Mod Madness: Taking the Rossi Brawler to the Next Level

The Rossi Brawler lies at the crossroads of cheap and dumb, so it got me to open my wallet. In fact, I bought two of them—one new and one used—for less than $400. I did the unthinkable since I had a spare and nothing to do.

I fired up the 3D printer and and the Dremel and started doing some Bubba gunsmithing. A long time ago, James Yeager stated something that always remained with me, “I think you should have a tax stamp to buy a Dremel.”

The Brawler is kind of an odd duck, but it can be better. (Travis Pike for SNW)

His rant was about bad Bubba smithing, and I think he’d have expanded that to 3D printers had he lived long enough. At least he would if he’d seen what I’ve done.

Before you continue, just know that anything you do to your gun may void its warranty and could absolutely destroy it. That’s on you.

What’s The Brawler?

If you’re unfamiliar with the Rossi Brawler, it is a single-shot .45 Colt/.410 handgun. It’s essentially one of Rossi’s Tuffy series with the barrel and stock chopped. Rossi also produces a survival rifle with a .45 Colt and .410 compatibility.

The Brawler is a pistol. A really big pistol. It’s a single-shot, single-action pistol that’s hammer-fired. We get ejectors that are always super amusing to me. It’s a fun gun that’s not really great for a whole lot of uses.

.45 Colt/.410 guns are never that effective. (Travis Pike for SNW)

The Brawler suffers from the same problems the various Judge pistols have (except the Home Defender) in that the rifling messes with shot patterns, and the two inches of freebore messes with .45 Colt accuracy. It’s not particularly great at any one thing unless you use dedicated .410 handgun loads.

The Brawler has stout, but far from painful recoil. It’s plenty reliable, and I have fun shooting it, but it’s not really practical for much. However, I saw some potential in it. Since it was cheap I figured modifying one would be a total blast.

This grip works, but it can be better (Travis Pike for SNW)

Ditching That Pistol Grip

The Brawler’s stout recoil is easily fixed. Anytime you have a vertical pistol grip your wrist gets most of the recoil. Let’s get rid of that vertical rear pistol grip. It’s easy to remove. Just unscrew the rubber grip and then the grip strut. You’re left with a threaded hole that matches perfectly with a Shockwave grip and bolt.

The Shockwave grip was a massive improvement. (Travis Pike for SNW)

Yep, you know what we’re doing. I had an extra Mossberg Shockwave grip sitting around, but it doesn’t fit perfectly the Brawler. The Shockwave grip has a raised circular portion at the rear. That circular portion keeps the grip from easily attaching to the Brawler, but the design lines up perfectly. The modification required you to take a Dremel to the rear of the grip.

You need to do a little trimming. It took me about five minutes total and now it fits perfectly. The bolt that comes with the Shockwave grip is slightly too long. I dropped one extra washer on the bolt, and bam, it fit perfectly…as if fate wanted me to make this modification.

I think someone could make Shockwave purpose-built Brawler grips and sell at least a handful of them. Right off the bat it made a massive difference. Not only did it look better, but it handled better. The recoil no longer impacted your wrist. Much like a Shockwave firearm, the recoil doesn’t slap your hand because it now goes upward rather than rearward.

It’s even comfy with one hand. (Travis Pike for SNW)

It also looks like a pirate pistol, and that’s cool. The only real downside is that it’s tougher to use the concealed iron sight. It’s better used with red dot sights than with irons.

Up Front

The Brawler has just about the smallest handguard possible up front. It’s fine, especially when fired like a traditional pistol. However, what if we increase the size of that forend? I wasn’t the first guy to think this. A FOSSCAD user named Veld_Khan designed a larger, more shotgun-like series of forends that can be 3D printed.

The Brawler isn’t super effective for anything in particular. (Travis Pike for SNW)

He designed a Remington 870-like forend, a Mossberg 935-like forend, and an M203-style forend. I went with the Remington variant. The design has a handy little compartment where you can stash a round of .45 Colt, or maybe some survival gear and, of course, Skittles. The new handguard attaches to the existing screw.

A 3D printed handguard is a nice upgrade. (Travis Pike for SNW)

At one point, the handguard detached while firing. The handguard is a little thicker than the original, so the screw has less room to thread. If you remove a little material, the screw can thread a bit deeper and be better seated.

The New Brawler

Which version looks better? Be honest. The modified Brawler looks like a modern pirate pistol or a sawn-off shotgun. It’s only a single barrel, so it’s not exactly a Mad Max gun. However, it’s kinda like a frustrated Mad Max gun, and that’s cool enough for me. It’s a good bit more fun these days, and I think Rossi should at least consider a Shockwave-style grip for the Brawler. It really makes the gun easier to handle and shoot…but maybe that’s just me.

 

 

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9 thoughts on “Mod Madness: Taking the Rossi Brawler to the Next Level”

  1. Well shit. I always kind of wanted a Brawler but didn’t know why. I happen to have a spare Shockwave grip as well, and a 3d printer however, so I think this was the sign to proceed. Thanks Travis!

  2. “The Rossi Brawler lies at the crossroads of cheap and dumb, so it got me to open my wallet. In fact, I bought two of them…”

    Any article beginning like this deserves a read. Nice tinker project.

  3. Fine with Brawler. Nice to have inexpensive options to practice gunsmithing.

    I’m more concerned with many grammatical and spelling errors in this article.

    It’s like we don’t think it matters anymore – cause – internet.

    1. I’m inclined to cut him some slack, my writing sucks as well, and I managed to understand what he was getting at.

      But that’s just me…

        1. It’s been edited and corrected.

          Which is good….meaning it does matter…..just not enough to edit before posting.

          I realize Travis has a lot to write (his stuff is all over gun site) and edit.

          And ultimate responsibility lies with the editor.

          1. I went and edited it. That’s on me. I shouldn’t write hopped up on cold meds but I have nothing else to do and this is what happens

            As Hemingway said “write on cold meds, edit sober”

          2. Thanks for the edits and the article.

            You seem to enjoy many of the things I enjoy.

            Always enjoy reading your articles.

            If I start writing articles or doing a rumble channel, you will be my exemplar.