Thinking about picking up a 45-70...

[Guest pusherman]

Im thinking about picking up a new Marlin 1895GBL. Its got the 6 round tube, 18 inch bbl w/ ballard rifling and the big hoop on the lever for gloves or men with fat hands (like me).

What do ya think? How do the guide gun shoot? whats the recoil like?

[Chris]

I Love my 1895! Great gun. The recoil is significant but entirely manageable.

[Guest ADAM]

great gun and good for heavy brush. however you will know when you pull the trigger.

[Westwindmike]

I have an 1895SS. This is the older brother of the Guide Gun. Longer barrel and a 4 round tube. I put a Williams receiver sight on it. Installed a much thicker recoil pad and I was good to go. With the 45-70, it makes good sense to handload. I shoot mostly a cast 340 gr RNFP boolit that I cast myself. I have shot up to a 570 gr missile shaped boolit, but that one kicks like crazy and won't feed from the tube.

My TN deer load uses the 340 loaded to about 1200 fps. That gives plenty of knockdown on the deer, without punishing my shoulder.

I say go for it. The 45-70 Marlin is tough, and with proper handloads, can take game from squirrels to griz.

[I_Like_Pie]

ONLY do it if you plan to reload. It is an addictive gun to shoot, and you will otherwise go bankrupt shooting it.

It is a very versitile cartridge. Mild to wild...like really wild (50# recoil pulse)

[JeffL]

I have been lusting after an 1895 SBL for a while now. I've held the stainless guide gun, but never the SBL. If I ever actually see one in the store I might just pick one up.

[Guest pusherman]

I have been lusting after an 1895 SBL for a while now. I've held the stainless guide gun, but never the SBL. If I ever actually see one in the store I might just pick one up.

Yea good luck with that. I wanted one as well. I spoke with the guys at Larry's. They where saying its made once a year in small numbers. And they sell out very quickly. Hell Ive never seen them on GB.

[nightrunner]

go for it, its a VERY fun gun to shoot.

[KahrMan]

I vote for getting one. The 45-70 is one of my favorite rounds. Here is my 1895 with a 16" barrel. It is a great deer gun.

[Guest SUNTZU]

I vote for getting one. The 45-70 is one of my favorite rounds. Here is my 1895 with a 16" barrel. It is a great deer gun.

I hate you....

[I_Like_Pie]

Picture time!!! Woohoo....Here's mine. This thing thumps HARD on both ends.

[KahrMan]

I hate you....

If you are ever in Nashville I will let you fondle it...

[Guest SUNTZU]

Grumble grumble. I am looking for one now.

[Curiousgb]

Buy it. I love my 1895. It is amazingly accurate. Hits like the hammer of Thor. But as been said reloading is a must. With the right loads you could take any critter in the world with a 45-70.

[JeffL]

Yea good luck with that. I wanted one as well. I spoke with the guys at Larry's. They where saying its made once a year in small numbers. And they sell out very quickly. Hell Ive never seen them on GB.

That's a crying shame. I might just stick with the stainless guide gun then.

[Guest pusherman]

Picked her up yesterday afternoon.

This is the only non-black firearm I have that's under 20 years old. But here are a few things I noticed.

The fit and finish was not what I was expecting... Are hunting rifles not blued the same way anymore? I have a Weatherby vanguard thats about 25 years old, the exposed metal is mirror like and the blue is deep like a pool of oil. Same way with my dads rifles.

This rifle you can see tool marks on the bbl and the blueing(if thats what it is) looks more like the finish on my sig pistols.

I took her outa the box when I got home and wiped her down with Hoppes #9 and it looked like there was rust already on the exposed metal. that normal?

Anyhow Im going to take it apart tonight and clean it up a bit more, then shoot the piss outa it this weekend.

Any advice on what scope rings/optics to use?

-Jason

[Garufa]

Congrats. Marlin 45-70's are a blast.

As far as the finish goes, you really can't compare a Weatherby finish to Marlin. That fancy blue is one of the reasons those rifles were always way overpriced (my opinion). Marlin blue has never been that refined and I'm sure it's degraded a bit since my 1895 was produced 30 years ago, even it is not all that fancy.

Blue is actually a form of rust. I freak out everytime I shine a flashlight into the dark safe. Try it, you'll see what I mean.

[Chris]

I've got a Bushnell 1-4x on mine that works great. It's inexpensive and perfect for hunting in heavy cover.

Amazon.com: Bushnell Banner Dusk & Dawn 1-4x32 Riflescope: Sports & Outdoors

[Guest Spurhunter]

I LOVED mine! Had to sell cuz I needed some cash last year. Mine was one of the originals with the ported 18" Barrel. I put a Limbsaver pad on it, and shooting the cheap Federal 300gr Speer hot core round it was a ton of fun to shoot and cheap too. You can find those for less than $30 box. I might buy it back from my buddy if he will sell it....

You can indeed punsh yourself with some stout handloads if you want as well. The Hornady Leverevolution really adds the distance to the gun, but are quite a punch on both ends, and only run about $30-35 per box too. So go for it!

[Oh Shoot]

...

The fit and finish was not what I was expecting...

Peruse marlinowners.com some and you'll see that Marlin's lack of attention to details in the last few years get a lot of flack.

Almost as bad as all the folks dissing recent Ruger 10/22s, but not quite.

- OS