Marlin 1894 Levers.. how are they?

[twoblink]

Girlfriend, after watching Lara Croft wield a lever action, wants one now..

So, the logistical person in me was thinking; well, get it in .357Mag.. That way, you can use the same load for your revolvers too..

So.. How are they? Reliability? Accuracy? Ease of handling? Speed of handling?

 

[Jeff White]

I used to have an older 1894 in .44 magnum. Had no problems with it at all. Sold it when I quit deer hunting in Missouri (can't use rifles here in Illinois). It was great for the short range shots you'd get in the Ozarks.

Jeff

 

[Brian Williams]

I love my 1894c with a 18.5 barrel and had it at the range this morning. It will shoot any 357 factory or handload. I have added a Uncle Mikes Quick adjust sling and a Marble's Tang sight. I got the Tang sight from American Backyard for around $85. I want to do some load development but mine is shooting around 3 or 4 inches at 75 yds. There is almost no recoil and it handles my reloads of 6.5 gr win231 pushing a 158 gr LSWC with no problem. Handy! 36 inches long and 6 lbs what more or less could you want.

Two other folks who have 357 leverguns: Kentucky Rifle and Terry Murbach and they have great recommendations as well.

Do a search for 357 and lever

 

[Joe Demko]

Buy two. After you shoot it, you'll want one too.

 

[gremlin]

My 1894CS in .357mag was made in '82 and doesn't carry the cross bolt safety like later models.

And it's my favorite shooting rifle.

It's practical for trotting around the woods in search of coyotes and varmints. It's fun to take to the range and pop the 25 yard targets. It serves and even more effective role against two-legged varmints.

I routinely use 158grain bullets in it, but the 125grain JHP's have never caused a problem.

I took mine to a local gunsmith a few years ago and had him do a little smoothing on the lever action itself. The rifle has worked flawlessly for the ten years that I've owned it.

It's got just enough 'pep' that you know you're shooting something more than a .22 but not so much that you have to brace yourself--I prefer shooting my 1894 in .357 much more than I do either my Win 94 in .44magnum or my Win 94 in 30/30.

I've never really taken this one out deer hunting, but at 25 to 50 yards, I'd have no qualms about putting down a white tail with one.

In addition, I prefer the side ejection of the 1894 Marlin much more than I do the top eject of the Win 94.

Just my two cents...

 

[Doug444]

Got one for my wife for CAS, and I've shot it more than she has so far. Great little gun. I'm thinking of trading my Rossi '92 in .44 for another Marlin 1894 in .44. Action still needs a little smoothing, but a lot more shooting will help that. Accuracy is just fine with .38's and .357's.

 

[larryw]

Great gun, accurate enough to 100 yards, outstanding fit and finish, especially considering the relatively low price.

My Marlin 1894 in 44 mag has become my favorite rifle and it is a very rare occurrence when I don't spend most of my rifle-range time with it.

Marlin runs a pretty active forum for their guns, the 1894 is discussed in the "Cowboy Rifles" section: http://www.marlinfirearms.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi

Three links to help with all tuning, smoothing and reliability efforts:

http://www.marauder13.homestead.com/files/Marlin94.html

http://www.marauder13.homestead.com/files/MARLIN1894.htm

http://www.marauder13.homestead.com/files/TUNING_M_1894.htm

 

[BryanP]

I've got one of the 1894C's in .357 myself and I really like it. And yes, it goes nicely with a .357 revolver. Others in this thread have said it already - about as accurate as you can expect out to 100 yards. If you want to go further than that you need a real rifle cartridge.

 

[Deadman]

I bought a 1894CP on an impulse, and I've been very pleased with it ever since. If I could only have one rilfe, my 1894CP would be it.

And after you buy one look into purchasing a set of Ashley Express ghost ring sights as well.

 

[AZ Husker]

I like the convenience of carrying the same ammo for my rifle and handgun also. Too bad nobody makes a .30-.30 revolver!

 

[twoblink]

Do you guys carry revolvers when you are using this rifle?

What barrel length is optimum? How do I calculate optimum barrel length?

I think there's a 24" one, but I don't think a .357mag will push that far, it doesn't have enough "umph".. So 18" sounds great..

From the Winchester website, it looks like a .357Mag out of a rifle is a totally different beast than out of a revolver..

 

[larryw]

Yes, the 357Mag out of a rifle is entirely different than out of a revo. That big fireball you see in the revo is wasted energy that the rifle just gobbles up and puts behind the pill.

My 240gr 44 mag loads run about 1200fps out of my Redhawk (with a ball of flame and a hi-ho silver!) and chrony at 1800fps out of my 20" 1894. Boy, do those hit hard at 100 yards!

Do you reload or shoot factory ammo? If you reload, give me the details and I have software that will work out the differences in barrel lengths. Ditto for factory, it just won't be as accurate as I'll have to guess at the powder.

 

[treeprof]

I like the convenience of carrying the same ammo for my rifle and handgun also. Too bad nobody makes a .30-.30

Magnum Research made a few BFR revolvers in .30-30. Gun Tests reviewed one:

http://www.gun-tests.com/pub/15_6/features/5088-1.html

 

[larryw]

Doesn't BFR stand for Broken Fingers and wRist?

 

[AZ Husker]

Oh Larry, best one of the day!!!

 

[Ron L]

I've owned one for around 16 years now. I've only ever had problems with some .38 wadcutter type rounds. I've worked up some handloads that also work well in my Dan Wesson that, as has been noted, are a different animal our of a carbine length barrel.

They're great guns. Low recoil, enough punch to have fun.