Guy called the store today looking for a smith that could mount a scope on his rifle. It was an original Winchester 1886.

we need to get a "puke smilie" icon......

Not a horrible idea if he is talking about a scout scope. Atleast the old gun is still being used.

I just got done cleaning a very old pump shotgun, and while I don't know the make of it, I have never had such a filthy gun in my hands. The outside only had minor surface rust, but the inside has a thick black sludge mixed with dust. Kerosene, PB blaster, nothing took it off. I had to take each part to a wire wheel to finally get it off. That's a horrible gun mistake for using WD40 as a lubricant for 40 years and never cleaning it. Yuck.

It would have had to have been a scout scope, the '86 (and all Winchester before the 94AE came out in the early 80s) eject straight to the top. However, I, and most others, tend to object pretty strongly to drilling and tapping a fine original firearm. Assuming the rifle isn't already screwed up and in decent shape, mounting a modern scope on an original Winchester '86 is essentially taking a $2000 rifle and spending $500 to turn it into a $600 rifle.

WD40 as gun lub?

He could have got a side mount but then the scope would only be windage accurate at one point.