FWIW, I got to handle the well massaged sample Marlin 1894 .357 Mag that Marlin / Ruger had on display at the Great American Outdoor Show in Harrisburg PA this month. It has risen to the top of my “want to get” list.
I’ll let someone else beta test them before putting up my own cash, but they seem pretty nifty.
If Ruger reintroduces the 1894CSBL and I live long enough to still want one, I can see me clearing out all of my current centerfire rifles - "Every. Single. One." - and getting one of them and a spare. One of these with a red dot or LPVO will do about anything I really need doing at this point, and would be be enjoyable for me while doing it.Originally Posted by Rick R
If Ruger would also make a "Hunter" version of the Blackhawk in .357 with integral scope ring cuts, I'd consider going full-blown (well maybe not, due to optics) second childood/Luddite and clear out a good percentage of the handguns too.
Last edited by gato naranja; 02-19-2024 at 02:20 PM.
gn
"On the internet, nobody knows if you are a dog... or even a cat."
I wouldn’t go quite that far, but a person with a GP-100 and a .357 levergun appropriately sighted for their eyesight could roam the towns and hollers here in Appalachia without much worry. A scoped/rds’d Blackhawk would be icing on the cake.
I stumbled across several of the older Ruger factory scope bases for the 22 auto pistol meant for the Ruger factory rings. I bought them. In looking at various things, it appears they will fit the contour of several S&W revolver barrel top ribs. Im planning to try getting the mount set up on at least one. The bases is narrow, meaning its not so clunky and obnoxious if one wants to remove the scope, and it wouldnt affect the iron sights or require their removal. The clunky and obnoxious label definitely fits all the Weaver/picatinny bases when not in use on a pistol or lever rifle.
It may be adaptable to a single action barrel also, I havent checked. At the least it may require making a light mill cut to match the barrel contour correctly.
I put a Leupold 2x pistol scope on dads 617 and have to admit Im liking it very much. I want to try it on a 357 pistol and see how it does out to 300 or more yards and if I can track a running rabbit or hit stuff in the air with some practice.
“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.”
― Theodore Roosevelt
TBH, I'd be about as happy with a GP-100 set up for a red dot as I would a Blackhawk, but the current crop of mounts still don't thrill.
gn
"On the internet, nobody knows if you are a dog... or even a cat."
I bought the EGW mount to put my long suffering Holosun 507c on my 4 5/8 SBH and the .44 promptly bucked the sight off like a beginner at bull riding. It was a pretty loose fit in the SBH.
https://www.egwguns.com/trijicon-rmr...ruger-revolver
After a year or so I decided to try it on my 6” Security Six and had to tap it into the mortise with a small brass hammer. So far it’s stood up to a bunch of target loads and about a hundred 184gr cast WFN at 1,200ish fps. It’s down pretty tight to the top strap and doesn’t feel like you’re about to launch torpedoes at an allied convoy.
If my eyesight goes south I'll consider a second similar sight on my 4” GP100. So far at 65 though iron sights are still do-able.
For what it’s worth, I’ll probably go with some red dot sight on the 1894 when/if I buy one
Does anyone have any experience with a Winchester 94 in .450 Marlin? The idea of a big bore Model 94 is appealing.
I know commercial ammo is very limited so reloading is probably the best way to go. Any known accuracy or durability issues?
The new Marlin continues to impress.
Because the rear sight dovetail was off spec and the top flat on the receiver was not truly flat (pre-Remlin QC was not all it is cracked up to be, and this 1894CSS was a hot mess right out of the box), I cut off the front of an XS LeverRail and "bedded" the remainder to the receiver in order to give the installation a fighting chance. It hasn't caused any problems since that time, but the need to do that still "gravels" me. I used the lowest Burris Zee rings that I could find at the time, so the Ultra-Dot just clears the rail enough to see some light through; the fore-and-aft position allows the optic to just clear the XS aperture. The factory rear sight got put in the parts box and a dovetail blank was fitted. I have tried different - and smaller - open-emitter red dots on it but I keep coming back to this Ultra-Dot, which just keeps working in all sorts of weather and punches well above its price point. Should it ever crap out, I can remove it with a coin or a SAK and use - insofar as my eyes allow - the irons.
The sling as shown has finally pissed me off once too often and I am going to replace it this Spring with a shorter "carry strap", because I don't need all the adjustment and I rarely use it as a shooting aid... and I am tired of the excess material getting in my way. I want "slick."
The rig is 2" too long for my tastes and will never be as smooth as it should be (did I mention pre-Remlin QC is not all it was cracked up to be?), but it is not without considerable merit as a utility and "take along" gun. It never fails to surprise the uninitiated with its ease of sighting, controllability, and hitting power.
gn
"On the internet, nobody knows if you are a dog... or even a cat."
“(pre-Remlin QC was not all it is cracked up to be)”
There were rumblings on the Marlin forum prior to Remington’s acquisition of Marlin. My pre-Remlin 1894 in .44 isn’t perfect but it isn’t a bad rifle at all. I put the Midwest Industries sight and rail combo on it and all is good.
A .357 would be a perfect companion for it.
Last edited by Rick R; 02-20-2024 at 10:33 AM.
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