Lever .44mag or .45 Colt quality

I agree that the cross bolt safety is unneeded. It is as unwelcome on a levergun as a turd in a punch bowl.

Get a safety delete. I converted mine to a saddle ring.

When I lived in Ohio I had a Marlin Cowboy in 44 Mag with a 24" barrel. Replaced the safety with the part from Mr. Ludwig. Loved that gun, BUT it would not throw 240 grain or larger slugs - which was exactly what I mainly wanted to shoot - accurately to any distance with that stupid 1 in 38" twist rate barrel. I tried everything I could find without success. A friend bought a Rossi after watching my struggles and it did fine.

I'm a little late to the game here, but I'll throw in a +1 for an older Winchester 94 in 44 magnum. I know a lot of guys knock that 80's WInchesters, but I have nothing but love. Mine was built in 1970. You'd have to pry it from my hands.

I load a 312 grain WFN cast from wheel weights over 23 grains of H110 (pretty much fills the case) w/ magnum primers. All in the 10 ring at 100 yards. 1600 FPS MV, will break through alders or blow through a moose at 100 yrds and under.

There are guys I know up here who are hand loading the 45LC close to what a 454 will do, and I'm told a 454 is cloet to a 30-06 at shorter ranges.

I despise the Jap Winchesters because I think a Jap Winchester is an abomination, but every person I've talked to who actually owns one loves it.

So if it were me (and it was me at one time) I'd start hitting gun shows and be looking for the genuine article.

The Alaskan said:

I despise the Jap Winchesters because I think a Jap Winchester is an abomination, but every person I've talked to who actually owns one loves it.

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I have two of those 'abominable' "Jap" Winchesters. One is a Browning B-92 (a copy of the 1892 Winchester) carbine in .44 magnum and a Winchester 1892 deluxe special takedown rifle in .32-20. Both are made by Miroku and are very well made, a lot better IMHO than Rossi (and I do have one of their "Ranch Hands").
It would be nice, yes, if the Winchesters were made in America. But that doesn't make them abominations. Winchester has been reduced to (really) nothing more than a name, as they don't really make rifles; the New Haven plant is history. Browning still exists but they too have foreign sources for much of their manufacturing.

I have a Winchester 94AE I bought in 1991 in .30-30 which is nifty. I am a bit suspicious of the 94 action in pistol caliber as I've heard they sometimes have feeding problems with some types of ammo. Have you noted any dificulties with yours with regards some ammo? Just curious ...

If you aren't set on the lever action I would recommend like others have the Ruger 44 Carbine. I have a Marlin 336 in .35 Remmy and a Ruger 44 Carbine and when I am going to be shooting 75 yards or less I always reach for the Ruger 44. It just may be the best handling, most accurate rifle made for the 44 magnum cartridge and puts deer down with authority. If I was going for a lever gun to shoot big Ohio bucks with I would skip the 44 and go straight for something like the 45-70. I have witnessed several giant bodied bucks in southern Ohio that I wouldn't trust a pistol cartridge to handle if it wasn't super close. If your hunting is up close I would trust the 44.

Rossi does have a goofy safety. It is a lever located at the rear of the receiver right in front of the hammer. Fairly easy process to remove it and replace with a plug that is readily available on many aftermarket sights.

Corpral_Agarn said:

I am interested in a pistol caliber lever as well.

Do the Rossi's have any goofy safety designs?

My 1994 model 1894 in 30-30 has a goofy crossbolt safety that I am not a huge fan of.

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Rossi has a safety on top of the receiver, not cross bolt. Doesn't bother me, but if it bothers you, in addition to a plug the aftermarket also has a peep sight that can replace it.

Browning manufactures nothing.
Some domestic contractors, the rest foreign.
Denis

QUOTE: It would be nice, yes, if the Winchesters were made in America. But that doesn't make them abominations. Winchester has been reduced to (really) nothing more than a name, as they don't really make rifles; the New Haven plant is history. Browning still exists but they too have foreign sources for much of their manufacturing.

I agree entirely with Tommygunn. My Miroku-made "Winchester" Model 1886 "Extra Light Weight" is as good as any genuine Winchester I've ever inspected in terms of workmanship and finish. And the redundant, tang-mounted safety doesn't bother me a bit-in fact, I kind of like it.

guyfromohio said:

I'm going to resurrect this old thread (not really THAT old). What are the thoughts on the .38-55 for close range Ohio Whitetails? I didn't do anything before the season, but am interested again now that some disposable income has opened up.

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You would likely do better finding a .375 Winchester rifle than a 38-55 rifle. That said either cartridge would do fine in Ohio for deer and both are on the list of approved rifle cartridges. I question "close range" as here in Ohio I see any deer shot over 100 yards as long range. Either cartridge is very suitable at 200 plus yards and brass to roll your own is readily available. The 38-55 is one of those "Lazarus" cartridges as it died and has been resurrected from the dead. Pretty cool straight walled cartridge. Again, finding a good rifle may present a challenge. Here in Ohio for longer ranges I like the 444 Marlin and finding a rifle is not that difficult, there is also the 44 Magnum, 45 Colt, and 357 Magnum chamberings which are easy to find and likely less costly than a 38-55 or 375 Winchester. If You can find a rifle at a good price I would go for it though.

Ron

Shouldn't be 'that' difficult, no more than finding a nice .375. There were several Winchester commemoratives chambering the .38-55, along with late model Marlin 336 Cowboy models. The last few years before Winchester closed, they were making them in .38-55 again.

Put 100 rounds (8.5 grains Unique, 250 grain LFN, WW brass and primers) thru my Miroku Winchester (.45 Colt, 24.25 " barrel, Grade I "Plain Jane") yesterday morning. Very well made and functioning rifle, actions/ feeds slick as glass - will put rounds into 2" at 50 yards all day. This rifle lists for $1,469.00, I paid $1,300.00 OTD - not a inexpensive rifle but it was a "had to have it" purchase. I have owned Miroku product before - all very well made stuff. I cannot comment on Rossi or other brands as I have no experience with them - I went right for the Miroku - very, very happy with the purchase. I am very passionate about owning the firearms I want - paying for Miroku quality is worth it to me.

guyfromohio said:

I've found a 2005 build .45-70 for about a grand on Armslist unfired. Steep and I wouldn't pay that much, but a starting point. Then there are the Miroku Winchester new build .38-55s for mid $900s out there retail. I like that new Winchester quite a bit. My Miroku Citoris have been excellent.

And by close-range, I'm talking about thick woods 25-50 yard shots. I hunt SE Ohio. I've yet to hunt where I have 200 yards of open space where I can fire at a deer. Those places exist, but not on the grounds on which I have permission to hunt. I've done fine over the years with a .50 cal Hawken, 12 gauge slug and bow (ok, I admittedly haven't had great luck with the bow these last few years).

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Know that pretty well. I hunted mostly West Virginia and it was about the same. Hey, by all means if you can find a 38-55 by all means go for it or even a 375. They are both really classic cartridges, especially the 38-55.

Ron

And by close-range, I'm talking about thick woods 25-50 yard shots.

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In that case, any of the pistol cartridges will do. Although I fully understand if you just 'want' a .38-55. It is an itch I will someday have to scratch.

Make sure you get the twist rate you desire for the weight of the bullets and velocity that you want to shoot. Some of the lever guns have a 1:38 which is way too slow for heavier bullets. I suggest a 1:20 twist or so for a 44 Mag. I had a Win. lever in 44 and traded it for a ruger bolt action in 44 because of the 1:20 twist rate. I recently picked up a new Rossi 357 saddle ring M92 and it is excellent.

Whichever you choose, make it a 44 mag rather than a 45. I'm a big 45 Colt fan but have had much better success , accuracy wise with full loads In the 44. People have been making the 45 into an almost 44 for years. If that is your goal, get a 454.
44---better bullet designs, stronger brass, thicker chamber walls.
And I have two 45 Colts. But I use 4 44 mags.

I just got a chiappa 92 in 44 mag that is really nice... Just took it all the way apart last night to check it and lube up before firing and there really was not even any rough parts that "needed" to be cleaned up. That is how they should be making them. Sure, it can be slicked up, but it looked nice out of the box. Fit and finish was great too. Gorgeous rifle made without the goofy safety too. It even feeds my cast 300g WFN and shot them into a 5 shot golf ball group at 50 yards with open sights and first batch of loads!

Other than that the lady has a Rossi 92 in 357. That gun almost got thrown in the creek. After few days of it apart and doing all the finish work on the inside I am happy to say it works like it should. Very fun gun. These seem to be hit and miss in general. Ours was just so full of burs that it would choke on every other shot you tried to cycle. Fit and finish is not bad. The price is right, and honestly I think the best bet may be to buy one of these and send it to the gunsmith if you need to. I paid like 200 for the 357 used, so i didn't mind a bit of cleanup. I have a feeling that's why it was for sale in the first place.

We have 2 marlins, one is a late 90s (I think) JM 3030 model 36 that had been just peachy since day one as far as function. BUT fit and finish is not great and it has a canted front sight. I never messed with it honestly because it shoots really well and it does it reliably. Those issues are just me nit picking, as again, function is 100pct and accuracy is better than I can shoot.

The other marlin is a newer 1895 GBL in 4570. This winds up being my deer rifle in the woods here most of the time. Does a bang up job too. This gun honestly has better fit and finish than the JM 30 30. Function has been perfect. I did handle it in person and cherry pick it out of about 8 others. It was noticeably better... I literally handled a dozen of these before finding one I would buy. I would not have paid for the other rifles there.

SOOOO basically if you want a 44 I would probably buy a rossi and send it to the smith if it needs it, assuming you don't want to do it yourself. The Chiappa is really nice, but it is too expensive. I bought it because that was the best way to get the takedown feature and few others I was picky about.

If you want a marlin, make sure you can handle it in person. Get them to pull out all of them and go over them carefully. Run snap caps through it to make sure there are no weird cycling things going on. I think they have gotten better, but there are still lots of nasty ones floating around out there. Keep in mind a lot of the marlins have microgroove barrels, and that can make cast bullet shooting iffy sometimes. They also like to use that stupid 1/38 twist on the 44s, where the rossi and chiappa and ruger bolt 44 is a 1/20 I believe.

ok, keep in mind I'm talking cast bullet shooting here as its all I shoot out of lever guns. I have a number of marlins and Winchester and one browning. Fit and finish goes hands down to browning. Its also a 92 so its a much stronger action but that doesn't really come into play for loads out of a loading manual. There also accurate but the big downside is there not drilled and tapped for a scope if that matters. Marlins are what I call ok shooters. Most will do 4 inch or so at a 100 yards and that's good enough for most deer hunting. Quality control for gun to gun can be drastic. Ive owned real good ones and have handled some that make me shake my head. Winchesters have better quality control the the marlins. There usually 2 inch 100 yard guns. If I wanted a good 44 or 45 lever gun id first try to find myself a Winchester trapper.

I picked this one up off a used gun rack for $450. Love it!

greyling22 said:

In a marlin, 45lc tends to spit back on you pretty bad.

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You need to reload and get away from that "Cowboy" ammo. That will resolve that problem.

You need to reload and get away from that "Cowboy" ammo. That will resolve that problem.

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Not necessarily. Rifles are notorious for having oversized chambers in .45Colt. I got rid of one that spit in my face with Colt-safe (950fps) loads.