Chiappa Mare's Leg

J

JimmieA.

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I have looked around here for member's thoughts on this gun and found little info.

I am considering one of these and would like feedback from owners regarding the following:
- .357 Mag vs. .44 Mag calibre. I have both calibres now in other guns and reloading for both,
- The Chiappa brand vs. Rossi brand, quality of product?,
- where to buy one in stock,
- if I went .357 Mag can I shoot .38 Special in it?,
- I am inclined to go .357 Mag as I do not enjoy the kick of my .44 Mag, does the Mare's Leg kick like a hand gun?,
- where to get a holster for one?,
- links to a good review of the product.

Thanks for the info.
 
From personal experience and experience with others I shoot with over Chiappa products I'd strongly recommend you go with the Rossi option. The Rossi won't look as pretty on the outside but the insides will be made to a much higher degree of quality. Even despite the fact that Rossi is no great shakes on this when it comes right out of the box either. But at least with Rossi it's a matter of some slight roughness instead of actual faults.

For the cost of a $25 spring kit and a couple of hours of time from a smith the Rossi can be slicked up so it cycles like warm butter on glass very easily. Or if you're reasonably competent with some fine stones and basic metal working you can slick the action up yourself and install the spring kit. Mostly the work is a matter of lightly stoning any roughly machined contact surfaces, de-burring all corners, especially on the ejector, and possibly shimming the cartridge guides so the cartridge just barely slips through easily but with no slop at all.

Since the Mares Leg design is neither a rifle nor a proper handgun I found that it's very difficult to aim well or quickly. Then toss in the fact that it doesn't hold much ammo due to the super short magazine tube. So all in all I find them to be rather pointless. But clearly lots of folks think they are great. And since fun is a big part of what this hobby/sport is all about I wish you well with it if you get one.
 
Have the Rossi version with a regular butt stock on it. Go for the 44 mag, load it to your preference. Recoil is not an issue even with 300 gr XTP ahead of an appropriate charge of Titegroup. Rear sights need work as they shoot high. Fun little bush gun, gets lots of looks at the range. Got the kit from Steves Guns to replace the follower and ejector spring. Brass is easier to recover.
 
Love my Rossi Ranch Hand in 45 Colt. It's easy to make handloads for the 45 well beyond the energy levels of factory 44mag ammo, and just as easy to make them down low at "Cowboy" levels for plinking. Much better selection of bullets for the 45 than the 44, too. I'm hunting deer with mine this fall. :)

For your decision, if you want to hunt with it, go 44. For a range toy, go 357. 38Spl loads are MUCH cheaper. If you want the best caliber for a pistol-caliber lever gun, then get the 45 Colt. ;)

I've only briefly handled the Chiappa, it was a takedown model in 44Mag, and it was nice. Definitely "finer" than the Rossi, definitely heavier, much better wood. The takedown feature may or may not be useful to you. But I can tell you that my Rossi cleaned up VERY nicely with some parts from StevesGunz and a few hours of work. Okay, maybe I spent a couple of days on it, but I'm a bit excitable that way ;)

I think Canada Ammo has some in stock. Some other site sponsors recently, too.

Felt recoil depends on your grip. For "accurate" shooting, I use a cheek weld and wrap my arm in the sling I installed. Recoil is not at all bad with plinking loads. With full house handloads in my Ranch Hand (300gr JFN @ 1375fps), it's interesting. I use a glove on my shooting hand for anything more than a few rounds of those. Your ring finger on the shooting hand absorbs much of the recoil, as it rests directly on the inside of the lever loop. If you went with the 44, to cut your recoil, I think you can cycle 44Special loads in the 44 versions. Or just download your 44Mag loads to Special levels. I don't load 44 though, so don't quote me on that. Typical light factory 44 loads shouldn't be an issue at all, I'd think.

There is a guy on the Alberta Outdoorsmen forum making very nice holsters for the Mare's Leg variants. I think he goes by coho911 over there. Some pics of his work: h ttp://coho911.smugmug.com/Other/QM-Leatherworking/23820225_7scjQL#!i=2451974198&k=rcLnhqq
 
Here's my usual rant: I have a chiappa 1911-22, and it's a pos. it cycles well and is reasonably accurate. BUT the "Chiappalloy" it's made of is as fragile as a 14 year old girl's self esteem. I've literally had the pistol fall apart in my hands while firing it. The barrel bushing shattered, and thr guide rod and recoil spring shot down range. Maybe I'm over reacting, but I always kinda though firearms shouldn't fall apart in your hands with regular use. Definately Rossi over chiappa
 
I found a vendor with 6 Rossi Ranch Hands in .45 LC. He wants $700 for one which is a little high I think. I am thinking about getting one though. I have been to the shop before, it is where I first saw the gun actually. I have a Ruger Blackhawk in .45LC calibre so I can load for both. I have to buy dies and brass for the calibre though. I was thinking I may pay the guy to have his gunsmith go over the gun to make sure it is working well before I take delivery. Might be worth the fee. I would get a discount that way on gunsmith work I think. Should I hold out for the .357 Mag. or .44 Mag. or get the .45LC? My Ruger is a convertable and I bought it for the .45ACP so I don't care about the .45LC cylinder. Having never shot the .45 Long Colt I welcome peoples experience/feedback.

There is an option to buy case hardened or blued, costs $50 or so more for case hardened. Is this worth it?
 
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To me this is a slam dunk sort of decision. Buy the .45Colt and get the goodies for reloading the rounds. Then you can shoot the same ammo in the handgun and Ranch Hand. And, when you come to realize that the RH is more of an interesting oddity than an effective handgun, you can add or trade the RH for a lever rifle in .45Colt.

I'd only get the store smith to do the work if he's worked on these to do the slicking up work before. Otherwise he won't know what needs to be done or not. If he has not prepped a bunch of cowboy action guns for folks before you'd be better off taking your new Rossi to a smith that does this sort of work more frequently.
 
Ah, that changes everything!

Well, if cost of reloading is central and you just want a plinker, then I'd wait for a 38/357 version. Otherwise, definitely get the 45 Colt version. 45 Colt is very interesting to reload, since it has such a HUGE range from bottom to top. Be aware that the factory 45 Colt loads are very low powered since they are designed to be safe in SAA replicas. You can use "Ruger" data when handloading for your Rossi. 45 Colt brass lasts a LONG time if you're loading it at low pressures. Kind of like the 45ACP idea, as long as you aren't flaring too much.

That's quite a premium you'd be paying to shop local. Canada Ammo has them for $570, shipping in. Maybe tell your vendor about that, they might be able to sweeten the pot. Like giving you a break on reloading supplies or something...

Like BCRider says, unless the smith is familiar with the 92 design, I'd pass on having them prep the gun. The new Rossi should work just fine right out of the box. They're just literally rough around the edges. Going over the action is really to slick it up and make it feel nicer (smoother and faster), not necessarily to improve function.

I'd stay away from the case-hardened version, personally. At best, it's merely cosmetic, and at worst it theoretically weakens the receiver (though it's not a problem unless you're running hot handloads through it).
 
I bought the Canada Ammo blue version, 500 Starline brass plus the Lee 4 die set for reloading. I think I'll buy the kit for the spring rework for the fun of it and the tools as well. I'll look into the full stock idea and the holster next month.

Thanks everyone for the feedback.
 
What I would like of the 3 choices of Mare's Legs is a Henry in 44 Mag. Anyone know where I might get one?
 
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