Henry Big Boy or Marlin 1894 (.45 Colt)

[hylander]

OK, I had kinda decided on a new Marlin 1894.
However I can pick up a nice used Henry Big Boy cheaper.
Marlin Pro's:
Brand new, everything looks great and side gate loader.
Cons: About $860 OTD
Questionable C/S sometimes.

Used Henry Pros:
About $275 cheaper OTD
Beautiful wood, fit and finish
Only about 50 rounds fired
Great C/S
Cons:
Tube Fed, 2lb. heavier than the Marlin
A few light marks on the wood from handling
Dirty bore

Help me out here.
Accuracy is my most important concern.
Mostly shooting cast loads but also want to shoot stout hunting loads

[MyFlatline]

I am very pleased with the accuracy of my Henry BBS 45C

[missionary5155]

Good morning
First time you set off a 300= grainer at 1700 fps you will be very happy the "heavy" Henry already put a good recoil pad on that rifle that cost you 1/2 of the Marlin.
Mike in Peru

[Jeff Michel]

Have both, prefer the Marlin.

[Efin]

Had the Marlin been a JM vintage, I'd say Marlin, but Henry quality trumps any new Marlin.
Go Henry.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

[BigAl52]

Why is a tube feed a con? I would call that a preference not a con.

[Jedman]

Buds gun has Marlin 1894 in 45 Colt for $514 OTD including shipping.

Jedman

[hylander]

Thanks guys,

Jedman:
Looking at the Cowboy model it is about $200 more

BigAl52:
True, It is a Con for me

MyFlatline:
Nice, what yardage ?

Also guys how does each one hold up to stout hunting loads ?

[Jedman]

I have a Henry BBS in 45 Colt and so far have not found a great shooting cast load yet.
With jacketed, it will shoot very close to MOA with 240 and 250 gr. Hornadys at near max loads of WW 296 and I 4227. I wish the Henry wasn't 1-38 twist but it will not take a long OAL cartridge anyway.

Jedman

[MyFlatline]

Thanks guys,

Jedman:
Looking at the Cowboy model it is about $200 more

BigAl52:
True, It is a Con for me

MyFlatline:
Nice, what yardage ?

Also guys how does each one hold up to stout hunting loads ?

That was 50 yards

[06ackley]

I have the henry and would say go with the henry.

[D Crockett]

that is a no brainer for me I have both a Marlin which is a good shooter but my Henry can out shoot the Marlin every time both of my guns are 44's D Ceockett

[Ramjet-SS]

Henry very accurate absorbs recoils nicely.

[Ickisrulz]

I have a Henry BBS in 45 Colt and so far have not found a great shooting cast load yet.
With jacketed, it will shoot very close to MOA with 240 and 250 gr. Hornadys at near max loads of WW 296 and I 4227. I wish the Henry wasn't 1-38 twist but it will not take a long OAL cartridge anyway.

Jedman

Henry says the BBS in 45 Colt has a 16 inch twist.

[MyFlatline]

I have a Henry BBS in 45 Colt and so far have not found a great shooting cast load yet.
With jacketed, it will shoot very close to MOA with 240 and 250 gr. Hornadys at near max loads of WW 296 and I 4227. I wish the Henry wasn't 1-38 twist but it will not take a long OAL cartridge anyway.

Jedman

My Henry will take the 255 RN where the Marlin will not. Mine are sized at .454. back up a few posts and look at the targets I posted. I have a friend that uses the exact load and gets the same results. Mine has never seen jacketed.

[Blanket]

shot 2 whitetails with a Henry this past weekend, worked fine

[Jedman]

Henry says the BBS in 45 Colt has a 16 inch twist.

I went to the Henry website and it does say the 45 Colt BBS has 1-16 twist. My rifle is over 2 years old and when I got it Henry was stating that both the 44 Mag and 45 Colt were 1-38.
I just spent over a hour lathe turning a slug and testing my barrel and mine is 1-16

Measuring the lead slug I pounded thru the bore shows .441 lands and .4515 groove diameter.

This makes my day !

Jedman

[Surfdog]

Good morning
First time you set off a 300= grainer at 1700 fps you will be very happy the "heavy" Henry already put a good recoil pad on that rifle that cost you 1/2 of the Marlin.
Mike in Peru

Mike makes a good point, which I am happy to second.

When the Big Boy came out in .44 mag I had to have one. It shot my cast and jacketed handloads great, but I did not appreciate the recoil pad until I ran across an older 1894 Marlin that was priced too good to pass up.

The Marlin (also in .44 mag) took some work to get to shoot, and still needs some tuning to make it feed well. I figured I would feel it a little more than the Henry, but I was really surprised how much more the Marlin hurt after a session testing loads.

My Big Boy is definately more accurate, heavier, and a better finished rifle...including a much appreciated recoil pad. Tube feed is much easier to unload, and not really a minus for hunting purposes.

The Marlin represents a bigger reloading challenge, is lighter, not as well finished, and of course has that cool side loading gate that is more the classic look and feel. To me, it is a pain to unload, and not more convenient to load than the Henry.

I like them both for different reasons, but if you want to shoot it alot, Mike’s good observation should be seriously considered.

Surfdog.

[Seeker]

I have a Henry BBS in 45 Colt and so far have not found a great shooting cast load yet.
With jacketed, it will shoot very close to MOA with 240 and 250 gr. Hornadys at near max loads of WW 296 and I 4227. I wish the Henry wasn't 1-38 twist but it will not take a long OAL cartridge anyway.

Jedman

It took me awhile but I found an excellent, accurate load for my cast Lee 300 rf. Have you tried BE86? 7.1 grs. stacked them under 1 1/2" @50yds out of my Henry Steel .45 Colt.http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb321/grandpabear1/reloading/20160524_191736.jpg

Unique did quite well also.
http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb321/grandpabear1/reloading/20160524_190229.jpg

[hylander]

Thanks or the input.
I have decided on the Marlin.
Reasons:
#1 reason: Henry just does not feel as good to me.
Of the few I have tried the Marlins have fed and ejected the snap caps great
while the Henry's barely ejected the rounds and on the last round did not eject at all.
The Henrys are better fit and finished, but just don't feel as good to me.