Rossi 92 - 45 Colt

[Strait94]

I'm considering getting a Rossi in 45 LC for CAS. I've seen several posts (pros and cons) about the Rossi being hit or miss on quality and dependability. I've visited Nate's site to see what can be done to make them run better so I'm certainly intrigued. Anyone else on here shoot CAS with a Rossi in 45 LC?

Any problems/issues with the stainless models? Thank you in advance!

Strait94

[Griff]

I have an EMF imported one from about 2003/4. I slicked it up myself, but just about use the same method that Nate uses. I'd done 2 .357 '92s in the late '90s, so I wasn't completely in the dark. I generally use one of my 2 1873s for CAS if I wanna go a bit faster, or the 1860 if I wanna really go slow. All four are in .45Colt.

I do use the Rossi in Wild Bunch matches, but have really come to like the 18-½" barrel on the Taylor's Border Rifle. With its ½rnd/oct barrel it balances and swings very nicely. The Rossi sports a 20" octagon barrel. And, it doesn't have much taper, so it weighs about the same as the 1873 with the 24" bbl.

I don't run with the fastest dogs... more like the slowest since I went over that 6/10s of a century mark! Since I don't try to go fast, any of my rifles are good for me. Heck, since I shoot mostly in the "Frontiersman" category, (1851 Navys, hammered double & usually my 24" Uberti 1873), real speed ain't an option. I like 'em all.

I will tell you that my 1892 Rossi came to me really over sprung. Lightening the ejector spring is paramount. Slicking the internals will help with any gritty feel, and a light touch on the mainspring will help trigger feel and responsiveness. Since I've keep the lever stroke on all my CAS guns at stock throw, any will run about as fast as the other... just that the 1873s have a lighter "feel" to them... so any speed deferential might be an illusion in my case.

Honestly, unless you really plan to be competitive, the 1892 will serve you well. The only thing holding it back from being a top competitive gun, is that you can't "short stroke" it to reduce the length of the lever travel. It is far superior, IMO than the 1866/73s or even the 1894 Marlin in action strength. And, in a dual purpose gun, (competitive play & hunting), that's a real plus in favor of the 1892!

Any excuse to post a picture a good lookin' rifle!

If you go over to the SASS Wire, almost all of today's shooters will try to talk you out of a Rossi 1892, but it's your money, your intentions in playing the game that should dictate what you want to compete with. I've been playing for 30+ years, and have seen all sorts of fellows win and lose. It's mostly a matter of practicing to get good, then practicing some more to get better! Good luck, and enjoy your new hobby!

[ollogger]

Mine is a 45 with 24 in. bbl in ss for over 2800 rounds it has run like a clock
For the 500 bucks I gave for it am well pleased with it



Brad

[Pisgah]

Mine's a "Hartford" branded 24" rifle (octagon barrel). Since right out of the box it has been perfection -- smooth as silk, extremely accurate, as nice a mass-produced rifle as I have ever seen. I can't think of a single modification that would make it any better.

[Old Savage]

Mine requires oversize bullets for any accuracy.

[Buck Elliott]

Almost any Rossi 92 is a fairly decent pile of parts to make a good gun out of..
It will take some tweaking, stoning, polishing, fitting (and maybe a replacement part or two) to bring it up to snuff, but it can be done.

It still won't be a Winchester...

[rossim92]

just call nate and buy one from him already "slicked" up. You can't go wrong. He did my 92 in .357 mag and cycles anything i put through it now!

[OldWin]

Griff,
I've always liked that Rossi of yours. Just a cool looking rifle.




The only Rossi I have is a .357 SRC. It feeds everything I try and is uncanny accurate. I slicked it up a little but not because of any feeding or cycling issues.

[Griff]

Griff,
I've always liked that Rossi of yours. Just a cool looking rifle...

Thank you, when I ordered it, I spoke to the then owner of EMF and told him I was buyin' it for my son's CAS rifle and to hunt a few hogs with. I was quite surprised when I opened the box. As it turns out, I shoot it a LOT more than the boy!

[Rube Burrows]

I have a few of them that I use. Of course they are not as fast as the 73 and 66 models but they are tanks and work just fine.

[Ysabel Kid]

I had NKJ give mine the once over, long before joining this site, and it is the sweetest levergun I own...

[Hawkeye2]

I have a Navy Arms Rossi 92 in .45 Colt, probably late 1990's vintage. SRC with a casehardened receiver and buttplate, real American walnut wood. A good friend offered it to me at a price I couldn't refuse so that I could get started in CAS. He had had it slicked up and it is as smooth and reliable as it is attractive. I liked it so much I bought one in .454 Casull though that one isn't near as nice or as smooth but it is serviceable.

[AJMD429]

I have a Navy Arms Rossi 92 in .45 Colt, probably late 1990's vintage. SRC with a casehardened receiver and buttplate, real American walnut wood. A good friend offered it to me at a price I couldn't refuse so that I could get started in CAS. He had had it slicked up and it is as smooth and reliable as it is attractive. I liked it so much I bought one in .454 Casull though that one isn't near as nice or as smooth but it is serviceable.

The 454 Casull I have is definitely not as 'handy' as the 45 Colt; they are both 16" but the buttpad adds an inch in the rear, and the tube-loading magazine of the Casull adds bulk and weight (...the latter not entirely a bad thing with the hard recouping 454...).

The 45 Colt though is one slick and handy levergun...!

Never did any CAS though....
.
.
.
. . . yet, anyway.... !

[CowboyTutt]

I'm not a CAS shooter. Griff has been one of the original ones to be honest but most people don't know that unless you have met the man in person.

Love my Legacy Arms 454 Casull in 20 inch round, but loved it a lot more after having McPherson do all sorts of work to it.

As Buck Elliot said,

Almost any Rossi 92 is a fairly decent pile of parts to make a good gun out of..
It will take some tweaking, stoning, polishing, fitting (and maybe a replacement part or two) to bring it up to snuff, but it can be done.

My rifle, as blindly delivered to me to my FFL guy in Hollister, CA at the time, apparently had a good barrel. But after firing it a while, the lever started to bend. The load on the lugs was not equal. McPherson fixed all of this for me, its my favorite "go to" rifle and it took a lot of hand-fitting, to get it there.

But its my favorite rifle and the one they will bury me with because of the memories associated with it.

Regards,

-Tutt

[piller]

My Rossi model 92 is in another caliber, but I got lucky. It works well without much of anything being done to it. If you are going to shoot CAS with it, you will probably be better off isf you get Nate's video and some parts. Still, I have not had any problems with mine that were from anything other than operator headspace and timing.