Despite what the movies will tell you, the 1873 Winchester was the gun that won the West, with nearly half a million manufactured in the 25 years before the frontier was tamed. Italian-made reproductions of the Model 1873 have become popular for cowboy action shooting, pistol cartridge plinking or just for those nostalgic for a piece of history. New for 2024, Uberti is making an 1873 specifically for the modern hunter.

The 1873 Hunter Rifle has several updates for the modern hunter, like a removable Picatinny rail section for mounting optics.

The basis of the Uberti 1873 Hunter is the company’s Short Rifle, with its pistol-gripped stock and rifle-type fore-end. To this, Uberti adds several features tailored to the modern hunter. The checkered A-grade walnut stock has a rubber recoil pad in the place of a traditional steel buttplate.

The barrel is half octagonal and comes with a buckhorn rear sight that is removable so that a supplied Picatinny rail section can be attached to the tapped barrel. This allows for the mounting of electronic optics or long-eye-relief scopes that won’t interfere with the 1873’s top-ejecting action. Major metal parts are finished in a business-like black, while the lever, trigger and hammer have a traditional case-hardened finish.

The 1873 Hunter has an all-black finish, except for the hammer, trigger and lever.

The rifle is available chambered in .45 Colt and .44 Magnum. Both have a 20” barrel and hold 10 cartridges in their under-barrel magazine tube. The rifles weigh 7.59 lbs.

According to Uberti, the Hunter is designed to appeal to those in areas where rifle hunting is limited to straight-wall cartridges and “hunters and recreational shooters from all walks” who “hear the call of this American legacy firearm”.

Both the .45 Colt and .44 Magnum Uberti 1873 Hunter Short Rifles have a MSRP of $1,699. For more information, visit uberti-usa.com.

Article by JEREMIAH KNUPP

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