Rossi Braztech Marlin Winchester

[Barcelona Rick]

Need some advice please....been saving my change and finally have almost enough to buy myself a Lever in 45 Colt. Planning on using it as my truck/four wheeler carbine.....largest game is a whitetail or feral hog....I know this topic has been discussed before but I have a short memory. So pros and cons on the choices.....Rossi may be the only thing I can afford but would love to learn from y'all.....

rick

[gak]

Forty years with Rossis - I say Rossi Strong, smooth action, light, trim and handy form. My calibers have been .44-40, .357 and .44 Mag, but I've also heard nothing but good about the .45 Colt application. I have no use for the safety switch standard on all LSI (Legacy/Puma) 92s which were from the late 1990s-2008, and other post 06 Rossis, and so prefer the pre-safety Interarms, Navy Arms and EMF models. However, the switch is removeable with Nate's fix if it bothers, and so not a deal-breaker IMO.

[blackhawk44]

I've had all three and the Rossi is much preferred.

[1894c]

i perfer a Marlin 1894, but to find one in .45 Colt may be hard... :)

[Griff]

I have Marlin, Rossi and Uberti .45 Colts leverguns. I like the Marlin and Rossi for their strength, and the Ubertis for their smoothness and flawless function. The Marlin I have is a project gun that started life as a .44Mag in 1978. When I got it, it was a rusted, corroded hunk of junk. A bit of judicious sanding, polishing and a .45 Colt Cowboy barrel and it's smooth, polished, and just about ready for competition. I intend to modify the action so it'll digest and eject the Cowboy45Special round as well as the standard 45 Colt ammo! Right now, it digests and ejects .45 Colt like popcorn thru a goose! In basically stock form, it's much smoother and quicker than my Rossi, I couldn't be happier until I get it just as smooth with the C45S!

Basically, if you buy a Braztech, it's the Rossi of old... Plus the bolt-mounted "wingnut" safety. IMO, the strongest of the available actions in .45 Colt. You won't be displeased. If you do, I'd suggest getting Nate Kiowa Jones' DVD, making the mods he suggests, and his magazine follower to ensure smoothness, long life and reliability that would only be otherwise available if you buy the gun thru him and have HIM tune it up!

[Pete44ru]

The Model 92 is the best action in terms of strength & style, but not in ease of maintainence, where the nod must go to Marlin's one-screw takedown for cleaning.

The solid-top Marlin is best if your eyes require glass, and also are the easiest to peep, since there are more than a few than will just screw on with a higher front sight blade.

The Model 92 can be peeped with any sight suitable for the Winchester 94, or a bolt peep substituted for the bolt-top lawyer safety, as I did.
I used a Skinner LoPro, but board member Nate Kiowa Jones makes & sells a similar drop-in setup.
The bolt peeps use the issue front sight blade - I put a drop of orange paint on my front blade.

The Miroku/Winchester Model 92's have the finest fit/finish - but you pay for it, and have a tang safety, which is hard to get around if you dislike it.

.

[missionary5155]

Good morning
Have 2 Rossi's in 45 Colt in ILLinos. One is an Interarms so much older and I think nicer finished. But they both shoot the same. With a 300 grainer there is no vege eater I would hesistate to pop. Even a 265 grainer (Lee mold) will smack with all the authority I need.
For the price there is no question which one I would buy.. I have less money in my 2 Rossi's than one of the others would have cost. So get one , do the tune up, and be happy.
Mike in Peru

[deafrn]

For a vehicle gun in .45 Colt, my gut says get a short Rossi, but there is a catch. My personal experience with the quality of NIB or slightly used pistol-caliber lever guns in the last 25 years goes Rossi < Marlin (pre FG takeover) < Miroku (either Browning or Winchester). Between the lot, you generally get what you pay for... the only exceptions being when you don't even get that. I keep an LSI-era Puma around as a "truck gun," but it was a solid example to begin with and I invested a lot of time and trouble - and an extra buck or two - in it before being satisfied that it is good to go.

Unless a person has a dealer who is willing to send crappy Rossis back until a good one shows up - and good ones are out there along with the otherwise - you are taking a gamble on QC. Circumstances led to my getting a recent-production Rossi that could not be examined closely enough, and the whole experience (warranty work inclusive) has been... umm... "sub-optimal" to say the least. (See the attached picture for an example-- the barrel that got a couple of false starts when the front band screw notch was being made; I'm embarrassed that I did not spot it right away regardless of circumstances. Yeah, I befouled myself good on this one. Mea culpa!)

Look for a Rossi and when you find one look it over. When you are done looking it over, look it over again.

[two bit okie]

I have been most happy with my lsi puma with the stupid bolt safety. I hame made the following mods. New walnut stock an forend (made for win mod 92, works but I am not a stock fitter), nate jones safetyhole peep sight, easy to fit, dont even have to remove the bolt, (safety hole is probably over size and I had to make a shim out of a pop can), and a lyman fire sight up front. cut the barrel from 20'' to 16". caliber is 44 mag to match my vaqueros. I have loaded 44 now for 40 years and cannotr comment on 45.

[retmech]

I have purchased 2 Braztech Rossi's in the past couple years. Fit, finish and reliability good right out of the box and still is many thousands of rounds later. I changed out the ejector spring and trigger return spring for smoother action but that's just me. The gun operated fine with the old ones but it lightens the trigger and keeps your empties in the same zip code. Quality control on my Rossi's was better than on my 94 Winchester AE and two Marlins that friends have bought in the past 5 years. YMMV.

[AJMD429]

In MY opinion (it's worth what you're paying for it, but I have owned several Marlin 1894's and Rossi 92's)...

• IF you want optics, the Marlin is way better; you can mount them quickly and easily and they balance as well as a scoped levergun can. I've scoped the 92's, but unless that was my ONLY levergun and I preferred optics, I'd go Marlin. For the use you're describing, I'd think you'd want to avoid optics anyway, though.
  
  If you want tractor-part type reliability, the Marlin design reminds me of the 1911, or of an Uzi - just a few basic parts, rugged in design, and easy to replace. That may not be all that important unless it's your only 'survival' gun long-term, in which case all the little fragile-looking parts of the Winchester/Rossi design intimidate me.
  
  Many people feel the 92 design handles better than the Marlins, and I think it might just a bit, but not enough to make a difference to me.
  
  The open-top receiver of the 92's seems less likely to jam, though I've not had a problem with any Marlins either.

One thing for me - whichever gun I went with, it would wear a Williams FP-94 rear sight (the FP-336 can be mounted on non-side-tapped Marlins by using the scope holes - I use the front two because the gun carries better that way). I really like the Marlin gold-bead front sights, and find them accurate and easy to pick up in most conditions - and they are very durable vs. the fiberoptic fronts.

Drilling and Tapping either gun for a FP-94 is VERY easy, and the parts cost maybe $30. Best if you have access to a drill press, but doable without.

• Thread on tapping a levergun - http://www.levergunscommunity.com/viewt ... =1&t=25689

BTW - I agree with replacing the 'safety' on the Rossi with NKJ's button - a quick and easy fix...!

[J Miller]

In order of reliability and ease of use:

Win 94 AE - pre safety: 100% reliable. Action has NEVER failed. Nothing has ever broken inside. Not much to say, it feeds, chambers, shoots, extracts, and ejects every time I work the lever and pull the trigger.

Marlin 1894 Cowboy: 99% reliable. Jammed on me once and it might have been my fault.

Rossi. I am not a fan of the 92 action, never have been. It's too cramped, the loading gate is a finger pincher and the QC of the Brazilian made guns is so inconsistent as to be laughable. The Rossi Ihad was NIB when I got it and was a total piece of pelosi. Had to be sent back to the factory warranty center before it would even feed factory ammo. After that it still wasn't right. I didn't keep it long.

JMNSHO

Joe

[smokenrust]

With all the talk on here about 92's, I passed up on one on gun broker this evening...
Cimarron 1892 .45 Colt Lever Action Takedown NICE
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewIt ... =285255696
It sold for $590.01. Might have pursued it further if it had been a 38-40 or 44-40.
Think I goofed, probably be kicking myself tomorrow for not pursuing it further....
What say you guys, should I be kicking self?

[Streetstar]

In order of reliability and ease of use:

Win 94 AE - pre safety: 100% reliable. Action has NEVER failed. Nothing has ever broken inside. Not much to say, it feeds, chambers, shoots, extracts, and ejects every time I work the lever and pull the trigger.

Marlin 1894 Cowboy: 99% reliable. Jammed on me once and it might have been my fault.

Rossi. I am not a fan of the 92 action, never have been. It's too cramped, the loading gate is a finger pincher and the QC of the Brazilian made guns is so inconsistent as to be laughable. The Rossi Ihad was NIB when I got it and was a total piece of pelosi. Had to be sent back to the factory warranty center before it would even feed factory ammo. After that it still wasn't right. I didn't keep it long.

JMNSHO

Joe

I prefer my model 94 Trappers over my Marlin too Joe, --- sadly, i dont have enough experience with the 92 to comment much, but i have not noticed any problems with my "long action" model 94's -- i prefer it greatly to my Marlin model 94.

(maybe ignorance is bliss though ? ) Have been wanting to add a Ranch Hand and a Mirokuchester to the stable and i know both of those are 92 actions though