Inspecting a Rossi m92 in 357

[Cump]

I'm interested in a Rossi m92 in 357 and there are some decent deals right now.

I've read they are hit and miss in terms of qc, though I wonder if internet discussion makes them seem worse than they are.

What should I look for when I inspect it in the shop, beyond cosmetic issues? Is it possible for the novice to weed out a bad gun, or will it take a range trip before I figure it out?

 

[jakk280rem]

Range trip or test fire session. Unless the clerk/owner will let you cycle some snap caps through it. Even then until you put lead down range, it's all guessing.

 

[Cump]

I'll see about the snap caps. I have dummy rounds, but I should probably look into something bright orange to ease minds at the shop.

 

[redbullitt]

Check to see that the crown looks good and smooth. Check how bent the sights are, wood to metal fit on the stock. Get a good light and look in the bore and chamber to see if anything is buggered up bad enough to tell. Pay attention to the screw heads, they should not be mangled.

Quickly work the action and see if you feel and catches or roughness. Cycle the action medium speed and then slowly and feel for the same.

Definitely cycle snap caps through it. Any good store should oblige with that.

My shop had snap caps there they let me use. That rifle can be hit or miss. You might have to take it apart and do some smoothing, but after that it will be a very nice little gun.

Definitely a good choice if you do not mind a little clean up on the parts.
http://www.stevesgunz.com/ Good stuff at that site.

 

[flightsimmer]

Barring any obvious problems you might see or feel is about all you can do without taking it apart and going through it.
It's a lot cheaper than a Winchester or a Browning or a Marlin or Henry but only in individual attention to detail. I have several and I very much enjoyed going through each of them and cleaning out burrs and smoothing sharp edges, replacing springs that are stronger than they need be and stoning and polishing the trigger when needed and replacing the plastic magazine follower button with a stainless steel one.
Steve's gunz at http://www.stevesgunz.com/ has a video and parts kit for slicking up the Rossi 92 that will turn it into a top rate gun.
I'm very pleased with all of mine.

 

[Cump]

thanks all for the help, link and reassurance.

 

[bannockburn]

Second the notion of going to stevesgunz.com for more info on the Rossi Model 92. Good resource for things to look for with the rifles and replacement parts to improve their performance.

 

[warnerwh]

I am very happy with mine. It needed some clean up work inside. I also did a trigger job. It is as slick as any lever gun and accurate too. It will feed swc's but not perfectly unless you're quick with the lever. I'm very pleased with it. Fit and finish are good also although not perfect.

 

[benzy2]

Mine is well worth the price I paid. It has cycled everything I've loaded into it, though I haven't shot any SWC. It benefitted greatly from replacement springs and very light sanding/smoothing. I didn't touch the trigger/hammer interface, just the sides and edges of parts that moved. Trigger is very crisp and the gun cycles very fast. Maybe not CAS level fast but enough for me to smile each trip. It's also now a legal deer rifle (new rule this year). It sounds like current production is some of the better work done since Taurus took over manufacturing from Rossi.

The alternative was an uberti 1873, which while a far nicer rifle, wasn't worth the extra money to me to see how I like a pistol caliber lever gun. The next buy will probably be a lightly used Uberti, but starting with the Rossi was exactly the right call for me personally and its a gun I don't think I'll ever get rid of. Too much value.

 

[redbullitt]

Just shot mine today again. Seems like it always finds its way into the truck when I go shoot lol. Shot maybe 120 rounds of cast 38 special. Probably 600 rounds through it after I cleaned it up and no issues at all.

For me it is an excellent "working" type rifle. You know, the kind that gets dirty and banged around a bit. I will take it places a prissy rifle just will not go.

I did replace the rear sight with the one that replaces the goofy safety switch on top the bolt. MUCH improved.

FWIW I was very apprehensive buying it, but after working on it I am quite happy with it. I now know the gun inside and out and can fix anything that every needs fixing on it. This was my first time inside a lever gun btw, and it was not that bad to do. Just takes time and a bit of patience.