Winchester Model 490 Disassembly and Assembly Procedures

The Winchester Model 490 was only made from 1974 to 1976 and sold from 1975 to 1980. Approximately 32,000 were made, with all the guns built in Canada at the Cobourg, Ontario plant. Production ceased in order to make the centennial guns for 1976. Guns and Ammo and Shooting Times magazines both published articles on this rifle telling how the 490 came to be. Due to the success of the high quality 9422, Winchester representatives believed that a high end semi-auto of original design would also be a winner.

Unfortunately, this didn’t work as well in the market place as initially indicated. The 490 was never well received by the public and production was short lived. Winchester issued a recall on the 490 in 1976, as published in the AFTE Journal, March 1976. The article did not state why outside of a report of a used 490 slam firing. If the recall had been completed there would be an asterisk to the right of the serial number, but that is not the case.

These guns are usually found in either great condition or very well used. 490s with lots of wear worked very well, needing only need minor work to keep them going while examples in good condition mostly jammed or didn’t fire consistently. However, a good gunsmith can readily fix these issues and the guns can be made to work reliably. Disassembly Clear the rifle. With the magazine removed, place the safety in the middle and remove the two screws holding in the stock floor plate.

With this is out, gently remove the stock from the barrel and receiver assembly. If this has never been removed and there is a build up of dirt and grime, rock the barrel up and down to loosen. Next, remove the hexagon barrel bracket stud and the trigger housing screw. The instruction manual reports this as a Phillips screw but I have only seen a standard slotted screw head there. Either way, removing this will release the magazine housing and magazine lock spring. The barrel bracket comes out next.

With this removed the barrel will release and slide out the front of the receiver. Again, dirt and grime can keep the barrel stuck to the receiver. I’ve had to use penetrating oil and lightly tap on the barrel with a rubber mallet to loosen it enough for removal. Be gentle and do not twist the barrel. Doing so can do damage to the ejector as it is pinned to the barrel and rests in a slot in the bolt. Pull the bolt forward and pull the trigger.

The cocking handle can now be pulled out and the bolt removed through front of the receiver. The firing pin can now slide out of the bolt. There is a cover over the trigger assembly that has a pin through it. This pin is serrated and must be pushed out right to left. Remove the forward and rear trigger guard screws that hold the trigger guard in place. Remove the two trigger housing screws and lock washers. Trigger Disassembly Look carefully at the two pins holding the trigger group together.

One side will have ridges on it. Push out to that side. I have seen one with serrations on both sides, so check both. With both pins out the cover can be removed. The trigger and the yoke are attached by a roll pin to the trigger housing. Push out the roll pin to finish disassembly of the trigger. Bolt Disassembly To disassemble the bolt, push out the striker rod pin. This is a roll pin and should only be pushed enough to free the striker rod from the bolt.

Hold the end of the striker as it is under a lot of pressure from the two springs on the striker rod. Pull the striker rod off and the striker retainer, striker, inner and outer springs come with it. Push out the extractor pin up through the top off the bolt. This pin is tapered and should be pushed up from the bottom. The extractor and spring can be freed. The bolt is now completely stripped. Cleaning And Polishing Clean all parts and remove any crud buildup.

I like to let everything soak overnight in a gun cleaning solution before cleaning the parts. My preferred soak tank is a plastic window sill flower box available at most home improvement stores. These work great

Winchester Model 490 (Speci ications subject to change without notice) 1 Barrel 2 Barrel Bracket 3 Barrel Bracket Stud 4 Breechbolt 5 Buttplate 6 Buttplate Screws 7 Cocking Handle 8 Ejector 9 Ejector Pin 10 Ejector Spring 11 Extractor 12 Extractor Pin 13 Extractor Spring 14 Firing Pin 15 Magazine Assembly, 5 Shot 16 Magazine Assembly, 10 Shot 17 Magazine Housing 18 Magazine Lock 19 Magazine Lock Pin 20 Magazine Lock Spring 21 Magazine Guide 22 Pistol Grip Cap 23 Pistol Grip Cap Insert 24 Pistol Grip Cap Screw 25 Receiver 26 Safety 27 Safety Spring 28 Safety Spring Screw 29 Front Sight 30 Front Sight Cover 31 Rear Sight 32 Striker 33 Striker Retainer 34 Striker Rod 35 Striker Rod Pin 36 Striker Spring, Inside 37 Striker Spring, Outside 38 Stock 39 Stock Floorplate 40 Stock Floorplate Screws 41 Trigger Guard 42 Front Trigger Guard Screw 43 Rear Trigger Guard Screw 44 Trigger Housing Assembly 45 Trigger Housing Screw, Front 46 Trigger Housing Screw, Rear 47 Front Trigger Housing/Trigger Guard Screw Washers 48 Rear Trigger Housing/Trigger Guard Screw Washers 49 Trigger Stop Pin

to hold a disassembled gun in the cleaning solution. Tupperware green pickle containers work great for soaking small parts and the strainer allows easy retrieval of the parts. I found two of them at Goodwill for 25 cents each. After an overnight soaking, most of the grime will just wipe away. Brush off the more stubborn dirt with an old tooth brush. The feed ramp needs to be stoned smooth. It is part of the magazine housing and is made of aluminum and is soft.

Take care in stoning this as going too far will cause more problems. Just make it smooth and it will help prevent bullets from jamming against it. The firing pin, yoke, sear and the hinge portion of the trigger need to be polished to 2000 grit. These parts are stamped steel and have a very rough burr on one side, with the other being fairly smooth. The object here is to remove the burr, taking away as little as possible. The firing pin likes to stick in the bolt when fired and give a light strike on the rim.

Polishing the other parts will help smooth the trigger pull. Reassembly The bolt is reassembled in reverse order that it was taken apart. The trigger can be troublesome in that the trigger and yoke have to be back in the housing before the sear and spring can be assembled. Make sure the spring is not caught by the pin or the spring can very easily bend. The bolt must be into the receiver, before the trigger housing is put back on, as the trigger will prevent the bolt from going all the way back.

When putting the barrel back on use a lightly oiled patch to wipe the barrel end that goes into the receiver. Do not twist barrel into place. If it is hard to put back on check for dings on the barrel and receiver and polish if necessary. Make sure the safety is in mid position when putting the stock back on. Test fire. If a cartridge jams on the ramp or the firing pin gives a light strike, polish that area. AG American Gunsmithing Association