Lever Gun in 44 mag

Marlin/Ruger

Magnum pistol caliber lever rifles sometimes exhibit feeding issues with certain bullet types, say SWC as an example, and may be fussy about C.O.A.L. My early, pre safety Marlin .357 has been pretty free of such trouble, except .38 WC's. I'm reading chatter that "New Marlin" may have some quality control issues, but my 30 yr+ .357 runs fine.

I've never owned one, but the defunct Ruger 96 lever, in .44, with its rotary mag, seems like it might solve some of the feed problems associated with a tube feed/carrier system as in traditional levers.
 
My Ruger 96 has never jammed and its 1-20 twist stabilizes heavyweight bullets quite well. Accuracy is superb. They're only available on the used market since production ended a few years ago.

Jack

 
First of all any lever action is the least reliable of all repeating rifle actions. Bolt, pump and even semi-auto's are less complex and are more reliable. That is not to say levers are unreliable, just a bit less reliable than anything else. There are an awful lot of moving parts and it takes less to mess things up

When you try to shoot a shorter pistol round out of a rifle designed for longer rifle rounds you make things even more complex. The Marlin 336's and Winchester 94's in pistol calibers have always been a little more problematic. Marlin had a lot of issues with 44 mag in the 336 action and quickly moved all their pistol calibers to the shorter 94 action The Winchester 92 is more reliable in this regard compared to the pistol calibers in the 94 as well.

The clones of the Winchester 92 action made by Rossi and others should be more reliable based on the rifles design. But then you get into how well the design is executed.

I have a Marlin 94 made in the 1970's that has worked very well for me over the years. But that doesn't mean all of them will work as well
 
They all seem to have issues jaming. I've read all the reveiws. Can a decent lever gun be bought in a pistol cartridge ?
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Howdy

I dunno which reviews you've been reading. I have a bunch of lever guns, none of them has an issue with jamming.

Top, Marlin Model 1894, caliber 44-40, manufactured 1895. Bottom, Marlin Model 1894CS, caliber 357 Mag.

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Top, Winchester Model 1892, caliber 44-40, manufactured 1894. Bottom, Winchester Model 1892 Saddle Ring Carbine, caliber 44-40, manufactured 1916.

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Winchester Model 94, caliber 30-30, manufactured C 1943.

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Winchester Model 1873, caliber 38-40, manufactured 1886.

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Uberti replica Model 1873, caliber 44-40.

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Uberti replica Henry 1860, caliber 44-40.

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Now, the point of my post is not to brag about all my rifles, it is to explain a couple of things about lever guns. First off, most of them are cartridge OAL sensitive. The old Toggle Link designs (1860 Henry, Winchester Models 1866 and 1873) have no cartridge stop on their elevators. The cartridge slides all the way to the back of the elevator. This round prevents the next round from squirting our of the magazine onto the carrier. If the first round is too short, it allows too much of the next round to stick out of the magazine, preventing the carrier from moving. There is some leeway, there is a bevel on the carrier which will shove the next round back into the magazine, but if the rounds are too short, the bevel cannot do the shoving and the gun will jam.

With the more modern designs with a tilting carrier, there is a cartridge stop, but the guns still tend to be a bit OAL sensitive. And with a tilting carrier (Winchester '92, Winchester '94. Marlin '94) you have to be careful of bullet shape. Just like with a 1911 pistol, the round has to ride up the round to enter the chamber. A bullet with a sharp shoulder, such as a Wad Cutter or Semi-Wadcutter may catch on the edge of the chamber as it enters, causing a jam. Round Nose Flat Point, or Truncated Cone bullets tend to feed much better in these rifles.
 
Hmm... I have had Marlin 94's in 357 mag and 44 mag for 25 years and my only complaint is that they will not feed full wadcutters.
 
My Rossi 92 arrived. I'am happy with the fit and finish. It seems to cycle my 44 reloads. Hope to get to the range Sunday.
 
I have been killing hogs and deer with this Marlin 1894S since the early nineties. I only use one load, a 270 grain Speer GDSP over H110 powder. Never had a feeding issue.
 
The gun runs flawless with 200gr and 240gr Hornady bullets in my reloads. Very happy with my rifle. I'll probably add some linseed oil and beeswax to the walnut stock.
 
Shot the living daylights out of a Marlin 1894 in .44 for over a decade of SASS.
Few rifles can run thru that kind of round count and survive to shoot just as well slightly over 10 years later.
Sold my Kit & kaboodle a few years back when the Twins arrived, due to needing fast cash for NICU...
But one day, I'll return to SASS, and raise some more Caine :D
 
Had a Ruger 96/44 lever action as well as a Marlin 1894 in 44 Mag.
Sold them both because of unsatisfactory (I'm fussy) accuracy.
Now have a Rossi 92 with a 16" bbl in 44 Mag which is very accurate.
 
I've read nothing but positive things about the Henry big boy.
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I was looking into getting one, but, after handling one, I found out they weigh a ton. (The brass ones, anyway.)
 
With the correct bullet profile there should be no problems. Semi-wadcutters are for revolvers and thus should be avoided in leverguns. My buddy's Marlin in 44 Magnum works well with RNFP bullets but hangs up with SWC bullets. My Marlin Cowboy in 45 Colt has been 100% reliable even with SWC bullets. Still, the chance for a jam with SWC bullets exists, so I have stopped casting and using them as I find the Lee 255 RF bullet to be excellent in every way with its large flat point.
 
My Henry was flawless on its maiden voyage with a box of MagTech. They are a bit heavy. I haven't tried specials or Russians.

I like 45/70 but ammo is higher priced and mag capacity is half.
 
THE PROBLEM IS THE NEW / CURRENT PRODUCTION MARLINS (REMLINS) ARE IN THE TOILET. The older, pre Remington (freedom group) buyout are superb. They were popular as all get out. Accurate and 100% reliable. Nice fit and finish to boot. I would look for a used Marlin. It is worth the effort, there will be less and less available as these guns are shooters & hunters and most owners will keep them. Some older guns had nice wood grain. Marlin also made a limited run of 44/40. You can mount a rear peep and if wanted even a globe front for upgraded irons.

The excellent alternative today, for a new gun are the Miruko / Winchester 1892 guns. These are premium quality, fit and finish like no other off the shelf lever. Far better than any New Haven Winchester. I have one. Very smooth, tight gun. These do cost a little more. I feel worth it, although the marlin was and is more pleasant with rubber butt pad and an extra pound of weight and scope mounting is an option. The 92 is LIGHT weight. Look at the specs a pound less than Marin.

As far as mounting a scope. if a scope is needed and it had to be a 44 I would think about the Ruger 77/44. My big advantage for the lever (or pump) was quick and close, heavy cover or bad weather hunting. Really, with a scope, might as well just go 7mm-08 in a light carbine bolt.

The 44/40 is a mild yet reasonably alternative to the 44mag and in an 1892 makes a nice companion to a colt saa. The Uberti look like a nice choice or one of the Rugers. Ever since I watch colt stamp their name on Uberti black powder guns and 2x the price. I was on to Colts game. Not for me.

I never was able to warm up to Rossi or Henry. They seem to be growing in popularity, I suspect, to fill the void left by the Marlin debacle. I see Uberti is now offering some levers. I would consider one of those, but I have no first hand experience and dont know what they make in 44. Not every new Marlin is guarantee to jam and work like loaded with sand. I also image a gunsmith could work one over and get it 100%. Marlin made a good barrel too. For that matter, Remington also used to make an accurate and well finished rifle.
 
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My 1990 Marlin 1894S jammed once...It was due to the loading gate screw being loose...

Never jammed since, and it will cycle anything jacketed or cast in .44 mag/spcl...This includes SWC in .44SPCL, and my .44 Mag birdshot loads that are just the 'case' in length...
 
That is the problem with bad quality. No one can promise a new Marlin will jam. It may well be worth the gamble. Also, no guarantee that Remlin cannot improve over time. Or good lot bad lot. I handed a new one at the club and it was shocking. This one had to be defective. A newbie asking if this was normal. Heck no! So; to some degree or another, the new guns are rough. If this is the Op's first lever he may be none the wiser. Even the old Marlins could use a little break in.

The current Winchester 92's are like a bank vault, but that is another gun, different design too.
 
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