Winchester classic 1892, 357 only?

[Martin Luber]

Saw a gorgeous new octagon barrel W 1892 in a shop for $2295. It was marked 357 Magnum Only. Marlins usually take both. Did they really design only for the longer shell?

Thanks

[45DUDE]

Even so Looks like you could use a 38 special case and load a 170-200 grain to mag length with 2400 or 4227 powder. My 357 J.M. likes them.

[Bazoo]

I have one of the new Winchester 1892 in 44 Magnum, and it is marked 44 magnum only. It functions just fine with specials though. I'd guess the reason they are marked like that is because it's easier to regulate the gun to specific parameters and then mark it accordingly. Otherwise you'll have people complaining "my gun wont feed wadcutters, they are specials, and the gun is marked special."

[pworley1]

Mine shoots both just fine.

[steveu]

$2295???

[indian joe]

$2295???

$3500 in downunder money
plenty secondhand old ones still around - rebarrel - restock - rebuild - proper caliber as well.

[steveu]

$3500 in downunder money
plenty secondhand old ones still around - rebarrel - restock - rebuild - proper caliber as well.

I like the half round barrel on the rifle!

[indian joe]

I like the half round barrel on the rifle!

yeah that one came up nice - its a 38/40 I built up on a 25/20 action (lots of work) a 26 inch barrel from Sprinter in South Australia - stock is about an inch short - I think that one has nice lines and it handles well.
The other is a 44/40 barrel, its too fat and clunky. I proly pull it one day and turn it back to half round - it used to wear an old barrel from a 73 we dug out of underneath a local gunsmith bench in the late 1960's didnt realise at the time but that was a heavy barrel, must have been special order 24 inch half octagonal half round - the rifling was terrible so we cut it back to 6 inches of round - used to shoot copper 430 boolits in it ok - would not shoot cast at all - but I knew zero about slugging barrels at the time and the old molds we had made boolits too smalll anyway (.425-.426).
Access to information and decent equipment has changed mightily since those days and also back then everybody thought we were nuts to want to shoot those old guns .

[FergusonTO35]

Saw a gorgeous new octagon barrel W 1892 in a shop for $2295. It was marked 357 Magnum Only. Marlins usually take both. Did they really design only for the longer shell?

Thanks

I would think they were worried that the chamber might get clogged up with lead fouling after many .38 Specials, then someone would try .357's and have pressure problems.

[Kai]

Its the only Jap made winchester in the safe. Round barreled rifle says 357 only but it shoots 38s just fine. Same as shooting 38s out of a 357 revolver. Clean it good before shooting 357s. Hell I just cast a few hundred round nose .358s specifically for loading 38 specials for the rifle.

[dangt]

As far as the word "ONLY" in the caliber marking, my made-this-year Winchester 1892 is marked "Caliber 44-40 Win. ONLY" with the capital letters just as I have written. So, it may be anybody's guess why BACO or Miroku chooses to the use the word.

[Centaur 1]

I just bought a new Miroku made Winchester 1892 and it's also stamped "45 Colt Only".