Fast, fun, and one of a kind. Created by Winchester themselves, the .220 Swift made its debut in 1935, boasting speeds that left other calibers in its dust. Capable of sending a 48-grain bullet downrange at over 4,000 feet per second, it quickly earned a reputation as the fastest commercial cartridge ever produced. As one of the Model 70’s flagship calibers, the Swift became a household name among varmint hunters and precision shooters who appreciated its flat trajectory and impressive reach. But for all the accolades it received, the .220 Swift was no stranger to controversy. The Swift’s high velocity allowed hunters to cleanly take varmints at distances that previously required careful guesswork. Coyotes, prairie dogs, and groundhogs were often...
One of America's most controversial arms dealers was a pre-64 model 70 collector and we just acquired one of his guns. Researching this rifle unearthed a story we never could have anticipated.
"I would hate like all h--l to sell it to some clod who would think of it as just another gas pipe" -Ned Kailing to Dr. William Wuester, August 1947 This is the story of an uncommon Winchester rifle, a rifle with just two owners since new. The first of these owners - a surgeon from New York named Dr. William Wuester - features prominently in the story below. The rifle in question is serial number 56087, dating it to 1946 when it began life as a Super Grade .22 Hornet - Winchester catalog symbol G7051C. At the request of a client, a Winchester dealer in Milwaukee named Ned Kailing (owner of The Kailing Company) sent the rifle while still...
We purchased a complete collection of pre-64 Winchester model 70s today from a friend and client who has decided to divest himself of his collection. The aging owner told us he wanted to do it himself before the task was left to his kids. He was comfortable with the decision, but it was a bittersweet moment for us to see rifles in our shop again which we had helped this fine gentleman collect in years past. Beautiful rifles we are delighted to be able to offer to other clients, but the return of his rifles to our shop marked the end of one man’s collecting. It is the second time in as many months that we have helped a...
It's been a special privilege to have Van Orden serial number 220619 in our shop these past few months. Today it will ship off to its final owner and it is only fitting that we properly close the loop on what we have learned during our time of studying this fantastic rifle. Serial number 220619 is remarkable in several ways, not the least of which is that the rifle is in like-new original condition. In the absence of a proven chain of custody or documented provenance, our time with the rifle has been an exercise in patience, digging, and detective work to tease out a bit of this rifle's history. Paramount among the questions to be answered is who was the rifle's original...
