In a recent issue of Guns & Ammo, a letter-writer stated that in an article about the Winchester 94 from a few months back, they forgot to mention that it had also been chambered for the .219 Zipper.  When I was doing research for my Cartridges of Winchester 94 post (see sidebar) I didn't see mention of this cartridge anywhere, so it piqued my interest.

So here's what I've found, and I think I am correct.  The writer in the magazine was not technically correct.  The Winchester 94 was not chambered for the .219 Zipper.  This cartridge was created for an updated lever-action model, the Winchester 64.

The Winchester 64 was introduced in 1937 or '38, discontinued during World War II, and permanently removed from the catalog in 1948.  It was a fancied-up variation of the original Model 94, with a pistol-grip stock and some other operational improvements (so they say), and was significantly more expensive than the 94.

The Model 64 was produced in three calibers:  .30-30, .32 Winchester Special, and .219 Zipper.

The Model 64 was an "improved" version of the 94, and the Zipper was a new cartridge created just for it.  In a time when new bolt action rifles were all the rage, and sales of lever guns were suffering, Winchester wanted to produce a lever rifle that was pretty enough to compete with them.  The .219 Zipper was Winchester's attempt to create a .22-caliber varmint cartridge for a tubular magazine, lever action rifle to compete with the bolt guns.


The Zipper was loaded with anything from 45- or 46-grain hollowpoints or soft points up to 55-grain softpoints.  All bullets used were flat point, which was necessary in a tubular magazine.  It also meant that, like other cartridges created for these kinds of guns, it lost velocity at longer ranges because of its poor aerodynamic design.

The .219 Zipper was based on a necked-down .25-35 WCF case and produced a muzzle velocity in the neighborhood of 3300 fps and a muzzle energy around 1300 fpe.

Remington later produced this round as well, and chambered their Model 336 for it.  Both Winchester and Remington quit producing this round during the 1960's.  It is no longer commercially produced, although brass and bullets are plentiful for the reloader.  It is also listed at Old Western Scrounger, but is currently out of stock.

The .219 Zipper seems to have been a bright idea that in the end, wasn't so bright.  It was crippled in its competition against other varmint cartridges by its poor aerodynamics.  It might greatly benefit from being loaded with modern Hornady LEVERevolution bullets, but is probably too obscure to be commercially feasible.

And of course, although technically a varmint cartridge, it has been used to take numerous deer, especially in areas where the deer are fairly small (such as where I live).

References:
219 Zipper
Old Western Scrounger
Cartridges of the World

Crossposted to The Gun Blogs.