Rossi Ranch Hand
Fun And Practical? Um ... Yes and No.
It might not look much like a handgun but the law says it is. This Rossi Ranch Hand
is chambered for .38 Spl./.357 Magnum cartridges but is also offered in .44 Magnum
and .45 Colt. Action is a copy of the legendary Winchester 92 designed by John Browning.
Monday is my favorite day for shooting on public ranges. Sometimes I have the range to myself, so I can chronograph loads, or set up photos, without causing a fuss and taking up the time of other shooters.
Occasionally other shooters looking for privacy on the range show up. Surprisingly often they’ll uncase what is generically called a “Mare’s Leg” — a shortened version of a lever-action rifle, usually a copy of the Winchester 92. They seem kind of embarrassed about it, kind of like they’ve been caught playing with their kids’ light saber, pretending to be a Jedi knight.
Some of these fellow club members have been kind enough to allow me to try a few shots. I found these rifle/pistols hard to shoot with one hand, not much easier with two. Compared to conventional handguns rate of fire is slow, and there’s too much bulk and weight for open carry, much less concealed carry. I can’t really think of a practical advantage over more conventional handguns.
I wonder what John Browning would think if he saw this safety on a copy of his model 92 design.
Practical: A Choice, Not A Rule
A few months ago I bought a Rossi 92 carbine chambered in .38/.357 Magnum. I did have a practical purpose; I wanted a long gun capable of using the thousands of .38 Spl. cases and small pistol primers I have on hand; easy to carry in a pickup or UTV; and with more velocity and range than a handgun.
From what I’ve read, Rossi carbines in the past had a reputation for spotty quality control. Some examples apparently had feeding issues and rough actions. I don’t dispute some may have had issues, but my Rossi carbine’s fit and finish is as good as other firearms in its price range, operation is smooth and reliable and accuracy is very good.
I was so pleased with the carbine I decided to buy the Ranch Hand version. Fit and finish — metal polishing, bluing, fit of wood to metal, wood finish — are all very good. The action operates smoothly and proved completely reliable with a variety of .38 Spl and .357 Magnum loads — excepting .38 Spl. full wadcutters, which didn’t feed reliably.
Trigger pull of the Ranch Hand was crisp enough, with no perceptible “steps” and minimal overtravel. Weight of pull at 5 pounds 2 ounces was heavier than the 4-pound pull of the carbine and will need a bit of work.
Sights are a front post with gold bead and a buckhorn rear fitted in a dovetail slot in the barrel. Sight radius is 8½”.
The front sight is a post with gold bead. Even this tall front sight wasn’t
tall enough to make use of the elevation slide of the rear sight.
A Velocity Advantage
Gunsmith Steve Young, aka “Nate Kiowa Jones” in cowboy action shooting circles, provides both parts and service for Rossi carbines and the Ranch Hand. He can provide action work to make operation smoother and more reliable (for a very reasonable cost, incidentally) as well as various parts, including a wide variety of sight options.
The factory sights and heavy trigger pull make accurate shooting a challenge, but if you make the effort the Ranch Hand seems to be inherently accurate. By working like a rented mule, I was able to get 25-yard groups in the range of 1″ to 2″.
The only real Ranch Hand advantage I can find compared to a revolver is higher velocities delivered by the 12″ barrel. Most factory 125-gr. .357 Magnum loads are rated at around 1,500 fps in 6″ barrels. In my 4″ revolvers they generally clock 1,400 – 1,450. From the 12″ barrel of the Ranch Hand the same loads gave 1,800+ fps.
Frankly I still can’t see a practical advantage to this type of firearm. Which means I can’t explain why I like the darn thing. What can I say? It’s fun. Maybe if you’re at the range some Monday morning you can try a few shots, and we’ll talk about it over a cold soda.
