R92 45 Colt accuracy problems

[chuckschultz15]

Hello, I am working up some hot loads for my R92 45 colt and am having challenges with accuracy. Seems to be shooting about 5-6" at 50yds and would like to get that down to about 2" or less at 50yds. My loads are 250 and 265 gr hard cast (one gas checked, one hitek coated) and the Hornady 240xtp mag over relatively stout doses of H110 or No.11fs. Given a twist rate of 1:24 I expected this to work out fine but have had the aforementioned results and have noted leading of the barrel as well which surprised me some. Anyone have any experience or recommendations or common quirks with these Rossi rifles with this type of load? I'm a bit concerned something is off with the rifle (I did check to make sure my sights were rock solid). Do they run overbore very often? I'm thinking about slugging the barrel to consider if it's worth trying a .454" cast bullet. Any other ideas?

[Scott Tschirhart]

I’ve got a couple of Rossi rifles but they are in different calibers (.357 and.44 Magnum). Either of them will meet your criteria of sub 2 inch groups at 50 yards. So I think it would be probable that your rifle can get there too.


I’d run a soft round ball through the bore to get a measurement and see if there are any tight or loose spots.

[Pisgah]

Mine won't group the 230 gr. XTP worth a hoot, but absolutely delights in the 250...

[Pisgah]

Mine won't group the 230 gr. XTP worth a hoot, but absolutely delights in the 250...

[samsi]

It's my understanding that they can be anywhere between .452-.455. I got lucky as mine is .452 but use cast bullets of either 452 or 454 without issues. I don't recall ever firing a jacketed bullet in it.

[KWK]

Seems to be shooting about 5-6" at 50yds and would like to get that down to about 2" or less at 50yds.

Shoots like a Ruger 77/357 I have!

I nearly bought an R92 carbine in 45 off the rack last month. A web search suggested you aren't the only one with accuracy woes, but the carbine seems to be more afflicted than the rifle.

Welcome to the forum and please give updates. They are delightful handling little carbines. I'd planned to fit it with the rifle's crescent buttstock to get the longer length of pull.

[piller]

I am not a gunsmith. However, pushing a soft lead ball through the bore seems like a good way to find out if there are problems in the bore. I have heard several on here suggest it. Scott T suggested it above. If there are constrictions or rough places in the bore, get some lapping compound as fine of grit as you can get. Roll a lead bullet in it and fire it through the barrel. Do it about 5 times, and then push a lead ball through again. When it pushes through without any restrictions or grabs, try it again with your chosen load. Smoothing out any restrictions may help.
BE CAREFUL! Smoothing it out does not mean removing enough of the bore that it is ruined.
My Father had a GP100 which started smoothing up after about 1500 rounds. The accuracy improved about there, too. It was actually my Wife's pistol that she loaned him.

[chuckschultz15]

Hey thank you for the responses, i'll try to find an appropriately sized ball to slug the bore. Anyone know of a company that sells gas checked or hi-tek coated .454 hard cast bullets? I was having trouble finding something like that--only found .454 bullets w/o any additional protection against leading.

[GunnyMack]

By all means slug the bore.
Look at the crown too.
Hold the GUN EXACTLY the same every shot, with you hand holding the forearm. Some 2piece stocked guns don't like sand bags/rests.
Look at the forearm cap, is it touching the barrel?
Try different powders. Reduce loads if at max.

[Scott Tschirhart]

By all means slug the bore.
Look at the crown too.
Hold the GUN EXACTLY the same every shot, with you hand holding the forearm. Some 2piece stocked guns don't like sand bags/rests.
Look at the forearm cap, is it touching the barrel?
Try different powders. Reduce loads if at max.

All good advice. Particularly how you hold the rifle. But try to change only one variable at a time if you want to find out what is going on.

[GunnyMack]

Yes Scott, you are correct about 1 thing at a time.
Obviously looking at the crown and the cap can be done anytime.

When I got my Henry 41 before I even shot it I took the cap off and filed it down enough to never touch the barrel. It will shoot 1 hole groups at 50( with a scope)