Marlin 1895G

[btroj]

I have a scope on my 1895 and it stay on. Irons are nice but I just got back from a bear hunt in dark woods. With low light and the fact the big boys like to come put at dusk I needed the extra minutes of shooting a scope gives.
This is one of those different strokes for different folks kind of things. I don't have a problem with whatever sights a guy wants if it lets him shoot better.

[jh45gun]

Beware of the new and recent guide guns that are made by the New Marlin that is owned by some large conglomerate... so I'm told. I've had four 1895's over the past 30 yrs and in general, the older the better, especially if you DON'T want that damned hammer block safety. I bought a new on in SS this spring and it was a ***. Rough wood to metal fit and the wood is way too thick/stout. I took the sight hood off and the the front sight fell off onto the bench. I was not impressed. I had to peen the dovetail shut a bit to get it to stick. It shot fine; I was easily able to walk 400gr cast bullets into a 2' rock on a hillside at over 500yds in just a few rounds with the iron sights. I sold it as fast as I could to someone on a geophysical crew who needed it for bear protection. Can't imagine why anyone puts a scope on a rifle like this. If you put good iron sights on them they're easily a good 200yd gun. For brushy work, especially where bears are a possibility, do take the useless folding Marlin rear sight off and put a ghost ring or a rigid buckhorn sight on. Marbles makes some nice replacements that will stay put. I have a collection of Marlin rear sights with no blades as they fall off in the brush quite easily, usually within a few hours when in heavy brush. The front sight hoods are the same; I lost one off a Papoose in less than 15 minutes while hunting grouse on my moose hunt this past week. Now I have to replace the *** plastic front sight on that gun so the hood isn't so necessary. What's with this plastic front sight rage anyway?? Give me a nicely made Marbles gold bead sight any day. I've shot the Lyman 405gr #457193 bullet in all my .45-70's and -90's for decades and like it. My high wall just printed 3 rds in 1.3" at 100yds and three more into 3.12" at 200yds which is good enough for me... for now. I use 43gr IMR 3031, Win WLR primers, and two .060" veggie cards(Buffalo Arms)and 3 home made .45 cotton batting 'cards' under the veggie cards to keep them against the bullet(.459" HC Lyman 457193) base so as to prevent pistoning. I make the cotton cards by buying rolled 100% cotton batting at the fabric store and cutting the cards on the drill press with a nice sharp .45 wad punch. I make my veggie cards the same way. It's much easier than ripping up random pcs of cotton balls and stuff them in. Someone else I know uses crumbled tissue paper but I like the consistency of the cotton batting. If you want to punch a slightly larger hole Lee makes a nice 400gr mould that produces a bullet with a rather impressive and massive nose. I've shot a lot of them in pure lead through my Marlins and vintage '86 Win .45-90. I'm not an aluminum mould fan but they work fine once you figure them out. Hard cast bullets penetrate better and break bigger bones in large animals but pure lead bullets mushroom much better. I have one from a moose that is classic mushroom and dropped him like a lightning bolt. For truly dangerous game and for bear protection rounds I use the old Barnes 400gr SP bullets with the .030" pure copper jacket that were designed for African hunting. I shot a bull moose with one of those loaded up to 1886fps once and it seemed he was not just killed but was actually lifted off his feet and knocked over sideways. He actually hit on his side and bounced and was dead long before he hit the ground. Those old Barnes bullets are most impressive but I can tell you it hurts to shoot one in one of the older lighter Marlin 1895's that have no recoil pad. I NEVER shoot those rounds just for fun. I'm sure the stock would split(again)eventually. Wouldn't be quite so bad in a new one but would still be a wake up call on the shoulder. Funny how you don't seem to notice when the bear, who apparently sees you as one big Snickers bar on two legs, is coming in fast at 20ft. My latest casting experiment for the .45cal leverguns and single shot is the Lyman 457124 RN bullet that is purported to shoot straighter in some old guns than the #457193 mould. We'll see if I can't tighten up that 1.3" group and make it a reliable 500yd moose gun, which shouldn't be too difficult if I do my part. So, take the scopes off these nice little guns boys, put some good iron sights on and learn how to be real "rifleman"... nothing is more satisfying. Ok, that's my preaching for the day.

Old eyes like scopes better and I have a Win 94 thirty thirty that has a peep sight rear and a fiber optic front sight. but I can shoot a lot better groups at a 100 yards with my GG. I have a perfect scope for this rifle 1.5x4.5 that 1.5 is perfect for woods hunting and fast shots.

From your description of your new rifle guess I am lucky I got my GG before they announced they were moving and it is marked with the old address.

[bigted]

i think i must be lucky as well...i think! i purchased my sbl just when they hit the market and while it shoots jacketed just fine...the cast ive tryed smear the barrel with streaks of lead. pretty rough bore with tons of tooling marks in the rifling.

the cure i hope is the hand-lapping i did. first i wore out my elbo with tooth past and this didnt seem to do diddly. so off to the parts store i went and got some clover valve grinding compound...walla this seemed to do the trick...shined the bore very nicely with just a minimal effort...now i need to go back out and try it again. im hoping the lead streaks will go away with this .459 barrel as my rcbs mould is itchin to throw some more gas checked 540 grain boolits for hunting the thickets.

i also love the open sight mode...however when i do real accuracy tests for any of my rifles i also use a scope! my detatched retina also requires tlc as i dont want to lose the whole eye and i also dont like the [[ as another writer here wrote ]] bit of poop that seems to sneak up on me when i open up with a kicker n thumper.... i nearly chocked on my coffee when i read this from another thread...needless to say i had a mess to clean off my computer screen when i threw coffee on it thru my nose...LOL

[white eagle]

I just bought a new Marlin
fit and finish is great
accuracy is outstanding
don't like scopes either but may have no other option
put on a Skinner peep but can't get the boolit high enough
ordered a taller front sight so....we will see
thinking of selling off the Skinner and putting optical on....
I use a Hoch 440 gr n/p boolit on top of 47.0 gr. IMR 3031

[crabo]

Bigted, I would size to .460 and firelap the gun if the .460 doesn't cure it. Firelapping and .460 has worked on 3 guide guns for me. I've gone 150 rounds with no leading using AC 50/50 pure lead and WWs.

[bigted]

crabo...my rcbs 500 mould produces 460 as cast so i will just pan lube and give a try. when you firelapp...do you just put the valve grinding compound on the lube grooves with the lube?

[RidgerunnerAk]

Thanks kindly for the replies guys. I understand completely the aging eyesight issue with respect to iron sights. Being 61yrs old can't do quite as well with the barrel sights these days but can still do tang peeps pretty well. Who knows how long that will last but I'll go to glass kicking and screaming I can tell you. I think that the ghosts ring sight that mounts on the rear of the receiver top would be a good option also, especially in an emergency 'firefight' with a bear. The one I see available now doesn't look as good as what I've seen in the past though... assuming I'm remembering correctly which is not a guarantee. I was truly saddened and appalled at the quality of this last guide gun I bought and hope others do better.

[Greg B.]

BigTed,
No offense, I would be carefull with the valve grinding coumpound especially if it is one of the coarser grades. Lead Bullet Technologies still offers a kit I believe and Beartooth Bullets also had some materials. Try a fire lapping search on this site and I am sure you will find info. Good luck with your project.

Greg B.

[Crawdaddy]

I have an 1895 M (450 Marlin) , I even have the Nikon scope. A natural born pig killer. I use 450 gr cast lead bullets for pigs. Drops them in there tracks. pretty decent accuracy out to 100 yards. You have to seat the bullet pretty deep but the powder charge isnt that high so it works out.

TxGun Nut:

Unfortunatley I am in the same boat. If I use it, it has to have a scope, even several of my pistols.

[RidgerunnerAk]

Hmm; I put a reply on here that didn't seem to register. Has anyone found a source of replacement stocks for the older Marlin 1895's? I bought one at Warshals in Seattle once for $27 and it slid right on in 5minutes. I bought another from a gunshop two yrs ago that was a duplicarver hack job. I sent it back.

Never mind.... I forgot I had made that a separate thread.

[wolters4]

Take a look at the Skinner sights
http://skinnersights.com/
I have these on several Marlins and love them..

[45-70 Ranger]

Guide Guns are the coolest things Marlin has built in the past thirty years. They have the best pointing quality and are fast to get into action in the field. Further, I'm not sure what Marlin did, but they are, for the most part (old ones from Marlin that is) about as tight shooting as some of my best bolt guns. Wonderful little cannons that simply put big bullets right where you want them. I shoot three or more hogs a week with the GG, and in the past year or so have never had to send a second shot into the piggy. They just drop dead when hit. Peep sights and the factory front are just fine with my aging eyes for now. Got a scope ready for when I grow too old to see, but for now, peeps, cast loads, and dead hogs are the deal of the day. The RD bullets are great. Fat noses that let in a lot of air and let blood out fast. Shoot straight and get the job done. I use a Lee 340 RNFP for hogs as well and they do just as good. Accruate too. You'll have fun with your GG for years to come! Enjoy and be safe...

[RidgerunnerAk]

I like the looks of the Skinner sights a lot; thanks for that link. Never heard of that outfit. Didn't used to be so many suppliers for such things. I like it. I currently have a stock brass bead front sight and a Winchester 1886 rear sight with no elevator on my 'working' 1895 bear gun. Loads are 400gr Barnes SP bullets at 1886fps, which is a brutal but very effective load that I've been using for 30years.

I agree on the accuracy of the Marlins. Years ago someone at Guns & Ammo magazine did some accuracy testing of all the off-the-shelf factory .45-70 rifles available at that time. The Marlins came out on top, printing into, I think, 2.4" at 100yds with factory ammo and the factory sights. My older 1895's have always shot very accurately with cast or jacketed bullets.

[TXGunNut]

Further, I'm not sure what Marlin did, but they are, for the most part (old ones from Marlin that is) about as tight shooting as some of my best bolt guns. Wonderful little cannons that simply put big bullets right where you want them.-45-70 Ranger

I've noticed that as well. Mine is maybe 10 yrs old ( ported ) and it keeps up with most bolt guns. Three-shot cloverleafs don't surprise me anymore, I've come to expect them with j-word bullets. I've been very impressed with several j-word bullet loads and my cb endeavours are coming along nicely. A buddy has one that shoots a tiny bit better... but mine has prettier wood. We know a few other guys with GG's of similar vintage and they're all very accurate.
Don't know how they did it, doesn't make sense but that quick, little, hard-hitting portable cannon has the heart of a target rifle in there somewhere.

[Crawdaddy]

Agreed on the accuracy. I may not have agreed before loading the FTX bullet. Mine is a 450 Marlin but they are about the same ballistically. I liked them so much I started using them in my 44, got great accuracy with it too.