Military gun question. Why no lever actions?

[Pathfinder]

Path, the 1876 Winchester was cambered in 45-60, .45-75, and .50-95,I would hardly call those small rifle caliber.The 1860 Henry was chambered in .44 Henry,an anemic caliber at best,But since most people back then died from infection  from being shot it served it's purpose.

I knew that!!!!!   

Seriously, I did - the RCMP used the 1876 short musket in .45-75 IIRC. I had blanked on that, thanks for reminding me.

But I don't think I am that far off, I believe the larger calibers were only in the rifle version and not the carbine. And the 1876 was never even considered beyond a cursory look by the US Army. Same with all of the later models too - a shame, they would have made very useful and effective rifles for the Cavalry, just like they show in the old movies! 

[Pecos Bill]

I knew that!!!!!   

Seriously, I did - the RCMP used the 1876 short musket in .45-75 IIRC. I had blanked on that, thanks for reminding me.

But I don't think I am that far off, I believe the larger calibers were only in the rifle version and not the carbine. And the 1876 was never even considered beyond a cursory look by the US Army. Same with all of the later models too - a shame, they would have made very useful and effective rifles for the Cavalry, just like they show in the old movies! 

Path, the Northwest Mounted Police, now the RCMP, used a carbine version of the Winchester '76. It was a carbine even though it had an upper hand guard. This was the standard configuration of the 76 carbine, the only lever carbine Winchester made that way. They were chambered for all the calibers available for the 76. I think, perhaps, when you said that the 92 was the first to be chambered for a "rifle" cartridge you may have been thinking of the model 1886. The 92 looks like an 86 that got left out in the rain and shrunk. The 92 was chambered for the same cartridges as the 73 except for the 22 Short. The 86 was chambered for such as the 45-70, 45-90, 40-82 and latter the 33 Winchester.

Pecos

[Pathfinder]

Path, the Northwest Mounted Police, now the RCMP, used a carbine version of the Winchester '76. It was a carbine even though it had an upper hand guard. This was the standard configuration of the 76 carbine, the only lever carbine Winchester made that way. They were chambered for all the calibers available for the 76. I think, perhaps, when you said that the 92 was the first to be chambered for a "rifle" cartridge you may have been thinking of the model 1886. The 92 looks like an 86 that got left out in the rain and shrunk. The 92 was chambered for the same cartridges as the 73 except for the 22 Short. The 86 was chambered for such as the 45-70, 45-90, 40-82 and latter the 33 Winchester.

Pecos

Thanks for the details, I am not so much a Winchester lever gun expert as I am a fan-boy of the RCMP! 

My understanding was that the RCMP  - my bad, at that point they were still the NWMP - started using the 1876 in 1878 (Wiki says 1883, Mounties say 1878), and they specified the musket style where the lower wood goes almost all of the way to the muzzle. You're right, Winchester did not make that style for any other rifle, nor IIRC for any other clients (although Wiki does say the Mountie version was issued to the Texas Rangers, but with no reference for the information). It may have been in the catalog, but the extra weight of the extra wood supposedly made it unpopular with anyone else.

It was also my understanding that the Mountie rifle was carbine-like, but was a little longer than a standard carbine, again specified by the RCMP. My book on the Arms of the RCMP is packed up somewhere, so I can't get all of the details at the moment. And I have only seen a real (not a replica) 1876 Mountie rifle one time, and that was a few years ago.

[Pecos Bill]

Path, I'm useing Maddis' book on the Winchester and according to that all 76 carbines were made on the NWMP pattern. Yes they were longer but were not considered rifles by the factory. There were. of course, short rifles but the normal carbine is configured differently. I made something of a study of the Winchesters some time ago and I know just enough about the RCMP to get myself in trouble.

Peace Bro, Pecos

[mauler]

The only way I have been able to ride an M-14 on full auto is to hold it at the hip and put my left hand with a fairly straight left arm on top of the handguard.

[Sponsor]