Well, I went down to my local gun shop today just to see how they feel in my hands and I am blown away at how lightweight they are yet at the same time how solid they feel. They 're so handy and comfortable. My gun shop had all of the brands I mentioned in my original post and I must say they all felt a little different but they all felt good even the lowest priced one which was a Puma. It was a 16" and I swear it felt like I was holding a BB or pellet rifle. I think I prefer an 18" to 20" barrel length. The Uberti had by far the smoothest action of all and I like the case hardened finish but the price was out of my reach at the moment. The Henrys they had were all in the shiny gold finish which doesn't appeal to my taste but the one I handled had an excellent trigger. I guess I was uninformed about the price of the Winchester versus the Marlin because they're comparable. I have to say I like the Marlin better though. It just felt more solid, hard to put into words exactly why. They had an 1894 Cowboy which I preferred over the 1894C, I don't care for the checkered wood and like the octagonal barrel of the Cowboy model. Maybe that has something to do with why I preferred the Cowboy, the barrel is probably slightly heavier, I don't know. Thanks to everyone who offered an opinion on this subject. I do have one more question if you'll indulge me; are there any jamming problems when shooting .38 special out of these rifles or is this a non issue? Now I'm asking myself why it took me so long to notice how cool a lever action can be.
