Scout Rifle....Cowboy Guns....????

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Bronx

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So.....

I'm looking for a light, fast to handle rifle. General purpose.

What is the advantage of the M1A or Steyr Scout over a Winchester model 92 or 94?

The M1a seems heavy at 9.5#'s. The Steyr seems to be a nice package. But why bother when you can get a lever action 92 0r 94?

I guess it could be said that the lever actions are the original "scout" type rifles.

I'm by no means highly informed on the subject so please enlighten me.

Thanks,

Martin

P.S. My only rifle at the moment is a Model 700 BDL in .308.
 
The M1a is not NYC legal - I am in manhattan

My scout rifle is a Marlin 1894 -the gun is PC - not an evil black gun - 16inch bbl - 44mag - Leupold Scout scope - great home and hunting gun - I can carry it all day. For home self defence I use 44spl ammo - out doors I use 44mag - light kick accuate and very light. I can reload quick - top off mag as needed.
I want to pick up the savage scout in 308 for longer range shooting - I think its a better gun than the Steyer and a lot less money.
 
seanie! said:
Yes.
Click to expand...
Seanie, Thanks for the confirmation. I haven't been shooting for quite some time and have been considering a .357 wheel gun as a pistol. The idea of using .38 across the board is appealing. With that being said is it worth while to shoot .38 with a 92?
 
charlie505 said:
The M1a is not NYC legal - I am in manhattan

My scout rifle is a Marlin 1894 -the gun is PC - not an evil black gun - 16inch bbl - 44mag - Leupold Scout scope - great home and hunting gun - I can carry it all day. For home self defence I use 44spl ammo - out doors I use 44mag - light kick accuate and very light. I can reload quick - top off mag as needed.
I want to pick up the savage scout in 308 for longer range shooting - I think its a better gun than the Steyer and a lot less money.
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Hey Charlie,

M1a is not legal? What's the particular reason?
 
M1A is considered an assault rifle - it can not be capable fo more than 5 rounds - they trust us to keep 5rnders in a Mini - but not an ARs/M1 Carbines/AKs/M1a/or an M1 Garand - they change laws as they go along.

Even a 10/22 has to have a 5rnd mag - NYC is nuts!!!
 
An M1A is not illegal in NYC nor is it considered an assault rifle as it does not fall under the following
It is unlawful to possess or dispose of an "assault weapon," which is defined as any semiautomatic rifle or shotgun which has one or more of the following features: folding or telescopic stock or no stock, conspicuously protruding pistol grip, bayonet mount, flash suppressor or threaded barrel designed to accommodate a flash suppressor, barrel shroud, grenade launcher, or modification of such features, or other features determined by the police commissioner to be suitable for military and not sporting purposes. The commissioner shall by rule designate specific semiautomatic rifles or shotguns as "assault weapons." "Assault weapon" also includes any revolving shotgun or part intended to convert a rifle or shotgun into an "assault weapon."
Click to expand...
 
Here is my two cents.

The M1A is heavy and big. I had a Scout Squad and it was fun and accurate, but just to big for anyone in my family to shoot but me.

I also had a Ruger Frontier which is similar to a Styer in some ways. I know the purest would point out all the differences, but the general idea of the rifle is the same. I liked this rifle, but could not get used to the forward mounted scope. It works fine in midday light, but in the morning and afternoon the scope was extremely difficult to use. I found a low power, standard mounted scope was just as fast and worked in all lighting conditions.

I ended up mostly keeping leverguns around. Here are some things I learned. I have several pistol caliber leverguns. They are fun, but sometimes are difficult to cycle because of the straight wall design of the cases. The .44 seems to work best of all the pistol rounds. The .30-30 seems to be the best compromise. It is more than powerful enough for just about any situation. You have a vast ammunition supply and endless choices for just about any kind of shooting you may do. The rifle itself is very low key and draws no attention in the woods. The shape of the cartridge lends itself to smooth feeding and extraction.

Of your three choices, I would pick a .30-30 lever action. I would look hard at the Marlin 336. The Winchester is a bit handier, but the Marlin is still produced and supported with lots of aftermarket goodies.

Hope this helps,

Mattt
 
Deckard - I live in NYC - any mag fed weapon with a potential capacity of more than 5 rounds is considered an assault weapon - The mini14 is ok with 5 round mags only as is the 10/22. I had to modify with epoxy my marlin mags from 7 rounds to 5 rounds

http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/downloads/pdf/permits/rifle_shotgun_permit_application_20080828.pdf

This part leaves it up to the anti-gun police commisioner - they are trying to include bolt and lever actions to the 5 round rule - handguns are 10 rounds max
7. Modifications of such features, or other features determined by rule of the Police Commissioner to
be particularly suitable for military and not sporting purposes. In addition, the Police Commissioner
may, in such rules, designate specific semiautomatic centerfire or rimfire rifles or semiautomatic
shotguns, identified by make, model and/or manufacturer’s name, as within the definition of assault
weapon, if the Police Commissioner determines that such weapons are particularly suitable for
military and not sporting purposes.
(b) Any shotguns with a revolving cylinder magazine.
(c) Any part, or combination of parts, designed or intended to readily convert a rifle or shotgun into anassault weapon.
EXAMPLES OF ASSAULT WEAPONS THAT ARE BANNED
ALL AK-47s & All AR-15s
Armalite AR-180
Australian LIAIA & 223SAC
Beretta AR-70, BM-59
Beretta Light 50, 82AL
Calico M-900, M-100
Daewoo Max 1 & 2
DMAX C90, C100, C450
Dragunov Sniper Rifle
Encom, MK-1V
Fabrique FN/FAL, LAR, FNC
Fal Type 1-2-4
Famas Maas-223
Feather AT-9 & AT-22
Federal Eng. Corp XC 220,450, 900 A.C.
Franchi Law Spas 12
Goncz High Tech Carbine
Heckler & Koch 91, 93, 94
Israeli – All UZIs
Iver Johnson PM 30P
Norinco NMD86 Sniper Rifle
Polytech Ind. M-14s
PSG-1 rifles G3, SA
Ruger Mini 14/5F
SIG 57 AMT & PE-57, BM-59
SIG 550, 551 S.P.
Springfield BM-59, SAR 48&58 &3, M-1A
Sterling MK-6
Steyr Daimler Pusch AUG-SA
Valmet Corp. M-76, 78 SA
Weaver Arms Corp. Nighthawk
 
you can use surplus ammo for self defense - still cheaper than 30-30 hunting ammo

I use 147gr FMJ for defnse and 165 gr BTJHP for long range and 180 gr for hunting out of my 308 rifle
 
BTW I'm a southpaw, are lever actions considered ambidextrous?

Thanks all for the fast good information!
 
A top eject, half cock only safety, lever action is the most ambi rifle I can think of and even with a side eject and a safety button they are quite friendly to lefties...

The big difference(besides action type) between levers and the other guns you list in your first post is the detachable mag and ability to shoot different bullet shapes in .308.
 
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Shadow Man said:
Marlin lever-actions are right side ejectors, Winchester 94's are top ejection, so they should be fine for whichever shoulder.
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Hey Shadow Man,

I've been looking at the Winchester 94. From what I understand WCF has traded hands a few times and I am wondering if their build quality is up to their classic reputations snuff?

Are the receivers milled from a forged or cast billet?
 
Lever actions can be extremely effective tactical firearms. They can be topped off easily, the pistol caliber carbines have almost no recoil or flash, and they're very fast and natural in the hand. Folks have run them through the paces at Thunder Ranch, and of course they proved themselves in the real world long before we were crawling.
 
I've been looking at the Winchester 94. From what I understand WCF has traded hands a few times and I am wondering if their build quality is up to their classic reputations snuff?

Are the receivers milled from a forged or cast billet?
Click to expand...

I personally own a 94 in .30-30 that was built in the 80's, I believe. Hand-me-down from my Korea-Vietnam War veteran grandfather. It was moderately used when I recieved it, and I have personally put over 1k rounds through it. It is still in top-notch condition, with no parts wear or breakages. It is my ranch/truck gun, due to its simplicity, ease of action, and natural pointability.

Never having had experience with any of the newer 94's, my advice would be to find a used one, and thank your lucky stars. I have heard that the newer ones are just as good as the older ones, but I have no first-hand experience with that.

Pre-64 recievers are forged, while post are not, I believe. I also was jsut informed that Winchester is planning on a limited run of 1894's in 2010. As Cosmoline said, they are great tactical rifles, just be sure to practice alot with one, as it is very easy to short-stroke the action when you're stressed.

Scratch my '94 being from the '80's...just did a search on the serial number, apparantly it was manufactured in 1952. Well well...never would have guessed.
 
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i got a Marlin 1894, in .357 Mag, for just that use. i went even more PC and got the CB model with the octagon barrel. it's for anything the 2.5" S&W M-66 won't handle...nod to "Hec Ramsey"

i prefer the more solid construction of the Marlin to the open-topped Winchester. i looked into the Browning, but the short throw of it's lever threw off my natural motion
 
I just bought an M1A Scout yesterday. Took to the range today. Open sights hit 1" groups at 25 yards. It is not a particularly light gun but I got it mainly for the larger magazine capacity. It has the ability to perform fast follow up shots but I'd be needing a good deal more practice before I can control it effectively doing that.

M1A_scout_.jpg

If you want a light quick handling semi-auto carbine consider the Remington 7400C. They weight 7.25 lbs. I have one in 30-06 (they make several calibers) and it does 1" scoped groups @100 yards. Only reason I wasn't satisfied with it is due to the 5 round magazine capacity. I empty that out way too fast.

lgsil_7400s.jpg
 
I am a lefty too. I have no problem with leverguns. They are about as ambidexterous as you can.

Most of the Winchesters are good guns. They did make some funky ones in the 70's with an alloy type receiver. I would stay away from those. The best of the most recent models are the "Pre-64" style rifles. Most modern Winchester are angle eject, but again you will be fine.

Surplus .308 is cheaper, but is not always available. 30-30 runs about 10 bucks for 20 around here. HSM used to make some good police practice rounds that were about 7 bucks per 20.

Here is an example of what's out there:

http://www.midwayusa.com/browse/Bro...3&categoryId=7530&categoryString=653***690***
 
another qestion what caliber do you want it in? i like the old .30-30 but its not really a long range gun like a .444 or .308
 
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