In 1848, Walter Hunt of New York patented his "Volition Repeating Rifle" incorporating a tubular magazine, which was operated by two levers and complex linkages.

The Hunt rifle fired what he called the "Rocket Ball", an early form of caseless ammunition in which the powder charge was contained in the bullet's hollow base.

[25] Horace Smith and Daniel Wesson of Norwich, Connecticut, acquired the Jennings patent from Robbins & Lawrence, as well as shop foreman Benjamin Tyler Henry.

Oliver Winchester purchased the bankrupt firm's assets from the remaining stockholders and reorganized it as the New Haven Arms Company in April 1857.

Henry also supervised the redesign of the rifle to use the new ammunition, retaining only the general form of the breech mechanism and the tubular magazine.

This became the Henry rifle of 1860, which was manufactured by the New Haven Arms Company, and used in considerable numbers by certain Union army units in the American Civil War.

While it chambered more powerful cartridges than the 1866 and 1873 models, the toggle link action was not strong enough for the then popular high-powered rounds used in Sharps or Remington single-shot rifles.

Nicknamed the "Yellow Boy" because of its receiver of a bronze/brass alloy called gunmetal, it was famous for its rugged construction and lever-action "repeating rifle" mechanism that allowed the user to fire a number of shots before having to reload.

Nelson King's improved patent remedied flaws in the Henry rifle by incorporating a loading gate on the side of the frame and integrating a round, sealed magazine that was partially covered by a forestock.

The original Model 1873 was never offered in the military revolver .45 Colt cartridge, but a number of modern reproductions are chambered for the round.

Barrels producing unusually small groupings during test-firing were fitted to rifles with set triggers and a special finish.

[29] A second grade of Model 1873 barrels producing above average accuracy were fitted to rifles marked "One of One Hundred", and sold for $20 over list.

Nearly faithful in design to the original, including the trigger disconnect safety, sliding dustcover, and a crescent-shaped buttplate, it incorporates two safety improvements: a firing pin block preventing it from moving forward unless the trigger is pulled, and a cartridge carrier modification to eject used casings away from the shooter.

[33] Introduced to celebrate the American Centennial Exposition, the Model 1876 earned a reputation as a durable and powerful hunting rifle.

[34] The Canadian North-West Mounted Police used the '76 in .45-75 as a standard long arm for many years with 750 rifles purchased for the force in 1883;[35] the Mountie-model '76 carbine was also issued to the Texas Rangers.

In many respects, the Model 1886 was a true American express rifle, as it could be chambered in the more powerful black powder cartridges of the day, such as the .45-70 Government, long a Winchester goal.

The 1886 proved capable of handling not only the .45 Gov't but also .45-90 and the huge .50-110 Express "buffalo" cartridges,[37][38] and in 1903 was chambered for the smokeless high-velocity .33 Winchester.

The Winchester '92 was often used in Hollywood Western movies and TV shows out of its correct period, achieving some fame as a 'cowboy' lever action, although it was historically too late for that.

This allowed the Model 1895 to be chambered for military cartridges with spitzer (pointed) projectiles, and the rifle was used by the armed forces of a number of nations including the United States, Great Britain, and Imperial Russia.

It was designed to capture the image of the traditional lever-actions with exposed hammer, straight grip, tube magazine and barrel bands.

The feed system handled the cartridge from the magazine to the breech face by its rim, and the slide cammed the rear of the breechblock up into the locking recess.

[42] In 2013, Winchester brought back the Model 1873, manufactured under license from the Olin company by FN/Browning in the Kōchi Prefecture of Japan by the Miroku Corporation.

It is nearly identical in design to the originals including the trigger disconnect safety, sliding dustcover, and crescent-shaped buttplate, but with two notable exceptions.

An additional safety mechanism, a firing pin block that prevents it from moving forward unless the trigger is pulled, was integrated, and the cartridge carrier was changed to eject used casings away from the shooter.