thinking about lever gun.....but have questions.

[45fan]

Hello all, I recently bought my first revolver a 44mag S&W 629 classic and though I haven't started casting for it yet I will be soon. Well now I want a 44 mag lever action rifle, but I dont know anything about them. I am a 1911 guy and always will be, I love my 45's. I have no experience with lever action rifles and really dont know where to start or what to look for or avoid. A quick internet search and I have found that there are several calibers to choose from in a lever action rifle but I know I want it in 44 mag. I plan on using this gun for a little of everything, from hunting hogs, to light 44 special loads for the kids and grand kids to plink with when they are old enough to do so, to punching holes in paper, as well as another gun that can be used for home defense (though I do have a shotgun that would be first choice for that scenario). I see most have 20 inch barrel others 24, is there an advantage to 24 over 20 inch? From the little research I have done I seem to be drawn to the Marlin and Henry Big Boy but I am sure there are other out there I have yet to even find.

Will I be able to cast the same boolits in both my 629 and rifle or are there differences that will require a mold for the 629 and another for the rifle? I welcome any and all comments, as I said I have no experience with lever action rifles so I want to learn all I can so in a few months I can make a wise and informed decision on what to get. I would really like to hear from those who have or had several different lever action rifles, of 20 ad 24 inch barrels, and particularly in 44 mag. I have had other questions answered here on the forum by you fine folks and I know I will learn a lot, thanks all.

[BCRider]

One of the big advantages of a pistol caliber lever is that it's light and compact to carry or otherwise transport. As such I'd say that a 20 inch version is pretty much the happy medium. Also a 20 inch rifle will have a long enough magazine tube to hold an honest 10 rounds which makes it applicable to use in Cowboy Action events later on if you go that route. Or even if you don't it makes the rifle far more sell'able due to fitting into the CAS event.

Lots of folks like the Marlins and lots like their Rossi/Puma copies of the Winchester 1892. Me? I went Rossi.

There seems to be a lot more complaints about the Rossi quality control lately. But if you buy in person you can ask to inspect and dry cycle the actual rifle to check for external fit and finish and test for smoothness of operating the lever.

If the outside is good but the action feels a trifle tight or gritty it's still not a bad way to go. Owners report that they break in nicely. Or you can send it off to one of the local gunsmiths that specializes in doing action jobs on these guns to go over it lightly just to smoothen it up in the basic ways without making it super slick like the cowboy action types seem to like. The list implies deburring and lightly "cresting" the internal edges and surfaces and swapping the main and ejector springs with softer options. The resulting gun will surely make you smile when you shoot it. And best of all is that even with buying a NEW Rossi and paying the smith to perform his magic it'll still be a lot cheaper than the cost of a decent used Marlin.

At least that's my thinking on it from where I sit.

[Dan Cash]

For choice of maker, I would make it Rossi M92 then pre Remington Marlin 94. I hold a rather low opinion of the Henry guns. The 20 inch barrel is a bit handier to handle in close quarters, the 24 points better when in the dark and holds more ammo; the longer sight radius makes accurate shooting easier too. Either one will work well for home defense. Buy your rifle before you buy your mould. Slug the bores of both rifle and revolver then buy the mould to fit the larger bore as long as the bullet thrown by the mould will feed through the rifle magazine. I have a number of Marlin rifles but in pistol caliber lever guns in the .44 Mag power range, the Rossi M92/Puma 92 is hands down my choice.

[M-Tecs]

I you can find one for a reasonable price the old Browning 92’s IMHO are the finest 92 ever made. The one caveat is that the bores on the 44 tend to run large. Generally not an issue with jacketed bullets but for cast you may need a larger boolit than your 629.

[Doc65]

I just picked one of those up 2 weeks ago tomorrow, it was "New Unfired" at the time, though the stock(s) do have a few rack dings, but overall beautiful.. Needless to say, it is no longer unfired(yes I realize it wasn't REALLY unfired as the factory puts proof rounds thru them, 3 of them if I remember correctly). Much prettier than my LSI/Rossi(which in turn is much nicer than the Taurus ones that I've seen) also in 44, but the Rossi is SO much smoother action, of course that might have a bit to do the the spring kit I put in & all the polishing I did on it. Now I'm debating working over the Browning...

I you can find one for a reasonable price the old Browning 92’s IMHO are the finest 92 ever made. The one caveat is that the bores on the 44 tend to run large. Generally not an issue with jacketed bullets but for cast you may need a larger boolit than your 629.

[6pt-sika]

I've owned a rack load of Marlin's in variouse calibers . And of those four were chambered for the 44 MAG . A pair of them were built on the Marlin 1894 action and the other two were the old Marlin 336-44 using the longer 336 action , both those guns were made in 1967 and they would shoot well at 100 yards with cast bullets . But then so would the two 1894's I had !

I no longer won a 44 MAG lever action but I still have and old Ruger 44R semi auto .

I also no longer own the S&W 629 4" I used to have . But in the later years of that 629 I liked carrying it with a circa 1966 Marlin 444 I had cut down to a 19" barrel !

So personally I liked what I called my 1966 Retro 444P carried with the 4" 629 !

[6pt-sika]

I've owned a rack load of Marlin's in variouse calibers . And of those four were chambered for the 44 MAG . A pair of them were built on the Marlin 1894 action and the other two were the old Marlin 336-44 using the longer 336 action , both those guns were made in 1967 and they would shoot well at 100 yards with cast bullets . But then so would the two 1894's I had !

I no longer won a 44 MAG lever action but I still have and old Ruger 44R semi auto .

I also no longer own the S&W 629 4" I used to have . But in the later years of that 629 I liked carrying it with a circa 1966 Marlin 444 I had cut down to a 19" barrel !

So personally I liked what I called my 1966 Retro 444P carried with the 4" 629 !

Of the 4 Marlin's I had that were 44 MAG the two older ones had 20" barrels , one of the 1894's had a 24" octagon barrel and the other 1894 had a 16 1/4" ported barrel . I liked them all but the two 336's with the 20" pipes felt the best in my hands .

As to the Rossi?Puma 1892 copies they never caught my eye . I purchased a Puma 92 that was new in the 480 Ruger caliber . After recieveing it , it stayed in my safe for about a year or two and I sold it to someone for what I had in it still unfired since I got it brand new . I realize other folks like them and rave about them and maybe rightly so . But the gun never caught my eye period . The Browning 92's didn't either although I have bought and sold a couple of them and nope never fired them . As to a Marlin if I were you and wanted one I'd look for a nice used one from about pre 2006 or so rather then getting one of the new Remlington ones . And again there's alot of folks that like the Remington made Marlin's , for me I prefer the older ones . But I'll say the same thing about Remington guns and Winchester rifles . For me now Marlin's should be Pre 1973 , emington's Pre 1995 and Winchester Pre 1964 . But again thats just me different strokes for different folks !

[shdwlkr]

Well I used to have a bunch or around 7-8 levers only one had a 20 inch barrel. The longer ones felt better to me and seemed to fit me better. As to which to buy that is a personal thing. Mine that I had were mostly winchesters from early 1900's up to the japan models. I agree I like the older ones better but the newer ones fired nicely too.
Someday maybe I can find spare cash to start buying some again, if we are still allowed to have any that is. For now I buy ammo and friends let me shoot theirs just so I don't forget how much fun it is.

[ironhead7544]

You will need to find a bullet that will feed in the rifle. Some can be very fussy. My Rossi Short Rifle in 44 Mag will feed most bullets but the truncated cone ones work the slickest. Practically any bullet will work in the revolver. You will have to work up loads that will be good in both. Not usually much of a problem. Most J-word bullets will work nicely in both if you want to go that way.

[6pt-sika]

In a 44MAG or 444 Marlin for that matter the Ranch Dog 432-240GC or 432-265GC would be about perfect . And after having shot a good many of both in both cartridges I can say they feed nicely !

In the 44 MAG my rifle loads were a pain to shoot in that little 629 or an original circa 1957 Ruger Blackhawk Flattop I had in 44 MAG . So for me to shoot what both liked best I needed two different loads . Hence I saw no problem with having the 629 as a companion gun for my shortie 444 !

In the Marlin 44 MAG's I had my loads for them were ,

RD 432-240GC with 25 grains H110
RD 432-265GC with 23 grains H110
RD 432-300GC with 21 grains H110

All of those were to stout for the 629 and Blackhawk as far as comfortable shooting is considered but they shot great in the Marlin lever guns .

[sparky45]

I'm in the market for a New (to me) Lever gun, but I can't decide on caliber. Migrating more to the 357/38 caliber and probably to a Rossi 92. Any pro's or con's? Going to be used simply as a plinker.

[rush1886]

I have a Rossi 92, with a 24" barrel. I like it. A lot of folks prefer the shorter tubes, for ease of getting in and out of the truck, packing thru dense timber/brush, etc. I find I can tolerate the transportation issues ok, in trade for that good extra weight out front, helping me to steady down on target quicker and smoother.

Mine digests most cast bullets ok. I've played with Lyman 429421 and the RCBS 240SWC with no problems at all. Also an Accurate Molds 265gr swc, I forget the actual number at the moment, feeds and shoots quite well. The Lyman 429244 however is a problem child. It shoots great, but has definite feed problems. It is, by my best guess, about .01" too long, to reliably cycle from tube to chamber. All of these will shoot well in my Super Blackhawk as well, but I've yet to find THE ONE load which shoots equally between the two. But that's half the fun isn't it?

If you have any buddies with levers, select a couple with different barrel lengths and spend an afternoon at the range. IMHO, I would weight this experience far and above any concerns about vehicle loading or timber/brush carry. Most levers I've ever handled have a sort of natural carry feel to them. The target acquisition is far more important. Unless of course the only thing you intend to shoot is beer cans.

[Jack Stanley]

While I like my 336-44 , I find the older I get the harder it is to focus well on the front sight . Having a longer barrel would help a bit unless you eyes age better than most of us . Of course if you are going to use optics this won't matter at all huh?

Jack

[northmn]

A lot are recommending the Rossi 92. I had one and it was fun in 357, and only got rid of it because I picked up a 32-20 Marlin. The 92 is a nice light little rifle to bang around with and I liked it on the 4 wheeler and tractor. My drawbacks were that first I had to file down the rear sight to hit anything with it and then work over the forearm as it's groups wanted to walk. The Marlin wears a peep sight and fiber optic front so I see the front sight and actually shoot it better. I had to work over the forearm fit with my old 35 Marlin so stuff happens now and then.
Advantages of a Marlin are that they come drilled for either a peep sight or a scope. A Rossi would need drilling for either. Rossi's in 357 are available, and darn scarce in Marlins. As to the 44's the local candy store has a Remlin and I really would not hestitate to buy one if I had any desire for one. Personally I wish I would not ahve bothered with the 32-20 as a 30-30 carbine will do about anything I want using case bullets adn is more powerful than the 357 anyway. As to a 44, never had a use for one in a rifle, although I can see their attraction to some, especially with the ability to use a vaariety of loads.

DP

[45fan]

Thanks for the info all. I guess I will just have to keep doing a little research and try to get to the range on one of the weekends they have cowboy action shooting and pick some brains there. Hard part is getting up in time to get over there. Working night shift and cowboy action matches are in the morning sure make it tough to ask questions and pick brains.

Keep comments and experiences coming all, still like to hear as much on the subject as I can from people with experience with different 44 mag lever guns.

[x101airborne]

I handed my marlin 44 mag down to my son to hunt hogs with. It worked great with a wfp (Ranch Dog 300 grainer). SWC's gave tempermental feeding issues, and some like the long nosed SWC's could run into some overall length issues. The marlin packs a real whollop. I now have a Ruger 77/44 and the old Ruger 44 mag semi auto. Both are lighter to carry and a little shorter, but dont have the magazine capacity of the marlin. And also, the autoloader means you have to chase brass.
For strictly a levergun, I would definately recommend the marlin. I know it is a little more expensive, but I think it is worth it. The rossi's are nice, but sights and scope mounts are a real pain IMO. As for molds, if you can find a RNFP or a WFN in .432 or larger diamater and weighing in between 250 and 300 grains, that would be best. I am currently using plain base boolits in my two rifles and my son's rifle stays with the Ranch Dog 300. The RD 300 was lazer accurate out of my Ruger Redhawk (old style, not super redhawk) and that pistol will probably go to my son also as they were intended as a working pair.

[6pt-sika]

I now have a Ruger 77/44 and the old Ruger 44 mag semi auto. Both are lighter to carry and a little shorter, but dont have the magazine capacity of the marlin. And also, the autoloader means you have to chase brass.

Don't have a 77-44 but I have had several 44R's in the past and now have my maternal grnadfathers 44R . I don't plan on running cast thru it . As far as chasing brass I use the les expensive Winchester American something or other ammo loaded with a 240 gr jacketed stuff . I was able to pick up a few hundred rounds a couple years ago cheap and it shoots in 2" at 100 yards . So thats plenty good for this little rifle . And I just let the brass fly if I'm hunting . At the bench it easy to congine it with a carboard box .

[smithywess]

Here's a nice Marlin for $1100.00 Canadian dollars. Not sure if this would come through your 'Homeland Security'. It's had an action job and has a nice 24" barrel which would give you more velocity, and accuracy, than the carbine length of 20".


http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum...-Limited-44Mag

[6pt-sika]

It's had an action job and has a nice 24" barrel which would give you more velocity, and accuracy, than the carbine length of 20".

I'll buy the 24" barrel giving more velocity and even more accuracy PROVIDED you are using open sights or peep sights .

But ........................ if you're using a scope your accuracy won't always be better just because you have a longer barrel .

If a person wants to shoot iron sights exclusively or peeps thats great and I'm all for them . But when it's time to work up loads go to the bench and use a scope if it's possible . Working up loads isn't about finding out how well THE PERSON can shoot but rather how well the gun can perform so with that being said shoot off the bags and with a good clear scope and take as much human ERROR out of the equation as possible .

[Cowboy T]

If you can find one, a Ruger 96/44 is a terrific lever-action in .44 Magnum. You think the older Winchester actions are slick? Bill Ruger really did it right with the 96/44. Think of it as an improved Savage 99. Like the Savage 99, the 96/44 isn't eligible for CAS competitions, but for a woods hunting gun or something just plain fun to shoot, this rifle's hard to beat. And being a Ruger...well, Rugers are known for their durability for a reason.

A Rossi is also a good choice. They do need some breaking in, but just cycle the action 100x every night for a couple of weeks, and that'll help slick it up.