What's Your Beater Levergun?

[ATCDoktor]

I have several “beater” leverguns (I have a soft spot for haggard levers) and my recent addition is this sad Savage Model 99 chambered in 243 Winchester (this was an actual “truck” gun that a local ranch family traded in/sold to my LGS).

This is what a 300 dollar Model 99 looks like in my area of the country (dates from 1970-1973)













The flat spot on the outer edge of the barrel at the muzzle gave me great concern and I eyeballed it very hard with a jewelers loupe before closing the deal.

It appeared (under heavy scrutiny) that someone had banged it on a hard surface and then filed the ugly spot out.

The crown at the bore (along with the bore itself) was not damaged and with ammo it likes it’ll shoot an honest one inch at 100 yards.

[Kev18]

Well I have some dings on barrels, some pretty deep ones. I would never file them out tho...

[pietro]

.

FWIW, I've never had, nor would I acquire or sell ANY firearm in "beater" condition - there's just too many guns in pristine condition to be had, and I won't own an fugly gun.

Even the one or two "loaners" I keep are in excellent condition...…………………

.

[Kev18]

.

FWIW, I've never had, nor would I acquire or sell ANY firearm in "beater" condition - there's just too many guns in pristine condition to be had, and I won't own an fugly gun.

Even the one or two "loaners" I keep are in excellent condition...…………………

.

Usually pristine ones cost multiple times more, so People opt for the lesser ones. Most of the time they are internally sound. Just the outside got a pounding.

[buckweet]

Mine isn't an actual "beater".. but I do carry it around on my four wheeler here on the farm
A 51' Winchester model 94.
Good shooter.

[buckweet]

Here's the actual beater.. a TC contender
With a super 14 contender barrel.
And a permanent extension to 16.25 for a carbine.
..
7mmTCU




Well dang it... Cannot post a picture

[Kev18]

Here's the actual beater.. a TC contender
With a super 14 contender barrel.
And a permanent extension to 16.25 for a carbine.
..
7mmTCU




Well dang it... Cannot post a picture

You'd need to upload it to another image hosting site. I use Imgur.

[FromTheWoods]

I'm not certain what a "Beater Levergun" is, but does this one qualify?

.30 WCF DOM=1913
Repaired, Modified, Replaced, ReRepared, ReModified, ReReplaced AND CUSTOMIZED!
("In excellent condition for its age.")

Seriously: Very smooth action, and quite accurate!

[ATCDoktor]

I'm not certain what a "Beater Levergun" is, but does this one qualify

IMHO, yes, It qualifies.

In fact, I have it’s near twin:

Winchester 1894 in 30 WCF that dates from 1898, it originally had a 26” barrel and full magazine tube at some point the barrel was cut and magazine was shortened by what I consider to be a kitchen table gunsmith.


The stock has been heavily “scarred” and you can see where (at some point) the owner/Ranch Hand/mining employee has carved the name “Jose” into its surface:




There’s not a nickels worth of finish left on the metal surfaces and a bore scope shows nothing that anyone on this forum would call rifling in the barrel.



Despite its scars and rotten bore it’ll still turn in respectable groups at 100 yards:

Offhand at 100 yards with Jacketed 170 grain Projectiles at 1900 fps:


It is these types of Leverguns that for some reason call to me.

The ones with history or a story (even if you don’t know what it is).

[modified5]

I have a 94 Winchester in 30-30 that I got for free. A friends zone left it torn apart in a storage unit and pitted the life out of it. I re-barreled it, replaced the bolt and a couple of other small pieces on it. $67 later I have a functional lever gun that it doesn’t matter if it gets dinged up. It’s from ‘81.

[HawkCreek]

While I wouldn't call it a beater lever gun my most used is certainly a Miroku made Winchester 1895 SRC in .30-06, not sure I'd ever use a gun to help cross a stream though but then again I live in the desert so streams here are rare. Backup to that would be a pre-safety 94AE .30-30 Trapper but I much prefer the '95.

[glaciers]

My beater is a 1895 Winchester in 30 Army take-down. The barrel has been cut to 23 1/2 inches, a sling mount was silver soldered on the barrel then ground off, Lyman #21 side site which is nice, but somebody decided to drill a 5/16" hole in the arm of the site. Haven't figured that one out. While Bubba had the drill index out he drilled two 1/4" hole in the passenger side of the receiver. Also the crescent but plate not only has the top strap but has an added "toe" strap welded on to repair a cracked stock. Nice job on the butt plate. That might be from the second owner. Anyway all this stuff was done a long time ago. I've owned this rifle for about 40 years and this "stuff" was old then. The rifle was made in 1915. In it's own defense, it's tight, shoots great, and has a very good bore.

[georgerkahn]

Mine is a Marlin Model 336RC in .30-30 Winchester, s/n R59xx made in 1958 w/ Tasco 3-9x scope. The rifle looked -- furniture-wise -- pretty beat, and I was not a fan of TASCO 'scopes -- but, with the gun show ending in less than an hour, I asked the dealer for his "best" price which turned out lower than I was going to offer -- so it followed me home. I learned MUCH from this rifle -- 1st, it shoots wherever and whenever one pulls the trigger, with a buttery smooth action. 2ndly, the Scope is from when Tasco simply rebranded -- I believe mine to be a Redfield -- other manufacturer's optics. Regardless, after using it just a couple of times, the 'scope surely became a keeper. My younger son came "home" for a late November deer-hunt, and it was cold, rainy, and down-right miserable out, so I grabbed this rifle reckoning, "who cares?" what the weather may do. It turned out to be the "star" of the hunt, and this "beater" has indeed earned itself to be a firearm I truly love!
geo

[Drm50]

A lot of these beaters don't look that bad to me. Only beater lever I've had were two post 64 1894 Win 30/30s.
I had them at different times but they were both rusted on exterior to point of being pitted. Stocks beat and cracked forend but good function and bore. They were nice to have behind truck seat and not worry about theft or damage and they shot decent. I got a small lot of guns last year that were beaters to me. They had been nice guns stored in a damp basement in hard cases for years. Side up was mint, bottom sides covered with rust. No ptactical way to restore them to anywhere near original shape. Still good shooters when cleaned up.

[ATCDoktor]

A lot of these beaters don't look that bad to me.

The pics of my rifles “clean up” a lot of the flaws that a extremely obvious when they are viewed in person.

That Savage Model 99 I shared pics of is very rough but the pics make it look like it’s not so bad.

[10 ga]

Only ever owned 3 lever guns. Browning 65 in 218Bee and Marlin 94 in 44 magnum. Both traded away. Still have the Daisy in .177 and it has trained a whole bunch of people in safe firearms handling. It's even accounted for a few small rodents and unwelcome birds. 10

[moosemike]

IMHO, yes, It qualifies.

In fact, I have it’s near twin:

Winchester 1894 in 30 WCF that dates from 1898, it originally had a 26” barrel and full magazine tube at some point the barrel was cut and magazine was shortened by what I consider to be a kitchen table gunsmith.


The stock has been heavily “scarred” and you can see where (at some point) the owner/Ranch Hand/mining employee has carved the name “Jose” into its surface:




There’s not a nickels worth of finish left on the metal surfaces and a bore scope shows nothing that anyone on this forum would call rifling in the barrel.



Despite its scars and rotten bore it’ll still turn in respectable groups at 100 yards:

Offhand at 100 yards with Jacketed 170 grain Projectiles at 1900 fps:


It is these types of Leverguns that for some reason call to me.

The ones with history or a story (even if you don’t know what it is).

That's incredible that it still can hold a group! I know jacketed bullets will follow weak rifling where a lead bullet will just strip out.

[Gtek]

What would be, and is there a correct pictorial backdrop for a "Beater Levergun" and is this clearly dictated by the geographical location of such. I have seen those in the northern areas lay them in the snow for the pictures. The southwestern regions seems to like dropping them on rocks. I am in Florida, so would sand and or mud be correct for my backdrop?

[Tracy]

IMHO, yes, It qualifies.

In fact, I have it’s near twin:

Winchester 1894 in 30 WCF that dates from 1898, it originally had a 26” barrel and full magazine tube at some point the barrel was cut and magazine was shortened by what I consider to be a kitchen table gunsmith.


The stock has been heavily “scarred” and you can see where (at some point) the owner/Ranch Hand/mining employee has carved the name “Jose” into its surface:




There’s not a nickels worth of finish left on the metal surfaces and a bore scope shows nothing that anyone on this forum would call rifling in the barrel.



Despite its scars and rotten bore it’ll still turn in respectable groups at 100 yards:

Offhand at 100 yards with Jacketed 170 grain Projectiles at 1900 fps:


It is these types of Leverguns that for some reason call to me.

The ones with history or a story (even if you don’t know what it is).

Now that is a cool rifle!

[ATCDoktor]

Now that is a cool rifle

Thanks.

I picked it up at a local gun show a year or so ago.

The guy I bought it from had a whole “western” memorabilia display/motif going on with his display/table set up that was quite a draw at the show.

The rifle was part of the display and didn’t have a price on it and I asked him if I could look at it.

I pawed all over it for a while and asked him about the history and he stated he bought it from an estate sale in California and that the carving in stock was some kind of “Indian” writing (he couldn’t read it because he was looking at it upside down, the stock orientation in the pics makes it legible). I

I asked him if it was for sale and he said make me an offer and (in my mind) any offer that included American currency was going to be too much based on its condition but we worked a deal that we both could live with and I walked away with the rifle and two boxes of vintage (1950’s) 30/30 ammo for the princely sum of $400.

He guaranteed it to function and fire or my money back, so I left the show, stopped by a local indoor range on the way home and fired a magazine full thru it just to make sure and it worked as promised.

I got home and already had about a thousand prepped 30/30 cases standing by and charged about 50 with a starting load of H4198 and a 170 grain Jword (and about 20 165 grain cast .311 diameter boolits with 14.5 grains of 4227) and headed to the range.

The groups for the cast boolits could be measured in nothing smaller than acres reference units of measurement but the Jwords (as you can see) did quite well reference the rifles condition.

It wasn’t the best deal I ever made but the heart wants what the heart wants so whaddaya gonna do?