Special order Winchester 1876 "Centennial Model" sporting rifle manufactured in 1888. This rifle has the 'Third Model' receiver with integral dust cover rail and dust cover with serrated edges. The rifle has a 28-inch, full octagon barrel and full length magazine. The barrel has a blued Rocky Mountain front sight blade and folding leaf rear sight marked "1876" at the top of the leaf. A Lyman folding combination rear sight with locking button on the left side is mounted on the upper receiver tang. The crescent buttplate has a sliding brass trap. This rifle has a special order Winchester single set-trigger and highly figured, deluxe, fancy grade, walnut stock and forearm with piano finish. The barrel and magazine have the Winchester charcoal blue finish. The dust cover and loading gate are a fiery niter blue. The forearm cap, receiver, hammer, trigger, lever and crescent buttplate are color casehardened. The top barrel flat is roll-stamped: "WINCHESTER'S REPEATING ARMS. NEW HAVEN. CONN. U.S.A./-KING'S IMPROVEMENT PATENTED MARCH 29, 1866, OCTOBER 16, 1860" in two lines ahead of the rear sight. The caliber: "40-60 W.C.F." is roll-stamped on the top barrel flat between the rear sight and the receiver. "40-60" is stamped in script numerals on the bottom of the cartridge elevator. The serial number is stamped in script numerals on the lower tang between the lever latch and rear tang screw.

Fine. This rifle is all original except for the tang sight which is period but slightly later than the rifle. The barrel and magazine have 60% of the original blue finish with light edge wear. The blue finish has begun to develop a plum patina. The Winchester legend and caliber markings are crisp. The dust cover and loading gate retain close to 95% of the fire blue finish. The forearm cap, receiver, hammer and lever have 40% of the faded case colors with some silvering on high points and some scattered and very minor age spotting. The case colors on the crescent buttplate show slightly more wear and are about 70% complete with a silver-gray patina. The highly figured walnut "XX" or "XXX" stock and forearm are in very good overall condition and retain about 80% of the original piano finish with some scattered and relatively minor handling marks. This is a very fine example of a scarce and very desirable special order Winchester 1876 "Centennial Model" rifle.