.44 lever gun

[thomis]

I know a lot of you know which years and "Era's" if you will, to avoid and which are good. For both Winchester and Marlin. I am looking for a USA made .44 lever gun. I'm sure the new Japanese made Winchesters are fine guns but I would rather have a used, older USA made one. What kind of things should I be looking for and what things to avoid? I'm looking a lot on gunbroker and the sellers rarely post these details. Please advise and many thanks.

 

[JT-AR-MG42]

You are gonna get a lot of different answers on this one.
Everybody's tastes run a bit different.

My preference is the pre-safety Marlin 94.
Second would be the safety version made in North Haven, earlier production all the better.

Steer clear, only my opinion.
336 Marlin .44s and 94 Winchesters in .44.
Both were re-engineered for the caliber.
Marlin admitted their mistake by quickly bringing back their 94.

Winchester only had their 94 to work with to start. I'm just not a big fan of fitting a gun to a caliber that it was never designed for.
I do not know if their new 92s were made in the U.S. or not.
Regardless, I've never handled the new 92s to give any input.

JMO,
JT

 

[gotboostvr]

I fully intended to have to do some tuning with my Rossi 92, but it's a real sweet shooter in 44mag with XTPs and fees even SWCs without a hitch.
It's not American made, but mine was put together real well with a great light crisp trigger. And it's a 16" in stainless, a option not common from other manufacturers.

 

[Lafitte]

Marlin "JM" '94, Stainless

Lafitte

 

[thomis]

How about the '94 Trail's End? It seems there are two versions, one with tang safety another without. I read that the Trail's End designation meant the last that were made at the USA plant, meaning the end of the trail. Can anyone tell me how these are? The online serial number lookup on Winchester website only goes up to 6,000,000 and I am looking at a couple on gunbroker with numbers above that but still USA made.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=462797658

 

[RainDodger]

True, the Rossi isn't made here. Neither is Winchester among others.

Might be difficult to find what you're looking for. If you have to consider other sources, the Browning 92 is a beautiful rifle. Yep, from Miroku like Winchester, but it's still beautiful.

 

[CraigC]

Choose what you must but know up front that the Japanese made Brownings and Winchesters are the best made leverguns ever produced.

 

[Jason_W]

Intended bullet weight is another factor to consider. The Marlin 1894s in .44 Mag have a very slow, 1:38 twist rate. Conventional wisdom is that 240 grains is about the maximum for that twist rate with 200 to 225 being ideal, but some people have reported decent results with bullets up to 300 grains.

 

[Schwing]

Optics choices should be taken into account as well. Remember, that it is very difficult to mount optics on a top eject lever gun. Having said that, open sights are probably fine at the distances you would most likely be using a .44 magnum.

My own preferences would actually lead me to buy a Rossie rather than any of the Marlins over the last few years. The only difference IMO is the price. I have owned Rossies and they have made some fine stuff over the last few years.

If you can find a Marlin from the late 90's to early 2000s, that would be my top choice. The safety isn't a deal killer for me but something to keep in mind.

 

[ranger56528]

I just bought a new Marlin 1894 44mag and it is nice as far as fit and finish,have only shot a half box thru it but they all went bang and they all fed and ejected just fine no issues,you just need to make sure you look them over before you buy,I also have a Rossi 92 in 38/357 and so far it's done what it was made to do,no issues so far.

 

[CraigC]

Conventional wisdom is that 240 grains is about the maximum for that twist rate with 200 to 225 being ideal, but some people have reported decent results with bullets up to 300 grains.

That's not conventional wisdom at all, it's internet myth. There is no middle gray area, either the twist rate works or it does not. In fact, it works right up to and including 300gr.

 

[Beam]

have you looked at a henry big boy? I have one in 45 colt and love it

 

[Badlander]

My Marlin Cowboys in .45 Colt shoot 300 gr bullets great. The henry will not shoot heavy .45 Colt bullets (Per Henry) This note from Henry.


Thank you for owning a Henry rifle.

I do not have any information on what loads are specific to other manufacturers' firearms.

In general, for Big Boys chambered for either .44 Magnum or .45LC, you can use any reputable brand of the standard and +P factory loads, with standard profile bullets (round-nose, flat-nose, and hollow-point), up to maximum projectile weight of 260-grains, and which conforms to SAAMI specs.

Regards,

Jeffrey Post
Customer Service

 

[Valkman]

I just bought a new Marlin 1894 44mag and it is nice as far as fit and finish,have only shot a half box thru it but they all went bang and they all fed and ejected just fine no issues,you just need to make sure you look them over before you buy

Same here I bought a 44mag 1894 made in May '14 and it's great in fit and finish and shoots great also.

 

[WV Mountaineer]

I have a JM Marlin 1894. I love it. Great gun. It was pre-tang safety. It shoots very well and is built perfectly. We sure lost a truly great gun manufacturer when Marlin was bought by big green. They were great guns. All Marlin lever guns prior to being bought by Remington, were great guns. Awesome shooters too. It is very sad to see this when you pick up a Remlin and observe the disgrace they are doing this American legend. Really sad and disgusting. All the ones I have handled in the last two years still have MAJOR issues when referencing them to the JM stamped guns. I'm not suggesting that is every one's experience or their gun. So take no offense. But, if I have to start out looking for a "reasonable" gun out of a group of new guns on the rack, I'll buy a different brand. That's just me.

If I couldn't find a JM stamped 1894 and, you likely won't for a reasonable price, I'd go with a Henry first, followed by a Rossi. I've never liked the Winchester. Just my .02 worth. God Bless

 

[WaltWhite]

I owned a pre-safety Marlin 1894 (1974 manufacture) for over 20 years. Did a lot of shooting with that gun, did a lot of work on it, know it so well inside and out I could probably carve a working replica out of billet steel if given enough time.

I, personally, would not recommend it. I'm sure plenty of people will argue this point, but I never felt the 1894 had the refinement or finesse I wanted from it, even after throwing $100s at it in labor and parts during the time I owned it. The action, even after being worked on, wasn't as smooth as my basic off the shelf bolt guns or pump guns, and I never felt like it was 100% reliable. Again you'll get many people disputing this fact but that's my opinion handling not only my 1894 but several others.

I know the Winchester is even worse in this regard, an even more complicated gun that's not easy to service. If it comes down to the 1894 or the Winchester I'd take the 1894 any day of the week.

The Henry Big Boy I can't speak to but they have a good reputation and may be worth a look. But honestly, if I were set on a .44 long gun I'd look at the Ruger 77/44 bolt gun or even a single shot Encore build. In the 21st century I feel either of those two are a better choice.

It took me 20+ years to realize I wasn't a lever gun guy, although I like the history and appreciate the guns aesthetically. So take my recommendations with a grain of salt and don't let me rain on your parade. If you do buy an 1894 let me suggest the Wild West Guns trigger right out of the box. Best bang for buck mod out there.

 

[Mr.Revolverguy]

I found a like new Winchester94AE years back and love it. As for what weight/grain bullet plenty of data here http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell44OverWeight.htm and is worth the read.

 

[RainDodger]

I have a passel (western talk for "a lot") of .44 Special cases, so I've been loading them up for the Browning 92 in .44 Magnum, looking for a fairly soft shooting round. Long story short, the gun needs a fairly long cartridge and the only bullet long enough to pair with the shorter .44 Special case is a 240 grain Lyman hard cast flat nose. It works great. It's slow, soft shooting and accurate. I think the Browning has the same very slow twist ratio as well.

And CraigC is correct... buy what floats your boat, but the Japanese make some gorgeous rifles!

 

[CaliCoastie]

A few things, i personally don't recommend the wild west trigger because it's not to my or anyone (whose slightly mechanically inclined) "worth their time". My time is definatly not worth (160-320 per hour) and i feel that I'm being generous (15 minutes to break it down, stone the trigger and put it back together) for 80 dollars?
Winchester sure seems to be nice (not my cup of tea) i like marlins. Very rarely will you find someone against them, Henry's seem nice but no business from me. If you are looking at a lever rifle with history stick with marlin, or Winchester (actually had henry tyler work for/worth them!)
Find someone who has them and see what runs best for you.

 

[Speedo66]

Do both Marlin and Winchester have models with tang safeties?

As a lefty, I find I don't care for the operation (or looks) of the cross bolt safety. Were the tang safeties a newer or older addition?

 

[loose noose]

I believe the Winchester has the tang safety, however the Marling has the cross-bolt safety which is able to be replaced by the Clyde Ludwig screw, which makes it look like one of the original Marlin 1894 models. I've done at least 3 of my Marlin rifles with this device, and as far as safety goes it still works just fine, after all the number one safety is the one between your ears. Note the first click safety on the hammer is still intact, as in the previous models. I do like all my newer model Marlins, 30-30, 45-70, and .45 Colt. Never had even a hint of a problem, and all of them have been built right here in the good ole USA.