Hi all,
I am new to the forum and actually showed up because I was looking for info on the Rossi matched pair. Not a lot out there so I'll toss in my $.02. I got my daughter the .22/20ga in the youth size. I took it out to shoot it and was surprised by the accuracy of the .22. I liked it so much that when I came across a .223/12 ga full size, I picked it up. Originally I wanted to put the .22 on the full size frame. When I brought the new rifle home from the gun show, that is the first thing I tried. No joy, it didn't fit. I put it out of my mind and just shot the .223. I wasn't using a scope (it is drilled and tapped), but the accuracy was fine for my 100 yd plinking. Just this weekend I had all the barrels out for some reason and I noticed that the 20 and 12 looked about the same in the lug area. I tried flip flopping the barrels and it worked fine. Everything dropped onto either reciever except the .22 on the full size frame. A little judicious filing and stoning fixed that. The forend on the 2 size rifles is drilled differently so if you use the youth barrel you have to use the youth forend. No problem with that though. I took the front sling swivel off since it never lined up right. I replaced it with a 6mm bolt that has about a 1/4 inch high hex head. I trimmed the length to fit and cut a screwdriver (coin) slot in the head of the bolt. I do have some complaints. The trigger guard and sights are plastic. I can deal with the plastic guard I s'pose, but I really don't like the plastic sights. As I mentioned, they are accurate enough, but I question their durability on a knock around rifle. If anyone knows of acceptable replacements let me know. Hope this helps out a little.
Semper Fi