Old Stumpy
Member
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2019
- Messages
- 1,451
So far, I have bought three 1894 Marlins, in .357 magnum, .44 magnum, and a Cowboy in .45 Colt.
I never thought that I would ever buy a Marlin again, but after examining a 2019 Cowboy (which was on sale for a really good price) I could find nothing wrong with it, and everything right with it.
Sights on straight and properly installed, all screws undamaged and properly in place, no dings, smooth blued finish, no rough edges, very good wood to metal fit, reasonably smooth action, and decent walnut (if rather plain). Overall I was very impressed, so I bought it.
It functioned well with live and empty rounds (with the safety on) so I was happy.
At the range, 225 grain JSP American Eagle rounds groups around 2 1/2" at 50 yards with the factory irons and the eyes of a man in his mid 60s. Groove diameter is .452" which is great.
My only complaint was that the trigger pull was around 6 3/4 pounds, which isn't helpful.
The .44 Magnum rifle is equally as good, although I am not happy with the accuracy, largely because the groove diameter measures .432" and Hornaday 240 grain XTP bullets are .430".
Accuracy with Blue Dot and 2400 was not great, but it's possible that faster burning powders like Unique or Herco would bump up these bullets a bit and yield better results. If not, then Titegroup, which is even faster.
Speer Gold Dot bullets reputedly have thinner jackets which might help.
Also, I haven't try factory ammo in this rifle, so who knows? The .432" groove diameter is within spec, due to concerns by manufacturers that have existed for a number of years, who want to reduce chamber pressures.
The trigger is also heavy in this rifle.
The .357 Rifle is also equally as good, although the checkering is not as well-defined. It functions fine, although I did need to remove the extractor and file a contact point on it to move it inward a bit for more aggressive extraction. Loading cartridges with blunt nosed JSP bullets through the loading gate is a bit annoying because they catch on the port through the receiver into the magazine tube. For these that port should be bevelled.
Lee hard cast SWC bullets feed into the tube easily, and chamber easily.
The groove diameter is .357" as it should be.
The trigger pull is around 4 1/2 pounds.
I never thought that I would ever buy a Marlin again, but after examining a 2019 Cowboy (which was on sale for a really good price) I could find nothing wrong with it, and everything right with it.
Sights on straight and properly installed, all screws undamaged and properly in place, no dings, smooth blued finish, no rough edges, very good wood to metal fit, reasonably smooth action, and decent walnut (if rather plain). Overall I was very impressed, so I bought it.
It functioned well with live and empty rounds (with the safety on) so I was happy.
At the range, 225 grain JSP American Eagle rounds groups around 2 1/2" at 50 yards with the factory irons and the eyes of a man in his mid 60s. Groove diameter is .452" which is great.
My only complaint was that the trigger pull was around 6 3/4 pounds, which isn't helpful.
The .44 Magnum rifle is equally as good, although I am not happy with the accuracy, largely because the groove diameter measures .432" and Hornaday 240 grain XTP bullets are .430".
Accuracy with Blue Dot and 2400 was not great, but it's possible that faster burning powders like Unique or Herco would bump up these bullets a bit and yield better results. If not, then Titegroup, which is even faster.
Speer Gold Dot bullets reputedly have thinner jackets which might help.
Also, I haven't try factory ammo in this rifle, so who knows? The .432" groove diameter is within spec, due to concerns by manufacturers that have existed for a number of years, who want to reduce chamber pressures.
The trigger is also heavy in this rifle.
The .357 Rifle is also equally as good, although the checkering is not as well-defined. It functions fine, although I did need to remove the extractor and file a contact point on it to move it inward a bit for more aggressive extraction. Loading cartridges with blunt nosed JSP bullets through the loading gate is a bit annoying because they catch on the port through the receiver into the magazine tube. For these that port should be bevelled.
Lee hard cast SWC bullets feed into the tube easily, and chamber easily.
The groove diameter is .357" as it should be.
The trigger pull is around 4 1/2 pounds.
Last edited: