Which .22lr Lever

I got a BL-22 30+yrs ago.
Good sights
Short throw lever
compact size
very accurate
excellent quality

I bought a 9422XTR(.22mag) 17yrs ago
superb fit/finish
long but smooth action
quality steel hardware(buttplate, barrelbands etc)
very accurate
full size rifle

-----of the two options----I choose the 9422.

We got our son a youth size Henry for Christmas
smooth action
highly accurate very reliable
aluminum reciever(looks tacky when worn)
plastic/aluminum furniture
lightweight/well balanced
modest price

39a Marlin never owned one, but my late shootin' buddy did...
very accurate
long throw lever
take-down ability is a +
top quality
full size rifle
good sights
steel furniture
a classic

I have a Henry 001L, it's a great rifle that I will never sell. However, my grail .22lr lever action rifle is a Marlin 39A.

Browning
Marlin
Henry
Winchester

I have owned all at one time or another and my favorite by far is the Browning. Love the balance and the short lever throw is superb. Next shot is just a "flick" of the wrist away.

Marlin is very nice, smooth action but a little heavy compared to the others.

Henry great price point, smooth action and shoots well. Do not like the mag tube retainer, they always seem to work loose.

Winchester nice gun but for some reason never really sat as well with me as the others.

Really you cannot go wrong with any of them just find the one that fits you best and enjoy. Nothing like the smile workin a lever puts on your face!

I bought the Browning BL-22 for my son when he turned ten. We got it at a sale at a local gun store, thought I was paying for the basic model. At a great price. When I checked out they had given me the next grade - gold inlay, better checkering - for the lowball price of the basic model. I didn't ask, didn't look back. That rifle has shot more critters in the past ten years than almost any other gun in our safe. Except maybe for the Browning .22 LR takedown model. Big Browning fan here.

Henry Sight Modification and Range Review
http://www.dayattherange.com/?p=2174

ive messed with them all. the browning is a fine gun.light, handles well and accurate.

the winchester is a good gun but pricey and you dont see a lot of them around here.i wish they were more prevalent as i like them and would love to own one.had plenty of chances to own one when i was younger.but since i had a good marlin i just didnt see the point.

the henry, a good gun also but nuttin like the rest of them.very good gun for the money tho.but not really a family heirloom.

the marlin 39, is to me the best.i know nothing about the new ones but my old 1950 one is solid steel and walnut.very accurate and reliable.

the gun i miss the most tho is a old ithaca alloy reciever lever, tube fed repeater.it was a copy of the browning i think. i sold it to a friend becuz he liked it and he gave it to his step dad becuz he liked it.never have seen one like it for sale.

I like my Henry. I like my Marlin 39. And I really like my Remington 76. Lightweight and the shortest throw of any lever...about 30 degrees.

Marlin 39a or the shorter 39m if you prefer, great guns!

Henry builds a smooth and reliable levergun. Original design is by ERMA.

TR

My 9422 that I sold 18 years ago is my biggest firearms regret ever (the sale of which).

DM~ said:

I guess i've owned/used all the poplar lever model 22's too, and i now own 3 Henry lever 22's... My Henrys have worked perfectly right out of the box

I just don't like heavy lever 22's, If i wanted that much weight, i'd carry one of my target guns around...

Of the two rifles you have chosen, i'd take the Browning, the ones i've used have been verry nice and shot well...

DM

Click to expand...

Exactly, the Marlin seems bigger and bulkier, I find the Golden Boy more attractive, and its smooth and accurate. What's not to like?

The Marlin 39 is THE standard by which all other lever action .22s are measured and has been for over 100 years. It's very accurate and with proper care will truly last several life times... Champion and exhibition shooter Colonel Larson, "The Marlin Man," fired over 1,000,000 rounds through his 39 Mountie, the same rifle that he set numerous records with. The Winchester 9422 and the Browning BL-22 are both very nice rifles but if I could only own one 22 lever action it would be the 39...

Bushpilot, . . . I agree. I am in the process of saving an abused 39a. It will cost me a few hundred more than it will be worth [currently], but it will be very nice at that time. Of course, that will be seen on the 39a thread when done.

Good luck with your 39-A Orion. One of my favorite rifles is my 1939 39-A. I look forward to seeing the pictures. I hope you will have some before and after shots. I'm currently doing the same thing to a very old and very neglected Remington model 12, pump 22.

Bushpilot, actually I have posted pics on the 39 Club thread on this forum. They're towards the end posts, . . . a few pages from the end, anyway. You will see the pitted surfaces, worn off blueing, and a few scratches in the wood. Now, the wood has been redone by me. The metal is being worked on by an excellent smith who will reblue it. I'll post pics then over on that thread.

I learned to shoot with a little 1965 39m. Spoiled me for any other other lever gun. Bought me another 1963 39m a couple of years ago then bought a 1978ish Frankenstein 'd 39 a few months after that. Can't beat them in my opinion. The 39m is lighter and handier than the 39a but they all shoot like a dream.

"Other" for me:

Used - Marlin 39, Golden please.
New - Henry fer sure.

Marlin 56 or 57 depending on what magazine system you like.

Barring that the Marlin 39 in whatever configuration blows your skirts up.

Just for cool I might search for the illusive Uberti Model 1866 "Yellowboy" in .22 LR......if money and time were no issues. Why get just the name "Henry" and plastic when you can get a real Henry type action?

-kBob

There are some nice lever rifles on the market. I think what you should do is to actually see and handle some different ones then make up you mind which one suits you best.

I don't understand the nay saying on the Henry's.....ours has AT LEAST 15k rounds through it....still shoots great and looks just like the day I pulled it out of its box.

1) Marlin 39M
2) Browning BL-22
3) Winchester Model 9422

I had the Winchester but sold it. I kept my old Marlin 39, that rifle is a tack driver.

I also voted "other", which is to say Marlin 39A. Go to the thread "The 39 Club" here, but it's gonna take a little time to read it through!

900F

Another vote for the Marlin39