Winchester Model 74 serial numbers by year
The Winchester Model 74 is a semi-automatic, tubular-magazine .22 rimfire rifle produced from 1939 to 1955, with approximately 406,574 manufactured.
- Produced:
- 1939–1955
- Action:
- semi-automatic
What year was your Model 74 made?
Where these dates come from
Winchester's original factory records do not cover every model. For the Model 74, the dates come from one published source, Winchester's own customer-service list (2012). It was typed up long after production, so treat any year as a close estimate rather than a factory record.
Source for this model: Winchester customer-service list (2012)
Winchester Model 74 serial numbers by year
The full Model 74 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.
Winchester's own customer-service list (2012)
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: Winchester customer-service list (2012)
| Year | Serial numbers |
|---|---|
| 1939 | 1 – 30,890 |
| 1940 | 30,891 – 67,085 |
| 1941 | 67,086 – 114,355 |
| 1942 | 114,356 – 128,293 |
| 1944 | 128,294 – 128,295 |
| 1945 | 128,296 – 128,878 |
| 1946 | 128,879 – 145,168 |
| 1947 | 145,169 – 173,524 |
| 1948 | 173,525 – 223,788 |
| 1949 | 223,789 – 249,900 |
| 1950 | 249,901 – 276,012 |
| 1951 | 276,013 – 302,124 |
| 1952 | 302,125 – 328,236 |
| 1953 | 328,237 – 354,348 |
| 1954 | 354,349 – 380,460 |
| 1955 | 380,461 – 406,574 |
What to know about Model 74 serial numbers
- Winchester's own customer-service list is a retyped compilation, not the original records. The list itself says that no complete original serial record from 1866 onward is known to exist, and that some of its figures are estimates.
Other Winchester semi-automatic rimfires
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 Model 74 serial numbers: 123,349–136,739. 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 →