Gastro Gnome - Eat Better Wherever

Seeking input on a lever gun

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Sharp looking rifle, Jess.

A-5, you didn't buy that from a tall fellow named George, did you? My grandfather has been in AZ for a long time and found several firearms rockhounding.

Jeremy
 
That is a great-looking rifle. How do you rate the trigger? I never did like the one on a BLR that I had several years back.

The trigger is fantastic for a lever gun. It's the lightest stock trigger pull by far on any lever gun I've ever dry fired. I owned a lightweight BLR in 7mm-08 and the trigger was actually why I got rid of it. I also owned a couple of JM stamped Marlins a long time ago. One was a stainless 30-30 and one was a stainless 45-70 and both had the infamous "floppy" Marlin trigger that was IMO too heavy as well. My tikka and my x-bolt have much better triggers but I will not complain over this one. I would have looked at the BLR in 308 as well, but I don't like the twist rate of Brownings in 308. They all seem to be 1 in 12. The Henry has a 1 in 10 twist.
 
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Alright firearms folks--I'm primarily a bowhunter in Indiana where public land firearms rules are still pretty strict. Pistol caliber rifles, slug guns, and muzzleloaders are the primary allowances. I drew a state park deer reduction hunt, and cannot use a bow, so this may be my excuse to buy a new gun. I'm sharing this on this thread because two of the front-runners are lever action. The top three I have narrowed down to are the following in no particular order: Henry all-weather .44 mag lever action; Marlin Stainless 1894 again in .44 mag; or the Savage bolt action 20 gauge stainless. I want to shoot non-lead ammo, which will likely be Barnes Vor-TX 225 grain .44 mag, or Remington 5/8 oz. 20 gauge copper solid slugs (which come out to about .274 grains).

Please share your thoughts on these selections on effective range, and durability. The lever actions will look better, but the slug gun will look better with a scope (in my opinion) and I think I want a scope.
 
I just went through a lever gun build. I got a Marlin 1894 in 44 mag. Had the gun cerakoted and a nice recoil pad added. Happy trigger from WWG and had them tune the action. Sweet little gun for 100 yard whitetail gun. Fun to shoot and quick. Working on reloads now. It will be my son’s gun for the next couple years while I build him a 7mm-08.
 
Alright firearms folks--I'm primarily a bowhunter in Indiana where public land firearms rules are still pretty strict. Pistol caliber rifles, slug guns, and muzzleloaders are the primary allowances. I drew a state park deer reduction hunt, and cannot use a bow, so this may be my excuse to buy a new gun. I'm sharing this on this thread because two of the front-runners are lever action. The top three I have narrowed down to are the following in no particular order: Henry all-weather .44 mag lever action; Marlin Stainless 1894 again in .44 mag; or the Savage bolt action 20 gauge stainless. I want to shoot non-lead ammo, which will likely be Barnes Vor-TX 225 grain .44 mag, or Remington 5/8 oz. 20 gauge copper solid slugs (which come out to about .274 grains).

Please share your thoughts on these selections on effective range, and durability. The lever actions will look better, but the slug gun will look better with a scope (in my opinion) and I think I want a scope.

I've owned both the henry all weather and the savage 220. The henry is a nice looking gun but there is no checkering on the forearm. In my opinion, it is a slippery rifle to hold on to. It doesn't have a rubber grip...it's just stained walnut in a black finish. I was also getting light primer strikes with factory federal ammo. The savage 220 is an accurate gun, but the bolt in my opinion sucks. I've had more empty shells get hung up and dropped right back into the action, making the gun basically a single shot. The bolt is anything but smooth and you have to manhandle the bolt like you mean it to remove the empty. The magazine also has to be loaded just right for it to positively engage as well. There were too many things about both guns that I didn't like so I moved them both. I replaced them with a Taylor Alaskan takedown model in 44 mag. Skinner sights with fiber optic front and 20 barrel. The top eject makes it not a very scope worthy gun unless you get a scout scope (which it is drilled and tapped for) but I am using it with open sights.
 
I opt for the older Marlins. If .38-55s or .32-40s are legal, I would look no further. But will make 200 yd deer rifles. I would opt for .44-40 or .38-40 (a true 40 cal) or even a .45 volt or .357 mag before I would settle for a .44 mag. These guns are designed around rimmed cartridges for a reason.

This is an 1893 in .38-55. Two sets of sights provide zeros for 100 and 200 yds.
Antelope%202016%20Marlin%2093%2038-55%20small.jpg


1894s in the pistol calibers or a "real" 1895 in .45-70, if legal, are all great guns. Each can easily be modified for whatever you consider an ideal trigger, parts are easy to obtain, and the actions a simple to strip and clean or repair (something not true of Winchesters).

This is a 95 in .45-70 being rebuilt. They can be darn heavy guns.

95%20Marlin%20and%20Rusty%20left%20side.jpg
 
I've owned both the henry all weather and the savage 220. The henry is a nice looking gun but there is no checkering on the forearm. In my opinion, it is a slippery rifle to hold on to. It doesn't have a rubber grip...it's just stained walnut in a black finish. I was also getting light primer strikes with factory federal ammo. The savage 220 is an accurate gun, but the bolt in my opinion sucks. I've had more empty shells get hung up and dropped right back into the action, making the gun basically a single shot. The bolt is anything but smooth and you have to manhandle the bolt like you mean it to remove the empty. The magazine also has to be loaded just right for it to positively engage as well. There were too many things about both guns that I didn't like so I moved them both. I replaced them with a Taylor Alaskan takedown model in 44 mag. Skinner sights with fiber optic front and 20 barrel. The top eject makes it not a very scope worthy gun unless you get a scout scope (which it is drilled and tapped for) but I am using it with open sights.

I also own a Savage 220 and have taken a few deer with it in slug/ muzzleloader only zones. The area that I use it is all wooded, so I'll never never have to or be able to shoot over 150 yards likely. It is nice having the option to use a slug gun that for the most part shoots like a bolt action rifle. I enjoy it and love hunting with it, but as stated above, you have to be very deliberate about operating the bolt in order to properly eject a shell. Also have a Browning BPS (bottom ejecting) in 20 gauge that is fun to shoot as well.
 
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