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I wouldn't restore that gun in a million years. Every collecting niche is different, but I can tell you that restored Winchesters almost always lose value...even if this gun didn't lose value, I'd be surprised if the cost of the restoration could ever be recovered.

You've got a great rifle. Clean the bore as best you can while still being kind to it (I'm a fan of Kroil and J-B compound for getting decades of crud out of a barrel...patches only, no brushes in my house) and you might be surprised at how it will shoot. The metal will benefit greatly from some repeated cleaning with Kroil; cloths/patches will continue to show brown on them until all the surface discoloration is gone, and you usually end up with a nicer looking, though still patina, blue when you're done. Kroil will not harm the original bluing in the least.

Wood will benefit from cleaning with a good furniture cleaner. On stocks like yours I use a dark Old English product that has a stain in it...it not only cleans the wood, but masks most of the scratches too.

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This is good advice. Wet the patch with Kroil and smear JB compound on it and scrub away, replenishing the kroil and JB every 10 to 15 strokes. Keep the scrubbing patches tight, replacing as they wear. Euro rifles generally have quite deep grooves and collect a lot of powder and copper fouling - my 9.3x62 Mauser did and does. It now shoots just fine - 1 1/2" at 100 meters off bags, although the bore is not very good. it took several sessions to clean it.
Another good formula to try is Wipe-Out. Soak overnight, push it out in the morning & repeat until the bore is clean. Then, I'd use JB - the patches will come out black again, which is normal. You can finish with straight Kroil as a final oil and then 1 or 2 dry patch through the barrel before shooting.

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Daryl


"a gun without hammers is like a Spaniel without ears" King George V

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