rossi or marlin?....

[rmaster14145]

i REALLY want a lever action .357. i have not shot either the rossi or marlin ( in .357). i like the side eject of the marlin, the price on the puma looks better. SOOO i need to ask yalls opinions whats your likes or dislikes about either rifle and why? does one seem to feed/shoot cast better than the other? got any different sites on them?

i guess im just looking for general likes or dislikes.

thanks


rm

[Marlinreloader]

You would never guess from my name which one.

No, I have Win, Puma, and Marlin levers. In my opinion Marlin is the better built guns. I would definitely go with the Marlin. spend the extra. You will always get it back if you ever want to sell.

In fact, if you buy the Marlin it most likely won't be your last.

Try the site marlinowners.com

Marlinreloader

[Southern Son]

I bought a Marlin 94 this morning in .44Mag. I was tossing up between the Rossi and the Marlin, and was leaning towards the Rossi untill today when I handled both in stainless and the Marlin's action seemed to cycle more smoothly. The 92 Rossi was nice, but the Marlin just seemed a little nicer.

[Four Fingers of Death]

I thought I posted on this thread earlier. I have both Rossis and Marlins. feel that it comes down to personal choice, they are both great guns. If you intend to mount a scope, the Marlin gets the vote. If you want to hotrod it, the Rossi gets the vote. Apart from that it is an even race. The Marlins are better finished, but the Rossis are cheaper. The Marlins are made in the states, that may be important to you. The marlins have a range of larger guns, which essentially have a similar feel, that also may be important to you.

[Gee_Wizz01]

They are both great guns! Like 4 Fingers said above, you can easily put a scope on the Marlin, which has become very important to me, as my aging eyes make iron sights difficult. I like the "feel" of the Rossi better, but that is a personal issue. The Marlins are much easier to take apart for cleaning and bolt removal is a snap. Both rifles shoot and feed cast bullets extremely well. My .44 Rossi seems to feed semi wadcutters SLIGHTLY better than my Marlin, but both are excellent. The Rossi's shoot every bit as good as the Marlin and are reportedly a little stronger than a Marlin (get ready for the firestorm). To solve this dilema, I have both.

G

[Freightman]

Well I think that both would be nice a Marlin in 357 and a Rossi in 454, then you can hunt deer with the 357 and bear with the 454.
I got my silver boolit finally huray !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[SmuvBoGa]

I got a Rossi .357 for Christmas. I've owned a Marlin 30 - 30 for 20 yrs. Both are good guns, the Marlin (30/30) is heaver than the Rossi (357). I have polished up the Rossi action & magizne tube.
Based on the "take down" of my two rifles the Marlin has less small parts & requires less cussing to take apart & put back together.
This is your call - play with both & see which talks to you.

JohnMc

[runfiverun]

i have 1 marlin could have more but i don't have room in the levergun area of the rifle storage area cause it's filled with 92's of different calibers.
theres soon gonna be two 94's in there though in 44 and 45 colt.
which brings the count on theose calibers to one each just short of death [so's iv'e been told]

[rmaster14145]

THANKS !!! thats the kind of info i was looking for.

i have had a marlin and and a win in 30-30. i think the marlin is a better gun than the winchester.

i can get a puma in SS for a bit less than a blued marlin would cost.

what about barrel length ( since it sems most of you have more than one ), do you like 16" or longet barrels?


again thanks

rm

[Southern Son]

the 16 inch Rossi was a dandi looking bit of gear, but when I did the sums on it, the 16 inch Rossi is only 4 inches shorter than the 20 inch, so I don't think it would be that much of an improvement in handling over the 20 inch. In the ballistics department, I don't think you will gain or loose anything in a pistol caliber between the two, if the rifle was in 30/30, then the 20 inch barrel would get an advantage (on paper), but not in .357 Mag (or .44 Mag, for that matter). You will just have to handle both and see which one you like best.

[O.S.O.K.]

I also own and like both. I will say though that the sights on the Rossi levers are ****. But, that is easily remidied.

They are both accurate and handle cast boolits just fine.

Go with the one that feels right to you.

[Blueridgeboy]

I also own and like both. I will say though that the sights on the Rossi levers are ****. But, that is easily remidied.

They are both accurate and handle cast boolits just fine.

Go with the one that feels right to you.

What is the "easy remidy"? I might want to look in on that!

[freedom475]

I have both...the Marlin is a better gun...hands down. I am very surprised to see all the Rossi supporters here.??

The Rossi sight is not as easily remidied as you might hope...the idiots that cut the dovetails on the Rossi's seem to just file away at the notch until there SUB-Standard sights fit...no two seem allike. Easily remidied if you like JB Weld...LOL

And to top it off...the sights on the big bores often are cut so deep into the barrrel that the sight has acctually collapsed the barrel tube to the point of causing a tight spot that can be seen when looking down the barrel at the sight locations..

Then there is the mag tube that is famous for holding a a few extra rounds on Stand-By... Yep..open the action, lever it 5 or 6 times just to be sure she is empty. Then as you set it in the corner you hear a "shink" as 3 extra rounds magically appear in your "empty" rifle.

I could keep going cause this is just scratching the surface of all Rossi's problems but...OK enough of that...

Even with its short-comings the Rossi is way more fun and the 92 action is soooo Smoooth and strong, and it just "feels" like a levergun should...Guess I'd have to say that my Rossi 480 Ruger is my favorite between the Marlin and the Rossi even if it is a ***

I put a ladder sight and blade front from Sharps on my Rossi... it is awsome and it will shoot a LOO000ooongs ways....Very Fun!

[runfiverun]

the newer rossi's do seem to be a bit hit or miss as freedom points out.
you gotta look out for the correct sights, or shim the bottom of them a bit then they are tight.
the 20" bbl would be my pick [a short rifle]
the rifle actions seem to be a bit better fit and smoother than the carbines.
they also cost more than a marlin.
if i had to choose one to carry around all day a rifle with a 20" half octagon/half round bbl would be my pick.
the 24" bbls do get heavy,the 20"s carry fine and do what you want,just need to change the sights.
mine have come with all kinds of sights buckhorns,red/green dots,square notches.
sights in the front bbl band,dovetailed,etc.
i am going with a post/bead type front,and peep sight rear with inserts.

[Blueridgeboy]

the newer rossi's do seem to be a bit hit or miss as freedom points out.
you gotta look out for the correct sights, or shim the bottom of them a bit then they are tight.
the 20" bbl would be my pick [a short rifle]
the rifle actions seem to be a bit better fit and smoother than the carbines.
they also cost more than a marlin.
if i had to choose one to carry around all day a rifle with a 20" half octagon/half round bbl would be my pick.
the 24" bbls do get heavy,the 20"s carry fine and do what you want,just need to change the sights.
mine have come with all kinds of sights buckhorns,red/green dots,square notches.
sights in the front bbl band,dovetailed,etc.
i am going with a post/bead type front,and peep sight rear with inserts.

Tell me "who, what, where and how much". I'd like to consider what you are thinking of doing. I'm lost on this new rifle but I can tell you a lot about CZ .22lr's; got 4 of them beautiful girls.

[runfiverun]

d&t for either the 94 [side]or for the 94 a.e. [top of frame over the slide] model.
one of my originals [25-20] has a lyman [side]someone put on it years ago.
and it is a flat out lazer beam with the hood on the front sight and the small aperture in it.
i take the aperture out when hunting with it.
i like the adjustable slide [up and down] like a buckhorn with the ears rounded off, and a white diamond/or straight line painted so the point ends right at the bottom edge. and a gold bead front dot also.

[6pt-sika]

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhh let me think about this for a moment !

Had about 90 different Marlin rifles in my lifetime so far and liked just about everyone of them for one reason or another !

Have owned ONE Rossi/Puma purchased it brand new and kept it one year and traded it to another fellow still NIB !

Get where I'm gong with this

[Just Duke]

The wife bought a Rossi .357 against my counsel. We took to the range at Bass Proshop. We couldn't get my loads to go into the magazine tube. Ok, my buddies that worked there went in back and got some factory stuff and could not get any factory ammo into the gun. Several different loads including some guys carry loads. OK so back to my loads. I forced 8 or so into the gun and she fired them. One stuck in the magazine tube and she was having problem getting it to load onto the carrier. It just stayed there. After 10 round we took it home and I tried 38 specials which feed and loaded just fine. Steve's Gunz say this is a common accourance and would fix it for $140.00.
She sold it for $300.00 after paying $575.00 for it with transfer and shipping. I'm quite sure she will never buy another Rossi in .357.
Go Marlin. I've lost track of how many Marlins I have.

[Bret4207]

The Rossi is kind like a Ruger- you get a 90% finished kit and what you do with it from there depends on you. With Marlin it's a 95-98% finished kit. Both work well, the Marlin is finished better, both have their downsides.

[jack19512]

I recently purchased a Puma(Rossi) in 454 caliber and so far I can't say anything negative about the rifle. I purchased it new for around $377.00. I guess time will tell.