Does anybody have any recommendations for a centerfire lever action rifle? Prefer a 38/357 or 44spec/44mag. I would love a 45colt but ammo cost would be very expensive as I don't reload...yet. I have looked at the Henry Big Boys and some of the Marlins but I am sure there are others out there I just don't know about. Any guidance would be appreciated.

An older Marlin, pre-drilled for scope mounts, would be a good choice. Henry's are heavier. Winchesters are very nice but cost a lot more.

Depends on your budget I guess. Chuck Hawk's website has a review of several models.

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But then, what do I know?

The best value is the Rossi, in my opinion. I have the Rossi in 45 Colt and and in a limited edition short run stainless in .357 (before they were regular catalog items), and the Marlin in 44 mag - all older models. I've owned the Winchester in 38/40 and loved it - just didn't make sense to keep it after I sold the SAA.

Any of those first three calibers are practical but the .357 may be the most versatile in the long run.

The appeal of all of these is the ability to have one ammo for a sidearm as well as the rifle you have in the field. Not the best solution for most situations but better than many alternatives and a nice compromise and sound decision logistically for humping weight any distance.

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Qui plantavit curabit

I second Fred's response

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Dyin ain't much of a livin

I have a Marlin 1894 in .44 Mag/Spec. Its compact, light, easy to cary when backpacking and holds 10 rounds. Seems to feed anything I put in it.
I do like the comfort of having it when I am hiking higher in the mountians. Lots of big critters out here in Wyoming.

Chop

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MSG US Army

Thats partially the reason I was looking at the Henry 357. 38/357 ammo is readily available for a decent price. I like to have most of my guns in the same calibers. I really like 38/357 and the versatility of the loads that are available. Is there really a "problem" with loading a FMJ or HP round in a lever action tube? Hornady Leverevolution seems like a marketing ploy to me. I also forgot to say in the OP, my budget would be 750-1000. Scope taps would be ok, but not sure I would even use them.

I have them all. 357 mag is the one you want. Less cost, recoil and its accurate. Its powerfull enough for deer up to over a hundred yards, good for defense, the sweetest shooter hands down.

What brands/models do you own?

Here is where I got my opinion and experiance from. The two rifles by themselves is .357 rossi and browning 92 in .44 mag.

Winchester 94 30-30 that I have owned almost 55 years, winchester 64 30-30, winchester 95 30-40, winchester 88 in 308, rossi 92 in .357, browning 92 in .44 mag. Probley owned as many others through the years that are traded or sold.

I think these are a great choice and now might be the time to get you some. I think we are going to seen the demise of semi-auto rifles and if you want something more than a musket this is the make and model that will be flying off the shelves. I need to get one myself, would love a Winchester with the curved butt, just like the look, but man are they expensive.

Leverevolution rounds are designed to allow the use of spitzer type (pointed nosed) bullets which are aerodynamically superior at stabilizing at range. But you shouldn't use pointed slugs in a tube mag since the recoil theoretically could cause a bullet tip against the primer in front of it to act as a firing pin and set off rounds in the magazine tube.

Flat nosed, round nosed, or hp rounds unless they have a very pointy nose profile shouldn't cause you any problems, especially in pistol calibers.

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Qui plantavit curabit

The first gun I would look for would be a browning 92 in ,357. They are expensive. There have been a lot of old winchester 92`s converted to .357. I had it done myself 30 or 40 years ago. Some guys like marlins but study up on it as there were good and bad models. Best, cheapest and most available lever out there for the money is a rossi 92. They have them in long octogon barrels and short ones, big loop levers etc. Their is this guru that slicks them up and is probley the most knowledgable in the world on what you want and alter`s them the way you want, has various sights for them etc. Nate Kiowa Jones that owns steves gunz Definetly go here.
Rossi 92 Specialist, Nate Kiowa Jones a.k.a. Steve Young - Professional Gunsmith
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I think M3Stuart puts it in a nutshell. That said, I have all three - Marlins, Henrys, and one Winchester. I shoot the Marlins the most, probably because they are stainless, and I like the sights that I have on them the best. Leupold Scout scopes, and Bushnell Holosights. I don't think you can go "wrong" with any of them. Marlins are getting harder to get, because of the factory shutdown. {I don't think it is up and running again . . .} I like the .357, and .44, but I like my 45/70s. Oh shucks, I like them all. What can I say. It's hard to recommend just one over the other. Kinda like: "Pick one revolver you like the best."

Good luck on whatever you pick.

Best Wishes,
Tom
PS Don't forget lever actions are great in .22 also.

Aloha,

If you're married and decide to get a 357, Do Not let her shoot it.

I got a 357 and made the Mistake of letting the Wife shoot it.

After she emptied the magazine, she said one word, "MINE"

Good thing I have others, 375 Win, 45 Colt and 41 mag

I like Marlin with side eject so you can mount a scope, ease of disassembly for cleaning, and general overall quality (pre Remington).

.357 appears to have the most overall flexibility and value for a plinker or range and light hunting piece.

I found a pre cross bolt 44, so for what they were asking, I bought it. Delighted too. It's good for everything you need a rifle for out to 200 yards, no problem.

Add some peeps or a scope and older eyes (like mine) can use it too.

FWIW, I also got the 45-70 GBL for those pesky issues a 44 isn't up to.

I have both Marlin and Rossi .357s. My daughter decided she wants to take up deer hunting, so I outfitted her with the Rossi '92 clone. It is a Trapper length gun, and she took right on to it. She has been shooting my Marlin 39s since she was a young'un, so she is used to a lever action. I would say with the rudimentary sights, she is good to 40-50 yards with the little shorty. I understand quality is hit and miss with the Rossis. This one seems to be pretty slick. It is handling Federal 158 grain soft nose jacketed bullets flawlessly. Come another year, I will try to get some improved sights on it for her.

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Georgia On My Mind

I recently had an opportunity to shoot (factory and reloads) a .357 stainless/poly Legacy Puma. I thought the build quality was vastly better than some of the current products I've seen coming out of the "M" company. I believe he paid a bit less than 500 bucks OTD.
I would own that gun and I would definitely buy in .357.

I have all sorts of lever guns, Winchester 30/30, Marlins in 45/70 and .35 Remington, Henry .22', but the ones I shoot and enjoy the most are a Rossi .44 Magnum 16" carbine (4.8 pounds!) and a Rossi 20" barrel .357. Smooth handling, accurate and light weight. I handload for both rifles, and have handguns to pair up with them, so there is much lever rifle happiness here!

If you get a Marlin with the cross bolt safty, there is still the half cock notch like 100 years ago. The cross bolt safty can be locked in either mode (why would you lock it in the safe position?) by running in the set screw in the back end of the reciver, you will need to remove the buttstock to get to it. I did this to all my Marlins that have this lawyer device, that way the gun Won't end up on safe at a critical time, or some prankster slips it on at a SASS compition to mess with your mind. My longer Marlins are 14 shot with 45Colt ammo and 16 or 17 shot with 45 Scofield, I have a Rossi 45 Colt that handles both lengths also. Marlin 357's work with 38 Specials fine, but 38S&W is too short and I haven't tried on the Rossi/Pumas. Back when I had a 44Mag Marlin, it worked fine with 44Special and no one was loading 44Russian at the time, so I never tried that length in my 44 mag. Ivan

The beauty of a lever action is the light weight and fast handeling, higher magazine caacity. When you load it up with a scope you are in the territory of getting into a bolt action. I have several guns with a peep, one on my old winchester 94 30-30. It is very acurate, faster and far less bulky than a scope. Peeps really work, cost less and not prone to breakage or fogging up and stay sighted in.
A iron sighted lever and a scoped one are two entirely different animals and thinking.

I owned a 16" Winchester 94 in .44 Mag. I unfortunately had to part with it but it's the one thing I had that I miss most. I'd highly recommend the Winchester 94, light, compact and hard hitting.

Bunch of recommendations, they all sound good to me.

The only .357 lever gun I own is this Browning/Miroku copy of the Winchester 92. I is my favorite gun, at least most days.

I own a few pistol caliber levers. A Browning 92 in 44 mag, Win44 AE, Marlin1894 44 in stainless, and a Marlin 1894C .357 mag. The Browning has the smoothest action of all of them, like butter, but Brownings are pricey. I like the 94 platform because of the side eject feature, easier to mount optics that work for me.
I give thanks to Drew and Gizamo for their advice when I was out looking to start my collecton. That was a couple years back, now I have 7 levers, and always looking for more. I'd like to find a Marlin1894CSS, 357 mag stainless, but they're almost impossible to locate.

Like Merril, I like peep sights.

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Sure you did

I have the Rossi carbine, alot of fun and very accurate.

If you take your time you can pick up a Rossi pretty cheap.

I have a Marlin .44 that is 3 yo. It shoots great out to 50 yards then the group starts spreading out. Called Marlin and they said that they only test to 50 yards, they also said they wanted to take a look at it. Hope they can fix it if not I will sell it and try to find an old marlin or ruger.

Ditto on the Rossi, I got the stainless, very nice gun.

I just got a Browning 1886 .45-70 carbine..which is an impeccably made arm.

I was comparing the 'new' Browning to my stainless Rossi M92 .44 mag...and to my Marlin 'Cowboy' carbine in .45 Colt.

The Browning is maybe slightly superior fit and finish to the Marlin...and noticably superior in fit and finish to the Rossi...However they all work fine and are all accurate rifles/carbines.

For the money..the Rossi is a fine gun...it just ain't as fancy as the higher grade guns

Just stay away from the Remington made Marlins, they are a mess!! The older ones are skyrocketing due to the demand. I like the Marlins because you can mount a scope if desired.

The 357 is surprisingly powerful in a rifle. I have a Marlin 1894C and use my standard pistol load of 16.5 gr H-110 with a 158 gr XTP. The largest animal I've killed with it is woodchucks. I wouldn't hesitate to shoot a deer at 100 yds or so if the opportunity presented itself. It will usually put 3 shots into 1-1 1/2" groups at 100 yds, it has a Leupold 1-4x20 scope on it. I side it with either a 4" 19 or a 2 1/2" 66. I have larger handguns but why carry them when you have the rifle available. I think the 92 action is slicker than the marlin, but if you need optics than the marlin is the only way to go. I have a Rossi in 45 Colt that is a nice pre-safety model. It has very usable irons and I shoot it fairly well. If you could find one of the Winchester Trapper's in either 357, 44, or 45 in the angle eject it would be an excellent rifle. I have one in 30-30 with a Leupold 2-7x28 Ultra-Light scope and it is my number two rifle for deer. My number one is a Ruger 44 Deerstalker carbine. I've killed alot of deer with it with entire satisfaction.

Not all the Marlins are drilled for scopes...my 1894 cowboy carbine isn't(but does have the nostalgic case-hardened receiver with 'Marlin Safety' stamped on top).

The newer Rossi/Braztec can take a scout style scope. Rossi offers a mount..and the barrels are tapped for the mount underneath the rear sight.

My opinion...if the rifle is just a plinker/light-duty hunting rifle...probably a .357 mag is the caliber. If your planning on hunting with it and do a bit of light-duty plinking...get a .44 magnum.

The .44 mag is a great carbine round for hunting deer sized game....That's why I own a stainless steel Rossi M92 .44 mag(with no rattling saddle-ring)..it's small light and powerful!