Does anyone know exactly when/what/how Winchester added the "C" designation to the model 70? They had been refining the action steadily over the last years. The final "70C" certainly incorporated the flat-sided bolt shroud, the recessed muzzle crown, the black Decelerator recoil pad, but there were rifles carrying these refinements that weren't labeled with the C designation. Were there any new quality controls incorporated? Were they even then working toward the accuracy guarantee forthcoming in the new 70's? Just what made them a "C"? And at what serial number did it begin?

Mike,
Where did you come up with that "70C" designation? I looked through a few of my Model 70 Classics, and, yeah, some say "70C" ON THE BOX, instead of saying "70 Classic", which all the others say. As it happens these particular specimens are stainless Classic Featherweights of late production with the latest upgrades you mentioned. The markings on the rifles themselves do not indicate any "70C". "70C" is just short hand for saying Model 70 Classic, IMHO. If there is any dark hidden secret here, I am certainly not aware of it!

You are most probably right. But, just as there is a Super Grade III and Sporter III, I thought maybe the C was to signify an upgraded version. There have been enough changes to have possibly warranted a new designation. I guess the test would be whether the "C"'s say 70C Classic or if they say simply 70C.

And no, I haven't seen any C marking on the rifles themselves, but then there aren't IIIs on the Super Grade IIIs either.

I can understand where you are coming from. One thing to keep in mind, is that these various upgrades to the Model 70 Classic in later years were not incorporated all at the same time, and some models never did get the full treatment. These various upgrades were put into production at different times, and in some cases, I believe, there was a mixture of the old and new for a short period of time in the production runs.

The list of late model upgrades includes the one-piece bottom metal, bolt shroud with the gas flange, square cut recessed target crown, machined extractor, and Pachmayr Decelerator pad.

I've got examples of Model 70 Classics with all of these upgrades, and also examples that have some, but not all of these upgrades.

To wit, I have a Stainless Camo Ultimate Shadow which has the Pachmayr pad, flanged bolt shroud and one-piece bottom metal, but not the square cut recessed target crown nor the machined extractor. I also have a late production Stainless Classic which has the square cut crown, the flanged bolt shroud and machined extractor, but still has the old style two-piece bottom metal and hard rubber pad, presumably because Winchester continued to use the same old stocks on newer production.

To my knowledge, there is not any change in model designation for any of the Model 70 Classics, based on the incorporation of these upgrades. The net result is that several of the Model 70 Classic models have different variations, depending on when they were manufactured, even though there is no designation to indicate these changes.

This is, I suppose, clear as mud!

I've observed the same thing. In fact, I've purchased a couple of the new style gas-flanged bolt shrouds and had them installed on otherwise "complete" new model 70s.

I wasn't aware of the machined extractor change. How do you distinguish the two?

Mike, if you get through this thread, I think you will find your answer on how to distinguish the machined extractors from the MIM extractors.

https://forums.accuratereloading.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/9411043/m/774105395

Where did you get your flanged bolt shrouds to replace the older style? How much gunsmithing is required to replace the older ones with the newer ones? I have several older production Classics, that I hunt with and which I am quite fond of, and would like to replace the older bolt shrouds with the flanged shrouds, purely for safety reasons.

My gunsmith installed the two of them in about 15 minutes time. They worked absolutely perfectly with no adjustments required. He said I was lucky. It could also mean that Winchester's tolerances are very tight. I got them from Midwest Gunworks, Pevely, Mo. You can find them on the internet. I was told that I had purchased the last two. That was probably the truth because I wanted to purchase more.

When they go back into production in S. Carolina, if we are lucky, they will be available again.

I wouldn't fall off of my bar stool, if I called Winchester and found out the flanged bolt shrouds were available from them right now! But at any rate, yeah, the new Model 70's coming back into production should ensure parts availability. However, I'm not 100% sure the bolt shroud will be interchangeable. Didn't I hear that there are some minor changes to the safety on the new production models? Hope this doesn't mean the new bolt shrouds won't work on the older models.