Winchester Model 250

Winchester Repeating Arms Company · Carbine · Discontinued · 1963

Also known as: Winchester 250, Winchester Model 250 Deluxe

Overview

The Winchester Model 250 is an American lever-action rimfire carbine chambered for .22 Short, .22 Long, and .22 Long Rifle. Introduced in 1963, it used a lightweight aluminum-alloy receiver and modern cost-cutting manufacturing to offer an affordable short-throw lever gun for plinking and small game. Cartridges feed from a tubular magazine under the 20.5-inch barrel, and the receiver comes grooved for scope mounting.

Specifications

Weight (empty)2268 g (80.0 oz)
Overall Length991 mm (39.02")
Barrel Length521 mm (20.51")
Action TypeLever Action
Firing MechanismHammer Fired
Trigger TypeSingle Action
Trigger Pull18 N (4.0 lbf)
Magazine Capacity15 rounds
Magazine TypeTubular
Muzzle Velocity330 m/s (1083 fps)
Muzzle Energy141 J (104 ft·lbf)
Effective Range100 m (109 yd)
Maximum Range1200 m (1312 yd)
Barrel RiflingRight Hand
Rifling Twist406 mm (15.98")
Frame MaterialAluminum Alloy
Barrel MaterialSteel
Stock MaterialWalnut
FinishBlued

Calibers

Features

Production

Production years: 1963-1974

Discontinued in 1974; the .22 WMR variant was sold as the Model 255.

Origin

Country of origin: United States

Designer: Winchester

Discontinued: 1974

Notes

Produced alongside the semi-automatic Model 290 and the bolt-action Model 310/320 as part of Winchester's early-1960s economy rimfire line. The Model 255 was the same rifle chambered in .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire.

Background

Launched just a year before Ruger's 10/22 upended the rimfire market, the Model 250 embodied Winchester's push toward cheaper materials and mass-production methods in the 1960s. Its alloy receiver and short lever throw made it a popular, inexpensive first rifle for a generation of American plinkers.