Home Forums Lever Action Central Lever Actions - General I ordered a Rossi Model 92

this afternoon. Trying to get one in 357 here in Canada has been a chore. I'm not a fan of Marlins. It's their appearance more than anything.

The rifle is a plain blued version with a 20" bbl. It is a stablemate for a 44 Mag M92 I bought for deer hunting some years back.

The only thing that I'm going to do is order Steve Young's DVD and a few parts. My 44 runs slick as snot, but I figure it cannot hurt to get a disk of his tips.

Merry Christmas to me!

Last year I was set to gift a friend in Stewart, BC with a Marlin SS in .44 mag, but I thought better of sending a handgun round carbine; instead opted for the .45/70, he is glad of the change of heart. Best of luck with the lever guns!

Years ago, I was at a gun show at the arena. A guy was selling reloading equipment for what looked to be an estate sale. I bought RCBS 44 Magnum dies for $3. I didn't own a 44, but they looked brand new. Because of that, I had to buy a 44.

About 5 years ago, I was given Lee Deluxe 38 Spec/357 dies. They sat unused because I already had dies for my 686. I figured I'd have to buy a 357 rifle so that I could use (and set up) the new set. I searched for a Model 92 357 lever, but for whatever reason, I couldn't find one - new or used.

I kind of stumbled over this one. It was the last one the shop had. I should have it before New Year's. I'm hoping that it doesn't have the silly safety on the bolt. The safety will go away if it does.

I know where there is a SS 20" round barrel model setting on the shelf and has been since it was delivered at the same time as my 20 octagon barrel

I like the gun, but HATE the buckhorn sights, flinch every time I look at price decent tang sight like the Marbles $126 (they even have the screw set needed to install the sight (one SAE, one metric, yes, both are needed).

I had ordered two sets as soon a s Rossi announced they would have correct tang sight for sale (looked the the Marbles at 1/3 the cost) and so far almost a year later, my check is uncashed and the sights have fallen off of the catalogs pages.
DANG!!!

If the guy come through and buys my Redhawk as he claimed he wanted it, the SS model will come to my house too.

Faults you ask:

Some claim rough actions . . . Mine was new metal draggy, but light oiling with industrial oil and a thousand or so rounds later it is fine for me (NOT SASS competition smooth I would guess)

Factory ejector spring will launch brass into low orbit
Cut some coils off of factory spring, or buy a complete spring kit from one of several suppliers (one in TX, one in RI come to mind)

CHEAP plastic magazine follower . . .

Who woulda thunk some dumba$$ at Rossi would let that go through. See suppliers mentioned above

1:30 rifling
Again "stupidity by design committee", but mine LOVES 358156's and I think I have found a load that will push Lar45s 180 grainer fast enough to perform to at at least 50 yards.

What performance with jacketed Bullets, you ask?

You mean they make such a thing? <LOL>


At east my "short"version of comments on the 92.

I like it

It didn't take long for me to replace the OEM sights. I installed a Williams FP rear and a Firesight front sight on my 44. I had considered a Marble's tang, but I don't care for them on the grip. Like most accessories, that's personal preference.

My first Rossi had a smooth action and passable trigger out of the box, but I didn't like the yellow plastic tube follower, so I replaced it.

I haven't done anything else. It is a dandy, light carrying rifle. I owned a couple of Marlins, but prefer the Rossi. That's just me, of course.

I'm thinking that this new one will might have some of the problems that people have reported. The DVD will not hurt, and I will be prepared for any work, should I have problems with it.

It's funny that you should mention the Lyman 155s. I have a several hundred of them, given to me by a friend. I will cast or order several different weights and see what shoots from mine.

Somebody makes a peep for a Rossi 92 that replaces that safety.

Steves Gunz sells them, along with lots of other stuff, including whole guns, and a DVD explaining how to smooth up the insides of a rough '92. I haven't purchased anything from him yet, but plan to once I get more time to play with my Rossi.

IMO that rear sight is genius. It replaces the ugly safety (Steve also has a plug available) while offering a peep sight that doesn't require further drilling to install and doesn't get in the way of the shooter's hand like a tang sight can. It also doubles (rough math) the sight radius on the '92 Trapper, and considering how accurate mine is with the crude factory sights, this peep will be the first thing I order someday. I'm a little worried about it sticking out there unprotected, but don't see any way around it. Lots of Loctite should hold things in place once zero'd.

Plus one on the StevesGunz bolt peep. I put one on my Rossi 92 .44 and love it. I also did away with the front sight and replaced it with one of his brass post fronts and like it a lot. Only thing is now the windage had to be adjusted by drifting the front sight, and any extra height not needed filed away as long as there was plenty for any potential future elevation changes.

No big deal. I settled on a load for both my .44's, so I set it and forgot about it.

Probably the most fun gun I own. I love sizing brass ( which seems to last forever) without lube thanks to carbide dies, XTP's abound in my area of the world, and as a result I shoot the snot out of it.

Good luck with yours!!

Thanks for the report Paint. I haven't given my little Trapper the attention it deserves yet, but I LOVE it's handy size and the fact I can carry it around the wrist/lever and the muzzle is still at least a foot off the ground. The sights are clearly the weak link IMO. They're crude and the radius isn't much more than a long barrel revolver. A fine front bead and rear peep should make the little gal really sing.

I ordered the DVD and will check out his rear sight. I had a Skinner sight for another lever, but replaced it with a Williams FP.



Can you see the brass post in low light? I cannot manage that, so my iron sighted levers have Firesights on them. I'm going to try using white paint with the OEM sight on the new lever to see if that makes any difference.

I am hopeful that the new Rossi will arrive tomorrow. It was originally supposed to be here on the 23rd.

Yes, the face of the post stands out really well for me in low light conditions. I had to reduce the height with a file, and the filed surface on top shines much like a bead, even in dim light.

My favorite front site of all is the XS post with the white stripe. I absolutely love it. The brass is a close second. Black post sights haven't shown up well at all for me in the fading light.

Bead sights haven't proven to be as rugged for me, with several of the beads popping of when snagged on even light brush. I've about got them phased out on all my levers.

Steve, something else I did was refinish the stocks on mine. After I was satisfied I liked the rifle, I stripped the factory mystery finish off, and stained and finished with Tru Oil.

The wood is really nice looking, with quite a bit of figure and iridescence. I'd considered leaving the old finish as it was, but even for a rifle that is used hard, I just couldn't. It was more like an unfinished stain than anything.

YRMV. Good luck with it.

That's on my list of things to do as well. The finish is very uninspiring (mostly an unfinished stain as you stated) but the promise of some prettier wood hiding underneath also excites me more than a little. Plus refinishing stocks is fun, and I want to seal up the hidden inletted wood anyway.

The finish on my 44 is darker. Mine was made when they were calling them Pumas. No bolt safety. That was probably added for the lawyers, but it seems most people remove them.

The rifle arrived today and the finish is lighter than my 44. I don't know if you can tell from this photo or not. It also has less grain than its older cousin. New 357 at top. 44 bottom.



I haven't cleaned out the shipping gunk yet, but I think the trigger is going to clean up better than the 44. This new one has that silly bolt safety. It also has the Taurus Security System. If you are not familiar with it, there is a small allen key that ships with the rifle. It mates with a keyway in the base of the hammer.

I have had both the 44 mag and.357.The 44mag,I gave to my brother. They are not hard to smooth up the action and my .357 is very accurate. It's my go to lever gun when I am out and about and need one to ride in the scabbard. I too lightened up the dark stock.
I replaced the 44n mag with a marlin because I needed to put a scope on for my old eyes. But darn, I hate those fat forearms ,so I carved a new stock and forearm to make it look like a 94.

Nice job on that forearm, saddlesore. I like Marlins too, but I've always felt like taking a rasp to the stocks.

I took the rifle apart, flushed the action out, replaced the follower, trimmed the mag spring and smoothed some of the metal with a stone. After wiping it down, I left it to drain out the excess oil.

This afternoon I put it back together and cycled it a few dozen times. Now that the crud's gone and things are cleaned up, I'll shoot it.

It cycles better now, but that's only because I got rid of the preservative. I cleaned the mag tube and barrel just now. I'll get it to the range and convince myself to ditch the OEM rear sight. I've decided on a Williams FP, but haven't sent my order in to Brownells yet.

Once I figure out where she's shooting, I'll replace the front sight. The OEM front is hard to see. It's a hunting rifle, so I'll put on a Firesight or similar.

I don't want to curse my luck, but between the 44 and the newer 357, the action and trigger on the 357 seems smoother. I'll reserve judgment on the new one until I put a few hundred shots down range.

Looked at 2 of these today one carbine and one rifle.

Very nice guns, the weird swivel safety would have to go away though!

$499 on the tag.

Mike

The safety is downright stupid, but as many have mentioned, it's a lawyer generated modification.

My 44 does not have either the hammer lock or bolt safety. I have decided to install another Williams FP on the 357, so I'll likely leave the safety alone. It will sit under the rear sight and be out of the way.