Winchester Models 1905 and 1910 serial numbers by year
Johnson’s blowback self-loading rifle scaled up to centerfire: the Model 1905 in .32 and .35 SL, then the Model 1910 in the heavier .401 SL. Each model kept its own serial sequence, so a number is dated under both tables below.
- Produced:
- 1905–1920 (Model 1905); 1910–1936 (Model 1910)
- Action:
- semi-automatic
What year was your Model 1905 or 1910 made?
Where the serial number is
Two places on the left side: on the lower frame and upper receiver, just above the trigger.
Why the sources give different years
Nobody kept one official list of which Winchester Models 1905 and 1910 serial numbers were made in which year. The dates come from the factory's serial-number records, now held by the Cody Firearms Museum, the tables in George Madis's Winchester books, compiled decades after the guns were made, and a list typed up by Winchester's customer-service desk, which mixes real records with estimates. For some serial numbers these sources are years apart, so this page shows what each one says instead of picking one.
Madis vs. factory dates lists every model where the sources part ways, with a real serial number from each.
Sources for this model: Model 1905 — Winchester/customer-service year-end table · Model 1905 — Madis/OldGuns approximate year-end table · Model 1905 — CFM/Winchester documented range · Model 1910 — Winchester customer-service year-end table · Model 1910 — Winchester customer-service cleanup · Model 1910 — Madis/OldGuns approximate year-end table
Winchester Models 1905 and 1910 serial numbers by year
The full Models 1905 and 1910 serial number chart, one table for each published source. Each row gives the serial numbers that source assigns to a year. Find the row your number falls in.
A row marked “sources differ” is a serial range that another table on this page dates to a different year. For the Models 1905 and 1910 that is true of most of the run, so treat any single year as an estimate and read the notes below the tables. A row marked “approximate” comes from a table whose figures are estimates rather than factory records.
Model 1905: Winchester's own customer-service list
A year-by-year list Winchester's customer-service desk typed up to answer owners' letters. Partly real records and partly estimates, as the list itself says.
Cited as: Model 1905 — Winchester/customer-service year-end table
| Year | Serial numbers |
|---|---|
| 1905sources differ | through 5,659 |
| 1906sources differ | 5,660 – 15,288 |
| 1907sources differ | 15,289 – 19,194 |
| 1908sources differ | 19,195 – 20,385 |
| 1909sources differ | 20,386 – 21,280 |
| 1910 | 21,281 – 22,423 |
| 1911sources differ | 22,424 – 23,503 |
| 1912sources differ | 23,504 – 24,602 |
| 1913sources differ | 24,603 – 25,559 |
| 1914 | 25,560 – 26,110 |
| 1915 | 26,111 – 26,561 |
| 1916 | 26,562 – 26,910 |
| 1917 | 26,911 – 27,297 |
| 1918 | 27,298 – 27,585 |
| 1919 | 27,586 – 28,287 |
| 1920 | 28,288 – 29,113 |
- 1905: This was the first year of production.
- 1920: This is the end of regular production.
Model 1905: Madis's tables (Proofhouse / oldguns.net reprint)
From George Madis's Winchester books, a collector reference compiled decades after production. The figures are year-end estimates, not counts from the factory books.
Cited as: Model 1905 — Madis/OldGuns approximate year-end table
| Year | Serial numbers |
|---|---|
| 1905sources differ | through 7,224 |
| 1906–1910sources differ | 7,225 – 25,444 |
| 1911–1920 | 25,445 – 31,389 |
| 1921–1923approximate | 31,390 – 31,467 |
- 1905: This was the first year of production.
- 1911–1920: This is the end of regular production. George Madis's tables carry leftover parts assembled after that through 1923.
- 1921–1923: George Madis's tables extend the range to 31,467, with leftover parts assembled through 1923. No surviving records at the Cody Firearms Museum support the 1921 to 1923 dates in Madis's tables.
Model 1905: Factory records (Cody Firearms Museum)
The original Winchester factory ledgers, now held at the Cody Firearms Museum. They record the day each serial number was stamped, which is usually close to when the gun was finished.
Cited as: Model 1905 — CFM/Winchester documented range
| Year | Serial numbers |
|---|---|
| 1905–1920 | 1 – 29,113 |
- 1905–1920: Regular production ran from 1905 to 1920.
Model 1910: Winchester's own customer-service list
A year-by-year list Winchester's customer-service desk typed up to answer owners' letters. Partly real records and partly estimates, as the list itself says.
Cited as: Model 1910 — Winchester customer-service year-end table
| Year | Serial numbers |
|---|---|
| 1910sources differ | through 4,766 |
| 1911sources differ | 4,767 – 7,695 |
| 1912sources differ | 7,696 – 9,712 |
| 1913sources differ | 9,713 – 11,487 |
| 1914sources differ | 11,488 – 12,311 |
| 1915sources differ | 12,312 – 13,233 |
| 1916sources differ | 13,234 – 13,788 |
| 1917sources differ | 13,789 – 14,255 |
| 1918sources differ | 14,256 – 14,625 |
| 1919sources differ | 14,626 – 15,665 |
| 1920–1921sources differ | 15,666 – 15,845 |
| 1922sources differ | 15,846 – 16,347 |
| 1923sources differ | 16,348 – 16,637 |
| 1924sources differ | 16,638 – 17,030 |
| 1925sources differ | 17,031 – 17,281 |
| 1926sources differ | 17,282 – 17,696 |
| 1927sources differ | 17,697 – 18,182 |
| 1928sources differ | 18,183 – 18,469 |
| 1929sources differ | 18,470 – 18,893 |
| 1930sources differ | 18,894 – 19,065 |
| 1931sources differ | 19,066 – 19,172 |
| 1932sources differ | 19,173 – 19,232 |
| 1933sources differ | 19,233 – 19,281 |
| 1934sources differ | 19,282 – 19,338 |
| 1935sources differ | 19,339 – 19,388 |
| 1936sources differ | 19,389 – 19,445 |
- 1910: This was the first year.
- 1920–1921: The approximate last serial for 1920 is listed as not available, so this row covers 1920 and 1921.
Model 1910: Winchester's own customer-service list
A year-by-year list Winchester's customer-service desk typed up to answer owners' letters. Partly real records and partly estimates, as the list itself says.
Cited as: Model 1910 — Winchester customer-service cleanup
| Year | Serial numbers |
|---|---|
| 1937sources differ | 19,446 – 20,786 |
- 1937: Leftover parts were assembled in 1937, reaching a total of about 20,786. That is one fewer than George Madis's tables give.
Model 1910: Madis's tables (Proofhouse / oldguns.net reprint)
From George Madis's Winchester books, a collector reference compiled decades after production. The figures are year-end estimates, not counts from the factory books.
Cited as: Model 1910 — Madis/OldGuns approximate year-end table
| Year | Serial numbers |
|---|---|
| 1910sources differ | 1 – 4,766 |
| 1911–1915sources differ | 4,767 – 13,237 |
- 1910: This was the first year.
- 1911–1915: The table from George Madis and OldGuns gives 922 rifles here. That is not a production peak.
What to know about Models 1905 and 1910 serial numbers
- Model 1905: keep two things apart. Serial numbers are documented as stamped through 1920, and parts were said to be assembled after that. No surviving records at the Cody Firearms Museum support the 1921 to 1923 dates in George Madis's tables.
- Model 1910: Winchester's own customer-service chart lists leftover parts assembled in 1937, reaching a total of about 20,786. That is one fewer than George Madis's tables give.
- In 1919 Winchester shortened the names to Model 05 and Model 10. These are the same two models, not new serial number sequences.
- The figure of 922 Model 1910 rifles in 1915, from George Madis and OldGuns, is not a production peak.
- These approximate figures are not the list of last-serial-of-the-year numbers from the factory records at the Cody Firearms Museum.
Other Winchester semi-automatic rifles
Winchester rifles that never had a serial number
These have no serial number to look up. Their pages explain why, and how to date one from its features.
Want proof on paper? Order a factory letter
The Cody Firearms Museum holds Winchester’s original records and, for a fee, will search them for your serial number and send you a letter with the recorded dates and details. It is the closest thing to the original factory entry you can own, and it is what auction houses and appraisers accept.
Its records cover Models 1905 and 1910 serial numbers: Model 1905 only: 1–29,113. A number outside that coverage cannot be lettered.
Order a factory letter from the Cody Firearms Museum →What a factory letter shows, and when one is worth ordering →