hi all............I have conflicting info...............some have told me, stevens manufactured early 1870's rifles in 32 centerfire, while an equal number have said only 32 rimfire were produced....what's the scoop?????....thanks! dale
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hi all............I have conflicting info...............some have told me, stevens manufactured early 1870's rifles in 32 centerfire, while an equal number have said only 32 rimfire were produced....what's the scoop?????....thanks! dale
Savage did indeed make the Model 99 in .32-40 WIN and Stevens made the Model 47-44 in .32-40 WIN as well.
The .32-40 Ballard (original black powder version of the .32-40 Wincehster or WCF) came out in 1884, thus it would have been a little hard to chamber rifles for it in the 1870's.
Any 1870's centerfire 32's would have likely been for the .32 Colt or Long Colt which were introduced in 1873. The .32 S&W appeared in 1878, with the .32 S&W Long hitting the market in 1896.
Based on a quick browse through my reference books, Stevens did make some centerfire rifles in the mid-late 1870's...
Sporting Rifle - Center Fire (1875-??)
This model was very similar to the earlier sporting rifle and merely was an adaption to center-fire shells. It had the tip-up barrel and was first produced in the .38/33 Stevens 1-5/8 inch shell. Shortly afterwards it came out in the .38/45 Stevens 2-1/8 inch shell, the .44/50 Stevens 2 inch shell and the .44/65 Stevens 2-1/2 inch shell. In addition to the special Stevens cartridges, it was manufactured to handle a .38 long or extra long center fire as manufactured by the Union Metallic Cartridge Co. and the UMC .44 long or extra long centerfire.
Hunter's Pet Pocket Rifle (centerfire - 1877-1897)
The Stevens Hunter's Pet Pocket Rifle was one of the popular numbers of it's day. It was available in .32 long, .38 long, and .44 long rimfire. All of these models would, of course, handle the short cartridge in their respective cartridge caliber. It was essentially the same as the sporting rifle but had a sheathed trigger and was available in barrel lengths of 18, 20, 22 and 24 inches. Some models were made up to 36 inches long in the barrels. The center-fire calibers were the same as in the sporting rifles center-fire and were first released in 1877.
Sporting Rifle No. 3 (?? - 1895)
The Sporting Rifle No. 3 was available in both rim and centerfire models chambered for the .32, .38, and .44 long cartridges. This particular rifle was similar to their gallery type in that it did not have a wood forearm but was available in various lengths of barrels running from 24- to 26-, 28-, and 30-inch lengths. Weight ran 6 1/4 to 8 1/4 pounds. This particular model was available either in full-octagon or half-octagon barrel in which the forward half of the barrel was turned down round to just clear the octagon flats. This particular type of octagon barrel was widely used on sporting rifles for appearance and usually cost the same as the standard full-octagon model.
This No. 3 rifle was much better sighted than Numbers 1 and 2 in that it had a combination front sight of the folding type including a pinhead bead inside of a globe and a blade for hunting. One merely folded this forward or backward to expose the proper sight. The rear sight was of the tang type of peep and thus made and excellent combination. Despite the fact that this was listed as a sporting rifle a great many excellent recorder were set with it in the old days. The frame and butt plate were, as in other models, full nickel-plated with the barrels blued. This gun had a varnish rather than oil-finish on the wood stock.
Those are the only three rifle's noted to have been offered in centerfire that came out in or before the 1870's that are listed in Philip B. Sharpe's "The Rifle in America" that was first published in 1938. The Sporting Rifle and Hunter's Pet Pocket Rifle are both immediately ruled out as they weren't offered in .32 caliber centerfire. That leaves the Sporting Rifle No. 3, but with no introduction date given I can't say for sure if a .32 caliber centerfire would have been offered in the 1870's or not - or if the rifle was even in production any time during the 1870's.
Bill West's book "Savage and Stevens, Arms and History" indicates a Model 1875 Tip-Up was available in .32 extra long centerfire and was in production from 1875-1886. Unfortunately my copy of this book is a second edition printed in 1989 and it's a LOT thinner and less detailed than the first edition that was printed in 1971. Still kick myself for selling my 1st Edition copy many years ago.
Bill west does make this note however which would pertain to the Sporting Rifle No. 3 info above.
"Circa 1877, the Tip-Up Rifles were given No. 1 to No. 4 designations. The No. 5 to No. 16 followed, and were completed by about 1888. In addition to the Stevens Numbers, they also had a title such as the "Open Sight" Rifle."