Working the Winchester Model 1892 Lever-Action Rifles

Winchester’s Model 1892 is another one of those wonderful John M. Browning lever-action designs that will always be hard to improve on and will always be admired by those who appreciate Winchester’s fine lever guns. All these designs have been a source of fascination for me, and the Model 1892 in particular is one of my alltime favorites. The 1892 is actually a simplified, small-scale version of the Model 1886, and was intended to be the replacement for the venerable Model 1873.

Known worldwide for its dependability, the popular Model 1873 was a hard act to follow. Based on the equally popular but older Model 1866, the Winchester 1873 incorporated elements of the Henry, the Volcanic, and an 1850s Smith & Wesson design. The system used a set of toggle links to lock the action, and though it had a wonderful feed system and was quite reliable, it was never known for strength. On top of that, the Winchester Model 1873 was a complex and expensive design to manufacture.

Unlike the Model 1873, the altered Browning design used in the 1892 had a very strong action, was lightweight, and very much simpler. It seemed to have answered all the 73s shortcomings in one tidy little package. Similar to the mid-sized Winchesters before it, the 1892 was built to handle revolver cartridges. That meant an owner could carry a rifle and a handgun chambered for the same caliber. Winchester offered the Model 1892 in .44, .38, and .32 Winchester centerfire calibers.

We know these cartridges today as the familiar .44/40, .38/40, and .32/20. With the introduction of the Model 1892, the famous New Haven, Connecticut, rifle company had a truly dependable, ultralight and brutally tough little lever-action to take into the new century. Anyone who loves Winchesters will quickly notice that the 1892 looks like a scaled-down Model 1886. That’s essentially what it is, as I mentioned earlier, but the 1892 is also simpler than the 1886, using fewer internal parts.

Both, however, share the same rugged John M. Browning breech design. Winchester sold over a million 1892s between 1892 and 1947, when the last Model ’65, an 1892 variant, was shipped. The design stayed in production for an incredible 55 years. Very few firearms designs stand out for their exceptional engineering and construction like Winchester’s Model 1892. Having worked on hundreds of them, I can attest to the fact that this is one weapon that refuses to quit.

I’ve seen an occasional broken firing pin and a broken spring here and there, but by and large these are unusually dependable weapons. Of the calibers offered in the 1892, the most popular caliber was the .44/40, with nearly 600,000 manufactured. Buyers preferred the longer-barreled rifle over the carbine by a large percentage, with roughly 640,000 rifles made compared to 360,000 carbines. The seldom seen musket was the scarcest Model 1892, with less than 600 weapons ever made.

Always a popular weapon, the Winchester Model 1892 design has been revived in modern times by both Browning and Winchester (which are now the same company), as well as Rossi, Uberti, and others. Takedown Instructions These basic instructions for the Winchester Model 1892 also apply (with a few exceptions) to similar firearms

including the Winchester Models 53 and 65, the Browning B92, the Rossi M92, and the Spanish El Tigre. 1. As always, check first to be sure the rifle is unloaded. Start by pointing and holding the muzzle in a safe direction, grasp the weapon around the barrel and forearm wood with your left hand, and open the action by pulling the finger lever (#44) all the way down with your right hand. Here, you’ll check to be absolutely sure there is no cartridge in the barrel’s chamber.

Look also into the action to be sure there is no cartridge laying in the cartridge carrier (#48) within the action. If a cartridge is present in the carrier, when you close the lever, the rifle will become loaded and is an indication there may be more cartridges in the magazine. To safely unload a rifle with a loaded magazine, keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction and your finger away from the trigger as you operate the lever to the fully open and fully closed positions.

Repeat this several times to expel the cartridges in the magazine until there are no more cartridges in the action. 2. To remove the buttstock and main- This holds the spring captive during disassembly. spring, unscrew and remove the upper tang screw (#25) from the upper tang. This is the rear-most of the two screws located behind the hammer. The buttstock is loose and can be removed from the action (#1) by pulling it straight toward the rear.

Open the lever, but only far enough to give you access to the mainspring screw (#38). This is the rear-most screw on the lower action tang. After you loosen and remove the mainspring screw, the mainspring (#37) can be lifted out of its seat with the hammer stirrup (#29) and then out of the frame. Take note of how the tangs of the mainspring engage the stirrup for later assembly.

To remove the Rossi M92s buttstock (see the inset drawing on the opposite page), unscrew and remove the tang screw, and then pull the buttstock off to the rear. 3. Next, you’ll remove the hammer and lower tang and disassemble them. On Winchesters and others, close the lever and while you hold the trigger to the rear, unscrew and remove the hammer screw (#31). The hammer (#28) can now be removed by pulling it upward and to the rear. Open the lever and then pull back on the lower tang (#39).

The lower-tang assembly removes straight out through the rear of the action, and it contains the trigger and its spring. Unscrew and remove the trigger-spring screw (#34) from inside the lower tang and lift out the trigger spring (#33). Make note of its position for reassembly. The trigger (#35) can be removed out the bottom of the lower tang after driving out the trigger pin (#36) from either side of the lower tang using a small hammer and pin punch.

For the Rossi M92 (see inset), pull the hammer (#66) far enough so that the hole in the mainspring strut (#76D) becomes visible at the rear end of the mainspring (#69), and then place a small pin or paper clip into the hole and allow the hammer to go down. Unscrew and remove the hammer screw (#68), pull and hold the trigger (#36), open the lever slightly, and slowly slide the tang assembly (#35) to the rear and remove it. Close the lever to move the bolt all the way forward.

At that point, the hammer assembly can be dropped out the bottom of the action. The lower tang contains the trigger and its spring. Unscrew and remove the triggerspring screw (#38) from inside the lower tang and lift out the trigger spring (#37). The trigger (#36) can be taken out the bottom of the lower tang by first drifting out the trigger pin (#29) from the side of the lower tang using a small hammer and pin punch.

Winchester Model 1892 Lever-Action Rifle 1 Receiver 2 Barrel 3 Rear Sight Assembly 4 Front Sight 5 Front Sight Screw 6 Upper Tang Plug Screw 7 Forearm Tip Tenon 8 Magazine Ring 9 Magazine Ring Pin 10 Forearm Tip 11 Forearm Tip Screws 12 Magazine Tube 13 Magazine Spring 14 Magazine Plug 15 Magazine Plug Screw 16 Magazine Follower 17 Spring Cover 18 Spring Cover Screw 19 Cartridge Guide, left 20 Cartridge Stop 21 Cartridge Stop Joint Pin 22 Cartridge Stop Spring 23 Cartridge Guide Screws 24 Cartridge Guide, right 25 Upper Tang Screw 26 Breech Bolt Assembly 26A Breech Bolt 4.

To disassemble the action, open the lever, and unscrew and remove the locking-bolt pin screw (#43) from the left locking bolt.

You may now push out the locking bolt pin (#42) from 26B Extractor 26C Extractor Pin 26D Firing Pin 26E Firing Pin Stop Pin 26F Ejector 26G Ejector Spring 26H Ejector Collar 27 Lever & Breech Bolt Pin 28 Hammer 29 Stirrup 30 Stirrup Pin 31 Hammer Screw 32 Lower Tang 33 Trigger Spring 34 Trigger Spring Screw 35 Trigger 36 Trigger Pin 37 Mainspring 38 Mainspring Screw 39 Mainspring Strain Screw 40 Locking Bolt, right 41 Locking Bolt, left 42 Locking Bolt Pin 43 Locking Bolt Pin Stop Screw 44 Finger Lever 45 Friction Stud 46 Friction Stud Spring right to left using a small pin punch.

The locking bolts (#40 and 41) are removed by sliding them out through the bottom of the action.

Take note of the positions of these locking bolts for Rossi M92 37 Trigger Spring 38 Trigger Spring Screw 59F Strut Pin 66 Hammer 67D Strut Coupling/Stirrup 68 Hammer/Tang Screw 69 Mainspring 76D Strut 29 Trigger Pin 35 Lower Tang 36 Trigger 51 Carrier Stop Pin 52 Carrier Screws 53 Lever & Breech Block 47 Friction Stud Stop Pin 48 Carrier 49 Carrier Stop 50 Carrier Stop Spring Pin Hole Plug Screw reassembly; there is a distinct right (#40) and a left (#41) side.

Now, push the breech bolt closed (#26) and slide one of the locking bolts back into place (temporarily) to

hold the bolt closed. Unscrew and remove the lever-pin cover screw (#53). This is the front screw on the left side of the action. Exactly opposite the locking-bolt pin-screw hole on the right side of the action you’ll find a small hole. Place a pin punch through this hole and drive out the lever & breech bolt pin (#27) moving from right to left. You can now remove the lever by pulling it straight out the bottom of the action.

Remove the temporarily installed locking bolt so that the breech bolt (#26) can be withdrawn out the rear of the action. The ejector (#26F) is now loose at the front of the breech bolt. The ejector can be pulled out the front of the breech bolt, along with the ejector spring (#26G) and ejector collar (#26H). You’ll want to pay careful attention to these parts for later assembly. 5.

Disassembly of the lever and breechbolt begins with using a pin punch of the appropriate size to drift out the friction-stud stop pin (#47) from the side of the finger lever (#44). This will free the friction-stop stud (#45) and its spring (#46) so they can be pulled out of the hole in the finger lever.

The Then, using along pin punch, the lever & breech bolt pin is driven out from right to left. extractor (#26B) is removed from the breech bolt by first driving out the extractor pin (#26C) using a small hammer and pin punch. The extractor is removed by pulling it forward and up until it comes free from its seat in the breech bolt. Once again using a small hammer and pin punch of the appropriate size, drift out the firing-pin stop pin (#26E) through the side of the breech bolt.

This frees the firing pin (#26D), which can now be removed by pulling it out the rear of the breech bolt. 6. Continue disassembling the action by unscrewing and removing the two carrier screws (#52). There is one on each side of the action. Then move the carrier (#48) to the rear and pull it out the bottom of the action. Now, do you see the small plunger on the side of the carrier? This plunger is held in by a small pin and it is spring loaded. Make sure the spring has good, lively action.

If it doesn’t, it’s easy to change the spring. A weak or broken carrier-plunger spring can cause feed malfunctions. The spring cover (#17) or loading gate is removed by first unscrewing and removing its screw (#18). This is the rear-most screw on the right side of the action. The spring cover will now fall loose and can be pulled out of the action. The last two screws remaining in the action sides are the cartridge-guide screws (#23) and again, there is one on each side of the action.

They hold the cartridge guides in place. Unscrew and remove the screws one at a time and then remove the cartridge guides (#19 and 24). Here you will want to take note of the position of the cartridge-stop spring (#22) which will come off with the left side cartridge guide. The cartridge-stop spring is one of the few parts that you will occasionally find broken or’m ore often’rusted in half. A faulty or broken cartridge-stop spring can cause misfeeds, especially with the smaller caliber cartridges. 7.

For rifles, you remove the magazine tube and forearm by unscrewing and removing the magazine-plug screw (#15) from the bottom-front of the magazine tube (#12). The magazinetube cap (#14) is now loose and is pulled out the front of the magazine tube, along with the magazine spring (#13) and the magazine follower (#16). The cap is under spring tension, so use caution when you do this. Next, unscrew and remove the two forend tip screws (#11). These are sometimes called fore cap screws.

There is one on each side of the forearm cap (#10). Now slide the forearm

cap forward slightly. Using an appropriate size pin punch and a small hammer, drift out the magazine-ring pin (#9) from the magazine ring (#8), and then pull the magazine tube (#12) out to the front. Once the tube has cleared the forearm wood, the forearm wood can be tilted down, pulled forward, and off the barrel. The magazine can then be turned perpendicular to either side of the rifle onequarter turn to unlock the magazine ring from its dovetailed seat in the bottom of the barrel. 7A.

On carbines, the magazine tube and forearm disassemble by unscrewing and removing the magazine-plug screw (#15) from the very bottomfront of the magazine tube (#12). The magazine-tube cap (#14) is now loose and can be pulled out the front of the magazine tube, along with the magazine spring (#13) and the magazine follower (#16.) Remember, the cap is under spring tension. Now unscrew and remove the front and rear band screws from the front and rear magazine bands.

The magazine tube can now be pulled out to the front and off the weapon. Slide the rear magazine band forward off the forearm wood, then the forearm wood is tilted down and can be pulled off to Pay attention to those ejector parts in the face of the breech bolt for later reassembly. the front. At this point, the forward magazine band is rotated a half-turn and slides off over the sight base, as does the rear magazine band.

Take notice of the direction the screw entered the bands before you remove the bands so they can be reassembled in like manner. Reassembly Notes On replacing the breech bolt, be sure you assemble the ejector along with its spring and collar into the bolt first. Then, tilting the barreled action so it is facing muzzle up, install the assembled bolt in the action, again using one of the locking bolts to hold the bolt in the forward-most position.

In this way, you will be holding the ejector components in place while you reinstall the lever and the lever & breech bolt pin. Remember I mentioned earlier to make note of the position of the cartridge-stop spring which you’ll reinstall with the left side cartridge guide. The front or leg of the spring fits in behind the cartridge stop. Otherwise, you simply reassemble the rifle in the reverse order of the above. I