Suggestions on a good .357 lever gun?

[Jtarm]

After 40 years shooting .357 revolvers, I decided a lever gun would be a fun addition to the safe.

Primary purpose would be plinking, varmint, & maybe deer hunting. So I don't want an 1873-style action.

I was disappointed to see Marlin no longer makes the 1894 in .357.

I see lots of Rossi 92s & they seem reasonably priced. I just don't know if I can bring myself to buy a Taur,.. Taur... I can't even type it. That company named after the Ford car.

[BCRider]

The Rossis respond well to a little slicking up. Or others have found that just shooting them a lot and some patience helps. Once slicked up or broken in they work pretty good.

Alternately go for a Winchester by Miroku. From all the accounts I've read they are fine firearms.

I'd strongly suggest avoiding Chiappa/Armi Sport. Lots of reports and even a host of personal folks I know have had trouble with them. Their guns LOOK just great. But they put all the effort into the looks and not enough into the workings.

Other than that be patient and look for a used older Marlin.

And if you're looking around for used you may also trip over an older "shooter's grade" authentic Winchester 92. Stranger things have happened. And it's not like they didn't make a heap of them. It may well be in 38-40 but that's not the end of the world. That was a pretty good cartridge and brass is reasonably available thanks to the whole cowboy shooting movement.

[Buckshot]

I'd go for the Italian Uberti made 1892. I do have a Rossi M92 carbine in 38/357 and it is a fine shooter. Light and handy to carry. I also have a Rossi M92 in 45 Colt. It's a 24" octagon color cased rifle. It's a very attractive piece. They're obviously stout as they used to be chambered in 454 Casull, and while I've never loaded mine to those levels I have fired some stout Colt loads.

http://www.fototime.com/95900A3C1D2F5E8/standard.jpg

While the fit and finish of both of those Rossi's is fine, the Uberti versions come with walnut wood and simply have that extra little bit. I also have a Miroku/Winchester M92 in 45 Colt. I'd have to say that it looks like you'd expect one to look. I don't have a photo of my 38/357 Rossi.

http://www.fototime.com/745969169444B08/standard.jpg

The Japchester. Only issue with it is the safety on the tang. The buttstock is a REALLY nice piece of Walnut.

http://www.fototime.com/3E694394E9E1E27/standard.jpg

Speaking specifically of the 45 Colt versions, I don't know what twist the Uberti's use. The Rossi has a 32" twist while the Miroku has a 16" twist. IIRC the Rossi 357 has the standard twist. I really enjoy shooting all three. It's a tough decision to have to make! :-)

...............Buckshot

[Lonegun1894]

I have 2 of the Rossi .357s, and a Winchester 94 in .357. Between the 92 action just being smoother than the 94 with pistol rounds, and the slower rifling twist of the Rossi, I would buy another one in a heart beat. And am always on the lookout for a .44Mag Rossi, cause my .357s and .45 Colt are great.

[Bazoo]

Im on the hunt for a used Marlin 1894c myself. Got the money rounded up, just waiting for the right one to come to the block.

[Jtarm]

After posting, I read about how Remington acquired Marlin and they went to pot. Doesn't look like a new 1894
in .357 would be any good even if they built them.

RIP to another iconic American gun brand.

[williamwaco]

I have the Japanese Winchester. It is spectacular.

[dragon813gt]

Marlin 1894s are still being made. Production was stopped for a few years but they are being made again. They have Ballard rifling instead of micro groove. I have one that was made right before they ceased production. There isn't a thing wrong w/ it and it's a tack driver w/ the right bullet. I would not buy w/out inspecting first but this is the case for almost all new firearms. There are plenty of JM stamped ones available. But you're going to pay $700 on the low end. If you don't mind paying you can buy one today if you wanted.

[bangerjim]

I have the Rossi 38/357 lever long gun in all SST and it is a dream! Extremely accurate (one of the wife's fav long guns) and I did not really have to do anything to "spiff up" the action, as is bemoaned on here all the time. I had to look around for almost 5 months B4 I finally found the SST version at a LGS.

bangerjim

[waco]

I have a Rossi 92 and I bought my wife a Marlin 94 several years ago. It's NOT a JM stamped barrel but it is a nice little rifle. It was a little rough around the edges but that slicked up over a little time. I found it new on the shelf when my local Cabela's had its grand opening. I didn't like having to fork over $600 for it.

The Rossi was REAL rough. Still is. I'm still trying to get the round count up to smooth it out.

My pride & joy is my Marlin 1894 Cowboy in .38/.357 with a 24" octagon barrel. This was my fathers gun. He passed away in Feb. and I was the one he wanted to have it. I don't shoot it that much, but man is it nice! Slicked up action and trigger from the factory. Not sure what year it was made, but it's a JM gun.

If money isn't an issue, my vote would be for the Marlin. Just my 2cents....

[TXGunNut]

Buckshot has a good point about the Uberti option, I have a few of their revolvers and wouldn't hesitate to buy one of their leverguns. I'm fighting off the 357 bug myself but will someday wind up with a Rossi or Uberti someday but if I'm lucky enough to stumble across a Marlin I'll buy it. I'd rather wait until the market settles down a bit, today's prices give me a little heartburn.

[jmort]

I have a Rossi 92 and got it an action job and it works well. If you have the $$$ for an Urberti, That would be a good choice. Why rule out the 1873? The Henry would be a good choice as well.

[Jtarm]

Buckshot has a good point about the Uberti option, I have a few of their revolvers and wouldn't hesitate to buy one of their leverguns. I'm fighting off the 357 bug myself but will someday wind up with a Rossi or Uberti someday but if I'm lucky enough to stumble across a Marlin I'll buy it. I'd rather wait until the market settles down a bit, today's prices give me a little heartburn.

Stronger action, from what I've read at least.

I don't know that market for classic, out of production guns will ever settle down, unless the economy seriously tanks again.

BTW, what part of TX you in? I'm on the outskirts of Cowtown, almost to Parker County.

[blueeyephil]

I was about to buy a Rossi when I found an older Marlin. I've shot a Rossi and it was fine. Most do require a little work to be real nice but there is a lot of good info available and it's not beyond what most people can do. Actually I've read at least one post where just cleaning the machining scraps out of the action helped a lot.

I paid about the same for a well used but nice Marlin as I could have for a hex barreled new Rossi. But the Marlins continue to go up in price. So you have to decide what you are looking for and how quick you want it. Get the Rossi about any day of the week, but the Marlin you may have to look awhile.

[ukrifleman]

I have 2 Rossi's, one stainless steel 20" octagonal barrel in .45 Colt and a blued finish, 24" octagonal barrel in .357

Both are fine shooters, but I find the 20" barrelled version has a better balance for off hand shooting. (Just my opinion)

ukrifleman.

[TXGunNut]

BTW, what part of TX you in? I'm on the outskirts of Cowtown, almost to Parker County.

I'm north and a bit east of you, southern edge of Cooke county.

[TXGunNut]

I guess Marlin 94's aren't too bad when you compare them to Winchester and Miroku 92's.:shock:

[dragon813gt]

I guess Marlin 94's aren't too bad when you compare them to Winchester and Miroku 92's.:shock:

Nope, used ones are still cheaper. And the Marlin action is designed for the shorter pistol calibers.

[Mtnfolk75]

I have had a 16" Stainless Rossi 92 for several years. It has smoothed up a bunch just from shooting it, maybe 400 rounds down the tube sofar. When I first got it I thought I had made a mistake in going with the 16" .... It is REALLY SHORT. But after carrying it on ATV's and in Jeeps for awhile, it is positively a keeper. Really is a good all around carry everywhere little rifle ..... [smilie=s:

[Jtarm]

I'm north and a bit east of you, southern edge of Cooke county.

Cool. My sister lives near Sanger.

[plainsman456]

I have shot both types of 357 rifles and while the Rossi shoots real good the marlin just does it for me.

Sadly they don't belong to me,the brother in law has the Rossi and another friend has the marlin.
When shooting the Marlin the other i had the chance to shoot and load for a Coonan pistol.

Life is good but it made me want to get a rifle in 357.Wife liked it as well so maybe if i get one i will still have a place to sleep.:bigsmyl2:

[bigarm]

I have a Marlin in 44 that I really like. Would like to get something in .357 also to go with it and my 30-30 and 45-70.

[Leatherhead Bullets]

I have the Rossi (actually Puma stamped) 20" octagon Case colored. Found it "used" on a LGS shelf. Not sure if it had actually been fired. My girls have put about 500 rounds through it which has smoothed it up nicely. Cycles everything I have fed it. 357 SWC's feed smooth. It is very accurate and as we all know, a blast to shoot! Hope to get another soon.

[C A Plater]

I've got a nice little Rossi 92SRC that I was happy with until I picked up a Miroku Winchester in .44 magnum. Now I'm spoiled and would like to get one in .357 one day when the money gods smile upon me.

[TXGunNut]

Cool. My sister lives near Sanger.

Come by for a cup of coffee sometime. Better yet, we can meet at the NTSA range a little S of Sanger. I'm a member and I'd be proud to have you as my guest.

[TXGunNut]

Nope, used ones are still cheaper. And the Marlin action is designed for the shorter pistol calibers.

News to me, my friend. Makes sense but I quite honestly didn't know that. Always felt the 92 was designed for them as well. Guess I need to study up on this a bit.

[fouronesix]

Quote dragon813gt- "And the Marlin action is designed for the shorter pistol calibers."


News to me, my friend. Makes sense but I quite honestly didn't know that. Always felt the 92 was designed for them as well. Guess I need to study up on this a bit.

:) News to me too! The Marlin 94 along with the Marlin 88 & 89 are and always have been for the "pistol" length cartridges. The Win 92 (and recent clones by other manufacturers) are and always have been for "pistol" length cartridges.

As to the OP- Both the Win 92 and The Marlin 94 are good 357 choices. The Win 92s are known for strength and smooth action. The current Miroku made 92s are very good.

[TXGunNut]

I guess one way of looking at it is to consider the early chamberings for the 92. IIRC 25-20, 32-20, 38-40, 44-40 were designed as rifle cartridges and later chambered in handguns so dragon813gt may have a valid point here.

[Para82]

I have the Rossi Puma SRC in 357Mag. Traded for it in the early 90's. Great little rifle and fun to shoot. Pretty accurate with 158 cast SWC.

[fouronesix]

I guess one way of looking at it is to consider the early chamberings for the 92. IIRC 25-20, 32-20, 38-40, 44-40 were designed as rifle cartridges and later chambered in handguns so dragon813gt may have a valid point here.

It may be simple semantics to differentiate between a rifle and a pistol cartridge. Might have to go back to the Volcanic and Henry era of pre-Winchester. The "roots" of the short cartridge may be simply the result of the transition from short rimfire cartridges to short centerfire cartridges and the rifles that shot them, were by nature, short actioned because of the design technology for those repeating lever guns like the Henry, Win 66 and Win 73.

Isn't the Marlin 94 pretty much a scaled down Marlin 93 and the Winchester 92 a scaled down 86? Both the Marlin 94 and the Win 92 were made well into the 20th century (the Marlin 94- 1935 and the Win 92- 1941) probably because of two market forces. 1)The popularity of the reloadable short center fire cartridges available in guns like the Win 73 since 1873 and 2)the compatibility for use in revolvers namely the Colt SAAs which were chambered in the 44-40, etc. shortly after their introduction in the Win 73.

[rbstern]

Count me in as another Rossi fan. I've got the 20" model, from the Interarms days, before they started putting the safety on top. The action was rough out of the box and it was finicky about bullet length and shape. Some tweaking and polishing over the years has it to the point where it's very slick and feeds pretty much anything in 38spl and 357. One of my favorite firearms.

[TXGunNut]

The "roots" of the short cartridge may be simply the result of the transition from short rimfire cartridges to short centerfire cartridges and the rifles that shot them, were by nature, short actioned because of the design technology for those repeating lever guns like the Henry, Win 66 and Win 73. -fouronesix

Good points, I'm very interested in but not very experienced with the short action leverguns. My only SA levergun is an early 92 rifle in 32-20 and my only pistol cartridge levergun is a 94 Trapper in 45 Colt. I love the 1873's, could sit and watch that action work for hours but not likely to shell out the price for that piece of work. I've spent very little time with early Marlins but have heard good things about the 94, both early and modern.
I'm interested in this thread because I have 38-357 dies and brass sitting idle and I can always make room for one more handy little carbine. I dream of a nice 73 in 38-40 but a slick little 92 or 94 in 38-357 would probably be more fun.

[mattw]

I would suggest that you save for a bit and track down a good pre-crossbolt safety Marlin. Mine loves to shoot 170-225 grain bullets very accurately. The action is very slick and the trigger is great. Don't know anything about the newer ones, have not owned anything with a crossbolt safety.

[1Shirt]

About 5-6 years ago I was fortunate enough to buy a Win 94 in 357 w/24" bbl. at a reasonable price, and before Win Prices shot thru the roof. It is a good shooter, with just about anything you feed it, and it handles the long Kieth being crimped into the crimp groove. Likes 2400 and A#9 powders and heavier bullets. Most of the manuals list 357 rifles with 18" bbls, and very respectable vols. Have not chronoed mine with longer bbl, but would estimate, 150-200 fps faster with a 24" bbl over one with an 18" bbl.
1Shirt!

[EDK]

Check gunbroker, etc on a daily basis for what you want and don't be shy on a BUY NOW that you can tolerate.
I scored a 336 Cowboy 30 30 at 5am because the other guys were saving nickles....extra $50 maybe? BUT it's in MY safe. I bought a 20 inch 357 Cowboy off gunbroker and sent off the FFL and $600 money order. Three hours late I got a response off SASSWIRE for a used 24 inch 357 Cowboy for $500. Thankfully I had enough funds to cover that one also.
They don't make JM Cowboy rifles in pistol calibers anymore; no more Original Size Ruger Vaqueros either!

[bugkiller]

I've got a Ross 92i. Had it slicked up, still came in cheaper than most other options. It's a fine shooter, my wife loves it. Right now, cheaper to shot reloads (and easier to find) than a 22.
Shoots and cycles TC bullets best. Esp in .38 spl. Will pretty much shoot and cycle any .357.
I plink with it. Certainly could be a deer rifle.

[sghart3578]

When I decided to go with a 357 lever gun I bought a Rossi 92 off of Gunbroker. This particular rifle was a lemon and after several months of fighting with Rossi in Florida I got my money back. It was a long, infuriating battle, especially when us Americans are spoiled by the "no questions asked, no B.S." customer service policies of Smith and Wesson, Ruger, Dillon, just to name a few.

I tell you this story not to scare you away from Rossi, I have made my peace with them. But it is always better to buy a gun that you can inspect thoroughly first, and then give your money to someone who appreciates it.

This doesn't mean that you can't buy a used gun online. I recently bought a Marlin 336 Texan from a gun shop in Arkansas. I live in N California. Before the purchase I made sure that I had a reasonable inspection/return period. The guys there were really nice and told me "No problem. Look it over and send it back if you don't like it. But we'll tell you right now that you are going to love it." And they were right.

To show you Rossi guys that I have no axe to grind with Rossi, my next rifle is either going to be a Marlin or Winchester in 32 Win or a Rossi 92, 45 Colt, 24" octagon with case hardening.

[jmort]

I got my 18" Rossi 92 .357 off Gun Broker as well, but no problem. The action job by the SASS gunsmith has made it a delight.

[targetfreak]

Sorry to be a little late to this thread, but I have a Henry Big Boy in .357 (to match my revolvers) and I love it. The qualifiers for people who look for them are: it costs more than the others because it's made in the USA (why I bought it), it's heavy at 8 1/2 pounds (the felt recoil is like a .22), and it's purty with that brass receiver. And the people at Henry are way beyond friendly and helpful. I just made a peep sight for mine, and modified a replacement front sight to match. Also made a new buttstock because I am vertically challenged and the butt had a little too much LOP.

[terk]

My .357 Big Boy has been shot almost weekly since I bought it over a year ago. Smooth action, well built, good detail, not hard to look at, and very accurate and dependable. It has shot, without fail, .38 special, .357 factory loads, but mostly my homebrew loads that I also shoot in the S&W 686+ revolvers. It will shoot lead accurately at low to mid range velocities (up to about 1400 fps), but it shines with plated (RMR, Extreme) and especially jacketed (sorry - used the j-word) bullets (Hornady XTPs) at mid to full house loads.

It just gets better every time I shoot it.

[sghart3578]

I would buy a Henry in 357 tomorrow but I can't get past that brass receiver. It reminds me of someone putting spinners on a Yugo.

[Jtarm]

Guess I'll hold out for a vintage Marlin. Whoda though Marlin lever guns would be come valued collector pieces? 20 years back they seemed like a dime a dozen.

I've ready horror stories about the new ones. Can anyone confirm it?

[rintinglen]

Guess I'll hold out for a vintage Marlin. Whoda though Marlin lever guns would be come valued collector pieces? 20 years back they seemed like a dime a dozen.

I've ready horror stories about the new ones. Can anyone confirm it?

I can't confirm anything about the new ones but I have to snicker when I read all the bolshoi about how great the JM guns were. I briefly worked as a gun-fixer--not good enough to be called a gunsmith back in the early 80's. I repaired two 94's, both of whom had the stud on the side of the cast lifter break off. There for a while that was a regular problem, ultimately they re-engineered the lifter to more closely the original, or so I am told.

[Jtarm]

I can't confirm anything about the new ones but I have to snicker when I read all the bolshoi about how great the JM guns were. I briefly worked as a gun-fixer--not good enough to be called a gunsmith back in the early 80's. I repaired two 94's, both of whom had the stud on the side of the cast lifter break off. There for a while that was a regular problem, ultimately they re-engineered the lifter to more closely the original, or so I am told.

LOL.

When I hear "they don't make em like they used to" I usually want reply "no they don't, and thank goodness!"

Often times "classics" are things that seem much better now than they really were:-)

[fouronesix]

LOL
You have to put all that in correct historical context. The so called "old original" New Haven JM marked Marlins are still not the old originals. Marlin discontinued the M94 in 1935. All the ones being talked about like JM, New Haven, pre-safety, Remlin or whatever are in fact much more modern re-introduction guns that are built in mass production settings using more and more milled castings, stamped parts, more and more CNC processing and little to no hand fitting…. etc.

[FergusonTO35]

There is a 336 made in the good ol' days of the 1970's at the fun store right now. When I held it to my shoulder the sights were so canted to the right I at first thought I was holding the rifle crooked.