Found a deal, and soliciting Advice

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Malachi Leviticus Blue

Malachi Leviticus Blue

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I have pined away for a 45 Colt Lever Action Carbine for quite a while and finally bit the bullet on decent deal here for the obscure price of $358.10...

http://www.kygunco.com/rossi-blemished-refurbished-m92-45-colt-rifle-20in-round-blue-101-wood-stock-112534

I will be shooting 45 Colt cartridges loaded the way they were meant to be, with Black Powder.

My plan for clean up at this point is to clean the barrel, and wipe down surfaces. Is this sufficient? Any specific niches or crannies I need to pay special attention to? I'd rather learn form someone else's mistakes if possible.
 
If you're going to use real black powder, the residue being corrosive, you'll maybe need to break the gun down further.

Some of the Cowboy Action Shooters here can advise you better than I can about shooting/cleaning black powder in a lever-action repeater.

Good luck!
 
I'm also hoping that somebody with more experience will chime in, but from my research .45 Colt doesn't expand to seal the chamber as much as you would like (.44-40 would be better in that regard) and you should expect the results to be on the messy side - expect a fair amount of material to blow into the works - enough so that I'm not sure you'll actually be able to find cowboy action types with black powder 45 Colt experience specifically since it can be hard to keep a gun running through a match. Heavier bullets may help (gives the case more time to expand before the pressure drops) but it's kind of a band aid solution.
 
The good part is that all the parts are easily cleaned in hot soapy water, available at a sink near you! The hotter the water the faster the parts dry. Coat and wipe with the oil of your choice and prepare for the next outing.
 
My Civil War Henry Reproduction eats up the .45 Cowboy loads like candy, spits them right where I want them and the clean up is much less invasive than I need to do on my Hartford NMA!!! Sadly though, that's about a buck a bullet store bought.
 
Just FWIW, the reason few long guns were made in .45 Colt in the old days was that the tiny rim made extraction unreliable. I know it is heresy to some, but if one wants a common rifle/revolver cartridge, .44-40 is better for feeding in a rifle, and of course, is available in the SAA also.

Jim
 
Jim K said:
... .44-40 is better for feeding in a rifle, and of course, is available in the SAA also.

Jim
Click to expand...

I REALLY considered going with the 44-40, (And maybe should have) That rifle is being offered in 44-40 at an even lower price to boot, but I already load 45 Colt and have a few revolvers. Along with lots of brass on hand 45 Colt won out
 
I also went with a used Rossi Model 92 in.45 Colt though mine was LNIB. Same reason as you have; I already have quite a few revolvers in .45 Colt and I reload for it too. Can't help with the black powder info as I don't plan on running any loads like that through my carbine.
 
Annealing your new Starline brass or using Winchester cases which are significantly thinner will allow black powder loads to seal the chamber on your .45 Colt lever action. I have a Rossi .45 Colt M92 that I regularly fire black powder load in it. I rarely break it down completely to clean it (maybe once a year) My standard procedure after shooting with black powder is to shoot 5 to 10 smokeless loads then a pull-through with "Ed'd Red." No rust, no mess, no fuss. This works in Florida with our high humidity--should work just about anywhere.
 
That is a deal, pard, but you might join an appropriate discussion group over on the cas forum. There is no limit on the advice the pards over there will share if you are planning to get in the CAS game (SASS or NCOWS).

I was looking getting in to their multi gun game with an inexpensive lever gun such as the Rossi or maybe a Henry Repeating Arms Big Boy lever gun in .45 Colt. The general advice I got was that I would be better off with a new Uberti Winchester '73, short stroked by a known CAS gunsmith to increase cycling speed and reliabity: cost about $1300. NCOWS rules specifically ban the Big Boy. The Big Boy is OKed for SASS, but is very heavy and slow cycling due its mechanical design which is similar to Marlin '92 I believe. Thus the Big Boy is not really a competitive lever gun for CAS in SASS, although it is fabulous for target work and hunting.

You might check this link out for the Rossi:

http://www.sixguns.com/range/Rosicby.htm

As an aside, thats why I decided to join the GAF game. While they don't have shooting musters very often, sometimes the CAS shoots allow GAF folks to join in and shoot GAF style. Thusly the decision on what lever action rifle to choose is simple: they are not allowed in GAF, since GAFs main weapon is a single shot cartridge battle riflevand revolvers that have might been used by military or semi-military units, like various military units around the world,even the Texas Rangers, from the period of 1866 to around the end of the 19th century. GAF shoots are generally done in military uniforms of that period with stages done skirmish-style, shooting all targets on the clock and reloading your rifle and revolvers with whatever ammo you are carrying on your person, moving from stage to stage. Sometimes stages are set up to even engage targets with bayonet and sheath knife. The musters seem to be somewhere between reenacting (except using live ammo against your steel plate opponents) and target shooting.
 
Not to disparage the very best forum, this one, but perhaps a subject specific forum such as this one would be helpful:

leverguns.com
 
I have shot .45 Colt black powder loads in cowboy action matches. Most of the time I used a repro 1873 Winchester, but I shot a few matches with a Model 92.

You will get more fouling blowback with a .45 Colt compared to the thinner walled .44-40, but the .45's fouling is manageable. Use heavy bullets, not under 200 grains, large powder charges, and crimp the bullet into the case as hard as you can. These recommendations will tend to increase chamber pressure, blowing the case out to minimize blowback.

Use a clean burning powder or substitute. In my opinion, Goex is one of the dirtier powders. I would use Schuetzen for real black powder, Pyrodex for a substitute. I am not interested in hearing about how corrosive Pyrodex is...I find it burns cleaner in my cartridge loads and I am willing to do the cleanup required by its use.

I recommend prepping the rifle by greasing the internals liberally before shooting. It's like spraying your cookware with PAM...makes cleanup a lot easier after shooting. If you are shooting a lot in one session, keep the fouling in the action moist with aerosol Ballistol, or Ballistol mixed 1 to 10 with water, or PAM cooking spray (it's canola oil). Make sure you have a compatible lube on your bullets; SPG, crisco/beeswax, etc. Some blackpowder substitutes allow use of smokeless lubes on your bullets. Investigate. I use home cast bullets dipped in crisco/beeswax in competition.

Black powder fouling in a repeating rifle cleans up just like black powder fouling in a muzzle loader. Hot soapy water can do the job...just make sure you get all the nooks and crannies dry. I use lots of Q-tips when cleaning a rifle. I have never disassembled a 92. '73s are much easier, and tend to be more reliable in a cowboy match. But when I used Pyrodex .45 Colt cartridges in my '92 I was able to flush and clean the action without disassembly sufficiently that I never had rust or corrosion.

Probably the easiest way to clean the action is to take the stocks off and spray the internals with aerosol brake cleaner. (Brake cleaner can damage a stock's finish.) It does a great job, fast, dries quickly. Be sure to wear gloves and eye protection because break cleaner is nasty stuff if it gets on you.

Be prepared to remove the magazine plug and clean out the magazine and spring and follower maybe once a year (if you are shooting a lot). Greasing the inside of the magazine tube is a good idea too.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for all the advice.

I'll echo back..
I use Schuetzen Powder, and have been happy with it in my other BP firearms.
Yes, Ballistol is a mainstay on my bench.
 
Malachi Leviticus Blue said:
I have pined away for a 45 Colt Lever Action Carbine for quite a while and finally bit the bullet on decent deal here for the obscure price of $358.10...

http://www.kygunco.com/rossi-blemished-refurbished-m92-45-colt-rifle-20in-round-blue-101-wood-stock-112534

I will be shooting 45 Colt cartridges loaded the way they were meant to be, with Black Powder.

My plan for clean up at this point is to clean the barrel, and wipe down surfaces. Is this sufficient? Any specific niches or crannies I need to pay special attention to? I'd rather learn form someone else's mistakes if possible.
Click to expand...
No. It is not sufficient.

If you don't want a rusted, corroded gun, you're going to have to strip the gun each time you shoot it and get ALL of the black powder fouling out, and trust me, it will get everywhere.

You have more patience than thou. :)

My single shot horse pistol and Colt's revolving belt pistol are enough work to keep clean!
 
What J-Bar suggested. BTW, I'd remove the foreend and stock, hit it with hot soapy water and then a heat gun to ensure that it's dried.
 
After cleaning during the winter months, I have always staged the BP firearms components in front of the wood stove to ensure they are completely dry. I never thought of using a heat gun, which would be especially handy during the summer months. I'm going to add that to the memory banks. Thanks 4v50 Gary for what is obviously good advice.

FWIW, I did plan to take J-Bar's sound advice even before the chorus of accolades. Thanks!
 
High pressure air hose. Blow dries the inside of the barrel and cylinder chambers and moves any moisture out of the lock works.
 
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