Could is still buy a winchester 1892 model and would it work well enough for home self defense?

What uncle lar doesn't know ,is that 1892s are now being made in Japan. I own several '94s and one '92 in 45lc and since you specifically said "1892" I would guess you already have your eye on one! GO FOR IT!! I don't know what cal your looking at, but with the choices of ammo out there you can easily fine tune your gun to do what you want it to do. If it's in a pistol cal. (or not) check out Hornadys LEVER-Evolution ammo, designed for tubular magazines, better aerodynamics and awesome expansion!

Good luck, have fun!

Winchester brand M-92 hasn't been made in a long time. However, the Rossi Puma is a close enough copy that I was able to replace a broken firing pin on one with one intended for a Winchester with only minor fitting.

Rossi carbines come in .357, .44 mag., .45 Colt, and .454 Casul pistol calibers. Heavier rifles are offered in .30-30 and .45-70. They even make a lever gun in .410 shotshell.

For protection against large animals I'd suggest either the .44 or .45 at a minimum with the .45-70 an even better choice.

For semi autos you can go with AK or SKS guns in 7.62x39 Russian, AR pattern in a variety of calibers, or full power rifles such as the M1A or FAL military copies or hunting guns such as the Browning BAR.

hey, anything works if you know how to use it well. even a marlin 39a in .22lr will do given that you're a sharpshooter with it.

although against mountain lions and bears a .22LR is WAY underpowered, at least something like 357 mag, 44 special, 45 colt, 44-40, etc. for rifle calibers consider a 30-30 or 308.

semiauto- take your pick. most semi's have a detachable magazine, the concept of a semi is self-loading. that means it loads and extracts by itself, you just need to pull the trigger. something like a Saiga 308 or Ar15 in 50 Beowulf.

for Ultimate Protection, I'd recommend either a H&R Handi Rifle in .500 S&W Magnum or a Big Horn Armory Model 89 in .500 S&W Magnum. the 500 S&W Magnum is the most powerful production handgun caliber right now, it shoot a big fat 1/2" diameter bullet at a pretty good velocity. the difference between a 8.38" pistol barrel and a 22" rifle barrel, you'd gain about 200 fps in velocity. with many of the hunting loads that i turn gives you alot of stopping power, on par with a 300 magnum or a 45-70.

downside of 500 S&W Mag is the ammo is pretty F*ing expensive unless you plan to start handloading soon or you already handload your own ammo.

500 S&W Magnum ammo estimates:

factory ammo: $3.78 per round (in my area)

handloads for range use: $0.24 per round (less than most rifle ammo)

handloads for maximum power defensive: $1.37 per round. that's a bit pricey but you won't be shooting alot of them. it's way overkill for bad guys, unless it's bear or lion you'd have a 8" hole clean thru the target.

It did in 1892, and would today, a 44.40 is a great round , remember the Rifeman on TV?

I'm partial to the '95 Winchester myself, but an '86 would do nicely. As far as semi-auto rifles, the Model 1905 in .35WSL would be sweet.

If the gun is in proper working order and is chambered in a powerful enough cartridge, sure it would be a good camp gun.