Modern Winchester 92s

[High Desert Hunter]

I've been looking at a new purchase, #1 being a 2007 JM Marlin 1894 Cowboy Carbine in 45 Colt, this one would go with my multiple short guns in this caliber chiefly a S&W Mtn Gun, #2 is a Lipsey's S&W 629 Mtn Gun in 44 to go with my Ruger/Marlin 1894 Classic, #3 is a new Winchester model 92 in 45 Colt for the same reason as #1, has a weird 1:26 barrel twist, but the Marlin is a 1:38. Now I am thinking about waiting for a new Marlin 1894 Classic in 45 Colt.

[wvfarrier]

I have several moder winchesters, the twist has never been an issue. Stabilizes everything i habe used from 185 grain up to 320 grains.

[LeverGunner]

My Winchester 1892 44 Magnum has a 1:26" twist. I haven't tried a lot of bullet weights yet, but it seems to do well with standard and heavier weights. I do have some lighter bullets to try, I just haven't loaded them yet. It won't chamber the Lee C430-310-RF though because it has a short throat. I would expect the 45 Colt version to be short throated as well.

My rifle will feed any bullet shape including semi-wadcutters, as long as the length isn't too long. It will accept just a touch longer bullet reliably - .020 longer than max, if memory serves me. It will feed Specials with semi-wadcutters just fine too. It won't feed full wadcutters in special brass (I haven't tried them in magnum cases yet), but I didn't expect it would.

Mine is reworked and refinished by Turnbull.

[High Desert Hunter]

Thank you! All of the rifle options have the lawsuit safeties, I wish they didn't, but they do and I negate them on my Marlin rifles, not sure how a guy would "fix" the Winchester.

[oldebear1950]

I have a 38/357 stainless, 16 inch barrel ROSSI 92, and a 20 inch ROSSI 92 , also stainless in 454 casull/45 colt.
They are awsome. I purchased pins to replace the safeties from STEVES GUNZ, and stainless steel magazine followers from him.
They are awesome. Other than being stainless steel are so much like my grandpa's old Winchester 92 is kind of freaky.
I do love Old Marlins, but they just do not seem to balance like the Winchesters do

[Pisgah]

I have two Rossi R92's, the newest a 16" carbine and a 10-year-old 24" rifle, both .45 Colt. Other than their goofy bolt safety (easily and neatly removed) they are the equal of any Winchester.

[LeverGunner]

Thank you! All of the rifle options have the lawsuit safeties, I wish they didn't, but they do and I negate them on my Marlin rifles, not sure how a guy would "fix" the Winchester.

Turnbull fixes the safety and converts it to half cock notch.


The firing pin has been welded solid and all of that firing pin block nonsense has been removed.

[Walt]

Dave, I have more guns in .45 Colt than any other caliber. I have a JM Marlin Cowboy in .45 Colt with a 24" octagonal barrel that I just love. If you watch Hickok 45 on You Tube, he has said repeatedly that his .45 Colt Marlin is the last lever gun that he would ever sell. He has stated that he shoots 300 gr cast bullets in his, calling it his "poor man's .45-70". I have on occasion shot heavier bullets and heavier loads in mine as well but my favorites are just 250 gr machine cast 850 - 900 fps loads for fun. I put a Skinner aperture sight on mine (FYI it required a higher front sight). I believe Marlin made them in 20" barrels as well. If I ever see a nice one with a 20" barrel, I'll buy it.

I have a .45 Colt Mountain Gun that's blued. I think the blued ones came out after a major run of stainless models had been produced. I put a nice set of Eagle grips on mine but they seemed too long for a fairly compact revolver like the Mountain Gun so I cut about 3/8ths inch off the bottom and they're perfect now.

[High Desert Hunter]

Levergunner, just wow! That is beautiful! I'd hate to see what that would run a fellow these days! Walt, I have heard that 300 grain bullets will shoot from these Marlins, I also know that Ruger is getting ready to release the 1894 Classic soon, and rumor has it the barrel will have the same twist as the revolvers. The one I am looking at is a clean Cowboy Carbine with a 20" barrel, who knows, if they ever release another run of the Cowboy models a guy might be able to get a faster twist if he wanted. I wish I had the financial wherewithal to buy all 3, but the real world just says no, blessed to have what I have, and to even be able to think about something new.

Dave

[JFE]

I have a B-92 in 44 mag. Rifles made to SAAMI spec have larger diameter barrels, a slow twist (1 in 38”) and quite a long throat (0.22”). My B-92 has all these features. SAAMI has a different spec for pistols, so you might struggle to find a cast load that works in both rifle and pistol.

I’ve found the best cast bullet accuracy in my rifle to generally be when I use as wide a bullet as will cycle and chamber in my rifle. What this does is centralise the cartridge in the chamber. This means a pill around 0.432-0.433 in diameter.

It would useful to know what specs Turnbull uses for his builds. He does turn out a nice product. Levergunner - your rifle looks great.

The Brownings don’t have the rebounding hammer or additional thumb safety of the later Winchesters, but they do have a two piece firing pin just like most leverguns, including Marlins. It’s a safety feature so that you can’t fire the rifle until the chamber is fully closed.

[kaschi]

@ High Desert Hunter: Turnbull's price for that kind of work is in the $800 neighborhood.

[High Desert Hunter]

Not as much as I figured, and well worth it! So far I have been lucky with the Ruger/Marlin 44, it shoots the same bullets and loads my Bisley and Super Blackhawk like.

[2ndovc]

I have an older Interarms Rossi 92 in .357 that's a great shooter, a Remington/ Marlin CSX in 357 as well that will feed anything and super accurate.

I need to replace a Marlin 94P/.44 that I've had for many years but just couldn't get it to shoot well with anything other than 300 gr. jacketed bullets. I've been looking at the new Marlin trappers and will probably pick one up in the next couple of weeks. Going with the Marlin because I want to turn it into a short Scout rifle.

I don't have any of the modern 92s, but have several originals. I do have a Japanese/ Miroku Model 73 in .45 Colt.
The fit and finish is some of the best I've seen, outstanding accuracy and makes a great rifle to go with my .45 Colt revolvers that seem to be increasing in on my wants and needs list.

jb

[Paladin]

I don't think the safety detracts from the clones once you replace it with a cut off .25 ACP case.

safety.jpg

[JFE]

I also have a B-92 in 357 that I was lucky enough to pick up a few years ago. Browning never made many in 357, so they’re a bit harder to find.

SAAMI only have one spec for the 357. My rifle’s barrel slugs dead on 0.357 and has a fast twist, similar to revolvers. Like the other B-92 in 44 mag that I have, this one has no rebounding hammer or thumb operated safety. It has the half cock safety and a two piece firing pin. The firing pins are usually trouble free unless they have been enthusiastically over oiled and the oil age hardens and gums up, which then impedes the firing pin operation. Kept clean and lightly oiled, it works just fine.

The 357 is a joy to use and is very accurate. It doesn’t feed SWC’s well but that can be fixed. I just use RNFN bullets that the cowboy crowd use and it works perfectly.

[LeverGunner]

I forgot to mention the groove diameter on my rifle is just a touch over .429 (I don't remember for sure without getting my notes, but I think it is .4292).

[RIHMFIRE]

My Winchester 1892 44 Magnum has a 1:26" twist. I haven't tried a lot of bullet weights yet, but it seems to do well with standard and heavier weights. I do have some lighter bullets to try, I just haven't loaded them yet. It won't chamber the Lee C430-310-RF though because it has a short throat. I would expect the 45 Colt version to be short throated as well.

My rifle will feed any bullet shape including semi-wadcutters, as long as the length isn't too long. It will accept just a touch longer bullet reliably - .020 longer than max, if memory serves me. It will feed Specials with semi-wadcutters just fine too. It won't feed full wadcutters in special brass (I haven't tried them in magnum cases yet), but I didn't expect it would.

Mine is reworked and refinished by Turnbull.

THAT IS AWESOME!

[Streetstar]

I’ve had both - emphasis on HAD

I now only own a handful of Winchester’s and Winchester pattern rifles. Also ditched the 44mags for 45 Colt

After carrying both Winchesters and Marlins afield I prefer the Winchesters. They feel trimmer and have a natural balance for me. Talking about the PCC’s now - I have a soft spot for the chunky Marlin Guide Guns in 45/70 though

But 1894 Marlin doesn’t compare to model 92 (or 94) Winchester for my uses

That said — easier optics mounting is a huge plus and for this I kind of want to re-visit the 357 “Guide Gun” that was released recently — I’m on a suppressor kick lately and while I would never cut and thread one of my Winchesters, the new-school Marlins come threaded already , plus a LPVO with an offset red dot would be fun !

[AJMD429]

.
I have mostly Marlins (1894, 336's) and Rossis (92's) from 32-20 to 45-70 and in between.

I prefer Marlins overall due to sturdy and few parts, and so many interchangeable parts with no fitting needed, but the Marlins of recent manufacture have forends that are too beefy for my taste (easy enough to slim down or ignore). I actually find the receiver safety an ok thing - positive and sure and no problem. Sights from the factory are ok and very easy to use the scope base holes for a Williams FP.

I like the light handiness of the Winchester and Rossi 92's, but they sure seem to have lots of little parts that are easy to lose and hard to fit/replace.
The Rossis seem decent enough quality to me, although nothing beats a pre-WW2 Marlin or Winchester in terms of beauty and machining.

I detest the bolt-mounted safety on the Rossis, but I replace them with a 'delete' whenever possible.

[High Desert Hunter]

I would like to add another Winchester to the stable, but it will be a shooter model 94 in 32 Special. My Great Granddad's 1927 model 94 has pitting in the barrel and just a hint of too much headspace. So I will very likely add either another Winchester, or even a Marlin in 32 Special, it is a fun cartridge to shoot, and I cast a 173gr bullet that shoots well.

Dave

[LeverGunner]

My Winchester 1892 44 Magnum has a 1:26" twist. I haven't tried a lot of bullet weights yet, but it seems to do well with standard and heavier weights. I do have some lighter bullets to try, I just haven't loaded them yet. It won't chamber the Lee C430-310-RF though because it has a short throat. I would expect the 45 Colt version to be short throated as well.

My rifle will feed any bullet shape including semi-wadcutters, as long as the length isn't too long. It will accept just a touch longer bullet reliably - .020 longer than max, if memory serves me. It will feed Specials with semi-wadcutters just fine too. It won't feed full wadcutters in special brass (I haven't tried them in magnum cases yet), but I didn't expect it would.

Mine is reworked and refinished by Turnbull.

THAT IS AWESOME!

Thank you very much.

[Walt]

I have one gripe about my Ruger/Marlin in .357 mag. In my other Marlin model 94s there is a shelf at the mouth of the magazine tube that prevents the nose of the bullets that I'm loading through the side gate from dropping down too far, thus guiding them into the magazine tube. The .357 does not have that, making it quite a bit more difficult to load smoothly. If the cartridge is not pointed exactly at the mouth of the tube, the nose drops down and the round must be pulled completely out and then started again. Otherwise it's a great levergun.