Winchester M1 Carbines

[L.Drillon]

Hello, Can unissued Winchester Carbines be worth 2-3 grand? Where would you go to sell these for this amount? Thank You

[Tuna]

An unissued carbine would be unusual to say the least. Value would depend on serial number, condition and if it has been rebuilt or not. Photos would help.

[Sunray]

The chances of you having or finding an unissued Carbine of any make are extremely slim. 99.99% of all carbines were rebuilt after W.W. II. A Winchester is even more unlikely as they only made 809,541(plus a bunch of M2's) of 'em between September 1942 and August 1945. A lot of those are sitting on the bottom of assorted oceans or have been chopped.

[BrianQ]

I purchased an original and unissued Winchester M1 carbine 6 or 7 years ago for $800.

[Scott Wilson]

How does one determine that an M1 Carbine, or any other military weapon, is "Un-Issued?"

[wmmwraghd]

Original WRA's usually command a premium. Condition is paramount along with serial number range. Very early Winchester's in very nice original condition can bring upwards of 4K.

[tmark]

I bet the CEO of Winchester Arms has an original!

[TSimonetti]

Hello, Can unissued Winchester Carbines be worth 2-3 grand? Where would you go to sell these for this amount? Thank You

To answer the Op's question. Yes they can. 2-3K or more. If it were mine, I would list it here or on CMP forum first, then try Gunbroker.

Incredibly rare, but have been found. If I recall correctly the Carbine Club wrote about an entire crate of ten or so unissued late Winchesters owned by some Winchester affiliate that were sold to some "in the know" North east dealer or dealers in the late 90's or early 2000's. I believe most if not all of the serial numbers are known, some of which turn up from time to time.

[Embalmer]

Only unissued carbines i know of (and bar's) are/were in the basement archives of I.B.M., who made them and were not delivered

[cplnorton]

I have an original Winchester in the 1.34 million serial range that is about mint. It walked into a little small gunshow in Ohio a couple years ago for the pricey sum of $500. The owner didn't know anything about it. They are out there.

[L.Drillon]

I am going to sell one of these. Both have 100% Winchester parts and I believe 100% condition. First is SN 5718001, it has no bayonet lug and has adjustable sights. Barrel is marked "W" but no other marks. The other is SN 1239334. It has a bayonet lug, adjustable sights. If I remember it has a "W" under bayonet lug on barrel. The stocks are perfect. Both have no "P" on the grip. They both have WRA over GHD in perfect condition. And the cannons! One has a -U- on the left side of the stock??. The 5718001 was reviewed by the M1 Carbine Club 20 years ago and found to be 100% original. The 1239334 may be a built from NOS parts, but it is perfect. The -U- on its left side says to me Underwood??
$3000
Thank You, Randy

[Tuna]

Your 1239334 serial number has been through at least one rebuild. It would not have had a type 3 barrel band, no adjustable rear sight and the stock would not be stamped with an Underwood rebuild U. So if it's not import stamped it's about a $900+ carbine.

[jonnyo55]

Over the years I've noticed several "as new" WRA carbines in the 5.8 million range float to the surface. I owned one, foolishly sold it, and saw another in a Milwaukee area shop five or six years ago. I suppose that your 5.7 million could be one from that lot... I was interested in Mr. Simonetti's post stating that these late, new WRA carbines are known, a fact that I was unaware of. I've always wondered what the provenance of these carbines was...were they issued to units such as TVA guards or Federal prisons, or (like a rather large grouping of Colt Commandos that have been offered for sale recently) issued to National Guard units? This would explain the newish condition and the fact that they never went through the rebuild process.

Oh, and pertaining to WRA "rarity"? Winchester's 800,000 - odd carbines places them a rather distant second after Inland as far as numbers go. Far rarer are, for instance, Standard Products carbines, with numbers in the 200,000's...down in Rock-Ola territory. Still, the WRA carbines have the magic of the Winchester name, and accordingly sell for a premium. Even I have to admit that the stylized WRA lettering is pretty cool...

[dave]

Unissued and unfired---two ot the most overused words when describing older firearms---unless you bought it new! There is just no way to prove it!

[Tuna]

If your 5.7 serial number stock is marked WRA or GHD then it's a type 2 stock with high wood. It should have been a type 3 stock with no high wood and NO WRA over GHD for your serial number.