.44/.45-70, Win vs Marlin

[Bigscot]

IIIIIfffff you received some extra spending money, and I'm not saying I did. And iiiiifffff you were looking for a new lever action, which I'm not. And iiiiifffff you were looking at either a .44 mag or .45-70 and iiiiifffff you were thinking about a Win or Marlin depending on cartridge and rifle twist. What would you choose and why?

[wills]

will they feed 500+ grn boolits?

[beagle]

Big Scot...Iffffin I found money, and iffin I didn't have one, my money would go towards a Marlin M1895 .45/70 with the ballard rifling.

Shoots (and feeds) anything from 300 grainers to the 462560 Thors Hammer.

Then, I'd look for a 45-405-FN RCBS mould and shoot 1-2" groups all day with it./beagle

[StarMetal]

I'll stick with my 1886 Browning carbine, it will do the same. I have receiver sights on it, so it's not as scopeable as a Marlin.

By the way with the same bullet mentioned, that 405 gr RCBS...great bullet.

Joe

[Maven]

BS, It's not hypothetical in my case as I own a Marlin #336 in .45-70 with Microgroove rifling. My friend has a Marlin #450 and his late brother a#336, also .45-70, but with Ballard rifling. If there was any difference in accuracy attributable to the rifling, I didn't see it (I shot all 3.). And yes, the Marlin will feed a wide range of CB weights. One advantage of the Marlin v. Winchester is that you can clean the former from the breech, which saves wear & tear on the muzzle. That's particularly important if you wish to use black powder or some BP substitutes (Pyrodex) since you need to thoroughly clean the rifle (and empty cartridges) afterwards. In sum, go for the Marlin: They are accurate rifles.

[Bass Ackward]

IIIIIfffff you received some extra spending money, and I'm not saying I did. And iiiiifffff you were looking for a new lever action, which I'm not. And iiiiifffff you were looking at either a .44 mag or .45-70 and iiiiifffff you were thinking about a Win or Marlin depending on cartridge and rifle twist. What would you choose and why?

Scott,

All depends on what you want to do with it and the limitations you set for the gun.

For me it is very simple. A lever is a fast action companion to a side arm of the same caliber. Period.

I .... don't think I would be a blammin and a jackin with a 45-70. I would prefer a good single shot or bolt for that. And a 45-70 wheeler is more of a novelty piece than a practical side arm.

So now that I have focussed on the 44, which model has the rifling twist rate to have the flexibility to shoot a wider variety of bullets? Winchester. Which one is the better built arm? Probably the Marlin.

So what's important to you?

[Bigscot]

If I were looking for such a thing I would probably use it for a carry, hunting, plinking toy. I know the .45-70 would not be much of a plinking toy but I shot a Marlin a guy at the range had at about 1600 fps and it was pleasant to shoot. I already shoot and reload for the .44 mag so if I looking to get something then I might lean that way. However I am intrigued by the .45-70 and think it would be fun to play with. I would probably shoot almost exclusively lead in it.

Bigscot

[Maineboy]

45-70s are fun to play with. When I bought my Marlin 1895 I did it with the intention of shooting cast in it. Up until then, my only boolit casting and shooting involved revolvers. I discovered the old shooters board about that same time and gots lots of good advice, abut I also picked up some new diversions. I sent for my C&R license so now have umpteen milsurp rifles with a few lever actions thrown in. I spend so much time with them, I hardly shoot the 45-70 anymore, but it still is my primary hunting rifle. As for moulds, the Lee 405 grain FP has served me well, but after listening to these guys for years, I finally ordered the RCBS 405 grain mould but haven't fired more than 25 of those boolits yet.

[shooter2]

Big Scot...Iffffin I found money, and iffin I didn't have one, my money would go towards a Marlin M1895 .45/70 with the ballard rifling.

Shoots (and feeds) anything from 300 grainers to the 462560 Thors Hammer.

Then, I'd look for a 45-405-FN RCBS mould and shoot 1-2" groups all day with it./beagle
Ditto. I dumped my Legacy .44 magnum, but the Marlin is a real shooter.

[JDL]

Bigscot,
I think the Marlin 1894 in .44 would be what I would pick, one of the earlier ones without the stinking safety on them. Cost effecient on reloads and should be a lot of fun to shoot or hunt with.
I had, until very recently, an early Marlin 1895 that probably hadn't had over 100 rounds through it for the past 25 years. It shot well enough but, I didn't like the way it carried while hunting, kind of clubby feeling. I much perfer to hunt with my Browning B-78, if using .45-70, so I sold it.-JDL

[Four Fingers of Death]

I have a 45/70 Marlin, which I 've had for a few years and a brand new stainless steel 44Mag Rossi and a mint 375 Big Bore and Ihave travelling around the state with work and can't get any casting done, Bummer!

I was considering selling the 45/70, but after listening to you guys, I might keep it.

Ps forgot to mention, have a Bowning BPCR as well, which hasn't seen more than twenty or so Jacketed rounds, which is screaming out for some cast slugs, I have two custom made aussie CBE moulds for this rifle.

One day!

[Ed Barrett]

Have you thought of a "Short 45/70" the Puma model 92 clone .454 mag lever gun? You can load it up to factory 45/70 load energy and have a hand gun to match. You can also load it down to CAS 45LC energy for plinking and target work. Shoots cast like a dream, and pretty reasonably priced. Take a look at one and try it out if you can, and let us know what you think.

[Rrusse11]

IIIIIfffff you received some extra spending money, and I'm not saying I did. And iiiiifffff you were looking for a new lever action, which I'm not. And iiiiifffff you were looking at either a .44 mag or .45-70 and iiiiifffff you were thinking about a Win or Marlin depending on cartridge and rifle twist. What would you choose and why?

Scot,
Marlin of course,,,,, and go the 24" CB,,,,, ballard cut. I'm lovin' my Casullized 45. Still workin' on loads. 22gr of 2400 under the Lee 250RF is ~ 1560fps with 2" on a gusty day at a hunnert yards today. Very pleasant to shoot. Yet capable of pushin' 300gr to 2000fps.
I gotta' confess I picked up a box of Hornady .452" 240gr XTPMags today , see if I can't get them to 2100-2200fps.
And have to cast some more of the Saeco C-255-452-SWC 's,,,,, great moulds btw!
Cheers,
R*2

[Ranch Dog]

Bigscot...

I have a Marlin 336-44. They were chambered in the mid 60's for the 336 frame rather than the 1894. That's what I would look for.

[Four Fingers of Death]

The 454s sound really cool. Paco Kelly had some special loads on an artice on bullseye powder on sixgunner.com. He loaded the heaviest boolits with as much lube as you could get on them ahead of a tiny amount of bullseye. I started with 3 grains and kept dropping it back until they stuck in the bore. Back up to the next level and they are scooting faster than you can throw them and are as quiet as all get out. I shot at a nasty big tom cat who was bothering my chooks, I hadn't time to zero them exactly (using the BPCR with big tang sights). Grazed him and hit the corner post of my chook shed, shattering it and causing the shed to tip over with a hell of a noise about 6" until the floor hit the ground. Screech from the cat as he high tailed it out of there and he has neer been sighted since. Great fun!

You have gotta have at least one punkin roller and my favourite is the good old Govermint 45/70.