Miroku Winchester 1873

My brother-in-law has a standard grade in .357; he has used it a whole lot for small game hunting, and as a saddle gun on pack trips. He believes it to be far superior to anything that ever came out of New Haven, and he specializes his vast collection in antique Winchester lever actions.

They have gotten a generally favorable reception in the cowboy action shooting world, where the Uberti '73 is the top rifle.

Cowboy action shooters put LOTS of rounds through their firearms. If there was a quality problem with the Miroku rifle I believe it would be well publicized.

Miroku is well known for making top shelf firearms.
Their 1873 is not an >>exact<< reproduction of the original Winchester 1873. The bolt has been altered to add a safety device to assure the gun does not accidentally discharge, but it is a rather innocuous change.
They are expensive but IMHO they are worth it.
I don't have the 1873 but I do have a Browning B-92 (Winchester 1892 copy) which was made by Miroku and it is a very nice rifle.

Have a case hardened/upgraded wood model in .357. Love it. Btw, you sure on the prices? I paid less than the quoted standard grade price at Cabela's about a year ago for this rifle:

http://www.winchesterguns.com/products/catalog/detail.asp?family=027C&mid=534202

i own browning field and clay games shotguns with thousands of rounds thru them with out any problem since 1977 and browning and winchester high-low wall rifles with a browning 95 in 3040 krag rifle all made by miroku in japan. all are exellent made firearms. eastbank.

i work on and tune guns for cowboy action shooting. the Winchester is a much better gun than a Uberti in all aspects. better quality steel, they redesigned some of the features and mechanics of the gun to make its longevity better in my opinion. i shoot alot and am very hard on guns. i have been shooting one of the Winchesters since they came out and i have nothing but good things to say about it. i have always had a backup rifle when using a Uberti but with the Winchester i feel as if i dont need one. i have at least 20k rounds through it with no wear. the blued versions can be had for around $1100 and the case colored guns for around $1350. i would highly recommend them. as far as the safety in the firing pin extension its an easy fix, i tigweld it up and reprofile.

I have a browning made in Japan/miroku that has great quality and works well. The few newer lever action winchhesters I've inspected seemed very very good. Personally I think the Miroku Winchester levers actions are a good thing that happened. Almost wish the newer Marlins had also been made in Japan. Lord knows I spent as much getting mine fixed as the rifle originally Cost to fix Remington's sins.

can't say about the 1873, because there are none available in belgium sofar (I asked, I especially would like the 24 inch color cased one in 44-40, but only 250 of these were made)

I do own two Miroku build 1892's in 44-40 and they are the best made levers I handled sofar.
Miroku has quality as a middle name imho

I have numerous Miroku Brownings and each and every one is very nice quality with great fit and finish. The B92 lever action I have is a gorgeous rifle. On the other hand, I also have a Uberti 1873. I'm NOT a cowboy action shooter, thus I shoot it a whole lot less than Rodman579, so I've found it to be a great shooter (mine is a .357). I think for normal, non-competition shooting, they're both quite adequate. Naturally, the Miroku is more "real" as it has the Winchester name on it... but it's kind of interesting that we're talking about a traditionally American rifle and arguing about the merits of a Japanese or Italian copy... after all.. they're both copies. I would be happy with either one.

I've posted this picture before, but it illustrates that a Uberti is right up there with a Miroku, though Rodman is likely correct that the guts of the Miroku may very well be better. I don't know.

^^^
THAT is a pretty rifle.

Love the 1873 but it is not strong enough for the .45 Colt loads I shoot.

I think perhaps the high dollar rifle mentioned in the OP might be one of the new Navy Arms '73. It's a Miroku rifle with an octagonal barrel and high grade wood with the finish work done by Doug Turnbull. They have them at my local Cabela's and they are really good looking rifles.

RainDodger, thats a beauty of a rifle. the Uberti Deluxe models are very nice. i will say in appearance i like the Ubertis better than the new Winchesters. and for most shooters they will hold up fine. but for someone who runs there guns like me the Winchester is just more durable. here is a couple videos where i ran the rifle somewhat fast but i can hammer it much faster than these show but i just wanted to give you an idea how hard i am running the rifle-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLJaxcCMZGI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zw22KPfKxt8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POrZVtAGi5k

I can't speak for the 1873 Winchester/Miroku rifles, but I bought an 1886 Short Rifle a few years ago and am very impressed with the build quality and finish of the rifle. I wouldn't hesitate to suggest someone buy a new Winchester lever action based on my experience.

I like everything about the new Winchester/Miroku 1873 except the feel of the added lever safety catch. It has to be "held up" too much, sort of like a post 64 model 94. If they are going to rework the action and add the safety, the lever should have more retention or higher retention. My pre war 94 can't even be held without the safety being naturally depressed. Otherwise I like it a lot.

Bushpilot said:

I like everything about the new Winchester/Miroku 1873 except the feel of the added lever safety catch. It has to be "held up" too much, sort of like a post 64 model 94. If they are going to rework the action and add the safety, the lever should have more retention or higher retention. My pre war 94 can't even be held without the safety being naturally depressed. Otherwise I like it a lot.

Click to expand...

You're talking about that little button on the bottom the lever holds up that releases the trigger to be pulled?
Original Winchester 1873s had them too.
It's possible some early ones did not, but IIRC they became standard on the 1873.

You're talking about that little button on the bottom the lever holds up that releases the trigger to be pulled?
Original Winchester 1873s had them too.
It's possible some early ones did not, but IIRC they became standard on the 1873.

Click to expand...

Well, how right you are.. I went and got my 1873 out of the safe and there it was.. Mine is so easily depressed that I never really noticed it. It must have been the 1892 that didn't have one that I confused it with. The one on the Miroku was still too heavy. I noticed that you had to consciously squeeze it. Thanks for the correction though...

Bushpilot said:

The one on the Miroku was still too heavy. I noticed that you had to consciously squeeze it.

Click to expand...

My guess is that has more to do with 100+ years of polishing/smoothing on an original 1873 as opposed to a new production one with likely quite a bit fewer lever strokes.

My guess is that has more to do with 100+ years of polishing/smoothing on an original 1873 as opposed to a new production one with likely quite a bit fewer lever strokes.

Click to expand...

Could very well be the case. However, I was just thinking that in the 1873 one of the two leaf springs that are in the bottom of the receiver also holds the lever up, depressing the safety. The two screws on the bottom of the receiver hold the springs in place and put tension on each spring when tightened. Maybe the screw putting tesion on the lever spring on the Miroku I looked at was just loose.

You will not go wrong with a Miroku made gun.

I have been shooting their products for a long time.

They have a very good reputation in the firearms industry.

Miroku or Uberti ... neither one makes a 24" round barrel, all octagons. so booo. i want one to match my original.