Lever Action Hog Rifle?

I've always found my Marlin 1894 in .44 mag easy on the shoulder.

I agree 44 mags are good and he could even shoot specials which are really tame.

The 30-30 is hard to beat. Nothing wrong with any of the calibers. .35, .44 even the .357 could work with the right loads. Considering he has a shoulder injury I would stay away from the big bores although the 45-70 with traditional loads is not nearly as bad as some people would lead you to believe. I actually own Marlin levers in all calibers except .357 and 444.

If buying for me I would look hard at the .44 mag. but because of the lighter weight of the gun and the heavier bullets they recoil a bit more than the 30-30. For your father the 30-30 is the winner in my book.

I prefer .308 for hogs but I heard 44 MAG will get the job done, too.

TR

How about a Marlin 1894 in .45 Colt? In a standard load I've heard that it can take hogs easily, and there are hotter loads available for it.

Nothing wrong with the .30-30 or the .44 Magnum, I'm just thinking about your father's shoulder injury and all.

I love my .35, but never had the chance (yet) to try it on piggies. It's a deer slayer though.

Forgot about the 45 LC.

Friend of mine just got one from Puma.

Said is is a "sweet" shooter.

His wife is going to use it for pigs over a feeder at archery ranges. < 50 I guess.

Whatever you like. Lots to choose from.

Well, the more traditional lever actions are chambered for lower power cartridges that aren't exactly 200 yard tackdrivers anyway.

If you stay 30-30 or larger bore, you have plenty of options. Most pigs are shot up close, so if you like the bigger bores, absolutely, .44 mag and .45 Colt are just fine. As others pointed out, .357 mag can do it (although I would certainly want to handload for that, since most of the hot stuff won't penetrate tough hogs deep enough to be a good killer without destroying a lot of meat - like a 125gr hollowpoint). The 30-30 will give you something you can shoot deer with in timber.

Personally, I'd go .44 magnum. Yep, full house mag loads in a levergun aren't fun to shoot all day - and the 44 special is pleasant to play with. The .45 Colt is a little better if you're a handloader, but the case rim isn't as large as the .44 and most off the shelf loads aren't really good hunting loads. The .44 mag is much easier to find loads for that are suitable for pigs.

The other calibers aren't going to be quite as much fun. The .45-70 will absolultely kill pigs efficiently, and you can shoot bear and whatnot in timber with it, but it's not going to be something to take to the range and burn a few boxes of ammo. Same deal with something like a BLR in .308 or a (bless you if you find one) Savage 99.

The .30-30 will give you reasonable ammo prices and something that's versatile with off the shelf ammo, as will the .44 mag. For pigs, I'd want to stick with the heavier bullets because they penetrate better, and it's thought by many to be a better short range caliber - and pigs are shot at close range.
I'd go .44 as first choice, 30-30 as second, if I wanted it to double as a deer rifle.

You really do have a lot of choices that are good.

Edit: Oh, hey, Texas - do you mean javelina? They're much smaller than wild pigs (that are real pigs, javelina are not). Ranges for peccary (some people call them Texas pigs, so we may be talking something different) are longer, too. If you mean peccary, I'd go with the .30-30, because the trajectory is flatter and the standard 170-grain .30-30 load, or even better, new pointed polymer tipped bullets, are absolutely lethal on something THAT size. And it gives the old fellow a deer gun for mule deer in Texas.

Go with the 30\30. Much more versatile.

.30-30 will kill any hog that walks. Good ol' 336 in .30-30 is all you'll ever need. Just load up with a good 170 grain load or maybe a Nosler partition in Federal Premium. .35 Remington is a great brush/heavy game round. .44 mag will work, as will .45 Colt with hot handloads. .45-70 is getting carried away on hogs, like hunting deer with a .300 win mag. Tough on the shoulder and for no real need. I've shot hog with .357 magnum. Hey, I could get even MORE out of my little Rossi carbine.

At the muzzle, the .44 mag is close to the .30-30, but with a better BC, the .30-30 leaves the .44 in the dust out at 100 yards. Suit yourself, but I ain't even talkin' about lever evolution ammo here. The .30-30 is superior as a hunting round to the .44 mag, always has been, always will be. Lever evolution is icing on the cake, though I'd use a 170 flat point or Nosler at hog ranges on hogs.

If you can find a savage 99 just about anything they were chambered in will do the trick.

I say a 357 mag loaded with 180 XTP's would do the trick. I like the Rossi guns over Marlins for pistol calibers.

I would recommend most centerfire RIFLE cartridges.

Pistol calibers will do an OK job in my estimation, but why chance it with an animal as sturdy as a wild pig?

Look at .30/30 or .35 Remington.

Browning makes levers that are really nice as well, .308WIN available.

My preference is .444Marlin, but if your father has a shoulder injury that affects his shooting, that may be a bit much. Does the shoulder injury actually affect shooting? Does shooting actually cause pain?

What about the .308 Marlin?

I think we should look at a 357/38 lever, a 357 is certainly enough to drop a porker.

The majority of hogs I have killed were with this rifle. The 270 grain SP over H110 is an amazing combination.
Most hogs are shot at pretty short ranges, I have only killed a few over 100 yards. The Marlin 1894S in .44 Mag performs well out to that range and beyond.

One thing to bear in mind, when hunting at short ranges, where many hogs are taken, you have to have a quick handling rifle with recoil you can handle for a quick second shot if needed.

Serious lever gun lover here. My Hog gun is a 444 Marlin, but if your pop has a shoulder injury 45 Colt, 44/41/357 Mag would all work. In rifle calibers, 30-30, 35 remington, and 300 Savage are good choices(among others). Puma even makes a levergun in 454 Casull, which will also eat 45 Colt.

444 Marlin

I had a friend when I was a kid that had a full sized Marlin 336T in .44 mag. The extra weigh over that of the 94 would be a good thing for recoil. I fired my HOT loads, 300 grain XTPs over 20 grains of 2400, in my son-in-law's puma expecting to get pounded and I was pleasantly surprised at the mild recoil. Pressures on the +P stuff are quite mild, 25K CUP, compared to .44 mag. Not sure that matters in recoil, more the weight of powder charge and bullet, I think. Can't remember the formula, though. Anyway, in a Rossi, the hot 300 grain loads are powder puff on the shoulder. My .357 seems to kick just as hard in the same model gun shooting 158 SWC over 14.5 grains 2400. Defies logic, I know. My shoulder isn't calibrated, though. I fired 'em both the other day and it's still on my mind.

I always love the people that pretend a feral hog is like a cape buffalo. Just about any centerfire will work. I use to hunt them with a 22 mag when I was a teenager. They aren't that hard to kill.