375 or 44 mag in lever action? help

[mrrev]

357 or 44 mag in lever action? help

Okay, eventually I'm going to get a 30-30, but I can't
make up my mine between 375 or 44 mag for my plinker.
I don't mine the price of ammo between the two, so based
on other variables, what do you guys think?

looking at the Marlin and Winchester 1894/94, thanks for the
opinions. oh!, and this site rules!!!!

 

[The_Antibubba]

Just want to be certain-you did mean .357, right?

 

[Ohen Cepel]

I'm a bit .357 fan so that's the way I would go. Ammo cost might not be an issue to you at first. However, it may be over time. Real nice to be able to pick up cheap .38's to plink!

 

[Dionysusigma]

Aside from excessive recoil, and the fact that there's not a lever action chambered for it, why is .375 H&H a bad choice?

.38 Special = Priced right
.357 Mag = Expensive (for me)
.44 Special = Dunno
.44 Mag = More expensive than .357

I would go with a Marlin lever in .357, personally. Ammo is quite a bit more common than .44... and .38 is so cheap. It's light recoiling, fun, yet effective for light hunting/ self defense when need be.

Weird (related) question... would .44 Russian and .44-40 work in a gun chambered for .44 Mag?

 

[Sharps Shooter]

Unless you're going to reload, I'd go with the .357 for a "plinker." .38 Special ammo isn't too awful expensive compared to even .44 Special ammo, much less .44 Magnum ammo. However, if you really meant you were concidering a "375" lever action for a "plinker," go with the .44 Magnum instead. The only "375" lever actions I know of were the Winchester and Marlin lever actions built for the 375 Winchester cartridge back in the late 70s and early 80s. I'll bet 375 Winchester ammo, if you can even still get it, costs a bunch. If you got a lever action 375 Winchester, wouldn't that make your lever action 30-30 the "plinker?"

Dionysusigma - Yes, the .44 Russian will work in a .44 Magnum, but no, a 44-40 will not. It's a different beast - it's tapered, bottle-necked, and has a slightly bigger base than a .44 Magnum

 

[onecruiser]

I have a 16" barrel .357 Winchester and a 20" barrel .44 Winchester. I like both of them. If I had to choose one, I would probably combine the two and buy a 20" barrel 357.

It's hard to go wrong here. I'm sure you will enjoy either. They both offer lots of different loads for almost any use.

 

[mrrev]

Yes guys, I meant .357, thx for the razzing... I guess it sounds like .357. I didn't know I could use 38s, now there's another point chalked up to the 357. Now, I guess I'll be making my mind between the Winny or the Marlin. I think my choices are few If go with Marlin.
thx again....

 

[Rexrider]

Going on the assumption you meant .357 mag, I would say get the .357.

I had to make the same choice when I purchased my Marlin 1894. I held both in my hands and had to ponder the choice for a minute. I bought the .357 and never looked back.

Bottom line....
If you have no intention of hunting with it, get the .357. Ammo will be cheaper and the recoil less. You will be able to shoot it more and therefore will probably get more enjoyment out of it.

You also have a nice range of ammo to play with. From low power .38 specials up to maxed out hunting rounds ( I know there are 180 gr rounds but I think there are 200 gr available also). The .357 is more than enough for personal defense against 2 and 4 legged critters (assuming you are not being charged by a rhino).

Now, having said all that. If the idea of having the .44 mag is really eating at you, go get it. There is no right or wrong choice here. I have no doubt you will enjoy either one.

And if you are really stuck on which to get.....there is no rule that says you can't have both

 

[mrrev]

And if you are really stuck on which to get.....there is no rule that says you can't have both

Yeah Rexrider, tell that to my wife.
I barely convinced her that I need two lever guns, one in 30-30 and a plinker...due to ammo economics...
The cheap part of shooting guns in the gun...

 

[teppo-shu]

Whichever caliber you decide on, get the Marlin: easier to scope on that flat top. I have the 1894C in .357 - great fun!!

 

[Burt Blade]

The popularity of Cowbly Action Shooting means you can get some very mild plinking loads for either caliber.

SASS mandates rifle loads under 1400fps and pistol under 1000fps. Out of a lever action rifle, that is pretty tame, yet still enough solve "social problems" if needed.

You can pick up "Cowboy" .38 reloads around her for $10 per 100. The only problem is soem rifles in .357 are very sensitive to cartridge length. In such guns, .38s do nto feed unless you use a heavy bullet seated way out, for maximum length.

 

[GigaBuist]

You sure you need a 30-30? I don't hunt, and I'm no expert in balistics, but I've seen it posted on here before that you can get .357 to perform around 30-30 capabilities with this stuff: http://www.buffalobore.com/ammunition/default.htm#357

Wiith that aside, I've got a Marlin 1894C in .357 and the thing is a joy to shoot. I never thought I'd own an old-fashioned lever gun when I got into shooting, but there it is.. and its fun. Fairly cheap to feed too with the .38 specials. Recoil is negligable (think of the children!) with .38's and with the .357's I've run through it.

If you want a shooter.. get the .357 and load it up well for hunting.. if you want a hunting gun that you run a box of shells through in a 2-3 year period (like many 30-30 owners) then get the 30-30 because the gun costs plenty less. That would be my, rather inexperienced, advice. Just food for thought.

 

[rbernie]

If you have no intention of hunting with it, get the .357.

Ya know, I've seen this in writing a bunch of times, and yet I've never actually heard why this is considered to be so. In my book, a modern 160gr HP moving out at better than 1600fps is nothing to sneeze at. I certainly doubt that anything thin-skinned this side of 250lbs and within 125-150 yards is gonna scoff at it.

So who really has hunted deer, say, with a 357Mag levergun and found it wanting?

 

[Brian Williams]

I have a Marlin 1894C in 357 and it is a great gun and this make a great combo. I have a blast shooting these and I have only added a Marbles Peep sight and a sling. I might get a Wild west guns trigger.

 

[115grfmj]

Brians picture motivates alot of people to get the same...

Did for me . Aside from good looks though, the .357 out of a rifle
get a big boost in velocity, thanks to slower burning powder, over the
pistol. Example BB 158gr out of my 4" 686 Ive chronied to be 1400-1450,
the same round out of my 1894c get pretty consistent 2200 fps.
Also you can use el-cheapo .38's for plinking, which recoil about as
much as my 22lr marlin.

The best part is it gives you an excuse to buy the "matching Revolver".
This argument worked great with my wife . "But honey, its like buying
the shoes to match the outfit, they are a coordinated pair"


Heres mine (Not as good pict, as Brian's)

 

[Z_Infidel]

I also have a Marlin 1894C, and it is indeed a lot of fun to shoot. I've found that 158 gr SP ammo works very well in my rifle so I pretty much stick with that. It can be found at pretty reasonable prices.

It's true that the Buffalo Bore .357 ammo approaches .30-30 territory, but does it much more expensively. I have a 336C in .30-30 that is also a lot of fun to shoot, and that would be my choice for deer size game over the .357. That's not to say the .357 won't work, however.

If you end up getting a .357 lever gun and shoot a lot of .38 Special rounds through it, make sure to clean the bore on a regular basis since the cases are a bit shorter and that can lead to a residue buildup, same as with a revolver. With proper cleaning it isn't a problem.

 

[ChristopherG]

The perfect companion for a 1894c in .357 is (a revolver, of course, and) a reloading press. This gun is as cheap as anything out there to load for; and you don't have to shell out megabucks for buffalobore to get high performance.

I load Hornady's 158 gr. XTP FP over a book-max load of lil'gun and get over 2,000 fps from my 18.5" barrel and groups consistently under 2" at 100 yards. It's a fantastic bullet, and these loads (not counting re-re-re-reloaded brass) cost me around six bucks for 50, or 12 cents apiece.

And (unlike the .44), I can shoot a hundred of these in a brief stretch--or in a local three-gun competition--and feel no tenderness from recoil.

 

[mrrev]

Well, I guess it's going to be the Marlin 1894C...
thx again for he posts...

 

[rbernie]

Lemme know if you can find one - my FLD just did a quick scan of their 'normal' distributors and came back empty-handed.....

 

[mrrev]

Yeah, I just called my local dealer and all their east and west coast distributors are out...what a bummer...
Now I donno what to do....plus they told me I'm looking at around $675, not including taxes and the dros...damn it!!!

 

[mainmech48]

A .357 makes the most all around practical sense to me. Lots of used Marlins out there if you have trouble locating a new one.

In the Winchester flavor, I much prefer the '92 design to the '94 for revolver calibers. Clones of the '92 are readily available in many configurations from several sources and price ranges.

 

[rbernie]

they told me I'm looking at around $675

My FLD quoted a non-discounted price of $409 for the 1895C in .357.

 

[mrrev]

Hope he accidently quoted me on a 1894Cowboy instead of the 1894C, I know the Cowboy is a lot more based on the Marlin website...well hope I can find one soon...been itching for a level action for while. Shoot, if I can't get the 357 I'm going to have go get the next on the list, 30-30. They're on sale at Big5 right now... oh well, back to looking....

 

[Rexrider]

plus they told me I'm looking at around $675, not including taxes and the dros...damn it!!!

Whoa, that is way high for a Marlin 1894c. That even seems high for the Cowboy model. Just so you know, I bought mine for $299 + tax on sale at Big 5 here in the Phoenix area. Standard "non-sale" price is ususally $350 IIRC.

I am surprised Big 5 does not have them in stock. I can't recall a time when they did not have one on the shelf. Maybe you just caught them on a bad week.

Since you know you are getting a 30-30 and a .357, no reason not to get the one that is on sale now. Big 5 has the .357 on sale frequently. You should be able to get one in the near future.

Good luck

 

[ChristopherG]

I'm pretty sure walmart will order you one, if you ask. They quoted me a good price--under 400 bucks, anyway--before I happened upon a used one.