Do it all levergun

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Wolfman Zack

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What do you prefer for a do it all lever action rifle?
This should cover hunting, pest control, defensive/offensive use within civilian context, and possibly informal plinking or target shooting.

Initially, I’d lean towards an older Marlin 336 in 30-30, however argument could also be made in favor of the classic Winchester 94 instead, or perhaps a pistol caliber such as the model 92 for its increased capacity and faster action.

What would you choose?
 
Just picked up a stainless Rossi 92 carbine in .357 magnum. It has a surprisingly smooth action for new out of the box. The 1892 Winchester design has to be the smoothest and handiest lever made. The recoil is light even with 158 gr factory loads. Just ordered some Buffalo Bore rounds that are very close in performance to 30-30. If they can pull that off and be accurate, it will be the overall lever gun choice. The Rossi is a good value rifle. The fit and finish are a little short of the Miroku guns (I own several and they are outstanding), but the Rossi is a very good value for the money.
 
A Marlin, because a solid top receiver works better with optics, and I would say a .357 or a .44 depending on how big the game is. Because of the ballistics, a .30-30 would be more practical for general deer, black bear, etc, but these days if you need more range you can just grab a bolt-action instead, a lever gun is usually not someone's sole weapon.
 
I only have two centrefires, a 223 for longer range and a levergun for everything else, so I guess that counts as a do it all gun. I previously owned a 357 1892 rossi in this role for small game to big hogs and theoretical urban settings. With a scout scope(forward mounted, long eye relief) and good load its capable of 140 yards. Not everyone takes to this sighting system, if you havent tried it or dont like it a marlin as mentioned which can mounts the scope in the normal position over the action ,may be better. Red dots which dont have en eye releif requirement were good as well. I also mounted a 1" diameter flashlight with remote tail cap switch under the mag tube so it was ready to go 24-7.

Two other useful loads levels are 38 special/subsonics, and 1200-1400fps or roughly 9mm carbine power. Both can be achieved with only single digit loads of various powders, very economical. That SMG carbine level load I call it, kills suprisingly well.

357 is a level of recoil and noise below 30-30. Its low enough that with some western action style practice you can run double taps and box drills on close quarters targets and keep up with semi-autos -if only for the first magazine. If survival or bugging out is your thing, 357 ammo is only slightly heavier than 223 and packs even tighter in storage, about 1500rounds to a 50cal can. A 357 can be used like a 22LR for long term survival too, as in a few hundred bucks worth of cast bullets and components can keep you fed for years. 3-4 grain powder loads, getting to 800-1000fps, means couple thousand loads to one can of powder. Barrel life is almost infinite at these levels.

I recently replaced my 357 with a 44 mag rossi ,mostly as I wanted to take bigger game, otherwise the 357 would have stayed in the safe. I considered 30-30 and 35 rem, but the pistol calibre got the vote for versatility reasons above. I dont shoot much over 150 yards and self defence from large game I figured a .431 hardcast at 1700fps is best.
 
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Mine would be my 1894 Marlin in .44 magnum with the 1-4 power Leupold sitting on top. There's not a lot that can't be killed with a .44 with proper ammunition selection. I also like the Marlin sidegate for topping off the magazine vs the Henry. And to narrow it even more if I could only have one load it would be a 310 grain cast bullet with gas check loaded with 19.0 grains of H110 behind it. Not the best load for a new shooter but it's still better than my light loads for my 45-70.
 
Has something changed, rendering them ineffective?
With the advent of AR15s, all rimmed cartridges are now ineffective for anything but dressing like a cowboy and smoking while shooting.:rofl:

I’ve never found a problem eleven rounds of 44Magnum from a stainless lever couldn’t solve.

Besides, it’s the first effective shot, not the longest string of noise, that ends an argument. Something most levers can do through a door, if necessary…:D
 
I like peep sights on lever guns as I am not a buckhorn fan. My two other Winchester 92’s, a carbine and a rifle in 45 Colt, sport Marbles tang sights. My 1886 Winchester Deluxe 45-70 sports a Williams peep and this new Rossi has the Steve Gunz’s bolt peep sight installed. I also use a Skinner on one of my BL-22’s. I like the old ways and properly set a peep sight is very accurate.
 
I like the peeps too. Had XS "ghost rings" on all my Trappers, the old Williams and Lyman types on a couple of others.

I tried the Skinners, but didnt like them.
 
1st option: Ruger 96/44 MAG. Detachable 10 round Mag with a couple of spares handy.

2nd option: Marlin yet to be built .327 FM with 120-125 grain PC @ 1950-2000 FPS.
 
I’ll cast my vote for the .30-30 Marlin. They’re nice guns and have two things over the .357 mag levers… more easily found, usually at a slightly better price, with a more powerful round should you need it (and .30-30 can be loaded down for small game too if you want to go that route.) Second choice would be .357 mag for all the reasons already cited (substituting 44 mag if in big bear country.)
 
What's wrong with a lever gun for self defense? They've been in continuous use in that role since approximately 1860. Has something changed, rendering them ineffective?

35W
Flintlocks were in continuous use in that role for some 350 years, far longer than the lever action. Has something changed, rendering them ineffective? No, they're just as effective as they always have been. What's changed is what the opposing party is likely to have.
 
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