That's reasonable accuracy with any lever action.Originally Posted by 1slow
That's reasonable accuracy with any lever action.
Men freely believe that which they desire.
Julius Caesar
Why run a lever if the same caliber is available in a bolt w/ removable mag? Usage is white tail deer hunting. Price point is similar for both.
Thinking of .357 side loaders vs the Ruger M77/357 with rotary mags.
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One of the things I like about levers, is the lack of (removable) magazines. I have so many mags already, and I can’t ever just have a few spares, so I like the simplified parts catalog I have to keep.
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The Ruger 77/357 and 77/44 are basically a rimfire action adapted to shoot the pistol cartridges, so they aren't the beefy tanks that the rifle-cartridge rifles are. The primary bedding contact and recoil control is at the rear of the receiver, which can lead to issues with accuracy. They can be improved, but I don't think I've ever seen someone claim to get the accuracy results that people often claim for the centerfire rifles.
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Not another dime.
Carrying is one point in favor for levers for many. If you only or primarily carry with a sling it may not make much difference. If you hand carry, theres a pretty big difference in thickness and overall size at the carry point. If unscoped, the difference is greater yet. I hand carry the majority of the time, and for a walk-around gun, its often iron sights. Skinny levers are the nicest to carry. I mentioned it before, but my thumb overlaps most of my middle fingernail when wrapped around a Winchester 94 at the carry point of the front of the receiver and rear of the fore end. Scoped they arent as handy, but still thin and nice compared to most bolt actions. Another factor is simply liking them. One is more likely to carry what they like, if its enough for the chosen chore. Guns I dont like dont get carried or used much, and often get sold. Perceived excellence of performance may be the criteria for liking something, such as the precision of a bolt gun in many instances, but often its not the only criteria worth considering.
Ditto on Oblong's comment about the Ruger 77's in .357/.44mag. Lever rifles--when left unscoped--are handy companions. For hunting and not double duty as a plinker--a lever rifle in 30-30 Win may be a better choice than one in a handgun caliber. The reloader, if he desires to do so, can make a 30-30 round into a plinker. And then there is the desire to have rifle and handgun in the same caliber and carry both at the same time, and I always asked(and got in trouble usually)why walk around with all that iron?
That is one thing I really appreciate about my revolver. I'm thinking along the lines of unloading the mag before hopping in the vehicle to leave - in Ohio they're not too friendly towards loaded rifles at last check. I'm also mostly a handgun person, so the mags that I do have are standardized mostly and don't take up large amounts of space.
The Henry series seems to be the most friendly towards easily unloading without running the action for every round.
Interesting, and isn't something I've thought about. I'm pretty content with getting 4-6 MOA out of the rifle, giving myself 2-4 MOA of error. From the little I've seen, 3-4 inch groups out of a pistol caliber lever at 100 is pretty respectable, and is something I'd be happy with no matter the action.
Based off my past experiences with long guns, it'll probably have a USGI sling setup on it with a sharpie made for loop-supported shooting, a double mark for bicep-loop shooting, and the carrying position just being comfortable. In all likelihood I'll get to the hunting location, loop up, and leave it that way until I leave.
I won't have my revolver on the hip, as it's not legal for hunting (barrel isn't 5" or more), and why bother when the rifle is there. The pistol will be my P226, but that's a people-person solution, not a deer solution. So while not necessarily limiting to handgun calibers, by keeping the limit to .357/.38 it does allow for some commonality for when family wants to come to the range with me. But, as pointed out before, ammo commonality isn't a requirement if there's a better tool for the job, and I've got 9 months to figure it all out.
That said, here's my only requirement:
Last edited by jeep45238; 12-10-2017 at 12:46 PM.
Yes, what may be a concern or priority for one person may not affect someone else. What works best for you is the right answer.
I have a use for a "walking around gun" here on the property, and I find that the 30-30 lever has even begun to eclipse the 12 gauge pump that formerly filled that role. It's just handy. I often find that for my morning walk about/check the cameras/look for cougar sign trips, I'm more inclined to just picked up the "cruiser ready" 30-30 than to even strap on a handgun.
Rapidly working up it's "to do" list is to load some small game loads for the .30-30. I've had great sucess with the 110 grain Speer varmiter over 5 grains of Unique in the .308, and anticipate something similar will work will for the .30-30
We can't carry loaded long guns in vehicles here either, and the DBM is handy for that, but I would note that the Marlin 336 can usually be unloaded through the loading port.
I was into 10mm Auto before it sold out and went mainstream, but these days I'm here for the revolver and epidemiology information.
What a great thread! I have liked Leverguns most of my life and have used them for hunting as often as the situation permits. I have found them extremely useful for truck guns, woods bumming, desert exploring, and of course hunting. Most of my lever actions are 30/30, but I also have a .44, 45/70, .357, and a .22LR. I have both Winchesters and Marlins, but perfer the latter. I like the simplicity of the action and disassembly along with the ability to mount sights, scopes, and red dots with ease. Right now my eyes are still pretty good, so I like ghost rings sights. Most of my leverguns wear tubes of less than 20 inches. I grew up carrying my leverguns with a round in the chamber, on 1/2 cock. I have never had a problem with this method, but understand that others might have issues with this. I take the safeties off my Marlins and just go with the 1/2 cock. I am extremely lucky to have both an 1894 P and 1894 CP rifles. These have 16" barrels and are extremely handy. I would be first in line for a 16" SS 1894 in .44 and .357.
Here is a picture of some of my Marlins:
Attachment 22222
Thank for sharing all the great info.
Matt
Last edited by ECVMatt; 12-10-2017 at 02:54 PM.
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