Whats a good truck gun?

K

kst8fan

New member
Looking for a good hunting rifle that I can just throw in the truck and not worry about dings scratches etc. I started a thread asking about the Henry Big Boy in .357 The more research I do on the Henry, the more they are looking like they would be good to shoot once in a while, but I would be afraid of scratching them up. I want a lever action in either .357/.38 or 30-30. I currently have a Marlin made 336w. Can't seem to find a pre-64 Winchester in 30-30 in my local pawn shops. I hear good things about Uberti and Cimmaron but they seem kind of pricey. Any Suggestions? Doesn't have to be new, used is fine and my price range is about $600-700
 
always in my truck when I had it was a Mossber 500 with alternating slgus and 00buck, ready for all, yielding to none. shell holder with the same had em color coded. cant go wrong. I know its not a rifle, if I had to have a rifle id make it a pawn shop haggle buy and prob wait for a 30-30, or if i wanted new id go for a new lever from mossberg in 30-30, or 45-70 which I dont think they make one or the other but thats my prefference.
 
Killing a truck takes .405 Winchester or better, such as .458 Magnum or Nitro Express.

For a cheap rifle to put in the cab, a .30/30 lever rifle should run about $300 or a bit more up here. Good cartridge, readily available, and it's not a pistol cartridge in a long barrel. If you really want to cheap out, get a Mosin-Nagant for ninety bucks, or a carbine for less than three hundred.
 
I know you want a lever action, but I have to agree with the SKS. Although my truck has 4 legs and eats oats :D
 
I own a remington gamemaster 7600 pump in 3006 and its a very reliable rifle. I highly reccomend this gun for your situatuion rifle sights or a scope. Take your pick
 
Thanks for the replies. Around here (KS) most lever guns used are going for $600 or better. I wish I could find a safe queen lever action from the 50's or 60's in good condition. Ill keep my eyes open. I really like the 30-30. I wouldn't trade my Marlin for anything, and I have always wanted a Winchester. Not a new one, I believe they are made in Japan now. ( What would John Wayne think of this?) Seems all the good ole guns are either going over seas or are being ruined by other gun companies. Marlin, Winchester. What's the world coming to?
 
Used Marlin 336 or ca 1977/78-1981 (pre USRAC changeover) Win 94. The latter had finally started to right some of the earlier Post 64 wrongs--if not fully to Pre 64 levels, at least to levels of pride of ownership again--and you won't be beating up a Pre. Nothing beats a .30-30 levergun for handiness and overall goodness. Quite effective out to 150-175 with common ammo. A little farther claimed with the new(ish) Leverlution ammo.
EDIT: the above comments are for atruck gun that you still might admire outside the truck. But, just about any Post 64 Win (64-81) would do yeoman's duty as a "strictly" truck gun. Maybe the ultimate truck gun actually.
 
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My friend has a Golden Boy, which scratches way too easy IMO. The regular finish Henry's hold up better but they will still scratch. The bottom line though is that any gun you carry around long enough will get scratched and beat up. I don't think you're likely to find a lever gun that fits your requirements to be honest. They generally cost more than most of us think is cheap enough to beat up.

To me that's where the SKS comes in. They're generally beat up when you buy them to a degree. But they are genuinely tough when it comes to finish or at least mine is. I have guns that scratch if you look at them sideways. Not my SKS though. It's been through heck for the 20 years or so that I've owned it and other than the marks I put around the lever to take apart the gas tube I don't have any marks at all that weren't there when I bought the rifle.

You can get a SKS for $200-$250 if you look around but models at that price tend to be shot out, not taken care of bubba guns. For $300 you can get a much better level of quality. I don't know what people do to some of them because I don't clean mine all that often but I've seen examples that were flat out gummed up to the point of not working. I've shot thousands of rounds of corrosive ammo without a single problem. But some people do manage to get their SKS totally gunked up. You can either buy one and clean it extensively or you can buy one in better shape to start. To me the hours and hours of drudgery it takes to really re-work one. $50 doesn't go very far these days but it will get you a much better SKS in my experience.

The SKS is known for it's ability to function under the worst conditions imaginable. The Viet Cong used them in their tunnels and in their streams and all through the jungle mud and water. That's some tough stuff for a rifle to work in. They work with dirt in them, they work with water in them and they work with dust in them. So chances are they will work when you need one.

If I could carry a loaded, long gun in my vehicle in Ohio, it would be my SKS.
 
30-30 is a great truck gun in lever action, but mine will be a .44 magnum Winchester so that I can carry both handgun and lever rifle with the same ammo. Buffalo Bore has 305 gr cartridge at about 1800 fps out of a lever rifle which gives excellent power from a truck gun.
 
Truck gun.....

Or "collectable gun"? Why would you want a pre-64 Winchester for a truck gun that will get "thrown in the truck" and scratched up? A Winchester in 30/30 or 44 or 357 will be a great truck gun - just get a newer version that will cost you 275-350. Any of those calibers would be ideal if you want to shoot an occasional deer/varmit/wild dog/two-legged vicious critter while in your truck.

J
 
I'd go for the less expensive rossi in .44 magnum, personally, as opposed to the .357.

I'd also put ram line or other cheap stocks on it, to spare the wood.
 
Much confusion here....... $600-$700 on a truck gun? Not a chance when you can fill the same role for less than $300. You already have a Marlin 336 but are looking for something else? Heck, that gun is close to the top of the pick list for many gun owners.

Basically, about any gun available under $300 can fit your needs. Semi, bolt, single shot, shotgun, etc etc. You're stuck on a lever action and thats not a bad choice but you don't need a fancy reproduction or collectable Win 94 to fill you needs. Go shopping and grab the first well used .30-30 you see cheap. They are all over the place.

LK
 
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