Bullet Bob
Member
Also, 45-70's look gooood. Here's a Winchester ExtraLight with it's Galco removable pad. Hey, steel buttplates look good, but I'm not shooting one in 45-70 without some wuss material between it and my shoulder.
lever gun: .45-70 or .30-30?
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12GA
Member
Also, 45-70's look gooood.
Agreed. Here's a pic of my Marlin 1895GS.
Agreed. Here's a pic of my Marlin 1895GS.
I guess it would depend upon what purpose it would serve, and I can think of more practical things for which to use that 30-30. Then again I really prefer the .35 Remington round thrugh a Marlin 336 lever gun. Just throwing that one into the fire in case you have not thought of it.
steveno
Member
I have shot a 1886 extra light , 1886 rifle , marlin guide gun and the Ruger #1S. the 1886 rifle is just to heavy to carry even from the truck to the shooting bench. the only way I would take one of those for hunting would if a horse was carrying it(since I don't ride horses that settles that). the fact that it was so heavy made it a piece of cake to shoot. the 1886 extra light and my Ruger #1S felt the same recoil wise and easy to shoot. the guide gun by far kicked and felt the worst of them all. but as they say recoil is subjective to the person
chaim
Member
I'm in the same boat except both my levers are Winchester 94s (one 30-30, one .45LC). I keep thinking about that 45-70,and since I have no good reason for one (I don't hunt) I keep trying to think of excuses.
My latest (and usual) is for camping it might be nice to have the bigger caliber in case I run into any bears or Mountain Lions. However, the East Coast is black bear territory and I'm sure the 30-30 (and the .45LC long gun) would do fine. Also, I have no friends with property to camp on (actually I do have some cousins with property in W. PA but I don't usually go to my cousins' for much) so I tend to camp on public land. Without a hunting license and outside hunting season I'm not sure how well a "hunting rifle" would be reacted to if some authority figure saw me with it- thus it would be stowed in the tent or car and thus it would be too hard to get to if I needed it (so my only practical animal defense gun will be a revolver on my person). So, this really is more an excuse than a reason to get the 45-70.
BusMaster007
Member
If choosing only ONE:
Marlin 1895 .45-70
My pic shows that I managed to lose the front sight shroud my first time out with the gun...I've replaced it and used blue Loc-Tite to keep it there.
This gun is capable of shooting everything from black-powder loads to some seriously mean-a$$ Big Game killing ammunition.
Shortly after I got this gun, I happened to receive TWO Winchester Model 94's that had belonged to my late Father and Step-Father! TWO. In one week.
My "Dad's" had both been dead for years, but within a week, I happened across my late Dad's friend, and spoken with my Step-Brother, both offering me a Winchester 94 .30-30.
I couldn't believe it.
I have the good fortune to have examples of both the .30-30 and .45-70 in either a Winchester 94 or Marlin 1895 in my gunsafe.
But, the Marlin .45-70 has the edge in many ways when it comes to a kick-butt lever-action rifle.
This is MY late Dad's '68-'69 Model 94 refinished in matte blue with a Ram-Line synthetic stock and Lyman #2 sight.
Also added were the Winchester large-loop lever and Uncle Mike's bbl. band swivel.
I had the factory lever and buttplate for the wood done in matte blue for when I get the wood refinished.
It's pretty sharp looking in real time with the different color of the receiver against the matte bluing.
Truly shocking is that I received from my Step Brother in the same week - HIS Dad's pre-'64 ('50-'51) Model 94 !!! It remains in original condition other than the sight hood being replaced. Nice rifles.
As described in the other photo description, this is a '50-'51 version of the Model 94 that belonged to my Step-Dad.
His Son gave it to me in the same week I got my Dad's gun from an old family friend.
Talk about a shockingly good week!
This is one of 'those gun stories' you think only happens to somebody else!
Marlin 1895 .45-70
My pic shows that I managed to lose the front sight shroud my first time out with the gun...I've replaced it and used blue Loc-Tite to keep it there.
This gun is capable of shooting everything from black-powder loads to some seriously mean-a$$ Big Game killing ammunition.
Shortly after I got this gun, I happened to receive TWO Winchester Model 94's that had belonged to my late Father and Step-Father! TWO. In one week.
My "Dad's" had both been dead for years, but within a week, I happened across my late Dad's friend, and spoken with my Step-Brother, both offering me a Winchester 94 .30-30.
I couldn't believe it.
I have the good fortune to have examples of both the .30-30 and .45-70 in either a Winchester 94 or Marlin 1895 in my gunsafe.
But, the Marlin .45-70 has the edge in many ways when it comes to a kick-butt lever-action rifle.
This is MY late Dad's '68-'69 Model 94 refinished in matte blue with a Ram-Line synthetic stock and Lyman #2 sight.
Also added were the Winchester large-loop lever and Uncle Mike's bbl. band swivel.
I had the factory lever and buttplate for the wood done in matte blue for when I get the wood refinished.
It's pretty sharp looking in real time with the different color of the receiver against the matte bluing.
Truly shocking is that I received from my Step Brother in the same week - HIS Dad's pre-'64 ('50-'51) Model 94 !!! It remains in original condition other than the sight hood being replaced. Nice rifles.
As described in the other photo description, this is a '50-'51 version of the Model 94 that belonged to my Step-Dad.
His Son gave it to me in the same week I got my Dad's gun from an old family friend.
Talk about a shockingly good week!
This is one of 'those gun stories' you think only happens to somebody else!
warriorsociologist
Member
If it's not a Winchester 94, I'd go with a Marlin in .35REM. That's just me.
SamlautRanger
member
I have both a Marlin 30-30 and a 45-70. LIke them both. Getting ready to send both of them out to www.yost-bonitz.com for some custom work!
10shooter
Member
I have three Marlins .30-30, .45 LC, and 45-70. Of the three the .30-30 is the hunter, the 45 LC is the plinker and the 45-70 is the THUMPER. Now I need to save up for a .357 Mag. My only experience with lever action rifles has been the Marlins.
mainmech48
Member
Maybe I'm just weird, but IMO my 336 in .35 Rem. thumps my shoulder as hard or harder than my ported '95G. YYMV, but I'm basing this on comparing 200 gr. Federal factory .35s with 300 gr. Federal 'Premium' .45/70s side-by-side.
To be fair, the 336 has only the OEM plastic buttplate and the '95 has the OEM pad.
Cast bullet handloads with 300-350 gr. LFPGCs c.1300 f/s are pussycats. Plink all day with them if you've got the brass (which, incidentally, seems to last virtually forever loaded to this level).
Factory .405 SPs aren't much worse, as they seem to be loaded to pressures deemed safe for trapdoors and replica Sharps and RBs. More of a 'push' than a 'smack'.
I will grant that the heavy loads from Buffalo Bore et al intended for use only in Marlin levers, Ruger #1s, and Siamese Mausers can be punishing from a bench when you're pushing them out of a carbine that weighs something under eight pounds. They're easier to tolerate from the off-hand position, but I'm only good for about 10 rds or less before I'll start flinching.
As I'm not harboring fantasies about running into any grizzlies or buffalo in Indiana any time soon, I'll likely have a couple of partial boxes of the above for a while yet.
But if we start getting a rash of Cape buffalo or elephant attacks in Boone Co., I'm ready!
To be fair, the 336 has only the OEM plastic buttplate and the '95 has the OEM pad.
Cast bullet handloads with 300-350 gr. LFPGCs c.1300 f/s are pussycats. Plink all day with them if you've got the brass (which, incidentally, seems to last virtually forever loaded to this level).
Factory .405 SPs aren't much worse, as they seem to be loaded to pressures deemed safe for trapdoors and replica Sharps and RBs. More of a 'push' than a 'smack'.
I will grant that the heavy loads from Buffalo Bore et al intended for use only in Marlin levers, Ruger #1s, and Siamese Mausers can be punishing from a bench when you're pushing them out of a carbine that weighs something under eight pounds. They're easier to tolerate from the off-hand position, but I'm only good for about 10 rds or less before I'll start flinching.
As I'm not harboring fantasies about running into any grizzlies or buffalo in Indiana any time soon, I'll likely have a couple of partial boxes of the above for a while yet.
But if we start getting a rash of Cape buffalo or elephant attacks in Boone Co., I'm ready!
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redneck2
Member
Fwiw....
I have an 1895 Marlin in .45-70. First thing I did was have a Decelerator pad installed. I handload a 405 Speer FP over Varget. IIRC the vel is around 1750 fps. Real nice to shoot and plenty of whack.
If you're going to get a .45-70, I'd suggest looking into a single stage press. You could start with a whole Lee set-up for cheap, and load for around $6 a box if memory is correct.
I have an 1895 Marlin in .45-70. First thing I did was have a Decelerator pad installed. I handload a 405 Speer FP over Varget. IIRC the vel is around 1750 fps. Real nice to shoot and plenty of whack.
If you're going to get a .45-70, I'd suggest looking into a single stage press. You could start with a whole Lee set-up for cheap, and load for around $6 a box if memory is correct.
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