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Thread: rossi leverguns any good?

  1. #1
    Boolit Buddy
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    rossi leverguns any good?

    im looking to get another levergun hopefully for bp loads. i was thinking maybe a rossi .45 colt or a .44-40 more likely the latter of the 2. are they any good? ive sold rossi single shots and they were pieces of junk but when i held a levergun it felt pretty good.

  2. #2
    Boolit Master


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    Perhaps a correlative question is equally important? Are parts and service available in a timely way for Rossi lever action rifles?
    It’s so simple to be wise. Just think of something stupid to say and then don’t say it. Sam Levinson

  3. #3
    Boolit Buddy
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    i take it you had a bad experience? i just got back from picking up primers at the gun shop and they had the one i wanted to check out there. feels nowhere near as smooth as my marlins and it felt like the lever wanted to come back about an 1/8 inch but couldnt. weight balance seemed ok and i hated the safety. think ill lookinto something different. not much out there in my price range in .44-40 though. 38-55 would be nice as well.

  4. #4
    In Remebrance


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    I have an older Rossi Puma. It's not a Winchester 92, but then I wouldn't get a Winchester for $250.00 either, especially one in like new condition. I have no complaints.

  5. #5
    Boolit Buddy
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    I have 8 of them and have had no problems. I have found them to be more accurate with lead bullets than my marlin. They definetly have some short comings. 1st if you can find one get a pre-safety model, 2nd strip the ugly brown stain of the stocks. Most need some work fitting the wood to metal parts if you are picky about that. They have usually a really nice mahogany stock that comes out real nice when refinished. 3rd replace the rear sight. 4th cycle the action a few hundred times and find where there is metal dragging then work on it. I just added some metal polish and continue working the action, this smooths things out a lot. There is a problem if you want to mount a scope but then these are really open sight guns.
    Guess it is really what you want that you will go after, these definetly don't fit some peoples requirements but they work well for what they are.
    Dogg

  6. #6
    Boolit Buddy
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    I have a later model Rossi/Puma in 454 casull. I like it a lot other than the price of casull ammo. Working the action a lot empty will smooth them up just as it does with a Marlin. Junior D., who is a member here, has been shooting the same Rossi in 357 for over 30 years with no working problems. Inexpensive...yes. Junk...no.

    Tom

  7. #7
    Boolit Grand Master


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    Greetings
    I have 2 in 45 Colt. Both shoot nicely and have not had any problems. They maybe do not have nice walnut and as finely finished as my 2 Win. SRC (1893 & 1903) BUT they shoot as well and did not cost a months salary each.
    "Come unto Me, all you who labor and are heavy burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28
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  8. #8
    Boolit Mold
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    I have a model 92 Rossi in 357 mag,I think it's a sweet little carbine,mine is an older one with no safety.They are right about the finish of the wood mine needs stripped and re-finished.

  9. #9
    Boolit Grand Master Good Cheer's Avatar
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    I had a Rossi lever gun in 357. Hunted jack rabbits with it in Utah in '81 and south Texas in '91 too. The extractor kept falling out of it. But, with a scope and the old 358156 you could do most anything. Made a heart shot one night so far away the cross hairs were a foot and a half over his back. If the rifle hadn't had that embrassing habit of coming to pieces I certainly would not have let it get away.

  10. #10
    Boolit Master


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    I have 2 of the newer Braztech Rossi's, a .357 carbine I've had for about a year now and a .357 24" Octagon for about 4 months. The carbine has had over 3 K through it with no trouble at all and the Octagon about 1K again with no problems. Fit and finish are as good as any of the recent production Marlin 94's and as accurate. Both are head and shoulders above my Winchester 94AE .357 mechanically. Since I bought that gun I've learned more than I ever wanted to know about Winchester 94's. I'm sure they were fine guns at one time and in the original calibers but they are problematic in .357 Angle Ejects! IMO the current Rossi's are one of the "Best Buys" in pistol caliber leverguns!
    "Masculine republics give way to feminine democracies, and feminine democracies give way to tyrannies.” Aristotle

  11. #11
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    ..............I have 2 Rossi Puma's. One is a 24" octagon bbl in 45 Colt. The other is the generic 20" round bbl in 357. I would not have bought them had I not felt they were 'Good for the price'. The only experience I'd had with them previous to my buying the one in 45 Colt was through a couple friends who'd had them for SASS.

    I figured you were going to get a sturdy firearm that was a decent value for the money. Many years back a buddy bought a stainless one in 357 for his wife. The stock looked like it had been painted black, and the action was noticeably rough. He asked if I'd take a look at the action, so he brought it over. Taking it apart we actually found little bits of metal floating around and some pigs ears on sharp corners that hadn't broken loose yet

    I'm no pro gunsmith so all I did was a bit of work with some jeweler's files to knock off a few ragged bits on edges and corners. We flushed it out, oiled it and applied some Lubri-Plate where we thought it needed it then put it back together. It actually shot very well but he did end up giving it to one of the known SASS riflesmiths and had it 'gone over', and now it really walks the dog.

    So when I got my 45 Colt rifle I took it apart and found it much cleaner inside, but this was several years later. It still didn't have the looks internally of a REAL Winchester M92 but after some light internal work and working the action it's become pretty smooth. The actions of all I've seen have been nicely polished externally without any dishing, or wavyness on contours or where 2 planes meet.



    You can seein the left photo that the screwhole edges aren't dished when it was polished, and the lever lies correctly against the grip. Right photo shows what I mean by the machine, or ground finish on the octagon bbl. Maybe they just didn't want to chance someone wreaking the nice sharp corners

    The octagon barrel of the 45 Colt isn't polished, but is left with what appears to be a ground finish. I think it's called a 'machine finish'. The round barrel on the 357 IS polished. The only real issues I've seen with them is in the small detail things. Like how well the barrel bands fit, the outside edges of the buttplates, how the levers may lay against the bottom tang (the 357's lever lacks about 1/4" of being just right, with the 45 Colt being perfect. Another on both rifles was how sharp the edges were on the loading ports.

    Anyway, no real major issues but detail things that seem to vary from rifle to rifle. Both of mine have very nice wood to metal fitting, which is a nice thing. Just short of a couple years ago I was able to buy a like new, but used "Rising Sun" Winchester M92 in 45 Colt with a 24" round barrel for $350.



    This is the Miroku M92. I don't really know what they cost brand new. Side by side with the Rossi you can tell that overall the Miroku was the more expensive of the 2. But having said that I know it cost a lot more then the $620 (tax, paperwork and all) I paid for the Rossi. I'm happy with both Rossi's and the Miroku was a chance purchase. BTW, the Rossi in 357 mag was exceedingly easy to get shooting very well compared to BOTH 45 Colt chambered rifles.

    What it boils down to with the Rossi's from what I've seen is that if you went someplace and they had 5 of'em, all 5 would have minor varying differences from each other in some ways. But there is no doubt they're stout. Just look at some of the cartridges they're chambered for!

    ...............Buckshot
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  12. #12
    Boolit Man
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    I haven't shot it as much as I'd like (one reason I'm finally getting into reloading), but my Rossi 92 is outstanding so far.

  13. #13
    Boolit Master Linstrum's Avatar
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    In about 1986 I bought a pre-safety and pre-large finger loop lever Rossi model 92 in .357 Magnum. I like it a lot.

    I haven't had any problems with the smoothness of action or anything falling off. My major complaint was the front sight was rotated enough to notice so I re-drilled the alignment pin hole in the barrel tip that locates the front sight and ammo tube fixture to cure that. The trigger pull was atrociously heavy so I took the trigger assembly apart and lightened the pull to about four pounds.

    My rifle is very accurate with Lyman's classic 358156 in .357 Magnum but spews key-hole shots all over the place with my .38 Special loads that use 3.2 grains Bullseye and the Lyman 358311. Apparently the one turn in 20 inch rifling can't stabilize the 358311 at very low velocity.


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  14. #14
    Boolit Master helice's Avatar
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    I favor the Rossi.

    I managed to pick up a stainless Rossi (LSI) in 45 Colt some years back. At first I wasn't very happy. I was comparing it to a 1905 era Model 92 Winchester and it was no contest for smoothness. Later I picked up a Japaneze Browning B-92 and again the Rossi came in second in the smoothness contest.
    However I've been shooting the Rossi a bit lately and I like it a lot. It came to me fairly cheap compared to other rifles I've purchased. It has never refused to eject, failed to feed or go BANG when I squeeze off. It's accurate enough for what I need and at ranges that I can see. I replaced the foolish safety with a "peep" sight from Kiowa Nate Jones. (I agree with the poster above that the rear (middle) sight was a joke.) I put a leather sleeve on the lever which I purchased from Whyte Gun Leather - a fellow poster here. I like Mark's work. He makes beautiful holster rigs for Cowboy Action. This leather lever sleeve softens the action movement.
    All in all I'm quite attached to the Rossi. If I had a chance to get another - I'd jump on it. My opinion - You can't go wrong. Buy It. If you don't like it tell us and one of us will make you an offer you can't refuse. I'd bet pretty heavy on that last thought. Karl

  15. #15
    Boolit Buddy
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    I have a stainless and brass Rossi 92 in 45LC. I really like it. I know it is a knock off but I am proud of what I can afford. I slicked it up myslef after buying a DVD on how to do it from http://www.stevesgunz.com/dvd.htm Easy to do. Steve is a great guy also. Mark

  16. #16
    Banned

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    the rifle models seem much smoother right from the box than the carbines do.
    taking them apart and cleaning up the edges is pretty simple with the videos available.
    the more you shoot them the better they seem to do.
    and they are cast friendly.
    i have a couple of 94's one in 44 and one in 45.
    the 44 will probably go shortly, as i have a browning 92 in layaway. and the 45 may or may not go as i have 2 rifles and one carbine rossi already.
    but the 94 is unfired so might just stay where it's at.
    it also seems that the builder or importer makes little difference my navy arms rifle was awesome right off and my 44 stainless lsi is excellent but my 45 rifle from lsi is not as good.
    the rifles are a notch above the 45,357 and 44-40 carbines. but are much heavier to carry when hunting.
    only complaints are the sights. with the older ones being a notch better, and aftermarket replacments about non-existent.
    and caliber selection. 357,44-40, 44 mag, 45 colt, 454 casull, and 480 ruger are all iv'e seen.
    and i was leery of the latter two but can't find one nowdays, nor the short rifles they did offer for a while.

  17. #17
    Boolit Grand Master In Remembrance Four Fingers of Death's Avatar
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    The rifle I am shooting in my avitar is a 38/357 that I bought used for peanuts. I thought it would be a good back up gun for cowboy action and to lend to new shooters and people having trouble with their guns. Turns out I was the one having most of the trouble and I used it pretty solidly for several years. It has fired thousands of rounds of reloads and I have put a thousand of those cheap federal red box American Eagle factory loads (38Special) through it. It has never once hiccupped! Throws the brass well forward which is a bit of a pain, but generally can't fault it, one of the best rifles I have ever owned. If you are feeding a lot of ammo through it, it is good practice to give the screws a tweak up every now and then (ask me how I know this ). I fired thousands of lead rounds, cleaned it once or twice and just oiled it before use.

    I have a 44Mag as well.

    I can;t recommend these guns highly enough. Sweet little rifle.

    If you get one, do a search for Steve's Gunz, he sells a spring, stainless steel follower and a DVD showing you how to tune the rifle
    "I'll help you down the trail and proud to!" Rooster Cogburn.

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  18. #18
    Boolit Grand Master
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    Dude, unless the pice is to the moon, buy the Rossi. I have had mine for years and it is a sweet shooter. No, it ain't a pre-war 92 (pre-World War One, that is), and you may have to tweek the action a smidge, but the new ones are really beautiful guns. Mine has an old Redfield Receiver Sight on it, and it shoots as well at 50 yards as any of the other 7 leverguns I own. The only caveat I have is that at least around here in southern California, they have gotten a little bit costly, I got mine on sale for 199.00 just before Taurus bought them out and I do not regret it at all. Except maybe I should have bought 2.

  19. #19
    Boolit Grand Master Artful's Avatar
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    I have an old 357 Rossi and love it.

  20. #20
    Boolit Grand Master In Remembrance Four Fingers of Death's Avatar
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    Welllllllllllllllllllllll, Did ya get it yet?????????????????
    "I'll help you down the trail and proud to!" Rooster Cogburn.

    "Slap some bacon on a biscuit and let's go! We're burnin' daylight! " - Will Anderson (John Wayne) "The Cowboys."

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    Psycholigist to Sniper; 'What did you feel when you shot the felon Sargeant?'
    Sniper to Psycholigist; 'Recoil Ma'am.'

    From my Irish Ancestors: "You've got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your grandfather was."

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BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
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