Winchester Model 94: Cerracote sacriledge?

T

tgreening

New member
1978 model I believe and the finish is less than stellar. Any particular reason it would be considered an act of utmost evil if I sent it off and had it coated? Nothing goofy like Digital Urban C.O.D. Edition Camo, or anything like that, but something a bit more mundane.

Not that it really matters since it's my dang rifle and I'll do as I please anyway, but schools of thought and artistic ideas always entertained. :)
 
Go for it! There really is no reason to not do so. Frankly, a LOT of Win '94 owners resort to home job spray paint, err coating, methods. A '78 vintage rifle (same year as mine btw) is not really a collector's item so much as a tool. I would treat it accordingly, and as such, I have been perusing various refinish options myself.
 
Just as long as you don't come up with something that is too cool for school, but too expensive to afford. Anything a little different helps the allure, e.g. the Mossberg 464SPX. Something in electric green metal with some decent wood might go pretty good. Perhaps that satin nickel finish like a Colt would set it off, or even that polished on grey on Ruger Super Redhawks.
 
It isn't like cerrakote is impossible to remove. I wouldn't worry about it. I probably would choose a color that matched one of the metallic finishes/platings.
 
1978 94. Go for it as its not like it will be worth huge money in 130 years. It will be worth more if you do it now.
 
I have an old 40's or 50's vintage 94 that was in really rough and neglected condition when I got it. I bead blasted and parkerized it. The wood cleaned up "OK", but still aint real pretty. Still a good shooter though.

ry%3D400
 
I say go for it. By the late 70s a lot of the 94s had really improved a lot over the earlier Post 64s. Sounds like yours may have not been as lucky. I'd go with a "kote" finish reasonably close to the factory finish when it was new (at least theoretically) - as someone else mentioned - the blue black if available. Others have had good luck "antiquing" them or color case hardening...But - your gun, whatever floats your boat sounds like would be an improvement!
 
I've been thinking of doing the same thing. I bought my 94 used and cheap. It's also a 1970s model that looks like it was carried a lot on one hand wrapped around the receiver. The bluing on the barrel is nice but it's half gone on the receiver. I was thinking of coating only the receiver on the 94 at the same time I coat one of my other rifles.

Tony
 
Some of the Winchesters in that era, or sightly later, wont reblue properly anyway. The receivers were an alloy, and were very difficult, if not impossible to match the barrels when reblued. Winchester had some way of doing it, but having it redone the same later on was not an option.

I went through this with an early 80's Trapper when I broke the front sight off, and had different sights installed, requiring a gunsmith. It was the first 94 I had parked.
 
As AK stated, the 70's receivers were pretty well crap. I had a 16" trapper of that era that someone had painted the receiver and to tell the truth it looked pretty good. That is until it's first contact with cleaner. Bubbled and peeled to beat the band exposing all sorts of ugliness. This was before the availability of good gun coats and I traded the gun off. It's one of two guns that I wish I had never gotten rid of. Moral of the story? Cover it with something good and enjoy the beep outta it.
 
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