Yesterday, I put on layaway a Marlin 1894 .357 lever action carbine. Pretty neat rifles, they also shoot .38 Special ammo. Should be a good companion for my revolvers, .38 Special M&P's and a Model 66 .357. Holds ten rounds in the magazine tube, has Ballard cut rifling so it should shoot cast lead bullets well. We'll see when I get it out of layaway. I imagine a stout +P .357 round through a rifle should have a lot of punch!

I have owned pistol caliber carbines in the past, Marlin Camp Carbines in 9MM and .45 when I owned pistols in those calibers. Now, I'm a revolver only guy, so it's a lever rifle for me. I shot the .45 Marlin Camp Carbine the most, and wore out the plastic shock buffer that cushions the bolt on recoil. Took about a thousand rounds to do it, and wasn't hard to find a replacement, but keep that in mind if any one out there is shopping for a Camp Carbine.

Any one else have a favorite pistol caliber carbine?

I like the lever actions in pistol/revolver calibers. I had a Winchester Trapper Model 94 in .45 Colt, and now have a Uberti Yellow Boy in the same caliber.
For a short time, my department allowed deputies to carry whatever they wanted; I carried a Ruger P-89 and a Ruger carbine in 9mm. When the new sheriff mandated Glock 21s, both Rugers were traded off.

Only pistol caliber long gun I have is a Rem RB .357 mag that I picked up cheap at a pawn shop about 30 years ago.



Works OK on badgers and prairie dogs at reasonable ranges.

Large variation in POI between .38's and .357mags.

__________________
Eccentric old coot

1894C in .357 is about as perfect a carbine as you can get. Custom loaded ammo will get you game from squirrels to deer. A-1 in my opinion for home defense. Light, easy to carry and just plain fun to shoot. MicroGroove or Ballard, both shoot lead well. It's the fit of the lead to the barrel and lube and powder charge. Marlin is on the brink of coming out with a stainless edition the end of this month

__________________
Lost in Penn's Woods

My 32-20 is my first choice but my Marlin 45 Colt Cowboy runs a close second. In the past I've had both 357's and 44's and prefer the 44 Mag carbines to the 357 simply because they are not as abusive on the ears when fired without hearing protection.

In the past I had rechambered and rebored a shotout 25-20 winchester 92 to .357. Got through with it and it was beautifull. Kick myself for selling it! Another time I did the same to a winchester 73 but to 38 special. I have a browning 92 in .44 mag. I still am looking for another in .357. I wouldnt mind converting a 92 to .256 win mag. I had built a martini in it many years ago. Here is my .44 mag browning 92.

Great choice for a working pair!

As a SASS match participant, I enjoy both the 73 Uberti and Marlin in 45LC, as well as an old Navy Arms 66 in 38 special. Slicked up a bit they are incredibly pleasant for action matches.

__________________
Dum vivimus Vivamas

HK 94(9mm) or HK UMP 45....thats what I use

Rossi 92 in .357. the absolute perfect size carbine.
Winchester 92 rechambered by a previous owner to .44 magnum. Have not yet fired it.
Ruger .44 mag carbine
Marlin Camp Carbine 9mm.

__________________
Formerly know as Lucky Derby

Henry big boy in 357 is as good as they get imo.
Love it and it shoot 38sp to point of aim also.

Bill

__________________
"I'm your huckleberry".

had a marlin lever in .357 once. kinda' nice would have liked it more if it had a longer barrell on it. let it get away from me. been wanting a ruger in .44 for a while now. apear to be rare as hens teeth around here.

Rossi '92 stainless 357 mag lever gun
Marlin pre-safety 44 mag lever gun
Rossi '92 45 Colt sporting rifle

And I always thought an H/K MP5 in 10mm would be a great little thumper.

__________________
Qui plantavit curabit

I thoroughly enjoy my Thompson 1927-A1 which shoots 45ACP.

__________________
NRA Endowment Member

My Marlin 94c in 357 may be my favorite gun.

45 colt.

You mean there are others?

Have two Browning 92's actioned rifles in pistol cartridges, this .357 is by far my favorite:


I guess this .32-20 Model 53 is really a rifle instead of a carbine; I really should take a more recent picture instead of this years-old dealer picture:

Marlins are excellent guns but I like the looks of the classic Winchester 92 copy by Rossi. In .454 Causal it has near 45/70 ballistics if needed but will also shoot mild .45 Long Colts.

Marlin 1894 lever action 357 mag with ported 16-1/2 inch barrel (Guide Gun). Only made for a few years.

I'm fond of the Winchester designs myself. Especially the 16" carbines.

Winchester 94 Wrangler .45 Colt
Winchester 94 Trapper .44 Magnum
Rossi 92 Trapper .357 Magnum

BTW: all are pre-safety rifles.

Winchester (Miruko) model '92 in 44 mag... 16grains 2400 & 240gr pb swc.... fun & accurate

My department had a brief foray into pistol caliber carbines a few years ago. We were issued Beretta 92FS 9mm pistols, and decided to try the Beretta Storm carbines. Nice shooters, looked kind of cool. After a mag or two to familiarize, several of us spent an hour or so on our indoor range bouncing empty 12ga. hulls around the range, off the target holders and such. That said, we were unable to get Beretta to fill our orders for about 2 years, so we gave up and traded them off. Switched to S&W MP15's, and never looked back. I would love to have one of the Storms for my own though.

I have two pistol-caliber rifles, both of which I thoroughly enjoy shooting - mostly plinking. One is a Winchester 94 trapper carbine in .45 Colt, and the other, which I favor, is a Rossi Model 92 carbine clone in .357. I like the Rossi for the wide variety of ammo (from .38 special to .357 mag), its handiness, smoothness of action and role versatility. I think the little Rossi would make a great home defense gun as well. And not as scary to the "authorities" as those dreaded black "salt weapons"....

__________________
- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

Is that a VP-70 in the lwr right of the top photo?

1. Marlin 1894C Old Model in .357
2. Marlin 1894 Old Model in .44 Magnum
3. Marlin Camp Carbine 9MM
4. Marlin Camp Carbine 45ACP
And gee-all my 22LR rifles take "pistol" catridges.

M1 Carbine. Let's face it, that's NOT a rifle round.

__________________
You're shy a few manners.

I had a Rossi 92 in .357 but sold it to buy a Marlin 1894FG in .41 Magnum. I am much happier with the Marlin. I had XS Ghost Ring sights put on it so can now hit stuff out to 100 yards. With the Rossi 75 was pushing it for me.

Also have an older Ruger .44 Magnum autoloader. The one with the rotary magazine. I haven't shot it much and it needs peep sights too.

A trail worn barbwire scratched browning 44 Magnum, pictured here with a 24'3 44 Special with sambar stags!

Beretta Storm w/green laser.. Somehow I ended up w/6 30+ round magazines as well. Fun gun but you can go through a lot of ammo having fun..

Win. Trapper .45 Colt
Marlin Cowboy .32/20 rifle
Rossi Puma Stainless .357 Mag.
Rossi puma .44 Mag.
M-1 Carbine

Another cute couple.

I prefer the Browning 92s. Mine is in .44 Mag. Also like the Wincheter 94 Trappers. Both are light and handy. Nothing wrong with Marlin 1894s, they are great carbines but they seem little heavier to me as field carbines, or maybe it's the way they carry.

__________________
" I said, good DAY! "

nobody mentioned two of the originals. 38-40 and 44-40.

Kel-Tec SUB2000 in 9MM or 40 S&W, can share mags and ammo with Glocks, Berettas, S&W's, and few others maybe. Mine is the Glock 40S&W version to go with my G22 and its mags. I also have a Winchester 94 Trapper in .357Mag that I'll never part with.

I like carbines to match with my pistol calibers:
Brng '92 44 Mag to shoot Mags and Specials with my Ruger Old Model Vagueros in 44 mag and Flat top in 44 Special or my Colt SAAs in 44 Spl.

Cimarron 1866 in 44 Special that also shoots 44 Colt to go w/my Cimarron Open tops in 44 Colt.

Berretta Colt lightning copy in 45 Colt to shoot w/my Colt SAAs or Ruger New Vaquero Montero in 45 Colt.

Winch Original trapper in 44-WCF to go w/my Colt SAAs in 44-40.

Winch 94/22 trapper to go w/my Colt SA Peacemaker 22 or Ruger Single Six and Super Single Six .22s.

Savage 1927 A1 to go w/my WW I 1911 Colt .45 ACP and S&W 1917 ACP.

__________________
Jim
S&WCA #819

Ruger Deer Slayer Top is a 1976 model with a 4X shot gun scope. it has never missed and never had a deer take more than a couple steps.

The bottom is a little older with factory peep sight. I have never fired it. It sat in a local shop for a long time and I looked at it everytime I walked in. The owner said "you are the only one that ever looks at that ruger let me make you a good deal". So it's in my safe now

__________________
SC Army National Guard

No .32-20 yet?

A Smith & Wesson Hand Ejector and a Winchester Model 1892 in .32-20 are a delightful combination for a hand loader who likes fun shootin'.

Sure do! Winchester Carbine and Trapper in .357 mag. Winchester Legacy and Trapper in .45 Long Colt. Winchester Carbine and Trapper in .44 mag. Winchester Trapper in 38-40. And all are legal to hunt with here in Indiana. BT

I have a Marlin Cowboy carbine in .45 Colt and a Henry Big Boy in .45 Colt. The Henry is smoother but they are both nice rifles. Never had any problems with either during lots and lots of shooting in SASS matches. They are non-threatening looking "assault rifles"...ten rapid fire shots from a rifle like the good guys with the white hats used in the movies.

.22 LR.

My rifles are otherwise in rifle calibers.

Firing a pistol bullet from a carbine/rifle never made me all warm and fuzzy.

If I ever get around to scraping together the money for a Greasegun, I suppose that might change slightly.

Well my Ruger Mini 14 .223 doesn't count as a pistol cartridge carbine....yet. But as soon as I get my Smith & Wesson 500 magnum back converted to .223, technically it will be. Should be a fun pair for Marmots.

__________________
Jim
S&WCA #819

I had a 9mm Kel-tec SUB-2000 up til about a week ago when I traded it towards a Uberti 1885 High Wall in .45-70. I suppose that, technically, the High Wall is chambered for a pistol cartridge since you can get the Magnum Research BFR chambered for .45-70.

Also have a Kel-tec PLR-16 if a pistol chambered for a rifle round counts.

__________________
Don't kiss smiling dogs!

What the hell? I've never heard of that conversion.

__________________
NRA Endowment Member

If you want to start down that road, any rifle round is technically a pistol cartridge, since Thompson Center either does or did make a handgun chambered for just about every cartridge under the sun.

__________________
You're shy a few manners.

For me definitely the Marlin 94c in .357 Mag. Got it because I liked my cousin's Win 92 carbine that was converted to .357 Mag in the 1960s by none other than PO Ackley himself.

Mine likes factory 158gr a lot.

Regards,

Dyson

All of the old time calibers in the 1873 make for a great rifle. The more modern centerfire cartridges like the 44-40 (originally a rimfire) and 38-40 can be stuffed with black powder for a trip down memory lane. They can be very accurate rifles with or without smokeless powder.

I do not load straight walled cartridges like the .45LC with BP for rifle use. The BP blowback of soot into the receiver makes for a real mess to clean up. I made that mistake once with a '66 Winchester.

For the hard hitting pistol cartridges like the .44 magnum, I do not think you can beat a Browning 1892 (Miroku). The action is plenty strong, and in my experience, the carbines are extremely accurate.

WG840

__________________
Freedom above all else.

Picky, picky. At least the BFR is a revolver.

__________________
Don't kiss smiling dogs!

There are 5.56 pistols, so is it a pistol round?

I got lots of .40 and .45, and 5.56 ammo, so I have rifles AND pistols chambered for these.

I have a Marlin 1894 20" Bbl. .45 Colt
It also holds 10 cartridges in the tubular
magazine. Nice 6 1/2 lbs (empty) carbine.
For those who want optics the side ejection
is a non-issue with scrope interference.

looking around for a Blackhawk Cfonvertibale since I have a 1911 & 625 .45 ACP/AR. It'd be nice to have a lever in .45 Auto Rim.

Randall

I have a Rossi M92 in .44mag, 16in. barrel with a John Wayne loop. Nice handy little thumper and a pleasure to carry. Would kinda like one of those 1873 Border rifles in .357 though.

Winchester Trapper in 44 Mag. Cannot shoot 44 Mag. handguns anymore due to arthritis, so this lever gun gets the nod. Oh, and for failing eyesight a Burris Fastfire red dot. Geez, I don't like getting old.

__________________
-Bob