UPDATE: Rossi Ranch Hand Mares Leg

[SHELL SHUCKER]

My Ranch Hand that I got just before Christmas has the large dovetail slots ( approx .390 ) front and rear ( standard 3/8 dovetail sights are way too small ) so be careful which sights you are getting.

So far I haven't found a .390 dovetail rear sight. And I am thinking about a ramp mount front sight so the blade doesn't have to be as tall but I haven't committed myself to drilling and tapping my barrel yet.

Not to worry if your rifle has a .390" dovetail when using Marbles
sights as they have a generous dovetail.
When I put them on my Browning BL22 I had to hone down one side
of the sights' dovetail to get it to fit.
The sights sold by Steve's Gunz are Marbles.

 

[SHELL SHUCKER]

The long bullseye looks like a great option. I see there is an even taller sight. The .570 in gold 3/32 would probably work great!

The .570" sight is too tall for the Rossi, unless you want to carefully
grind off the top of it to remove the bead. This will leave you with
a fine pin sight that works great with the small notch on Rossi
rear sights. (As long as your eyes can see it clearly.)

I did this on my .454 Rossi when it had the Skinner peep on it and
at the time, it was fine for target work. Now that my right eye
has a floater in it, I've gone to the Bullseye sight rear and 1/16"
bead front.

Gettin' old blows!

 

[boomer49]

Response from Skinner's Sights ...

Hi guys,

Yesterday I sent this message to Andy at Skinner's Sights ...

Hi Andy,

There is a huge thread (would you believe 224 pages?) on the Canadian GunNutz website about the Rossi Mare's Leg, and one fellow just made an interesting post. I quoted it when I responded as cut-and-pasted below ...

Rossi dovetail specs
Shell-shucker wrote ...

"One thing I've noticed on these newest Rossi M92's is that the dovetails are now the correct size for American sights. (No doubt due to input from Rossi USA.)

My sights tapped in without any final fitting and are properly snug. I also noticed that the final metal polish and blue is not as good as the earlier Rossi guns, but it's still decent."

I notice that Skinner's Sights in Montana (where I recently bought a rear peep for my Rossi) still mentions that there's one dovetail size for "Most Rifles", and another for Rossi rifles. They say .375 for "Most Rifles" and .390 for Rossi rifles.

hxxp://www.skinnersights.com/barrel_mount_6.html

SS's observations are leaving me a bit confused. Can somebody explain? Could Skinner's Sights not be aware of the change, or could Shell-Shucker be mistaken, or is there a way they could both be right?

He had just mounted a Marble's front sight from Brownell's ... Part # 579-105-331.

Is he mistaken, or has Rossi switched sizes for the dovetail on their rifles? If that is the case, I just thought that I should give you the heads-up.

Mine is at a gunsmith in Mission right now, and I don't know how things are going.
​

This morning he answered ...

Good morning ****,

I have had my hands on a few Rossi,s of recent manufacture. (3 mod. 92 and one Rio Grande on 45-70) One had a front sight slot that was "close" to standard, the others (and all rear dovetails) were same as always, about. 390"

There is a hope that eventually the Rossi's will be closer to. 375" but our customers (and personal experience) is that for the most part, prepare for an oversize dovetail.

Thanks ****,

Andy​

 

[SHELL SHUCKER]

The long bullseye looks like a great option. I see there is an even taller sight. The .570 in gold 3/32 would probably work great!

HOLD THE PHONE!
Hungsolo could be right about going to a .570" front sight to start with on
these short barreled buggers.
I just got back from the range after doing an initial test shoot with
my new .357 Baby Carbine. Sure enough, the little sucker still shoots
3" high @ 25yds. using the factory rear sight set on its' lowest notch,
and that's using the .538" Marbles front.

I found that the 1/16" bead filled the rear sight notch completely though,
so a 3/32" would be too fat. I am happy with the group size though!

Thanks boomer49 for checking with Andy about the Rossi dovetail sizing.
Perhaps it's time to start a little campaign at Br#####h International
to get them to switch out their cutters to .375" for the North American
market.

For letters;
Br#####h International LLC
16175 NW 49 Avenue'
Miami, Florida, USA 33014
ATTN: Ms Maria R Pernas
National Sales Manager
Rossi Product Line

or phone:1-800-948-8029
Fax: 305-623-7506

As for me, it's time to order up some extra tall Marbles front sights from
Brownell's and continue the experiment.
Iy..yi yi!!!

 

[Kanaima]

Range Report...

Shot my .44 mag ranch hand last weekend and...

PROS:
The gun is a beast
Everybody at the range had to check it out. I probably sold 12 of these for Rossi.
It's a hoot to shoot
It's unobtrusive & inconspicuous
A bargain for the $579 I paid for it

CONS:
The gun is a beast
The gun is rough. Fit & finish is rough, the action is rough
Sharp edges on the forearm
The stock stock is useless, I instinctively shoulder any longarm I'm shooting. The cutdown stock is a gimmick and for me hinders fast, instinctive shooting. If you hipshoot it's fine but I see no downside to installing a regular length stock. For me this is NOT going to be in a hip holster so the extra 6" is not going to be an issue.

NOTES: Finally a truck/backcountry gun that I can really use. I've ordered a full length stock, fiber optic front sight, peep rear sight and Steve's Guns kit. I'll do another range report after I've installed the upgrades but for anybody that spends time in the backcountry...get this gun!

 

[driller212]

good stuff guys! I am excited to load up some hard hitters and figure out my sight adjustments! Probably wont be for another month though.

 

[boomer49]

good stuff guys! I am excited to load up some hard hitters and figure out my sight adjustments! Probably wont be for another month though.

Another month? No problem ... that's the norm these days.

Wanstall's received my Ranch Hand on March 7th. It was jamming on every third or fourth reload, and they quickly offered to fix or replace it ... so I returned it along with the Steve's Gunz tune-up kit / DVD ... with the promise that I'd happily pay for any "above-and-beyond" authorized warranty repair work that their gunsmith would maybe like to try after he'd fixed the jamming issue ... and that there was no need to return the $50 DVD.

To maybe solve the "sights" problem that we're all discussing, I also enclosed two possible rear sights (the Steve's Gunz low rear and the Skinner's Sights rear peep) and the marginally-higher Steve's Gunz replacement front sight ... and I said that I'd pay for as much pricey ammunition that was required for the Wanstall's gunsmith to determine the best combination. And, naturally, the related gunsmithing fees ...

But the gunsmith is obviously a very busy guy. Gary says that the fellow says that it's just probably a polishing issue, and there's been no word at all on the viability of the two sighting options, or if the guy is interested in trying any of the Steve's Gunz tune-up ideas/parts.

I am a ranch hand. A few days ago a grizzly got shot ... in town ... and I live 40 km north of town ... in the boondocks ... so I'm anxious to get the rifle fixed. Until then I'll carry my real go-to gun (a Marine Magnum) for workin in the woods

It's really the best gun for the job, but the RH is fun for s**ts-and-giggles ... and maybe (with pepper spray) would be adequate for fly-fishing days.

 

[boomer49]

?

"The stock stock is useless, I instinctively shoulder any longarm I'm shooting. The cutdown stock is a gimmick and for me hinders fast, instinctive shooting."

Yeah, you and them other dudes on the LA County SWAT Team are so busy ...

So ... why did you buy one?

It's great ... as is.

We Canadians totally lucked-out on this one.

Sheesh

 

[driller212]

Another month? No problem ...

Wanstall's received my Ranch Hand on March 7th. It was jamming on every third or fourth reload, and they quickly offered to fix or replace it ... so I returned it along with the Steve's Gunz tune-up kit / DVD ... with the promise that I'd pay for any "above-and-beyond warranty repair" work that their gunsmith would maybe like to try after he'd fixed the jamming issue ... and that there was no need to return the $50 DVD.

To maybe solve the "sights" problem, I also enclosed two possible rear sights (the Steve's Gunz low rear and the Skinner's Sights rear peep) and the marinally-higher Steve's Gunz replacement front sight ... and I said that I'd pay for as much pricey ammunition that was required for the gunsmith to determine the best combination. And, naturally, the related gunsmithing fees ...

But the gunsmith is obviously a very busy guy. Gary says that the guy says that it's just probably a polishing issue, and no word at all on the viability of the two sighting options, or if he's interested in trying any of the Steve's Gunz tune-up ideas/parts.

I am a ranch hand. A few days ago a grizzly got shot ... in town ... and I live 40 km north of town ... in the boondocks ... so I'm anxious to get the rifle fixed. Until then I'll carry my real go-to gun for workin in the woods

nasty! yea I fractured the same bone in both my arms so I cant shoot for a while. I will be using mine for work this summer. I have a feeling next year I will just get a bush carry permit for a revolver though. The problem you had is probably due to the relatively poor quality of the rifles, but you get what you pay for I guess. Mine has had no function issues other than wanting to shoot the sky! Even with that, I still think I will have this rifle for a lifetime.

 

[boomer49]

nasty! yea I fractured the same bone in both my arms so I cant shoot for a while. I will be using mine for work this summer. I have a feeling next year I will just get a bush carry permit for a revolver though.

Hey Driller,

Good luck on that idea

Bottom line? That unobtrusive little firearm will fit quietly into the the side-slot of my fly-fishing daypack. A whole bunch of energy if I can't reach The Real Gun.

Totally. Effen. Legal.

I'm sure-as-hell not burning the RH's soon-to-be-obsolete registration certs ... just to make it easy for them and us.

What's not-to-like about that?

 

[driller212]

absolutely nothing!

its a great gun, and finally something small enough to carry easily for us bush whackers!

I will probably take a billion pics trying to get me with my new knife and the ranch hand in with the helicopter with brilliant mountain scenery in the background. It must be done haha.

 

[Can-down]

HOLD THE PHONE!
Hungsolo could be right about going to a .570" front sight to start with on
these short barreled buggers.
I just got back from the range after doing an initial test shoot with
my new .357 Baby Carbine. Sure enough, the little sucker still shoots
3" high @ 25yds. using the factory rear sight set on its' lowest notch,
and that's using the .538" Marbles front.

I found that the 1/16" bead filled the rear sight notch completely though,
so a 3/32" would be too fat. I am happy with the group size though!

Thanks boomer49 for checking with Andy about the Rossi dovetail sizing.
Perhaps it's time to start a little campaign at Br#####h International
to get them to switch out their cutters to .375" for the North American
market.

For letters;
Br#####h International LLC
16175 NW 49 Avenue'
Miami, Florida, USA 33014
ATTN: Ms Maria R Pernas
National Sales Manager
Rossi Product Line

or phone:1-800-948-8029
Fax: 305-623-7506

As for me, it's time to order up some extra tall Marbles front sights from
Brownell's and continue the experiment.
Iy..yi yi!!!

More like .750 but that's not going to happen....
I ground my rear sight notch way down last year and got rid of the elevator to get mine sighted in......just looking at it I figured I'd need at least 3/4" of front sight......in other words it needs a higher sight base for the dovetail.

Even though it's sighted in know, I still want the front sight higher so I can raise the sight line off the top of the receiver and also use an xs peep.

I've got an idea......

 

[SHELL SHUCKER]

More like .750 but that's not going to happen....
I ground my rear sight notch way down last year and got rid of the elevator to get mine sighted in......just looking at it I figured I'd need at least 3/4" of front sight......in other words it needs a higher sight base for the dovetail.

Even though it's sighted in know, I still want the front sight higher so I can raise the sight line off the top of the receiver and also use an xs peep.

I've got an idea......

Oh...I can hear the wheels turning now.
Folks wantin' to switch out their sights should consult the sight
calculation chart on the Marbles website. It will get you going in the right
direction.
Get you're verniers & straight edges ready.

I'm gettin' a brain fart on this now.

 

[Kanaima]

"The stock stock is useless, I instinctively shoulder any longarm I'm shooting. The cutdown stock is a gimmick and for me hinders fast, instinctive shooting."

Yeah, you and them other dudes on the LA County SWAT Team are so busy ...

So ... why did you buy one?

It's great ... as is.

We Canadians totally lucked-out on this one.

Sheesh

I bought the gun because I wanted a really compact defensive weapon to carry when I'm in the backcountry, which is often. I've spent most of my life working in or around bear country and have had the misfortune of actually being attacked by a polar bear, obviously I survived unscathed (so did the bear) but that was due to karma, not to the fact I was carrying my tactical 870 loaded with slugs. FOR ME the cut down stock is useless. I came to that conclusion after a day at the range. I don't think I could hit the broadside of a barn under an attack situation firing from the hip unless the distance was under 7 metres and even then it would be sheer luck if I actually produced a quick kill shot. I believe that PREVENTING that type of encounter is the key to survival in bear country. The weapon will sit in a back scabbard where I think the extra 6' of butt stock will actually make it easier to bring the gun to the ready, which for me will hopefully be the shoulder. If I have to fire from the hip the extra 6" will not be an issue. So to sum it up for you boomer49: FOR ME the weapon is difficult to handle with the cut down stock, I see no downside to installing a full length stock but I do see a lot upsides...FOR ME.

 

[Can-down]

Kanaima, lucky for you it's no big deal to switch out the stock in Canada.
Your post above is a typical anti PGO shotgun response....fact is most people have a hard time shooting PGO and a full stock will always improve the performance at the cost of a slight increase in size.

I see no downside for you either other then a little extra cost and length.

Enjoy your Ranchand as you see fit!

 

[boomer49]

I bought the gun because I wanted a really compact defensive weapon to carry when I'm in the backcountry, which is often. I've spent most of my life working in or around bear country and have had the misfortune of actually being attacked by a polar bear, obviously I survived unscathed (so did the bear) but that was due to karma, not to the fact I was carrying my tactical 870 loaded with slugs. FOR ME the cut down stock is useless. I came to that conclusion after a day at the range. I don't think I could hit the broadside of a barn under an attack situation firing from the hip unless the distance was under 7 metres and even then it would be sheer luck if I actually produced a quick kill shot. I believe that PREVENTING that type of encounter is the key to survival in bear country. The weapon will sit in a back scabbard where I think the extra 6' of butt stock will actually make it easier to bring the gun to the ready, which for me will hopefully be the shoulder. If I have to fire from the hip the extra 6" will not be an issue. So to sum it up for you boomer49: FOR ME the weapon is difficult to handle with the cut down stock, I see no downside to installing a full length stock but I do see a lot upsides...FOR ME.

That's a reasonable and polite/classy reply to my snarky/sarcastic comment.

I got a Ranch Hand from the first batch, and was pleased to learn that I could shoot it reasonably well (at eye level) simply by fully extending my left arm (holding the fore-end) and maintaining a gentle tension with my right hand on the butt-stock. As you pointed-out ... what works for someone is always a personal thing and may not apply to anyone else.

And (because of its mass and long sight radius) I could shoot it offhand almost as well as my 4" Model 66.

Like you, I also live and work (on a ranch, in my case) in serious bear country, and with this warm weather I've already started dragging-around my full-stock Marine Magnum (with 00 buckshot and Brenneke Black Magic slugs).

And always with a big can of bear spray ... whatever the season.

I agree with you about avoidance and wood-smarts, and I think we both agree that anyone who relies primarily on a .44 Magnum as a first-line big-bear defence firearm should have the front sight completely removed. Why? In the event that Buddy survives the attack, it'll be easier for the ER people to remove the firearm from Buddy's ass

 

[boomer49]

absolutely nothing!

its a great gun, and finally something small enough to carry easily for us bush whackers!

I will probably take a billion pics trying to get me with my new knife and the ranch hand in with the helicopter with brilliant mountain scenery in the background. It must be done haha.

Driller,

May I ask what exact new knife you're thinking of? I buckle-on a fat Uncle Mike's belt whenever I leave the yard ... with a big can of pepper spray on the left and my new Ka-Bar BK2 (which I love) in a replacement OST Kydex sheath at about the five o'clock (kidney) position on my right.

 

[driller212]

I have a kabar as well, but it's designated as my hunting/skinning knife. I just ordered a "frank Bowie" knife for heavy duty work in the bush. It will do many things including cutting down small spruce trees for helipads. His knives have great reviews.
You can just google it and it will pop up.

J

EDIT: I got the scabbard today and it fits the ranch hand perfectly!

 

[rangebob]

http://rossi-rifleman.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=78

 

[SHELL SHUCKER]

Oh..that's just sick. In a Chiappa takedown sort of way!

Hey guys, see that ladder sight on that beasty? The same low profile
sight that's on the original Winchester 1892 Baby Carbine that Dark Alley Dan
showed us back on thread # 1723.
That's the brain fart I had today on getting the Ranch Hand on target with a
normal height front sight.Chiappa dovetails are .390" as I found out on the
web and our dealer here in Canada is Doc Rowland's Guns of the Old West.

The Chiappa part # is 098-240 for 1892 Carbine.

I emailed him today with a picture of my baby carbine and mentioned our dillema
with finding sights for our toys, but no answer back yet.(Must be on Holliday)
Looking at this sight,it's easy to see that it's low profile will suit our needs.

Let's pester the hell out of this guy for availability and pricing of these sights
as they are a Chiappa accessory sight.

Let 'er rip!