Winchester Repeating Arms 1873 - Manual (Page 9)

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Various exposed metal parts of your new firearm have
been coated at the factory with a rust preventative
compound. Before firing your rifle, clean the anti-rust
compound from the inside of the barrel, receiver and
the action-chamber areas. A fine, light gun oil is ideal
for removing this compound and for giving your new
firearm its first lubrication. However, any quality
firearm oil may be used. Clean the barrel using a
cleaning rod and patch as explained under “Cleaning
and Maintenance Suggestions” on pages 28-30. If your
rifle is to be stored, it is acceptable to leave the rust
preventative compound on the rifle and keep it in its
original packaging.
Before the first firing of your Model 1873 you should
first wipe the mechanism completely clean. Clean the
bore and apply a few drops of quality oil on the
following surfaces (Figure 4):
• Along the surface of the striker assembly.
• Along the sides of the hammer.
• On the finger lever pivot point.
Avoid applying too much oil. Only a light film is
necessary. Cleaning and Maintenance Suggestions
should be followed before each oiling.
o Peration oF the h ammer
always KeeP the haMMer in the halF-cocK
Position unless shooting is iMMinent. always
KeeP the MuZZle Pointed in a saFe direction.
Failure to Follow these warnings could
result in serious injury or death.
Like many classic lever-action rifles with an exposed
hammer, the Model 1873 does not have a separate
manual “safety.”
While you should never rely on the half-cock hammer
position to function as a “safety,” the exposed hammer
itself is an ideal safety status indicator since it alerts
you when the rifle is cocked and ready-to-fire or when
the hammer is in the half-cock or dropped position.
The hammer has three positions: Full-cock, half-cock,
and dropped or fired.
F ull -C oCk P oSition
The hammer is in the full-cock position when it is
fully to the rear (Figure 5). At this point, any pull or
force on the trigger could allow the hammer to fall,
firing the rifle. The hammer can be placed in this
position in either of two ways:
• Every time the lever is cycled, the hammer is
placed in the full-cock position.
• The hammer may
also be placed at
full-cock by manually
moving it rearward
with your thumb
until it engages the
full-cock notch.
FIGURE 4
Lightly oil the rifle at
these points.
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FIGURE 5
The hammer in the
fully-cocked position.