<\/p>\n
Browning had a preliminary design by the time he got off the train that returned him to Ogden, Utah. Two weeks later a functioning prototype was being tested, and a production model completed well within the 30 days. It would be the Model 1892.<\/p>\n
What do a Utah gun maker and a hardware merchant in Australia have in common? \u201cThe Stinger.\u201d Perry Brothers imported the Winchester Model 1892 carbine from the 1890s to about 1920, marked with \u201cThe Stinger\u201d and the image of a wasp on the barrel.<\/p>\n
A rare example of \u201cThe Stinger,\u201d chambered in 44 WCF, is available in Rock Island Auction Company\u2019s Feb. 14-17 Sporting & Collector Auction.<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n Browning sized down the larger Model 1886 mechanism for the 1892. It was chambered for .44-40, .38-40, and .32-20 cartridges, like the Model 1873. The Model 1892 was offered with a 24-inch rifle barrel, while the carbine barrel was 20 inches. A trapper\u2019s carbine had barrel lengths of 14-18 inches. A musket with a full wood forend and a 30-inch barrel was offered from 1898 until 1918. The price, according to a 1894 catalog, was $19.50 for an octagon barrel or $18 for round barrel rifle, while a carbine was $17.50.<\/p>\n More than 1 million Model 1892 rifles would be sold worldwide. Production ended in 1932, but the gun continued to appear in company catalogs until 1941. The gun found popularity among cowboys, ranchers, and lawmen, not just in the United States, but abroad. It was carried by vaqueros of South America and on the cattle stations of Australia. The gun was issued to Australian prison guards and western Australian police.<\/p>\n Annie Oakley had a Model 1892 that was chambered in .44-40 but was a smooth bore in order to fire shot during Buffalo Bill\u2019s Wild West Show. Admiral Robert Bird carried a .44 caliber one to the North Pole in 1909, depending on it to obtain fresh meat needed by the expedition.<\/p>\n America\u2019s favorite cowboy, John Wayne<\/a>, carried an 1892 in \u201cThe Searchers\u201d and \u201cTrue Grit,\u201d while Chuck Connors\u2019 character, Lucas McCain, used the model in \u201cThe Rifleman,\u201d despite the show being set in the 1880s.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Along with William and George Perry, they were joined by Frederick Perry in the business, arriving from Sydney, Australia. When their business opened in 1860, 210 ships with a tonnage of 45,000 arrived in that year. By 1907, the Brisbane docks handled ship tonnage of 80,000 per day.<\/p>\n In the Dec. 6, 1907 \u201cThe Brisbane Courier,\u201d an article about Perry Brothers states, \u201cThe business built up so carefully and soundly on the foundation of good quality and good faith with the public has increased and expanded year by year, spreading over the whole of this great state and into the large and prosperous districts of New South Wales, and the firm of Messrs. Perry Brothers Limited, enjoy an enviable reputation in every city, town, and hamlet in Queensland and beyond, second to no other firm in the Commonwealth.\u201d<\/p>\n The company\u2019s eight-story building, constructed from 1911 to 1913, was the tallest in Brisbane at its completion and was used by the U.S. military in Australia during World War 2. The building was sold by Perry Brothers in 1947. Once called Perry House, it is now the Royal Albert Hotel<\/a>. Historical records are unclear on when Perry Brothers went out of business.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Another company, Lassetter and Co., of Sydney and Melbourne also sold the Model 1892 in Australia at about the same time as Perry Brothers, but under the name of \u201cThe New Daisy Rifle.\u201d The company previously offered the Model 1873 as the \u201cDaisy Rifle.\u201d<\/p>\n Perry Brothers later continued to use \u201cThe Stinger\u201d moniker on other Winchester rifles, including Model 1902 bolt action .22, the Model 1905 self-loading rifle and Model 1906 pump action rifle.<\/p>\n Many of these guns found their way to cattle stations and farms as working tools so surviving samples are described as \u201cpretty average at best,\u201d according to Royce Wilson\u2019s article \u201cThe Wild West\u2019s Winner: Winchester Model 1892 History,\u201d that appeared in Australia\u2019s Sporting Shooter<\/em>. \u201cThe Stinger\u201d available in the Sporting & Collector Auction is listed in good condition and in good working order.<\/p>\n The Model 1892 was also very popular in Spain, only it wasn\u2019t the Model 1892. More than one million copies made in Spain were called the \u201cEl Tigre\u201d rifle. \u201cEl Tigre\u201d was made with a 22-inch round barrel chambered for .44-40. The steel and the workmanship by G. Arate y Cia on the unlicensed Winchesters, was of poor quality, according to George Madis, author of \u201cThe Winchester Book.\u201d Winchester changed the markings on the 1892 for a time because of foreign knockoffs like \u201cEl Tigre.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEl Tigre\u201d was intended for the Spanish Civil Guard, as well as issued to police and military reserve units, and was even used on both sides in the Spanish Civil War. They also found their way to Central and South America.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Rock Island Auction Company\u2019s February Sporting & Collector Auction is an opportunity to see and hold rarities like \u201cThe Stinger,\u201d making it worth the visit for an auction. An opportunity to obtain a Winchester 1892 from \u201cthe land down under\u201d should be too good to pass up for any Winchester collector. \u201cThe Stinger,\u201d a Model 1892 sold by Australia hardware company Perry Brothers Ltd., is on offer in Rock Island Auction Company\u2019s Feb. 14-17 Sporting & Collector Auction, providing a great chance to add a rarity to any lever action collection.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Wild West\u2019s Winner: Winchester Model 1892 History<\/a>,\u201d by Royce Wilson<\/p>\n \u201cThe Winchester Book,\u201d by George Madis<\/p>\n \u201cAnnie Oakley\u2019s Winchester Model 1892 Smoothbore Rifle<\/a>,\u201d by Ashley Hlebinsky<\/p>\n![\"Model-1892-Winchester-markings\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.rockislandauction.com\/ghost\/2023\/01\/Model-1892-Winchester-markings.jpg\")
<\/a>This Winchester Model 1892 was imported to Australia by Perry Brothers Ltd. of Brisbane as “The Winchester.”<\/em><\/p>\nWinchester 1892 That Would Become \u201cThe Stinger\u201d<\/h3>\n
![\"Lot-4048-takedown-version\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.rockislandauction.com\/ghost\/2023\/01\/Lot-4048-takedown-version.jpg\")
<\/a>While this Winchester Model 1892 takedown rifle didn’t find it’s way to Australia, it did find it into Rock Island Auction Company’s Feb. 14-17 Sporting & Collector Auction lineup. More than 25 Model 1892s are on offer in the auction.<\/em><\/p>\nWho Imported “The Stinger”?<\/h3>\n
![\"Brisbane-1865-map\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.rockislandauction.com\/ghost\/2023\/01\/Brisbane-1865-map.jpg\")
<\/a>Perry Brothers Ltd. of Brisbane, Australia imported the Winchester Model 1892 as “The Stinger” in the early part of the 20th century. This lever gun rarity is on offer in Rock Island Auction Company’s Feb. 14-17 Sporting & Collector Auction.<\/em><\/p>\nChallenger to \u201cThe Stinger\u201d<\/h3>\n
![\"The-Stinger-receiver\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.rockislandauction.com\/ghost\/2023\/01\/The-Stinger-receiver.jpg\")
<\/a>“The Stinger” was the Winchester Model 1892 marketed by Perry Brothers Ltd., in Brisbane, Australia in the early 20th century. This rare variant is available in Rock Island Auction Company’s Feb. 14-17 Sporting & Collector Auction.<\/em><\/p>\n\u201cThe Stinger\u201d for Sale<\/h3>\n
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