rem in 264 mag. it started shooting just under one inch and he called it burned out! It at one time was a 3/4-" rifle. As long as it will keep group's at about 1 1/2" and your good with that, it's good to go.

It seem's that burned out means accuracy has fallen off. But I have never heard anyone explain just how far it's fallen to make it unusable! That would vary between competitive shooter and hunter. If your not a serious shooter and are a hunter that shoot's a bit in the off season. 1500 shot's in a year is 125 shot's a month or 6.25 box's a month! That is a lot of shooting for a hunter!

I would not worry if someone told me a barrel was burned out, probably sell it for less. I have a 1903 Springfield custom done in 1945. Had the barrel looked at by a gunsmith and was told the barrel was shot, recommended a new barrel. Well it may be shot but the rifle still holds groups to a bit under 1" all day long. Think I'll keep it the way it is! I got it from a really good friend when he died. I am certain that in 74 yrs, it hasn't had 1500 rds through it. Unfortunatelly it's had crossive primers used a lot!
 
Back in the early '70s before Hornady used pressure barrels for load development they made the following comment in their 2nd Edition Handbook of Cartridge Reloading regarding the 264 Winchester Magnum: “As a matter of fact, we burned out several barrels in developing the loading tables which follow. The game hunter who shoots only a few dozen rounds a year with his 264 will have no special problems, but the avid varmint hunter may.” And they went on to say that moderate loads would help prolong barrel life.

In another portion of that same manual Hornady makes a general comment that barrels were replaced when throats became eroded. This was done since velocity and pressure are both reduced with eroded throats, and loads which would be safe in such barrels could produce excessive pressures in new (non-eroded) barrels.

Nosler in their recent 8th edition Reloading Guide states in the 264 Winchester Magnum section: “We have found that surprisingly long barrel life can be expected, even with full power loads, provided the shooter takes care not to overheat the barrel and employs frequent bore scrubbings.”
 
IIRC, the M70 .264 Win. Mag. came in two flavors, the Westerner and the Featherweight. The Westerner had a 26" barrel and the Featherweight as I recall had a 22" barrel.
Paul B.
 
Your picture show like a custom Model 70, with side mounted scope. It sure would be nice to post some pictures of your actual rifle.
 
That stock looks like a Super Grade with the shadow line cheek piece and black forend... but the barrel looks too short for a Super Grade???

Didn't all Featherweights have the same stock design as the current production Featherweights?? I kind of thought that was one of the main things that makes it a Featherweight?
 
That is one hell of a nice looking rifle. You wont hurt a good rifle buy shooting it. Esp Winchesters.

I have a ton of Model 70s, I shoot them all. Never had one hurt by shooting.

I dont care about collector values. I care more about me getting the pleasure of a fine rifle, not someone down the road.
 
In addition to shooting "overbore" cartridges, another sure way to abbreviate the life of any barrel is to shoot too often before allowing a barrel to cool down, especially when the barrel is a light-weight, "pencil-sized", sporter barrel. More than a few barrels have been toasted after an afternoon's shoot in western prairie dog towns.
 
It's a hunting rifle, so if the cartridge suits your usual effort, use it. Just be a bit more careful about dents and scratches.

I played around with a 1966 Westerner for a while. Tack-driver. But it was way more than I needed for central Texas whitetail at relatively close distances. In later years I halfway regretted having parted with it, in hunting mule deer in west Texas.
 
I talked to a shooter who had a 264 Win Mag. It was a great cartridge till 700 rounds went through the tube. Then bullets out of the barrel key holed.

The stock on the pictured rifle is amazing, what a beautiful chunk of wood and checkering. The trigger guard does not look M70. Something like that, probably does not have one hunting dent on the stock or a scratch on the bluing.

What purpose is served spending big money on a rifle that never got used?
 
That is a gorgeous rifle.

My .264 caliber Remington model 700 has fired just over 900 rounds of my barn burner hand loads. The rifling is hardly visible for the first six inches but that rifle still makes 1 1/2" inch five shot groups at 100 yards. There is a new Remington factory barrel waiting in the wings.
 
Your initial post indicated you wanted to know if this rifle is a collectors' item. It certainly is, and would be highly prized by any collector of pre-'64 Winchester 70 rifles. A total of 135,180 pre-'64 Featherweights were made. The .264 Win. Mag. chambering was only made for about a year and a half.

I can't find exact figures but I believe fewer than 4,000 pre-'64 Featherweights in .264 Win. Mag. were ever made. Of these there likely remain in existence only one or two hundred in as-new condition, if that. This was the only Featherweight marked "Featherweight - Westerner" on the barrel, and the only one to have a factory installed recoil pad.

In comparable condition a .264 Win. Mag. Featherweight would likely bring three times as much as one in .30-'06. Only the short-lived .358 Win. chambering is rarer and more valuable in this rifle.

The slim Featherweight barrel profile is quite slender in the chamber area except for a very short shank section. When a magnum chamber is cut in such a barrel there is not a lot of steel surrounding the cartridge. No doubt it is safe with factory cartridges or Winchester would not have put it on the market. I do recall reading (I think in an old Elmer Keith column) of a shooter blowing the chamber open with a hot handload in a .264 Featherweight.

I don't tell people what to do with their own property so what you choose to do with this information is your business. I just felt you deserved an answer to your question.
 
Thanks for all the info everyone, below is a link to some photos of my rifle. The serial is 552XXX.

All the info on shooting the barrel out is very interesting, I will have to be mindful of what I do with this rifle as I really wanted to use it to do long range training. I should probably get a different gun for this.

Https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0GJtdOXm1RX2R
 
I wouldn’t be afraid of shooting it. Thats what it was made for. Enjoy your good fortune. Shoot it and pass it down in your family for others to enjoy.
 
Dave Anderson: So early Featherweights did not have the trademark stock with it's Schneable (spelling) forend and checkering exclusive the the Featherwight???
 
Boy that is a nice looking rifle! Is that grandpa's scope on it? Nice scope too. What's it worth? Well seem's to me if it's not worth more than a new mod 70, it's not worth all that much, I'd use it. And being grandpa's I'd certainly keep it.

I have a very old 1903 that I got when a close friend died. It was customized for him when he got out of the service in 1945 by Paul Jaeger. Beautiful rifle, nicest rifle I've ever seen! Have had it about 15yrs and didn't hunt with it for fear of dinging it up. Well this year I finally used it. Chalk up one elk with it. Will be my elk rifle from now on. Use your grandfather's gun. You might ding it up now and then but nothing that you can't fix. It is only a collector piece to you!
 
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