browning 92 in 44 mag

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mickbr
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browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by mickbr »

So a friend uncovered one of these for sale and wanted some information on them. I know the browning 357 was one of the best 1892 clones ever done. Did the 44mag enjoy the same reputation by this maker? I seem to remember it may not have.....could have that totally wrong, but I let my friend know I knew some fellas who know more than I. Also anyone ever know or read what the bore slugged at for these?
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by OldWin »

I've had one for years. It's a little beat up but is an excellent shooter. Full disclosure, I don't shoot it much, nor have I done a lot of experimenting with it. I have a 66 Lyman on mine and usually shoot 240gr XTPs over some IMR4227. It shoots very accurately with this combination. What I haven't done is slug it or shoot any cast through it. I usually leave the cast to my old original Winchesters.
Functionality, it is the best feeding "repro" 92 I have used. I've never shot any 44 Specials in it, however. Shooting only handloads, there is no reason for me to bother with Specials.
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Pisgah
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Pisgah »

If I knew where one was for sale at a halfway reasonable price I'd buy it.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by 765x53 »

I believe it was made in the same Japanese factory where "Winchesters" are made.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by barbarossa »

I had one years ago and it is one gun I truly regret selling.It was scary accurate with standard federal ammo.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Mark in MO »

I picked up a Centennial Browning 92 late last year in 44 Magnum. Made in 1978 I believe. It was like new in the box with the original paperwork. It doesn't appear to have been shot much and I really like it. I have not slugged it or shot many lead bullets thru it but what I have used shot well. Not sure you can go wrong with one.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Mark in MO »

I believe 765x53 is correct. Mine is stamped "Made in Japan."
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Old Savage »

Miroku. I have one, very accurate with Winchester white box 240s. Feeds Mags and Specials fine.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by kaschi »

These are great little carbines made by Miroku as already pointed out. Even better than the later ones made by Miroku and stamped "Winchester" because they do not have the ugly tang safety and rebounding hammer.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by mickbr »

Thanks for the replies. So I dug up the following info. These came with .432 bore and 1:38 twist. Didnt realize 44's came in bores that large? Must not matter to accuracy with jacketed bullets at.430 and fellas reporting good shooting. My friend is having second thoughts, maybe getting a uberti short stroke for western action so I am thinking about getting it myself.

It belongs to a western action shooter, looks nice in pics, fella claims cast loads only, handles short 44 sp too, only a few nicks and wear from where he had it in a scabbard, says bore is excellent, $1000 shipped. What do you fellas think about buying a gun online off one of these cowboy shooters? Some of these guys have a lot of rounds through the guns. He did say he never used it much in the last 20 years after he switched to an 1873.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Bronco »

Sure would like to see a picture!
I bought a .433 mold to fit my barrel, accuracy is good to go with lead.
I would buy it, if I did not already have a 44 rifle.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Sarge »

mickbr wrote: Fri May 13, 2022 6:41 am Thanks for the replies. So I dug up the following info. These came with .432 bore and 1:38 twist. Didnt realize 44's came in bores that large? Must not matter to accuracy with jacketed bullets at.430 and fellas reporting good shooting. My friend is having second thoughts, maybe getting a uberti short stroke for western action so I am thinking about getting it myself.

It belongs to a western action shooter, looks nice in pics, fella claims cast loads only, handles short 44 sp too, only a few nicks and wear from where he had it in a scabbard, says bore is excellent, $1000 shipped. What do you fellas think about buying a gun online off one of these cowboy shooters? Some of these guys have a lot of rounds through the guns. He did say he never used it much in the last 20 years after he switched to an 1873.
Only two things could make that a bad deal- if somebody bubba'ed the cartridge guides or the bore is caked with lead. There aren't many 44 mag levers that MSRP under a grand these days and that Browning will be be as good and likely better quality than anything current, in that price range.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Grizz »

the b92 i have got a bulged barrel from a prior owner, and unsuccessful attempts at barrel removal. i have a replacement barrel for it, when i get a roundtoit . . . it was a straight shooter in spite of the barrel damage.

BUT, the 1:38 barrel limits the usefulness of it for me. if i found a 1:20 barrel i would be incentivized to move ahead with it
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by mickbr »

Thanks fellas and I will post some pics up on the weekend, the fella is sending me some more. I was a bit disappointed in hearing it has a 1:38 as well. Well if I get it and decide I need to run 300 grain cast bullets I suppose I could have a tighter barrel done for it. No stranger to blowing money this way, even had a 1:16 twist barrel made for a Rossi 357 :)
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by JFE »

I have B92’s in 44 mag and 357. Both are great carbines. The 44 has multi groove rifling somewhat like Marlin’s microgroove rifling. If you check SAAMI for 44mag rifle specs and 44 mag pistol specs you will find they are spec-ed completely differently. Different barrel dimensions, twists and throats. They are literally two different cartridges.

When fed jacketed bullets accuracy is fine. However when using cast you will need a larger diameter and somewhat harder alloy if you want to drive cast pills with any accuracy. The shallow rifling and large groove diameter requires larger diameter pills. Don’t worry about the slow twist - even a 1 in 38” twist will stabilise a 300gr bullet as long as it’s a large diameter (mine likes 0.433 cast pills). Like a lot of leverguns, feed quality is best with RNFP, WFN or TC styles. Mine will feed some SWC styles but generally you’ll run in to OAL issues as this style is primarily designed for revolvers. Once you understand the issues it’s easy enough to get around them. Quality wise they are probably the best 92 clone out there.

The B92 in 357 is totally different. It has tight barrel specs, deeper conventional rifling and a fast twist. Mine slugs exactly 0.357 and IIRC the twist is 1 in 16.75”. It took me long time to track a 357 down and have only this one for a year or so. Browning didn’t make many in 357. So far it’s been easy to develop loads for and powders like Lil Gun really make it sing.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by samsi »

I passed up a B92 .357 for $350 back in 2005 - I'm still kicking myself over it.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Old Savage »

Sold one for $375 years ago, should have kept it.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Grizz »

Don’t worry about the slow twist - even a 1 in 38” twist will stabilise a 300gr bullet as long as it’s a large diameter (mine likes 0.433 cast pills).
we have a marlin 44 mag in the family and that 13:38 barrel WILL NOT stabilize 300Gr bullets. some will, some won't. i still don't know why the variance, but my 300s were literally going sideways 6 feet from the muzzle.

i still dinna ken why that 38" twist barrel even exists on 44 carbines, unless it is specifically designed to prevent people from using 405Gr loads, or 425s.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by JFE »

With my B92 I fed it a series of heavier cast bullet loads. It only started to show signs of instability using bullets over 340gr. It groups the 300gr RNFP cast pills (which is a fairly short bullet) as good as any jacketed bullet loads.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Sarge »

Grizz wrote: Sat May 14, 2022 12:46 pm
Don’t worry about the slow twist - even a 1 in 38” twist will stabilise a 300gr bullet as long as it’s a large diameter (mine likes 0.433 cast pills).
we have a marlin 44 mag in the family and that 13:38 barrel WILL NOT stabilize 300Gr bullets. some will, some won't. i still don't know why the variance, but my 300s were literally going sideways 6 feet from the muzzle.

i still dinna ken why that 38" twist barrel even exists on 44 carbines, unless it is specifically designed to prevent people from using 405Gr loads, or 425s.
I had one Marlin 44 mag in the early 80s which dealt me fits trying to find a load it liked. As I recall the Federal 240 JHP factory load was just passable accurate. I loved everything about it except the way it shot.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by JFE »

With my 44mag I didn’t work this stuff out overnight - it took me years to figure it out. Trying to make cast work was very frustrating. The previous owner warned me about its behaviour with cast. After trying all sorts of things with no success I was going give in and convert it to 45LC. In the end I was determined to make it work with cast.

On top of the issues mentioned, the SAAMI spec for 44mag rifles includes a long throat. It’s so long that a bullet in a loaded shell that chambers and feeds and cycles through the action will never be close to the beginning of the rifling. So there is no support at the front of the cartridge, allowing the cartridge to slump to the bottom of the chamber, causing misalignment. Loading as fat a bullet that still chambers and feeds properly assists in aligning the cartridge concentric to the barrel by limiting slumping.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by mickbr »

I might give this gun a miss I am thinking with that twist and bore size. Gee the 44 mag has several desirable attributes in a rifle ....but unfortunately they are all all spread across several different brands! If you want .429 bore, tight twist and quality the one that ticks the most boxes is a uberti 1873 but then you lose action strength :D
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by JFE »

mickbr wrote: Sat May 14, 2022 6:16 pm I might give this gun a miss I am thinking with that twist and bore size. Gee the 44 mag has several desirable attributes in a rifle ....but unfortunately they are all all spread across several different brands! If you want .429 bore, tight twist and quality the one that ticks the most boxes is a uberti 1873 but then you lose action strength :D
or just rebarrel the Browning. That way you can correct the bore, twist and throat.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by Bronco »

I had Regan Nonneman rebarreled my Marlin 1894 to address the bore size and twist rate. Now have a .429 bore with a 1:16 twist. Stabilizes 300 gr pills at even car sneeze velocities. He did great work and am very happy with what I got back.
He is a farmer and does the smithing on the side, so the return was an lengthy but price and quality ( price did not effect the great work) was great. I would not hesitate to send him my rifle if I had to do it over again!
I get 2 1/2 " groups at a 100 yds.
I was going for hot loads and did not test powder charges to see if the groups improved. was happy with the 2 1/2" @ 100yds .

The original barrel would only stabilize 300 gr cast bullets at the high end of the reloading charts.

John
Last edited by Bronco on Wed May 18, 2022 7:57 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by big bear »

JFE wrote: Fri May 13, 2022 4:48 pm I have B92’s in 44 mag and 357. Both are great carbines. The 44 has multi groove rifling somewhat like Marlin’s microgroove rifling. If you check SAAMI for 44mag rifle specs and 44 mag pistol specs you will find they are spec-ed completely differently. Different barrel dimensions, twists and throats. They are literally two different cartridges.

When fed jacketed bullets accuracy is fine. However when using cast you will need a larger diameter and somewhat harder alloy if you want to drive cast pills with any accuracy. The shallow rifling and large groove diameter requires larger diameter pills. Don’t worry about the slow twist - even a 1 in 38” twist will stabilise a 300gr bullet as long as it’s a large diameter (mine likes 0.433 cast pills). Like a lot of leverguns, feed quality is best with RNFP, WFN or TC styles. Mine will feed some SWC styles but generally you’ll run in to OAL issues as this style is primarily designed for revolvers. Once you understand the issues it’s easy enough to get around them. Quality wise they are probably the best 92 clone out there.

The B92 in 357 is totally different. It has tight barrel specs, deeper conventional rifling and a fast twist. Mine slugs exactly 0.357 and IIRC the twist is 1 in 16.75”. It took me long time to track a 357 down and have only this one for a year or so. Browning didn’t make many in 357. So far it’s been easy to develop loads for and powders like Lil Gun really make it sing.
Any chance you could share some load data, I will verify with my Load manuals, reduce starting loads, use at my own risk. I just (today) got a browning92. :D
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by mickbr »

JFE wrote: Sun May 15, 2022 7:19 am

or just rebarrel the Browning. That way you can correct the bore, twist and throat.
What specs would you select if you were to go that route again JFE?
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by JFE »

mickbr wrote: Wed May 18, 2022 5:01 am [quote=JFE post_id=944912 time=<a href="tel:1652617145">1652617145</a> user_id=782]


or just rebarrel the Browning. That way you can correct the bore, twist and throat.
What specs would you select if you were to go that route again JFE?
[/quote]


Personally, I’d look for a barrel that had a groove diameter of 0.429” with a twist rate of 1 in 16-20”, ie a pistol spec barrel. The other point is I’d try not to use a regular 44 mag rifle chamber reamer as they include a long throat - I think it’s about 0.22” long. The factory 44 mag chamber has a lot slop (it was never designed to be a tack driver) and I’d try to use a reamer that takes out a lot of that slop. A tighter chamber will result in a more accurate rifle. If you intend to try to chamber SWC style bullets, I would go with a throat designed to just accept the front drive band. Check the throat clearance required by the bullets you choose to use and make sure the throat you use allows those to clear.

Trying to get those elements right should result in an accurate levergun.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by JFE »

big bear wrote: Tue May 17, 2022 11:07 pm Any chance you could share some load data, I will verify with my Load manuals, reduce starting loads, use at my own risk. I just (today) got a browning92. :D
Congrats and well done finding a B92. They really are a well made rifle.

Which caliber?
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by JFE »

JFE wrote: Wed May 18, 2022 10:35 am
big bear wrote: Tue May 17, 2022 11:07 pm Any chance you could share some load data, I will verify with my Load manuals, reduce starting loads, use at my own risk. I just (today) got a browning92. :D
Congrats and well done finding a B92. They really are a well made rifle.

Which caliber?
I saw from your other thread that it’s a 357. They are rare and you’ll be delighted by the way it shoots.

I’ll put some of the loads up tomorrow that I’ve tried through mine. Mine was used by a western action shooter but it was still very tight. It did need a detailed strip and clean though. I also had a steel Lyman aperture sight fitted.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by JFE »

B92 357 handloads.

All the usual caveats apply: the loads were safe in my rifle and you need to reduce the charges and work up in your own rifle.

125 RNFP bullets
I was after an accurate plinking/small game load using commercially cast bullets. I picked a locally made 125gr RNFP design that the cowboy shooters use. The most accurate load tried was 5.3gr of AS-30 (Clays?) - this is listed as a max load in the ADI manual. It burnt clean and produced an average velocity of 1420 fps. It’s pleasant and accurate enough for rabbits and other small game.

180 WFN
These were cast using a NOE mould. It’s a WFN GC design.
14.0 gr W296 produced an average of 1680 fps
15.0 gr Lil Gun produced an average 1830 fps
Both loads were accurate.

Other
I tried an old handload I had for a 357 revolver.
125 gr Speer JSP 18.5gr 2400 (Hercules) for 2114 fps.

I was somewhat surprised by the performance of the little 357mag. It’s a sweet little number.
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by mickbr »

1830fps with a 180gn WFN, that has some thump for a 357!

Also appears you are correct that As-30 is Clays https://forum.nosler.com/threads/adi-powders.22553/
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Re: browning 92 in 44 mag

Post by big bear »

JFE wrote: Wed May 18, 2022 5:28 pm B92 357 handloads.

All the usual caveats apply: the loads were safe in my rifle and you need to reduce the charges and work up in your own rifle.

125 RNFP bullets
I was after an accurate plinking/small game load using commercially cast bullets. I picked a locally made 125gr RNFP design that the cowboy shooters use. The most accurate load tried was 5.3gr of AS-30 (Clays?) - this is listed as a max load in the ADI manual. It burnt clean and produced an average velocity of 1420 fps. It’s pleasant and accurate enough for rabbits and other small game.

180 WFN
These were cast using a NOE mould. It’s a WFN GC design.
14.0 gr W296 produced an average of 1680 fps
15.0 gr Lil Gun produced an average 1830 fps
Both loads were accurate.

Other
I tried an old handload I had for a 357 revolver.
125 gr Speer JSP 18.5gr 2400 (Hercules) for 2114 fps.

I was somewhat surprised by the performance of the little 357mag. It’s a sweet little number.
Thanks for the information. I'm going to look for one 158-180gr cast bullets with gas checks to work up some loads for. It is a fun little rifle.
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