JustsayMo
Member
My Reputations PAYS off!
My local gun pusher knows I have at thing for Marlins so when he came into a collection of another Marlin enthusiast, I got a call...
Lacking the funds to fully exercise my addiction I was limited to one. The one I took home was one I've had my eye out for a while, an 1897 Cowboy. The older I get, the more I appreciate longer barrels and the rimfire Cowboy seems like jut the ticket for levergun silhouette matches.
The previous owner purchased the 1999 vintage 1897 CB new and said he figures he has 200 rounds through it. He had not fired it for years and figured it was time to find it a new home where it would get some use. I gladly signed up for the job.
Owners of these things tend to be proud of them and there haven't been many in my price range when they are available. Well, yesterday was my lucky day... and thank God I have a wife that will extend my credit line with only minimal begging...
First impressions, I love how this rifle hefts. It feels solid and stable. Looking down the barrel, aligning the sights the front bead just hangs on the target. It cycles and ejects both 22lr and 22 long rounds smoothly and easily.
Unable to leave it un-shot I took it too a shooting emporium to see what it would do. I'm not a real fan of the Marbles open sights or the HUGE bead on the front sight but it did show immediate accuracy promise both from the sitting and offhand positions. Within 10 shots I had the sights adjusted and it was printing where I pointed it.
Federal (Bulk) Champion ammo
Later I ran a few brands over the chronograph and had some interesting results.
Federal (Bulk) Champion = 1156 fps avg
Comparatively my Century limited (20") spits this out at 1204 fps avg. The CB seems to shoot it more consistently - narrower extreme spread and lower standard deviation. This ammo seems to shoot well in all of my Marlins including this one.
Aguila SE Subsonic = 972 fps avg
This ammo generally shoots VERY well in all of my rimfire firearms. I've not seen it often lately and when I have it is more than double the price it used to be.
It did show promising accuracy but it almost always took two strikes of the firing pin to set it off. This is was also true of my 39 TDS with the rebounding hammer though the ratio of first time firings was much better than it is with my new CB. 
I have an idea of what it might be and I will test that ASAP and let you know if the correction worked.
39 Century Ltd = 1024 fps (high 1044, low 1003)
39A average 984 (high 1000, low 937.2)
Mountie average 994 (high 1023, low 984)
TDS average 1007 fps (high 1024, low 993)
CCI CB Longs = 602 fps
I have tried this in a number of rifles and handguns with very little success. It would make a great nearly silent backyard vermin control round if it were more accurate. Unfortunately at 25 yard this round gets me a 3" group. It also prints notably higher than the Federal zero at short range. It is VERY quiet out of the 24" barrel and there is a noticeable gap in the muzzle report and the impact on the target. About 1/3 of these rounds required two strikes of the hammer to fire as well...
The 39 Century Ltd shoots these 686 fps avg, the Mountie = 675, the 39A (24" barrel too) = 677 fps, and the 16" TDS shot them at 668 (and fairly accurately too)
Winchester Xpert22 =1119 fps
This round shows some accuracy promise too in this rifle. Again, compared to the 39 Century Ltd. it shot them 100 fps SLOWER ...
Overall I am pleased. The cross bolt safety will take some getting used to, as will the checkered stocks. I believe I can correct the light strike issue to get it to fire the Aquila ammo more reliably. I'm thinking it is a keeper! More testing to come.
My local gun pusher knows I have at thing for Marlins so when he came into a collection of another Marlin enthusiast, I got a call...
Lacking the funds to fully exercise my addiction I was limited to one. The one I took home was one I've had my eye out for a while, an 1897 Cowboy. The older I get, the more I appreciate longer barrels and the rimfire Cowboy seems like jut the ticket for levergun silhouette matches.
The previous owner purchased the 1999 vintage 1897 CB new and said he figures he has 200 rounds through it. He had not fired it for years and figured it was time to find it a new home where it would get some use. I gladly signed up for the job.
Owners of these things tend to be proud of them and there haven't been many in my price range when they are available. Well, yesterday was my lucky day... and thank God I have a wife that will extend my credit line with only minimal begging...
First impressions, I love how this rifle hefts. It feels solid and stable. Looking down the barrel, aligning the sights the front bead just hangs on the target. It cycles and ejects both 22lr and 22 long rounds smoothly and easily.
Unable to leave it un-shot I took it too a shooting emporium to see what it would do. I'm not a real fan of the Marbles open sights or the HUGE bead on the front sight but it did show immediate accuracy promise both from the sitting and offhand positions. Within 10 shots I had the sights adjusted and it was printing where I pointed it.
Federal (Bulk) Champion ammo
Later I ran a few brands over the chronograph and had some interesting results.
Federal (Bulk) Champion = 1156 fps avg
Comparatively my Century limited (20") spits this out at 1204 fps avg. The CB seems to shoot it more consistently - narrower extreme spread and lower standard deviation. This ammo seems to shoot well in all of my Marlins including this one.
Aguila SE Subsonic = 972 fps avg
This ammo generally shoots VERY well in all of my rimfire firearms. I've not seen it often lately and when I have it is more than double the price it used to be.
It did show promising accuracy but it almost always took two strikes of the firing pin to set it off. This is was also true of my 39 TDS with the rebounding hammer though the ratio of first time firings was much better than it is with my new CB. I have an idea of what it might be and I will test that ASAP and let you know if the correction worked.39 Century Ltd = 1024 fps (high 1044, low 1003)
39A average 984 (high 1000, low 937.2)
Mountie average 994 (high 1023, low 984)
TDS average 1007 fps (high 1024, low 993)
CCI CB Longs = 602 fps
I have tried this in a number of rifles and handguns with very little success. It would make a great nearly silent backyard vermin control round if it were more accurate. Unfortunately at 25 yard this round gets me a 3" group. It also prints notably higher than the Federal zero at short range. It is VERY quiet out of the 24" barrel and there is a noticeable gap in the muzzle report and the impact on the target. About 1/3 of these rounds required two strikes of the hammer to fire as well...
The 39 Century Ltd shoots these 686 fps avg, the Mountie = 675, the 39A (24" barrel too) = 677 fps, and the 16" TDS shot them at 668 (and fairly accurately too)
Winchester Xpert22 =1119 fps
This round shows some accuracy promise too in this rifle. Again, compared to the 39 Century Ltd. it shot them 100 fps SLOWER ...
Overall I am pleased. The cross bolt safety will take some getting used to, as will the checkered stocks. I believe I can correct the light strike issue to get it to fire the Aquila ammo more reliably. I'm thinking it is a keeper! More testing to come.
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