Wanting a 44mag Marlin 1894, anyone here experts on them?

[Stopsign32v]

Well I know nothing about them other than what I read tonight.. I've read you want a pre Remington which is a 2007ish. I've found one the seller says is 1971 dated and has a saddle ring on it which I've not seen on one before. I'd like as early as possible while still being good and strong for full 44 loads.

 

[shouldazagged]

Strength will not be an issue. They are built like bank vaults

 

[Cal44]

Very strong guns. There are blue and stainless versions out there.

I have one of each.

Here is my SS version (a late JM model around 2003)

 

[Drm50]

I have owned several of them over the years. Always shot them
open sights or Lyman 66 reciever sights. Shot same loads as I
use in my Ruger SBK. Last couple years I have been using one
with K3x scope for deer hunting. The one OP describes, saddle
ring, JM marked is the same as mine. 70-71 production. These
are some of the best that Marlin made. Shooting 240xtp over
22.5g of H2400. Rifle does about 2 1/2" at 100 on a good day.

 

[shocker]

Well I know nothing about them other than what I read tonight.. I've read you want a pre Remington which is a 2007ish. I've found one the seller says is 1971 dated and has a saddle ring on it which I've not seen on one before. I'd like as early as possible while still being good and strong for full 44 loads.

The new ones are fine too, I own one. If you can buy a used gun at reasonable price go for it.

Be aware that Marlins are chambered to 44 mag rifle specs so the bores run more like 432 than 429. Makes a difference with cast bullets.

A little warning - the 1894 has a single rear locking lug. If the lug fails the bolt is headed right back at you. There's also the inherent issue of case stretch with a rear lockup. I would never worry about SAAMI compliant loads but don't use "it's a rifle" logic to justify "+P" or "almost a 444" reloads.

 

[Shark Bait]

Great guns. I wish I never sold mine years ago.

 

[Stopsign32v]

Why have I read stay away from the micro groove? This one is a 1971 but has micro groove.

 

[silentflyer]

I have one an older pre-Remington, with a Burris Fast Fire on it (old eyes aid), a great little light weight gun with plenty of knock down power out to 100-125 yards. A recoil pad helps the shoulder after a session at the range. A bit of a problem getting it to feed until I polished the feed ramp.

 

[Pisgah]

Why have I read stay away from the micro groove? This one is a 1971 but has micro groove.

You have read that because of the persistent myth that Microgroove is not suitable for cast bullets. While it is generally true that Microgroove rifling is better suited to jacketed bullets, properly-sized cast bullets at appropriate velocities can attain fine accuracy in the Marlin. Just don't expect factory-loaded cast loads to do as well as jacketed.

 

[cowboy4evr]

Yes , Pisgah is correct . The microgroove barrel myth is just that " a myth" if you size your bullets properly for a marlin they are very accurate . I and my sister both have marlin 336's ( 30-30) . I cast and reload for both . I size my cast bullets .311 , not .309 as most other makes would use .
I have also read that the marlin has a slow twist rate so using heavy bullets could result in poor accuracy . The std 240gr would be fine . I don't have one so I can not confirm that but it is worth checking into before buying one if that was your intention .

 

[epj]

Used to have one made in late '70's. Wish I still had it. The only strange thing is that POI would change HORIZONTALLY by about 6" when switching from 240 gr. to 180 gr. Both grouped pretty well. There was naturally a vertical shift as well, but that is to be expected. I simply quit using the 180's and all was well. Pretty light, handy little woods gun. The recoil was pretty impressive as I recall. Not that much fun for bench shooting.

 

[L Pete]

I, personally, would stay away from the 1970s made version of this rifle. The reason being is that the ejector is a different design than that used in the later version rifles. The ejector usually works fine for a good long time, however, they (and the newer versions) can easily break or get lost. With that being said, replacement old style ejectors are impossible to find, with the newer version being easily obtainable from Marlin. There is no functional difference between the two, other then the fact that the older ejector is near impossible to find. For that reason alone, I'd look for one made in the 1980s or later, if I were going to purchase a used Marlin 1894. My 2009 version of this gun will easily shoot 2" 100 yd. groups with its preferred handload, and do pretty much the same with W-W White Box 240 gr. JSPs. They're usually really good leverguns that will work for just about anything short of long range shooting. Let your quest begin, and good luck finding what you want........

 

[jack the toad]

I'm not an expert but as noted in your post, the pre-Remmy are reportedly substandard or were at one time. I've heard they've improved though but can't attest to that.
I will say that in my limited experience, the Marlin lever is likely the best 1894 model/style (between both Win and Marlin) if using handgun length cartridges. For the .44, etc., I'd rather have a Win M1892 style. Just my opinion.

 

[Neumann]

Marlin uses rifling with a 38" twist, which works best with bullets 300 grains or less. (Winchester and others use a 20" twist). Newer rifles have conventional Ballard rifling rather than microgroove, and .431 lead bullets work fine. Jacketed bullets have no problem either, sized at .429.

If the feed is rough - any stickiness or excessive scratching of the cases - look first at the extractor. It is stamped metal, and the Marlin uses a controlled feed. The rim should slide smoothly under the extractor and push straight into the chamber - like butter. If not, break it down and stone the lower edge of the extractor to remove the sharp edge.

Some people recommend prying between the bolt face and hook to bend the extractor out from the end of the bolt, making more space, but I've found stoning is all that's needed.

The OEM trigger tends to break at about 6#, with a loose (floppy) takeup. The best solution is to drop in a "Happy Trigger", which breaks at 2.5# to 3#. It's a two part trigger (for safety), and the "Happy Trigger" joins the parts with a bronze bushing. There is a spring to take up slack and eliminate the Marlin "floppy" trigger. The sear surfaces are EDC and very smooth.

You know it when you're hurling a 240 grain slug down range at 1800 fps (typically 300 fps bump). My first thoughts were "I actually put these through a revolver?" A Marlin will handle more pressure than a S&W revolver, but I keep mine legal for a 629 out of due diligence. If you have a Ruger Blackhawk, you can heat things up a bit. I use RNFP bullets (or HPs) for clean feeding. SWC bullets tend to hang up a bit when chambering, as to swaged rather than rolled crimps. I have no leading problems using hard cast (e.g., Oregon Trails) lead bullets.

 

[Drm50]

That is good advice on SWC bullets. Every Marlin lever action that
I own or have owned from 39s to 45/70s do not feed SWC bullets
smoothly. We call it the Marlin Double Clutch, you have to drop
the lever before chambering round to avoid peeling bullet on
edge of breech.

 

[Brian in Oregon]

Local gun shop got one in, and I was keen on getting it. Metal and wood were done properly.

However, I looked at the rifling, and it was so incredibly shallow that I had to wonder if a lead bullet would even engage the rifling enough to spin instead of stripping across it. Would not take much lead fouling to erase the grooves. I passed on it. Was not happy about the slow twist but this just added a second strike.

Marlin brags about deep Ballard style rifling, but this was anything but deep.

 

[shocker]

Local gun shop got one in, and I was keen on getting it. Metal and wood were done properly.

However, I looked at the rifling, and it was so incredibly shallow that I had to wonder if a lead bullet would even engage the rifling enough to spin instead of stripping across it. Would not take much lead fouling to erase the grooves. I passed on it. Was not happy about the slow twist but this just added a second strike.

Marlin brags about deep Ballard style rifling, but this was anything but deep.

I can assure you that cast bullets spin. Haven't seen a keyhole yet even using undersize (430) bullets.

 

[epj]

Local gun shop got one in, and I was keen on getting it. Metal and wood were done properly.

However, I looked at the rifling, and it was so incredibly shallow that I had to wonder if a lead bullet would even engage the rifling enough to spin instead of stripping across it. Would not take much lead fouling to erase the grooves. I passed on it. Was not happy about the slow twist but this just added a second strike.

Marlin brags about deep Ballard style rifling, but this was anything but deep.

Was this a new gun, or perhaps an older one with the microgroove rifiling? I am thinking that ordinary rifiling is only cut .002-.003 deep. Be hard to tell by just looking.

 

[Squarebutt]

I love my old Marlin 336, but if I were looking for a compact .44 lever gun today, I'd also be checking out the Henry Big Boy. Henry Rifles | Henry Repeating Arms It's the small, family-run company that Marlin used to be, and they manufacture some very nice rifles.

 

[Brian in Oregon]

Was this a new gun, or perhaps an older one with the microgroove rifiling? I am thinking that ordinary rifiling is only cut .002-.003 deep. Be hard to tell by just looking.

Brand new gun. I've not seen rifling that shallow on a large bore gun intended for lead bullets.