Win 92 in 25-20

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jkbrea
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Win 92 in 25-20

Post by jkbrea »

Being the only employee of gunclub in a free state, I get to shoot all kinds of stuff from .22 to belt fed machine guns.
A couple days ago I got to shoot a Winchester 92 in 25-20. A young guy had it there. It was passed to him by his grandfather. It was made in 1931 I think. He asked if I wanted to shoot it! He had two boxes of kleenbore 25-20. I put a couple rounds in and fired them. What a sweet, pleasant round to shoot!
I'm not too knowledgeable about old guns but I've never seen or shot this round. It seems it would make a great little deer gun up close.
He did say he can't find ammo anywhere. The ammo we shot came with the gun when he got it.
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Ray
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Ray »

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Grizz
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Grizz »

I had a Model 92 25/20, and I shot a couple of deer with it. Winch 92 is my favorite long gun to carry, was great hunting from the kayak, but I can't think of anything nice to say about the caliber.
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GunnyMack
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by GunnyMack »

If memory serves, there was a time when the world record whitetail was shot by the 25-20.
Yes brass is very hard to find- if im lucky enough to find a box on a shelf somewhere i buy it! Last box i found was a little hole in the wall baitshop. Price tag was faded and almost unreadable at $50.00. I didn't even think twice and paid the man!
I wish I had a 92 or a Marlin in 25-20, im stuck with a Savage 23B. I used this on many prarie dogs when I lived in CO. One day a spur of the moment PD hunt it was what I had on hand and the town had been shot often so all shots were long. Not having my 17 Rem or 22-250 I made due, a witnessed and measured 276 yard shot by me waffled a PD with a 60 gr Hornady fp.
As for reloading, it is miserly on powder, decent close range velocities, carries some oomph. A great little cartridge if ya ask me. Oh and NO recoil or muzzle blast.
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2ndovc
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by 2ndovc »

Great cartridge!

This little Martini is the only one I have currently. Been looking for a '92 SRC like my grandfather had, but never in the right place with the right amount of $$.

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Sixgun
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Sixgun »

Great little cartridge and similar to the .22 L.R. in the killing power being more than it's size.

But it's a very temperamental cartridge.....not everything you put in it is going to work.....I've have them all from Winchester leverguns, Marlin leverguns, Marlin pumps, Remington pumps, even an old Stevens 44.

As with most old guns, jacketed bullets make it a no brainer to load for........the little 70 gr gas checked Lyman has been the easiest to work with and even on a Model 53 takedown I currently have, that didn't work.....like 2" at 50 meters...nada.....the trick to that rifle was to use a 6.5 gas check. Jack Kort was even amazed at that experiment.....it worked and will shoot an inch at 50 and not much more at 100 with 4.5 grains of Unique.

I never could understand why people use ...for instance.....4.3 grains....or 7.2 grains.....I round em up to an even grain or half grain as you will get more variation in other variables such as powder displacement in the case or how you hold the gun...or the temperature....or the elevation. ....or the seating depth.....or the sizing....or the sizing tool you are using.....or the mood your in when your loading..... :D

But when you get a good one, keep it for life.....like that Remington 25 I have......best shooter and dependability of the 25-20 I've ever had........or perhaps that Marlin CL that GunnyMack has been trying to steal from me....he better hurry as Old Win is on his way down and beings that he took half my Colts I feel he is eyeing up my long guns for the "big heist". :D ----006
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GunnyMack
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by GunnyMack »

Shucks ya got us figured out! He is gonna stick in his magic buffalo coat and drop it off here to me- for a minimal fee for gas! :lol:
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Les Staley
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Les Staley »

GunnyMack, the Jordan buck is the one you speak of. If you find an account of that story it’s a heartbreaker. IIRC, Jordan had died before he got credit for killing that deer. I, too, enjoy shooting a 25-20. Mine is a round barrel rifle, 1911 vintage 1894. It came ito a gunshow, original finish mostly plumb brown, a perfect bore (had been re-lined). Not collectible but shoots a treat! I load cast 70 gr bullets from a Lyman 257420 mould, and somewhere I have a picture of a grouse with a hole thru it’s head.
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earlmck
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by earlmck »

Sixgun wrote: Tue Nov 02, 2021 3:24 pm I never could understand why people use ...for instance.....4.3 grains....or 7.2 grains.....I round em up to an even grain or half grain as you will get more variation in other variables such as powder displacement in the case or how you hold the gun...or the temperature....or the elevation. ....or the seating depth.....or the sizing....or the sizing tool you are using.....or the mood your in when your loading..... :D
Being one of those silly people who might report a load of 4.3 grains of Unique, let me 'splain it to ya' Six. My old Herter's measure doesn't have real fine adjustments and I record the setting in my reloading notes. So a setting of 3.1 on the measure would give me 4.3 grains of powder, while 3.2 would give me something like 4.7. I'm not going to try setting a guestimated 3.15 to get a 4.5 grain load. I'm either going with 3.1 or 3.2 and then recording whatever weight of powder correlates with a distinct powder measure increment. And larger loads done on the old Redding are similar: I aim at whole numbers mostly and occasionally go a half. Then record the weight which will usually be something you would consider hair-splitting. I don't weigh charges other than to check my powder measure setting.

I have a couple of 25-20 m92's that get a fair amount of shooting. One of them has very generous headspace and I make cases for it from 32/20 brass (nice of Starline to include 32/20 in their line) adjusted to fit the gun. I still have bunches of WW 25-20 brass that I use for the other rifle. I can't imagine shooting 25/20's with anything other than a home-cast bullet, especially after seeing the price on the cast bullet that Ray referenced in his post of over 50c for a plain-based bullet. Ouch!

My favorite 25/20 bullet is a 70 grain gas-checked bullet from an Arsenal mould, though my m92's shoot the Lyman 257312 90 grainer OK, and each rifle has a different preference for loads from the 90 grain pill. They'll both shoot the 70 grain Arsenal with the same load of Lil' gun.

25-20 is a pretty dang wonderful cartridge. And mine are grandkid tested and approved: sometimes carried as a "first deer rifle" but we've never yet had a deer shot with one.
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Ray
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

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Woodsloafer2
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Woodsloafer2 »

When I was young there was an older gentlemen that live at the top of the hill on a fairly good sized farm. He was a good old hard working Mainer that had lived a rugged hard working life. A great outdoorsmen from the old days. I used to go help him cut wood and he was in his late seventies early 80's. Each year he would change the hunting a fishing stories just enough to keep me entertained. Stories of driving model A's way back in the woods and then canoeing all day to a remote lake to fish, He had several brook trout on his walls up to 8 pounds. He was an avid hunter as well and sweared by an old Remington pump in 25-20. Liked the 60 or 70 grain hollow points if I remember correctly. My dad used a 348 so I always liked the bigger calibers. I will be using his 348 later today for a trip into the western Maine mountains. I do like the smaller calibers though and a 25-20 would be fun....
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Sixgun
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Sixgun »

A Remington model 25 is without a doubt, the very best woodsloafing gun that can be had Woodsloafer. :D but that's if your a handloader.....back when I was younger and had more enthusiasm I'd walk the mountains upstate all day with a model 25 in 32-20 wth different loads in my pocket.....usually a couple of hundred.....I'd walk, shoot.....walk shoot......my buddies at camp always knew where I was by the sound of gunshots....."well, he's on that mountain, hear him?"...."he must be getting closer, the shooting is on that ridge" ....then I'd fool em with a couple of heavier rounds from a single action Colt....then one guy would say, he's really getting close, he just shot the front left tire of my pick up... :D

Sold that 32-20 to Doc AJMD.....but kept the 25-20----00
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yooper2
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by yooper2 »

The last deer dad shot was with a little Marlin 27s in 25-20. He was "squirrel hunting", which was code for napping with a rifle under the oak tree, and a nice buck walked in munching away. He waited until it put its head down and drilled it in the brain with an 86gr cast bullet. Bullet didn't exit the skull but mushed the brain pretty good. It was probably cast from straight wheel weights knowing him.

The Marlin is a tiny rifle, most folks think it's a .22 rimfire at first glance. His had a little tang sight of unknown origin on it and shot quite well despite a rather dark bore with loads it liked which were admittedly few.

The Remington 25 is a much sleeker number but either would be a wonderful companion for a walk in the woods.


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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Ysabel Kid »

Sixgun wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 11:34 am Sold that 32-20 to Doc AJMD.....but kept the 25-20----00
I REMEMBER THAT!!!

I missed that by a day! Ending up picking up my own Remington 25 in .32-20 on Gunbroker - and it wasn't as nice and cost more than the one Doc STOLE from Sixgun! :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Sixgun »

Yea Kid...sometimes in life we all snooze..then lose......but that OK.....I would drive a hundred miles to an auction and be the first one in line...hundreds of times.

How does yours shoot? Didn't know you had one..great little guns........----006
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marlinman93
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by marlinman93 »

.25-20 wouldn't be my first choice for deer, even up close. But if it was all I had I'd use it for deer.
I've owned a number of them, but they seemed to often have bad bores whenever I see one at a gun show and consider buying it. I do have one I stumbled onto at a small estate auction locally, and the bore was excellent, so I bought it. It's a Marlin 1894 in deluxe configuration, with extra length 26" barrel. It's a very good shooting rifle. It had some ugly cold bluing on the receiver and lever, but I cleaned it with naval jelly, and the case colors were halfway decent underneath, so left it alone.

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Ysabel Kid
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Ysabel Kid »

Sixgun wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:33 pm Yea Kid...sometimes in life we all snooze..then lose......but that OK.....I would drive a hundred miles to an auction and be the first one in line...hundreds of times.

How does yours shoot? Didn't know you had one..great little guns........----006
Shoots great! I remember missing that one by less than 15 minutes! ARGH!!!
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JerryB
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by JerryB »

In my younger days i had a friend that had a 92 25-20 carbine. It was a real nice little gun when I was 15 my uncle sold me a Winchester 92 in 32wcf made in 1917. Kirk helped me with some loads that shot real good. I now have a load that is really puts it close to a .357.Several years ago I signed here due to heart surgery, but I am doing well with it now. I have been reading here real often so i decided to sign up again thanks for a great place to come.
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Ray
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Ray »

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Chester38
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by Chester38 »

I just picked up a 1892 25-20. From everything I read seems like a great rifle to shoot. I was able to get some ammo but will start looking for bullets for reloading. If anyone has a load that is working good I would be interested. I can't wait to shoot it.
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GunnyMack
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Re: Win 92 in 25-20

Post by GunnyMack »

I used to use 680, then used AA473( I think) . Ive tried lilgun and 4227. I always used the Hornady 60gr, bought a mould but have yet to work up a load.
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