Marlin vs. Henry in 44 mag

C

Carmike

New member
Hello all,

I'm looking to buy a .44 lever gun, but I'm not sure which way to go. I'm drawn to the Henry because they're gorgeous and because I shot a friend's in 357 mag and really enjoyed it.

I have a 44 revolver, which is partly why I'm looking for this particular caliber. I also deer hunt and wouldn't hesitate to bring a .44 in the woods with me, as the land I hunt doesn't require anything close to long range (max shots of probably 60 yards).

Plus, my wife was at my friend's place when we were plinking with his Henry Big Boy in 357, and she really liked it. She doesn't really enjoy shooting my 30-30 or my bolt action 7 mm - 08, and she's keen on a cowboy gun for some fun shooting at the range or out in the woods.

I should also add that I don't need a new one. I've heard/read mixed reviews on the post-buyout Marlins, but if there are older guns that do the job I wouldn't mind it being used. And I've only included the two brands mentioned because they're the ones I'm familiar with.

Not to complicate this wonderful predicament anymore, but I'd also be willing to get a lever gun in 357 if I could be convinced to do so. Would just give me a good reason to get a 357 lever gun. That being said, I think the 44 is my preference, but my mind can be changed.

Thanks for any input!


Carmike
 
I'd look for a pre safety Rossi 92 or a Marlin before I went for a Henry. I'd go for a Henry before a Winchester 94 in .44 mag tho.
 
I'll second Wild Willie's comment.
The .44 Marlin has noticeable recoil with full power loads, and
is not unlike a .30-30.

Both the .357 and .44 Marlin carbines here.

I prefer shooting the .357 for comfort and relative light recoil,
and it feels and carries like a much handier gun than the .44.

The full power .44's are used in the brush deer rifle role, but do most
of my shooting with the .44 involves mid-range loads.

No chance to try a Henry, (I had the Marlins long before the Henry came out)
but I would feel very confident of my .357 loads or factory full power 158's for the 50 yd. deer shots you mention.

If there is no chance of getting a free try out (for both of you) with a .44, I'd go with the .357.
Pleasing your wife with a gun she can lay claim to always keeps open the possibility
of picking up a .44 down the road.

JT
 
Marlin.
44 magnum ammunition can be bought and/or loaded all over the power spectrum. I feel it gives you more versatility than either the 357 or 30-30.
I will say though, I bought a 336 30-30 during a quest for a either a 357 or 44 Marlin. Why?
The price of the pistol chambered Marlins was much more than I wanted for a "Ranch/Work Gun".
 
Guv, I agree.

I have a 1/2 magazine Marlin/Glenfield 30/30 I got for $250. Dang guns shoots dead on with plain open sights that came with it. Totally reliable. And loaded as-is with Leverevolution power it gets a 170 gr slug at 2300 fps.

Been thinking about converting it to .30/30 Ackley Improved and reload with Leverevolution power (which I have.) 170gr slug at 2500 fps ought to do it.

The conversion will cost about $80, dies $50. Yep, $380 is heck of a lot cheaper than what? $500-$800?

Or just keep it as-is and it's a $250 job. I'll tell you this, I sure won't pay $800 for a .357 or .44 rifle.

Deaf
 
Marlins take a little bigger bullet. Their bore is just a little bit bigger than any other manufactures. If the bullet diameter is not the correct size than you will get tumbling out of the Marlins. Factory loads are usually OK though. The Henry is also a good choice especially in their steel version in stead of the Big Boy version. The steel version Henry is a very strong rifle. Both the Marlin and the Henry are great guns. Henry customer service is topped by no body else's. If you have a problem with a Henry rifle it will be taken care of no questions asked. Marlin not so good on customer service. I have both Marlin and Henry, If you are not going to scope the rifle ever, you may want to consider a Rossi 92. They are a copy of the Winchester 92. Well made and really better made than the post 1964 Winchesters. Attention to finish work is not as good, you will have to cycle them quite a bit to get some of the roughness out but once out mine can be cycled with one finger. They are a lot cheaper (appox. $300 cheaper than the other two rifles) but only have a year warranty.
Just some other things to think about. If it was me and I was buying another lever gun, I would buy the Henry over the Marlin and or the Rossi. The Henry Steel is a great rifle.
 
OP, assuming you don't reload, I am with Wild Willy. I have a 30-30 and a .44mag, the .44mag kicks noticeably harder. Sure you can run .44specials through it and it will kick like a kitten but you are still going to pay twice the amount for the 44's vs. say .38 specials. You say you really liked the .357, that's what I would be going with if I were you and I wanted my wife to enjoy shooting it as well.
 
Thanks for all the info, guys. I don't reload, so it'd be normal store-bought ammo for me. I'm also relatively new to shooting, so if I ask ignorant questions, that might be why. :)

Can I ask why the Henry isn't more favored? The people I know who have them like them, and the reviews seem to be pretty good online. Is it primarily the cost, or are the older Marlins "better" in some way?

About the recoil: Yep, I could very well be mistaken. We were just watching some youtube videos, and all things being equal, the kick on the 44 didn't look *too* bad. Thanks for the correction.

I'd also never put a scope on it, for what it's worth.
 
"...she really liked it..." That's the key. She needs her own rifle. She needs to pick out her own rifle.
.30-30 lever actions have far too much felt recoil for the power of the cartridge due to the relatively low weight of the rifles and the width of the butt stock. About 11 ft/lbs. out of a 7.5 lb. rifle with a 170 grain bullet at 2200 fps. And a 150 won't help. It's about 10.6 ft-lbs. out of the same rifle at 2400 fps.
Don't think the .44 Mag will make any difference either. A 240 grain bullet out of that 7.5 pound rifle at 1760 fps has 11.2 ft-lbs. of recoil energy. No .44 Special rifle data given. There is .44-40 though. That's far less. A 200 grain bullet at 1200 fps out of a 7 pound rifle has only 3.4 ft-lbs.
 
I have both the 357 and 44 mag Marlins. The 44 does kick. And I do have reduced power loads for it. I even killed one deer with it. It worked fine for that.

The 357 is my most favored af all the guns I own. It will be buried with me so I have it in the happy hunting ground.:D:D

But seriously if you can swing the bucks get a Marlin 357. Easy to scope even though you said you wouldn't scope. But never say never. Mine is very accurate and a scope just makes it easier to hit with. But I am near 60 and my eyes aren't what they used to be. But after my cataract surgery on October 18th I am hoping for a big improvement.

I used to own a Rossi 357. It was a nice gun. I took it apart and smoothed it up. My buddy bought a Rossi and we shot them side by side. The Marlin and the Rossi that is. The only real difference was the Rossi has a longer throw on the lever and I kept short stroking it. But if I found a deal on a used Rossi I would snatch it right up. They are good guns.

If you like lever actions do a little reading on this site.

http://www.leverguns.com/
 
Can I ask why the Henry isn't more favored? The people I know who have them like them, and the reviews seem to be pretty good online.
Click to expand...

They are very good rifles, it is the tube load vs. side loading gate that people do not like.

About the recoil: Yep, I could very well be mistaken. We were just watching some youtube videos, and all things being equal, the kick on the 44 didn't look *too* bad. Thanks for the correction.
Click to expand...

Your correct, the recoil isn't bad, it's just not any lighter and probably a bit stouter than the 30-30, so if your wife didn't care much for the 30-30 she probably won't care much for the .44 mag.
 
44 can be loaded mild to wild so it would be my first choice.

I purchased a Marlin 1894 in 44 a couple months ago. It has tooling marks ...everywhere. I have never seen this many marks on any gun, even cheap Rossi and Taurus guns. I was cleaning off some of the factory goop and put in index finger in the chamber to get a piece of funk out. About 30 seconds after I pulled out my finger I notice blood dripping down. Holy cow, are there some sharp edges on this thing. My finger was cut on the edge of the receiver opening.

I chose the Marlin over the Henry for 2 reasons.
-Loading gate on the Marlin
- Henry isn't spoken of too well ( or as well)with the sass crowd from what I know.

I haven't shot it yet and I hope it shoots better than it looks.
 
A better question to go along with this one is which rifle or rifles can you actively find. If you cant find a Marlin but can find a Henry do you wait till it's available or vise versa?
 
If you can, find a JM build 41 Mag, they have 1-in-20 twist and stomp all over the 357 and 44 in accuracy. I know as I own all 3.

Haven't tried the 41 Henry yet, great the 41 is getting new life.
 
If you can, find a JM build 41 Mag, they have 1-in-20 twist and stomp all over the 357 and 44 in accuracy.
Click to expand...

I sure hope you have some data to back that up. My 44 mag is a 3-4" rifle at 100 yards but the 357 with ammo it likes will stay at 2" and sometimes less. I sold my first micro groove 44 mag to my buddies son and with winchester white box and a scope he is getting 1.5" groups. My buddy laughed at me and told me I sold the wrong gun. And welcome to the forum.

To the OP since you already have a 30-30 save the money that you would have spent on a new rifle and buy a basic reloading set up. Midway had the Lee starter set for $116 in the latest flyer. You will still need the dies.

You can load medium loads with light jacketed bullets or even lead bullets that I bet your wife would really enjoy shooting. The start up cost with kit and componants is far less than the cost of a new rifle.
 
I've definitely thought about getting into reloading. Very interesting point.

Regarding the time frame, I'm in no hurry. I think I'll keep waiting to see what shows up at gun shows and/or online. I definitely don't "need" one of these guns, so I can afford to be patient....as long as I don't visit my friend's place again and shoot his 357. :)
 
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