When did Winchester bring back the 1873?

[Mancino]

Is this a recent change in offerings?  Has anyone had a good look at them?

[Elkhorn Ernie]

It was about eight or nine years ago. I have two. One A short rifle and the other is a full rifle, both in .357. the fit and finish is very good, and the action out of the box is smoother that the Uberti  out of the box. the stork of the lever is shorter than the Ubertis factory lever. The only down fall on then is the lack of after market parts for then. 

[John Kloehr]

33 minutes ago, Elkhorn Ernie said:

... The only down fall on then is the lack of after market parts for then. 

But do these really need aftermarket parts?

 

Also, the woodwork finish is oil so more oil fixes minor dings, no sanding and recoating.

 

I have a Miroku and an Uberti.

[Hoss]

A friend had one. A part broke (sear as I recall)  no replacement parts available. Fortunately the smith he bought it from was able to replace it, and is hoping to be able to get one eventually. 
 

there are basically no aftermarket parts available for them. (Anecdotally, as I don’t have one but that’s what I’ve heard) 

[Elkhorn Ernie]

Not really. The action is real smooth. I also have a couple of Ubertis as well. My go tos for most shoots are the Winchesters.

[Creeker, SASS #43022]

23 hours ago, John Kloehr said:

But do these really need aftermarket parts?

No - not really.

But...  And there is always a but.

 

Just because they don't "need"aftermarket parts does NOT mean they are good to go out of the box.

 

They need complete polishing and internals cleanup and they are vastly over sprung from the factory (to overcome the lack of polished and smoothed internals).

 

The lever/ lifter springs are very much improved by trimming and polishing.

The main spring as well.

 

The only true downside is the shortage of replacement parts (stock or aftermarket) in the event of overzealous polishing, hour glassing or metal removal.

 

The action is very similar in stroke to a 3rd generation short stroke kit - I have 3rd gen setups in my Ubertis and am able to transition back and forth to the Miroku without muscle memory issues.

 

If the price were right - I would have no issue purchasing another Miroku; but if all things are equal - a tuned Uberti is the better choice.

[Cholla]

I used to own a Miroku Winchester. They are high-quality rifles. They have a shorter stroke from the factory, about halfway between a Uberti factory stroke and a short stroke kit. 

If you plan on playing in NCOWS and SASS, be aware that NCOWS doesn't allow the Miroku Winchesters because they are already shorter stroked than the originals.

[Rooster Ron Wayne]

Where have you been hiding ? 

 

[Hashknife Cowboy]

I have one, it is my primary SASS rifle in .45.  Out of the box it was smooth, internally it was clean and I had nothing done to it.  I have no complaints about it, I'd even buy another if needed. And I have shot it quite a bit in the years that I have owned it, no failures or breakage.

 

 

[Abe E.S. Corpus SASS #87667]

There is an aftermarket lever safety/trigger return spring available:

 

https://www.slixprings.com/proddetail.php?prod=Miroku-Firing-Pin-Trigger-Safety-Spring