1892 Winchester and the Duke

[little sister]

Hi Everyone,

I'm hoping that you wise people will be able to help me. I'm doing a project on the Winchester Carbine used by John Wayne in the movie True Grit. I need to know some serious details, like how the gun is loaded, what the ammunition looks like, how many times you can shoot it before it needs to be reloaded, any interesting history behind this particular rifle and its evolution, etc. The more detail, the better! I know very little about rifles so please feel free to pull out all the stops.

If there is anyone out there who can help me with this I would be truly grateful!

[Cherokee Jem]

The 92 winchester that the duke used was probably 44 WCF (some of the more veteran shooters might prove me wrong) and was loaded through the loading door, or gate, on the right side of the carbine. Hope it clears up some of your questions.

JEM

[B. Butch Cavendish]

 The duke shot a 38/ 40. Mine is in 45 l.c. and it holds 10 in the mag. His is most likely the same. It loads through a loading gate in the side/ right. It has a saddle ring mounted on the left side. It has a short bbl. to acomadate the twril. Most likely 16 in. "Mine is a twent." It would have also had to get a first rate action and trigger job to make the action work that way. "Note it is also a very hard and dangerous move that requires a lot of practice. I enjoy doing it with dummy rds." And I will tell you this if someone started spinn cocking a win. when me or my son was in the area I most likely would crack him right in  a chin.  "

[Irish Red O'Toole]

One other thing to note about the 92 was that since it's a top-ejector, when you tried to spin it the cartridge would probably be just as likely to fall out or jam as to feed.  Just food for thought.  It looks ultra-cool spinning but it's hardly practical.