Puma or Rossi

[smokinbarrel]

Apparently the new Puma `92 is made in Italy by Chiappa, no longer in Brazil by Rossi and now Rossi is making them under their own name. Has anyone seen or had experience with the Italian version, reportedly they have nicer wood and possibly better fit and finish, but also a higher price tag. I`m just wondering how they compare, in my area I will have to order one in, so I can`t look at them side by side. I don`t mind paying a bit more if it`s worth it. What i have in mind is a 24" oct. bbl. colourcase action and butt plate 357mag.

[fecmech]

I looked at a Cimmaron 92 which I believe is made by Chiappa and it is a well fitted nicely made rifle and smooth right out of the box, price was $769 here in Buffalo NY. Fit and finish is better than the Rossi's but mechanically the Rossi's are ok and are easily smoothed up. One difference is the twist rate between the 2, Rossi is 1 in 30" and the Chiappa is 1 in 16" in the .357. If heavy bullets are what you lean towards the Chiappa would get the nod. I have a basic Rossi and a $20. spring kit smoothed it right up with about an hours work but I keep thinking about springing for the Cimmaron.

Ps. If you are close to Buffalo in Ontario the Buffalo Gun Center carries the Cimmaron in stock

[runfiverun]

you'd think they are selling enough of these guns to stay in one place.
i'd bet they are sending the parts to chiappa and they are assembling them.
thats what navy arms used to do,and they actually made better guns that way.
wish they'd come out with some other cals 32-20,327 fed 218 bee,25-20.
they'd get a lot more of my money this way.

[fatoldfool]

Chiappa?? Somebody will have to show me something besides the already two months and still have not sent call tag to send in for repair blows the cases out straight 44-40 factory mess up. No more Chiappa for me unless I can see it and shoot it before buying.

[runfiverun]

blows out 44-40 cases?
sounds like a 44 mag chamber.

[Southern Son]

I am in the process of getting a .44mag lever gun. I have it narrowed down to eitherr the Rossi 92 or the Marlin 94 (both in stainless). While I was ringing for prices, the shop salesman tried to push the Chiappa. Said that they come from the factory with an action job, all that stuff, but I understand that the company making them is actually Armi Sport. If it is, I had a muzzle loader made by Armi Jager and evven though it looked OK on the outside, the trigger was rough and when I looked at fixing it, the parts all looked like they were die cast and would fall apart if I touched them with a file. I agree with fat old fool, I will be looking real careful at the "Chiappa" before buying one.

[smokinbarrel]

The Puma site is listing a twist for the 357 as 1-18.75" From what I`ve found so far there`s a big difference in price up here anyway. I`m starting to think maybe i could live with the Rossi and if the stock really bugs me, I`ll whittle out a new one..too bad Uberti doesnt make a 92, i got one of their 73 models. I`m a long ways from the border, I miss the old days...mail order w/e you wanted, go pick it up at the train station

[Dogg]

I'm not sure about the 'Rossi' but I have 8 of the Hartford models made by Rossi, all of them have decent fit and shoot well. As for the ugly brown stock, I sanded the brown off which can be done in about 10 minutes and refinished with Birchwood Cases stock oil and they are some of the best looking stocks I have. Maybe there is a difference in types of wood but they all have decent figure in the wood! Way better than the marlin .44 I have.

[smokinbarrel]

Hey dogg...would you say the wood looks like mahogany? theres alot of south american species that resemble mahogany. are you happy with chamber sizes and feeding function of your hartfords? I think the hartfords are done, just w/e remaining stock is left, were they esentially any different than a Rossi?

[Dogg]

Smokinbarrel, it could be mahogany I guess, several of them look to be but several have really nice grain also. No matter what they all came out looking really nice after stripping off the brown gu they put on them and refinishing.
All of mine have good barrels, get no leading with any of them. Fit of the stocks isn't particullarly Browning or Weatherby but good, had 2 with very small chips where corner of the but stock meets metal. But for a working lever action they are just fine. Two of them have the silly safety (.44 and .357) that kinda is an eye sore. The 6 45 colts don't. No feeding problems with any of them, including semi-wadcutters. Difference between Rossi and Hartfords are (I think) little better fit and finish and better sights, even though I have changed the sights out. They all work better than the .44 marlin I have which is picky about bullet shape and doesn't have the smooth lines of the 92.
Oh, forgot to say they shoot well also.
My .02 worth.
Dogg

[jlchucker]

The Rossi Trapper (357) that I got new from my dealer just before the new year was made by Braztech International. stamped on the lower tang, under the lever, it says "Made in Brazil by Taurus. I was hoping to get a leftover EMF Hartford when this was ordered, but such was not the case. It seems to function pretty well. It will undoubtedly function better after I get that plastic follower changed out. I've got to get some decent weather to take it to the range and see just how accurate my existing handloads are in this gun.

[cajun shooter]

Rossi was purchased by Taurus and Braztech is the new name they were given. They are still the same maker that has been making the 92's for many years. If the Italian guns are made by Armi Sport then they will have a bunch of problems. The quality control is lacking. I heard that the other Italian makers tried to get them to do better to no avail. I have guns by Pedersoli and Uberti and they are top drawer. jlchucker you will not see any difference in your 92 by changing out the plastic follower in the magazine tube unless yours is rough and sticking. If you contact Steve Young aka Nate Kiowa Jones and buy his DVD on the 92 and follow his direction you will have a rifle that feeds like butter. Or if you are not up to it send it to him. His back log is about 6 months. Some of the old Navy Arms imports had American Walnut stocks and were very nice rifles of which I own one.

[SmuvBoGa]

I had a Rossi m92 (.357) lever follow me home, it snuck into the house & now I've got to keep it. :mrgreen: It cost just shy of $500. to walk out the gun shop. They are hard to come by, the dealer was talking with the Rossi distributor 2 or 3 times each week for approx 3 or 4 weeks.
I've replaced the Rossi springs with a "speed kit springs" from Brownell - cost $25.00 plus ship. GET the CD that shows you how to take it apart - I didn't & I had to cuss & fuss it for 3 or 4 hours - the ejector spring is a ROYAL PAIN in the butt - I trimmed 3/4 of a link off the Rossi spring & got the @#&*%!!! ejector back into the bolt (try using tefflon thread tape to hold the spring & washer in place).
The gun factory new had a trigger pull just shy of 6lbs - after the disasembly, polish up, change the hammer strut spring it is 4.7lbs. I have the aluminum mag follower on order (Brownell $20.00 + ship). I was surprised at the ruff finish on the inside of the mag tube - just smouther it up with fine sandpaper & cleaning jag (used the cordless drill for power) then a touch of CLIP on a patch & over the spring - easy, if I can do it. [smilie=w:

I'm toying with replacing the factory sights to help my 55yr old eyes. Shoots .38's like it was a .22 - the .357's have MORE bark.

JohnMc

[doubs43]

JohnMc, the Marble's tang sight may suit you. I have one on my Puma 92 and it makes a world of difference. I removed the barrel rear sight and put a Marble's blank in the dovetail slot. The tang on my Puma was already D&T'd for a sight so it was an easy matter to mount the Marble's.

[jlchucker]

Cajun shooter, I already knew about Steve Young's website, and am planning to get a steel follower for both my 44 Mag EMF'er, and my new 357 as well. Also a lawyersafety plug. I went on his website but didn't find a price for the DVD. My gunsmith, an elderly gentleman (boy he'd kick my butt for that description) has worked on leverguns for decades, and probably doesn't need it, but I'll probably order one of those as well. Thanks, though.

[fourdollarbill]

I saw two Puma's at the Bass Pro in Toledo OH this week and the wood looked like it had a heavy wax build up on it. I did not pay much attention to it but it looked like an antique and it was new.

[SmuvBoGa]

Hmmmm, I think the Rossi M92 is not the same as a Puma - NOT for sure. A cowboy action shooter "said" that the Puma was a better made lever action. :veryconfu

Doubs43 my Rossi 92 is not drilled nor tapped for a rear sight (at least not behind the factory installed sight) - I THINK the left side of the receiver would have to be drilled & tapped (due to the bolt being part of the top of the frame ... hell it would be nice NOT to have a fuzzy sight picture - what flavor peep do you have ? I'm looking at a HiViz optic front sight. I want to wait until I've shot the lever & see if I need a taller or shorter front sight. :violin:

JMc

[doubs43]

Hmmmm, I think the Rossi M92 is not the same as a Puma - NOT for sure. A cowboy action shooter "said" that the Puma was a better made lever action. :veryconfu

Doubs43 my Rossi 92 is not drilled nor tapped for a rear sight (at least not behind the factory installed sight) - I THINK the left side of the receiver would have to be drilled & tapped (due to the bolt being part of the top of the frame ... hell it would be nice NOT to have a fuzzy sight picture - what flavor peep do you have ? I'm looking at a HiViz optic front sight. I want to wait until I've shot the lever & see if I need a taller or shorter front sight. :violin:

JMc

My Puma is made by Rossi. While your barrel and receiver may not be D&T'd, how about the tang behind the hammer? If yours is an older rifle, it may not be as specs have a habit of changing over the years.

This isn't a particularly good picture but it shows the sight mounted on my Puma. The in-line red marks show it's set for 100 meters. Six clicks up and it's on at 150 meters. Mine is in 44 Mag.

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i99/doubs43/MarblesTangSight.jpg

[SmuvBoGa]

VERY NICE set up ! I've not thought of a tang peep other than on Sharps high walls & such. Santa brought a Williams peep for a Marlin 336. Never gotten to play with a tang peep - the location SEEMS odd (different) to me, maybe too close to your eye (too much of a field of view as seem thru the peep hole ?). I'm not saying bad, just an idea I've got to think on. Have to ask around & try one or two before buying. The focal length of most factory sights are too close. Tho the fixed sights on my 1860 Springfield/Enfield works with the longer barrel.
Thanks for the tang idea !! :D

You must be working the soybean fields down below Atlanta for 150 yds.

JMc

[cajun shooter]

SmuvBoGa, Puma was a importer and never made any firearms. The Rossi rifle has been made in the same factory in Brazil for many years with different importers putting their name on the rifle. Names such as Navy Arms,EMF, LSI, Puma and so on. All the same rifle but with different little touches that made them different. Most all Puma arms that I have owned and seen have good American walnut wood. The Navy Arms rifles always have the deep blue finish that compares with Browning. A lot of gun persons confuse Importer and makers all the time. The EMF Hartfords that so many people like are Rossi built rifles that have EMF specs. They are still Rossi. Since the purchase of Rossi by Taurus they refused to make guns for EMF anymore. This has caused the importers of the Rossi to go elsewhere like Italy for guns. If you purchase a Braztech rifle then you are buying the same Rossi that has been built in Brazil for many years. We can only hope that the quality control stays somewhere near the previous level. As far as the tang sight on the 92's ,all I can say is that I put them on all the ones that I have owned. The Marble's being the one of choice as it adjusts for windage also. The screws can be ordered from the place of purchase as one is a 10-32 and the other is metric. Very fast and easy to use. As far as comfort on the tang that is to each shooter to decide. They have mounted tang sights on lever action rifles from the factories since the 1800's. Look at any book showing old Winchesters.

[jack19512]

My Puma is made by Rossi.








My recently purchased Puma 454 was made by Rossi also. It came with the extra screw for a tang sight.