Originally Posted by
goodsteel
Deep cut rifling is a myth, and the idea that it shoots lead better than "shallow" cut rifling is a bigger myth, and the idea that microgroove rifling doesn't shoot cast well is an even bigger myth.
Seems people will believe anything if it's written by a manufacturer or a gun rag, and if it isnt written there, they will voluntarily fill in the blanks with bad information just to fill out the rest of the picture.
Rifling is a very set thing, and has been held to standards since the turn of the last century and before. 30 caliber rifles have a .300 bore and a .308 groove. I could write pages about how jacked up the barrels I have seen are, but one thing I will say is that the bore and groove is always very closely held.
There is no such thing as "deep" rifling or "shallow" rifling unless you are talking about custom muzzle loader barrels. The rest of the time, its a very closely held spec.
Now that that's out of the way, I want to say that I dearly love the big bore Marlins, even the new ones. The rifles made just after Remington moved Marlin to New York were a disaster. They have been getting much better of late, but they still benefit from a little TLC which I do very well (several forum members can attest to that fact).
The accuracy of these rifles, I find to be a little inflated. I've heard all kinds of stories about Marlin 1895s that will print subMOA at 100 yards. This is always based on three shot groups and is misleading in my opinion. What you can pretty much hang your hat on is approximately 2 1/2" groups for ten shots once you find the load it likes. You can make the thing run like greased lightning if you install a Wolff spring kit and know where to push your stones. The rifles are very safe to shoot, and in the event of a catastrophic failure, I'd rather be holding a Marlin than any other lever gun. The only real problem is that they can't take a bullet that sticks out very far. Use cast bullets designed for the gun, and seat them to the correct OAL. The most common malfunction with these rifles is the age old Marlin jam, but thanks to modern materials, this is a very rare occurrence (still, if you ever get a jam, send me a PM and I'll take care of it for you).
The 1895 is a rifle for the ages. In my opinion, any little thing you have to do to dress it up and get it running young in the beginning is well worth it in the long run. You just can't hardly wear these guns out (believe me, I've tried) and they love cast bullets. These rifles just don't quit. When the gun has all the bluing worn off and has killed everything you've ever aimed it at for the past 30 years, but your eyes are getting dim and you can't see the sights any more, you can drop a nice red dot sight or a scope on it via the provided screws in the top of the action, and just keep on going with it for the duration.
I had two of them myself, but I gave one to my hunting partner because he dearly wanted one. I've still got my 2001 1895 SS though, and I put an old Weaver K-3 on it with low Leupold mounts. I love that rifle dearly.