Pioneer/Gamble .22 rifle?

[Rigger]

Here's one I could use some help with...

My wife brought home a couple of old .22 rifles from her dad's today,
one of which has me slightly puzzled...

It's a .22 bolt action, with a tube mag under the barrel. The receiver
is stamped as follows:

PIONEER Gamble Stores Model 27A
Incorporated

...On the top of the barrel, forward of the rear sight

CAL.22 LONG RIFLE SMOKELESS GREASED ONLY

...On the left side of the receiver, just forward of what appear to be
chamber vents.

My wife thinks he got it back when he was in high school, back in the
early '40s... ISTR some chain stores seling "house guns", and there was
indeed a Gamble's store in the town he grew up in...

I can't turn up anything "yankee-searching" via Google... Anyone have a
clue about the pedigree of this weapon?

--
Dave Vick
NRA, MCRGO Central Michigan, USA
Tank: "Okay; whaddya need... Besides a miracle?"
Neo: "Guns... Lots of guns."

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Learn about rec.guns at http://doubletap.cs.umd.edu/rec.guns

[Del]

In the small Montana town I grew up in the '50's the Gamble Store was
today's equivilent of the "mall". They also had inhouse shotguns. Here's
what I found on the net. ~Del

Bertin C. Gamble

Gamble - Skogmo
Bert Gamble and his boyhood friend, Phil Skogmo, opened the first
Gamble's auto accessories store in 1925 in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Within
ten weeks, there were four branches in the Dakotas. By 1929, there were
55 stores in five states; by 1939, there were 1,700 stores; and in 1969,
there were 4,200 stores with sales of $2 billion. Gamble-Skogmo grew
into 26 diversified divisions including Gambles, Red Owl, Alden, Snyder
Drug, and IDS. Gambles became the nation's 15th largest retail chain.

The Gamble-Skogmo Foundation remains as a legacy supporting youth,
elderly, medical, and educational causes. A native of Hunter, ND, he
retired as Chairman in 1977 and died in 1986 at age 88.

[curtch...@yahoo.com]

On Saturday, March 30, 2002 9:44:38 PM UTC-4, Rigger wrote:
# Here's one I could use some help with...
#
# My wife brought home a couple of old .22 rifles from her dad's today,
# one of which has me slightly puzzled...
#
# It's a .22 bolt action, with a tube mag under the barrel. The receiver
# is stamped as follows:
#
# PIONEER Gamble Stores Model 27A
# Incorporated
#
# ...On the top of the barrel, forward of the rear sight
#
# CAL.22 LONG RIFLE SMOKELESS GREASED ONLY
#
# ...On the left side of the receiver, just forward of what appear to be
# chamber vents.
#
# My wife thinks he got it back when he was in high school, back in the
# early '40s... ISTR some chain stores seling "house guns", and there was
# indeed a Gamble's store in the town he grew up in...
#
# I can't turn up anything "yankee-searching" via Google... Anyone have a
# clue about the pedigree of this weapon?


Only about 10 years late, but for the benefit of the next searcher- most of
the Gambles/ Pioneer bolt action .22 rifles are Savage/ Springfield make. Have
a couple that are Savage 6C models.

[Gunner Asch]

#Only about 10 years late, but for the benefit of the next searcher- most of
#the Gambles/ Pioneer bolt action .22 rifles are Savage/ Springfield make. Have
#a couple that are Savage 6C models.

Thanks for the info. Its certainly good to know if one runs into
another one.

Ive run into oddities long before the 'net made such research easy and
either bought or not bought based on condition..but that lingering
"who the hell made it?" lasted much longer.