Like the title says, are they?
I’ve never shot one, but the ones I’ve seen look very nice and have great fit and finish.
There’s a few models that have been tempting me, but it’s hard to swallow that price tag especially for a shooter rifle, not one that will sit in it’s box.

I have a 73 rifle in  44-40 and love it.  Went to a cowboy shoot the other day and all they had was the Miroku 73 rifle.  Wish I would have asked why they were so popular.

Worth the money tag?..I don't know..depends on your budget I guess..

But I will say the dang things are beautiful and I want one..

In a word yes. I have 3-1895's, a 92 and a 71, each one is a better representation of the model than the originals. Tighter, slicker and more accurate. They beat my JM Marlins hands down also. Rebound hammers have never given me an issue on these guns, not once. And the tang safety is easy to ignore but it's right there if you do decide you need one.

They are really well made. My only complaint is that I can never stumble upon a cheap one.

Not to crap on this thread, but it’s sad that a company off shore is making an American brand firearm that we can’t.

I’ve handled and fired several and they’ve all been excellent. They’ve won over the lever-action aficionados at my rifle club.

I had a Miroku made Winchester 1886 .45-70 some years ago.  It was very nice and a great shooter.

The workmanship was much nicer than the two American made 1894s I had.

Man, I might have to break down and pick one up this year.
I was hoping they’d rerelease some 1895 takedown models.

LOL, I love the idea of the BLR, and from everything I’ve read it’s a great rifle. It’s just so goofy looking!

I used to have a Miroku-made Winchester 1886 which I sold for an 1885 High Wall, now I own a Miroku-made 94 Sporter in 30-30.  Both rifles have been absolutely excellent.  Finish on them is exceptional.  The actions are smooth as glass.  They're so beautiful and well-made I almost don't like shooting them, but man they are fun as hell to shoot.

I pre ordered a 92 takedown trapper in 357 a couple of weeks ago, has the fancy grade furniture. They said it would be December before it is ready. Worth the wait? I hope so.

That’s exactly the model I’ve been looking at. I’ve even contacted Winchester, Turnbull, and the NYPD about how I can make it NYC legal (5 rounds in the tube )

Well, at least you recognize it.

Remington is the victim of a corporate holding company mindset. That said, they spent millions on the new Huntsville plant and several of the guns I've seen looked good. Personally,  I never plan to own a Japanese "Winchester" and truly hope Remington makes it back to its former glory. I'm not so ready and willing  to give up on classic American firearms manufacturers.

Back in the late 80s/early 90s owned a Miroku Browning 1895 in .30-06 and two 1886 rifle/carbine.  High quality guns and reliable.

CD

I've owned an Uberti 1873 and it was a very nice gun, but my Miroku Winchester 1873 is better. It was definitely worth the price paid. I also have a Miroku Winchester 1885.

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I wish they would bring the 1895 back and make it a musket style one with bayonet lug and include a bayonet with it, like the Russian ones............I'd buy one in a heartbeat

Lots of folks think this is another economic shuffle out of our country. Miroku has been producing 2nd to none firearms for a long time and there are certain customers of theirs who source them to build because they want to sell 2nd to none firearms.

They are likened to a work of art. Great gun OP grab it if you can $wing it. Personally I want a Browning Citori. One of the shiny engraved bastards, all hand assembled, fitted and engraved.

There are some good video's and interviews with factory tour stuff and it's amazing the care and pride this company and it's employees exhibit.

Great post, RandyBox, thanks for that.

That would be cool.

Once again. Yes, they are worth the money!

I just missed getting an 1895 a local gun shop had................good price too for a new one..........made me sick. If Winchester/Miroku ever does one of these, sans the Russians importing any from those "Salt" mines they reportedly store them in, I will definitely buy one

Anyone interested in a really nice Miroku 1873 might want to look at the EE

I have been super impressed with everything Miroku that I've owned, they're prefection.

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Anyone know if the new 92’s have the lever grip safety?

I don't get the appeal of spending that much more money on a 'Winchester' made in Nankoku, Kchi Prefecture, Japan over a 'Winchester' made in Brescia, Italy.  Neither 'Winchester' is made in America so the fact is that they are both just a licensed copy made by someone other than Winchester.  Sure, the Japanese have the right to mark them "Winchester" and the Italians don't but is that really worth that much to everyone?

Add to the fact that the "Japchesters" have the bastardized rebounding hammers and tang safeties while the "Wopchesters" follow the original design and have a standard trigger and half cock safety and I can't see the reason for spending the extra coin to get a clone marked 'Winchester'.  I've handled both and bought 2 Ubertis because I wanted to shoot them, not look at them in a case.  I wanted a rifle with a half cock and no thumb safety on the tang (where my tang sight resides on my 24" '73).

In today's market where 'American' cars aren't made in America (the Jeep Rnegade is not made in the US, it's made in Italy on the same line as the Fiat 500X, Buick Regal is made in Canada as is the Chevrolet Equinox and Dodge Challenger and Charger), 'Japanese' cars aren't made in Japan (the Honda Accord is made in Ohio and the Toyota Avalon is made in Kentucky), and 'German' cars aren't made in Germany (the Mercedes-Benz R Class is made in Alabama), what does the historic American name, 'Winchester' rollmarked on the barrel really mean anymore.  Just because Olin Corp sold the rights to mark 'Winchester' to the Japanese and didn't to Uberti, it doesn't mean that Japan's clone of the original (remember it's in fact a modified version of the original with the tang safety and rebounding hammers) is better than Uberti's clone which follows the original design.

I shoot both of my 45 Colt chambered 'Winchesters'; my Uberti 1866 Yellowboy 19" Carbine and 1873 Special Sporting 24" Rifle as well as both of my 357mag chambered 'Winchesters'; my Rossi 1892 20" Carbine and 1892 CCH 24" Rifle a lot and I love their originality.  However, none of them were ever produced by Winchester in either 357mag or 45 Colt calibers but you know what?  I don't care. They are shooters, not museum pieces, and they're still great examples of the Winchester legacy.

I guess you missed the picture of the tang sight on my Miroku Winchester. It came pre-drilled for it. Perhaps you can also see the hammer sitting at half cock. I've owned both and the Winchester is a much nicer gun.

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My '92 (pictured above) does not.

^ What he said.

I've never had an issue with the rebounding hammers on any of my Miroku made Winchesters. Don't particularly care about tang sights though they are offered for the tang safety models. I'm happy to pay more for a "clone" no matter where it's made if it's better.

COSteve, for my education, please describe what is wrong with the rebounding hammer and the tang safety.  Also, what is the half cock safety and what is it for?  How do these affect their respective triggers

All of this ignores the quality of the gun itself. The fit , finish and attention to detail are much nicer on the Japanese made guns.

Not a lot of time to discuss a favorite gripe this morning. The rebounding hammer and the long take-up trigger are responsible for miss-fire issues with the Angle Eject Winchester rifle. As the quality dropped in the last days of USRA-Winchester the fitting became worse and there were more miss-fires.
The rebounding hammer and long take-up trigger are tied together to hurt the usefulness of the rifle.  My beef with the rebounding hammer and safety, either cross-bolt or tang is that they are totally unnecessary. Other than the lawyers, what changed after 100yrs of production to necessitate these changes?  Also, having handled half cock safety guns for 60+ years, it's second nature to click it to half cock after closing the action.

No, it doesn't ignore the quality difference because my Ubertis are well finished as well, however, I'm not looking for a museum piece, I want a rifle to take out and shoot.  In my first response, I said, "I've handled both and bought 2 Ubertis because I wanted to shoot them, not look at them in a case. I wanted a rifle with a half cock and no thumb safety on the tang (where my tang sight resides on my 24" '73)."

The OP asked, "Are new production Miroku Winchesters worth the price?"  That is a subjective question calling for a subjective answer.  In my case, no they are not because what I give up with them isn't worth the slightly better fitment, the name 'Winchester' on the barrel, and the bigger price tag.  That's my subjective assessment and it's not subject to debate, it's my opinion.  Just like I wouldn't consider a Henry Big Boy rifle even if it cost $100 because it doesn't have a side loading gate.  It's a deal breaker in my opinion and I'm entitled to it just like you are yours.  You like Japchesters?  Buy them. You don't, don't. It's not my gun, my money, or my problem.

COSteve, the Miroku 73's don't have a rebounding hammer or a tang safety. They also have a shorter lever throw than an Uberti and a much nicer trigger.

So you're saying the last rifles made by Winchester were circling the drain as far as quality, yet you're holding that against Miroku... That makes a lot of sense because the last Winchester made lever guns were 94's and you've been talking about Uberti 73's.

Sounds like your biggest gripe is you wont learn to use new features on a rifle. I will agree they are unnecessary but they are there to stay it appears and to deny yourself a quality firearm because of something so trivial is just silly.

How many times in this thread alone has it been pointed out that the Miroku made 73's don't have tang safeties or rebound hammers?

"Slightly" better fitment is a stretch. As soon as I got my Miroku 1873 home I pulled it apart to start polishing internals just like you see on all the videos of the Uberti 73's. Guess what? All that was already done at the factory. Cowboy action guys send their Uberti's off to get them slicked up and short stroked or you can buy the Italian replicas with that work already done from some gunsmiths but they cost as much or more than the Miroku build Winchesters. For $235 you can get a drop in short stroke kit for a Miroku that can be done at home with no modification to our gun or original parts.

As I said above, I'll gladly spend my money on a better product.

As far as I can tell, the Mirokus are cheaper than the Ubertis.  CDNN is always blowing out one version or another.  The Mirokus are not set up for CAS out of the box, still need sights, etc.  The Miroku's are typical FN/Brownwing/Winchester-nice to look at until you check details.  Barrel flats are usually wavy and over polished.  Bluing isn't authentic, many times the wood is finished too shiny and so on, Checkering has runs, etc.  The Ubertis seem to appear less flashy, emphasis on metal work, less so on wood.  The Ubertis overwhelmingly dominate on the competition side.  As far as price goes, you can always buy a shooter grade original for about the same price as a race gun if you must have authentic, but at this point, Uberti has been making them nearly as long as Winchester did originally.

I've owned both and that isn't the case with my 1873 or 1885. They are both much better guns than the Uberti I had.

Nailed it. The Japchester's are a visual abomination of an 1873 Winchester (of which I own two, 1886 and 1888 manufactured), while the Uberti's are all but identical. The Miroku 1873 compared to an original 1873 is like comparing a 2005 Ford Thunderbird to a 1955 Ford Thunderbird; they're only the same in name. It's bad when there's that much of a physical difference in two rifles with the same model designation. On the other hand, you could blindfold someone and hand them an 1873 Uberti and it would be all but impossible to tell the difference in it and an original 1873 Winchester. Uberti has done an outstanding job of replicating the original Winchester.

I guess I need to sell my 1911s since they are a visual abomination of a real 1911.

Actually, the modern Colt 1911s are to the original Colt 1911s what the 2005 T-Bird is to the 1955.  So, you may be right.

What are the differences between an original Winchester 73, a Miroku 73, and an Uberti 73?

What are the differences?

Which one is Miroku and which one is Uberti?

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You say you've owned both, yet you don't know the differences??

In your picture below, the Uberti is the top rifle EASY to tell the difference as the Uberti is much more true to the original.

What are the differences? Obviously, you've owned both, too.

My “Japchester” was the most expensive levergun I’ve ever bought ($1500).  It has no safeties, no rebounding hammer, and I’ll let you be the judge on how it looks. It’s smooth as glass and one of the grandkids will get it in my will.

Are the barrel bands supposed to be case hardened?  I don't think I have ever seen one like that.

Look how proud this wood is.  And this is current photo from Winchesters website.  No way you can charge four figures for such sloppy stock work.

"Ubertis have plain wood stocks" . . . . . . . . NOT!!!!





"They've poorly fitting stocks." . . . . . . . . . NOT!!!