Lever Gun in 357 Magnum

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edmo01

edmo01

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I'm looking to buy a lever action rifle in 357 Mag/38 Special and have narrowed it down to two: The Marlin 1894c and the Rossi 92. Any thoughts?

I own a Marlin Guide Gun I purchased in 1997 and have been very satisfied with it. I've never owed a Rossi.

Inputs on pros and cons for the two rifles are appreciated.

Edmo
 
I don't own either (I own Winchester and Browning)

The Marlin action is super smooth - shooting buddy has one. Both my Win and Browning seem to shoot tighter groups. Rossi can be smoothed out with work, almost bought one, but it was a clunky sticky action.

Price on each?
 
I have a Marlin 38/357 rifle. Its a fun gun, I've killed a few deer with it, its a 100 yd gun as far as I'm concerned. Recoil is low even with heavy .357 loads and 38's it is nil. Its small and light enough that even small framed folks can handle it easily. I like it and at fun shoots its the gun of choice. Hope this helps.
 
I have a Rossi Model 92 that I picked up LNIB a couple of years ago. It's got a large loop lever with a 16" barrel. Very handy and quick to get into action in this configuration. Action was smooth right out of the box and overall fit and finish are excellent.
 
I have a R 92 Rossi with 24 in. octagon barrel. Excellent rifle both mechanically and very accurate. Bob
 
I own both. My Rossi is a 16" stainless. First, both shoot well and hit what I am aiming at and I would not have any concerns hunting with either. The Marlin was better out of the box and is more refined in the fit and finish departments. If money was not a concern, I would choose the Marlin. If you are going to beat it up and throw it in a truck, choose the stainless Rossi. If you choose the Rossi, spend some time working the action and smoothing out the sharp edges.
 
I had a uberti for 5-6 years. Sold it after I found a good deal on a marlin.
 
I own a Marlin 1894C and really love it. I haven't owned an 1892 or a '92 clone. I like the simplicity of the Marlin design - super easy to dismantle for cleaning.

As far as I know, there are three periods of Marlin: Pre-Safety (Pre '83 I think), JM (Pre 2009ish) & Remington Manufactured (Current).

The early Remington manufactured guns were plagued with quality control issues, but it seems as though they are getting better and better.
 
Once I owned a Marlin .357 but foolishly let it go. Still own Marlins in .22LR, .44mag and 45/70. Never owned a Rossi carbine.
 
Sorry to tell you, but you will never get to shoot it. I have a Marlin in .357, and it's a chick magnet. All the girls I've ever taken shooting have appropriated it for themselves. Your wife/girlfriend/significant other will feel like a cowgirl and won't give it up. If you're really nice, maybe she will let you shoot it.
 
For a year or two Rossi quality was a little suspect. Some buyers reported very poor wood to metal fit and rough machining inside.

Someone I shoot with got one during that time and lucked out as it was fine other than a poor quality of finish on the wood.

I recently bought two Rossis ni .357 and slicked them up for other shooters. One was a wedding present and the other I paid for initially as the buyer was going out of town. And the Rossis up this way go quickly. She's since paid me back for it as well as the spring kit I installed.

The current Rossis are excellent inside the action. The exterior metal surfaces don't have the nice polishing as seen a few years ago but it's a nice even semi gloss sort of texture.

The interesting thing was that the internals were nicely done and the spots where I was going to polish and feather as part of a cowboy action slicking up job were already done! ! ! ! Perhaps they are trying to make up for the couple of years worth of rough and gritty work that was inside previously!

Counter balancing the nice surprise in the action is the really pitiable finish that they put on the wood. One of them looked almost PINK in the wrong light. I stripped and sanded off this finish on both rifles and refinished them in boiled linseed oil tinted with a little Minwax stain. This worked out better than I expected and gave the otherwise boring plain light coloured wood a nice colour and a lift to the look of the grain.

Right out of the box they were both fine. But once you've cycled and shot a Rossi 92 that's been "Cowboy'fied" you won't settle for factory lever and trigger feel..... :D
 
I have the Rossi .357 92M and love it.

One thing to consider is whether you want a top eject or side eject. After handling both, I still lean towards the Rossi but they only make them top eject. For me this isn't an issue since I don't use it out beyond 75-100 yards. If you want optics, the Rossi probably isn't the best choice. I will soon be buying a .44 and will probably go with the Marlin for the ease of mounting a scope.

As far as the fit, finish and smoothness of the action goes, I don't believe that the Marlin has any advantage over the Rossi these days. I think there was a time when they had an advantage but not anymore. For the price, the Rossi is a great gun and the actions on either will smooth up on its own after a few hundred rounds anyway.
 
I have a 24" Rossi. I slicked up the internals. Wasn't hard at all. Refinished the stock. That was easy. It will do 1/2" @ 50 Yrds. Happy, happy !
 
I have an older Interarms Rossi .357 16". We all love this little rifle, it's a very strong design but easy to carry and very accurate. The weight is about 5 pounds fully loaded. It's a pussycat with .38 Specials and has a satisfying kick with Magnums.
 
I have the rossi 92 , I really have no complaints with the rifle at all. I really don't think you can go wrong for the money.
 
I have an older Rossi 92 that I bought so long ago I can't remember when it was. It's a .357 and I really like it. However, I've looked at the present production, and because of their wimpy safeties, I wouldn't touch a new one with a ten foot pole. Who needs a safety on a lever action? I would like to have a 24 inch octagon barrel, but I refuse to buy a lever action that has a safety, especially the crappy Rossi safety.
 
phil dirt said:
I have an older Rossi 92 that I bought so long ago I can't remember when it was. It's a .357 and I really like it. However, I've looked at the present production, and because of their wimpy safeties, I wouldn't touch a new one with a ten foot pole. Who needs a safety on a lever action? I would like to have a 24 inch octagon barrel, but I refuse to buy a lever action that has a safety, especially the crappy Rossi safety.
Click to expand...
The safety does bother me but it is more of an eye-sore than a functionality issue. There is a company out there that sells a peep sight kit that goes where the safety is if you want to remove it. For some reason I am drawing a blank as to the name but it is something like stevesguns or stevegunz.com. It is on my wish list... as are many other things:)
 
I have an LSI/Rossi Puma 92 from 2008. It's a .38/.357, 20" Octagon barrel.

The action was smooth out of the box, finish is good and it has been accurate. No problem shooting .38s or .357s. I haven't made any changes to the rifle.
 
I have a Rossi and am pleased with the fit, finish, and performance. Bought this gun about 6 months ago. If the safety bothers you, you can remove and plug up the hole.
 
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