New Winchester/Miroku '73 in .45 Colt!

[johncantiusgarand]

Today has been a good day! I've wanted one of the Miroku 73's since they were first announced, but I've been holding out for a .45 Colt version. One of the online dealers had them cataloged, but they were never in stock. I put it on my wishlist and forgot about it. Then last week, at about 3:30 in the morning, I was checking email one last time before going to bed. Wouldn't you know, there was an email from that dealer informing me that the .45 Colt short rifle version was back in stock. Oddly, that email had been received by my server at around 0230 in the morning. Why they were sending out email notifications at that hour, I don't know. Anyway, when I checked their website, there was exactly one in stock, so I ordered it. I've had a few nervous days since then, wondering if it was all just a fluke or glitch. But it arrived today, and I'm pretty stoked about it!

Pictures of these are scarce, and I didn't take nearly as many as I probably should have. Perhaps later I'll do a good comparison photo study of these next to Ubertis. But the replacement firing pin extension I ordered from Pioneer Gun Works arrived just yesterday, so I snapped some closeups while I replaced the extension.

First, the barrel markings...




Tang...


Carrier markings...


And just some closeup pics of some of the rest of it....






Now here's what I don't understand. The links are a very good fit in the frame and bolt abuttments, but the fit at the center appears to have been deliberately designed to have all the force taken up by the pins alone. Perhaps Miroku is counting on superior metallurgy here, but it is a departure from the original design and is puzzling...


Compare these links....




To the ones from my Uberti....


In other ways, Miroku has made some definite improvements. I checked the front of the carrier lifter, because this area was very rough on my Uberti as received, and I had to polish that one as part of my fluff and buff and to keep the lifter from grinding material off of the hole in the carrier. Moroku's lifter is very round and much smoother. It could probably do with some polishing, but that may come later....


The ramp on the carrier could be smoothed up some as well, but I've left it alone for now...


Here is the other obvious modification Miroku makes--the carrier is slightly relieved on the top right and beveled on the top left. The .357's I've seen pictured just have a large bevel cut into the top left. I don't know if this is just peculiar to the larger calibers or is a further refinement of Miroku's angle eject modification.


This just had to go...


So there you have it; my initial impressions are very positive. The action is smoother than my Uberti was when I first got it. Overall quality is better, but from the pics of originals I've perused, Uberti still makes a closer copy visually. I'll post a range report whenever I'm able to make that happen.

[nolongcolt]

Nice rifle. I think Miroku makes a pretty good rifle, I have two, the 1895 in .405 Win and a new made Model 71 .348 Win. I had looked at the new Win '73 but I preferred the model options of Uberti so went that route and got the color case, octagon, short rifle with pistol grip. I like it a lot and it shoots great. So what is the little thing sticking out of the top of the bolt, that you had to get rid of?

[johncantiusgarand]

I had to get rid of the entire back end of the bolt, which is called the firing pin extension. Miroku 73's just HAD to have some sort of safety besides the half-cock notch, so they designed the firing pin extension to be hollow, with a spring-loaded plunger running through it that is also connected to that little lever. A stud in the top of the receiver communicates with that little lever when the bolt is forward all the way. It is SUPPOSED to make it drop safe with the hammer down, but in playing around with it, I couldn't readily understand how it accomplishes that. What it does do, without a doubt, is add a level of complexity to the firing sequence that did not exist in the originals, along with some extra sprung resistance to the firing pin. But since Miroku retained the half-cock notch in the hammer, you can just replace the complicated firing pin extension safety with a solid firing pin extension, and the rifle becomes no less safe than an original or a Uberti. Pioneer Gun Works has begun making competition parts for these Mirokus now, and they catalog a solid firing pin extension. For some reason, it is hollow inside--I don't know if that is just a competition thing (lightweight for faster lock time perhaps), or if the weight of the extension was somehow critical when combined with the specific firing pin springs a manufacturer uses. But these extensions are held in place by a simple cross pin in the bolt, and replacement of them is a very simple task.

[Cholla]

Thanks for the write up. Very informative!

I have a buddy who's a rabid CAS competitor. He's always competed with a 20" Uberti 1873 which he'd slicked and short stroked. When the Mirokus first arrived on the scene he got one. He modded it the same way he had his Uberti. I asked him which rifle was better and he said in all honesty there was no practical difference in them.