Lever Action Questions

[MrBrian]

I'm looking for a nice lever action gun to buy in celebration of Independence Day! I don't know alot about them so any advice would be helpful. Do any of you have a brand or model recommendation? Winchester, Henry? Looking for a fun/and collectible shooter... not sure what caliber to get either.

[Jonnin]

There are a number of old (and, maybe, new as I have not looked in a few years) NRA lever action guns for various things including some centinnel versions in .22 and 30-30 and possibly other calibers. Search the web and you may find a collectable one from years back or something? They are out there for sure...

[MacGyver]

It's hard to go wrong with a classic. A Model 1894 Winchester would be my first recommendation of the type. Designed by John Moses Browning himself, it's as good today as it's ever been (though if money were no object I'd go with a pre-64 version). It's an American icon.

On the smaller bullet, but by no means less fun end of the spectrum, any of the Henry .22LR variants are an awful lot of fun. There is a reason you don't see to many of these on the used market. It's because their owners busy trying to shoot the finish off of them!

Edited July 2, 2011 by MacGyver

[Curiousgb]

Collectible, I don't know too much about. But there are lots of fun lever guns out there. The Henry 22 is affordable and high on my list of fun 22's. If you want more punch the Marlin 1894 in 357 is hard to beat. Some of the Model 92 clones in pistol calibers are a hoot. Pick your poison.

[gregintenn]

SAVAGE.

[Oh Shoot]

I'm not so much enamored of the lever action mechanism itself, although I certainly do appreciate the traditional nature of them. Since I wanted a .357 mag rifle, it's not like there's a lot of choices of operating type. It's great that the style lends itself to being narrow, relatively light, and fast pointing, though for sure. My Marlin 1894 and Ruger Mini 14 duke it out for favorite rifle.

- OS

Edited July 2, 2011 by OhShoot

[Guest Aces&8s]

My Henry Golden Boy is a ton of fun! Lever-action goodness with the benefit of cheap ammo, and it looks great, too.

[Transplanted Hoosier]

Highly recommend the Henry Golden Boy. I bought mine with my grandson in mind.

[Guest Lester Weevils]

I have a Henry Big Boy .357 that works good as best I can tell. I mainly shoot pistols but the Big Boy does what it is sposed to do when I shoot it. The action seems very smooth. The trigger seems good to me.

Didn't buy it real scientifcally and do not know many details of the competition. It is a good looking gun that appears well-built and it is rare to find a negative customer review of Henry lever guns.

It loads from the front of the feed tube and does not have a loading hatch on the side of the receiver. All things being equal, I think it would be more convenient to have a loading hatch on the side of the receiver, but could be mistaken. Had an ancient hand-me-down Winchester lever gun from Gramps. It got destroyed in a fire, but as best I recall the side-loading worked real well. However, the action of that old gun wasn't very smooth compared to the Henry. Maybe that is something that could have been fixed. It got burned up a long time ago before I thought about maybe the action could be improved.

[tnhawk]

I haven't owned a lever action rifle before, but each time I see a Henry in a gun shop, I become more interested in getting one.

Edited July 2, 2011 by tnhawk

[FUJIMO]

I guess it all depends on how much you plan on shooting it MrBrian. The cost of ammo will weigh in on anything bigger than a .22 . And if you choose 22 then it would be pretty hard to beat a golden boy Henry. I myself am a Marlin man through and through but it will be hard to find a "collector" grade Marlin 22 lever for what you can buy a new Henry for.

[enfield]

I don't consider Henry to be the lower end of the lever gun spectrum. They're every bit as good as Winchester and Marlin, and a good value. I have a Marlin in .44 Mag and a Henry in .22 LR.

[MacGyver]

I don't consider Henry to be the lower end of the lever gun spectrum. They're every bit as good as Winchester and Marlin, and a good value. I have a Marlin in .44 Mag and a Henry in .22 LR.

Yeah, looking back, when I said lower end, I meant smaller caliber. I should have said on the "value end of the spectrum", because you're right, the quality is definitely there.

[Guest Lester Weevils]

Just for functionality vs price, Henry makes blued lever guns less expensive than the golden boy or big boy brass-colored receivers.

Saw a youth model blued henry .22 at Sportsmans Warehous that was cute as could be and very inexpensive. Less than $200 but I can't recall how much less than $200. Had a 16" barrel and youth-sized stock. The pull wasn't so short that an adult couldn't shoot the thing. The action seemed just as smooth as the more expensive henries. Something that small would about fit in a good-sized hiking backpack.

[Sidinman]

I would have to agree on the Henry, those little .22s are smooth, fun guns to shoot. I want one of the Golden Boys next. But I also want a lever action .357 and a .41 to go with my other single action revolvers. Maybe even .45lc and a .44 mag later on.

Watch out though, lol, they can become addictive.

[bajabuc]

I had a winchester 88 in 308 wish i still did

[FUJIMO]

Just for functionality vs price, Henry makes blued lever guns less expensive than the golden boy or big boy brass-colored receivers.

Saw a youth model blued henry .22 at Sportsmans Warehous that was cute as could be and very inexpensive. Less than $200 but I can't recall how much less than $200. Had a 16" barrel and youth-sized stock. The pull wasn't so short that an adult couldn't shoot the thing. The action seemed just as smooth as the more expensive henries. Something that small would about fit in a good-sized hiking backpack.

I just mentioned the golden boy 22 because MrBrian said he wanted a shooter/collector and while the blued versions are great I don't consider those as much as a collector piece as the GB models.

But I wouldn't kick either out of the safe

[diablo982]

I own a Marlin 336 .30-.30 lever-action and love the gun. It's from the early 70's and the only safety is the one between your ears. The stock was looking a bit rough, so I bought a black synthetic replacement. I can tell you when you fire the .30-.30, it kind of sucks the air out of the surrounding area, and has an intimidating "boom!" Kind of like when you fire off a .12 gauge. It definitely makes you glad you aren't on the business end of it.

[dlm37015]

if you can find an old winchester or marlin you can find out how smooth an action can be

[79troublehead]

Get yourself one of the model 92 clones. It'll put a John Wayne hitch in your stride.

[TNWNGR]

Mossberg has an excellent lever action in 30-30 out now that in many way's look's like a Winchester Model 94 but is drilled and tapped for scopes. It also has a tang safety instead of the horrible through the frame crossbolt safety that Marlin uses. Otherwise I'd suggest finding an older pre safety Marlin or a Winchester.

[Oh Shoot]

...It also has a tang safety instead of the horrible through the frame crossbolt safety that Marlin uses. ...

Why do some folks hate a cross bolt safety so much? I don't mind them at all. Just as easy to push off with trigger finger as a tang safety with thumb.

I guess if I were left handed, it might matter, but other than that?

- OS

[gregintenn]

Why do some folks hate a cross bolt safety so much?

Some guns don't need a safety, and a lever action with an exposed hammer is among them. It is akin to a screen door on a submarine. It looks gaudy, serves no function, and is an impediment to an otherwise nimble gun.

[Oh Shoot]

Some guns don't need a safety, and a lever action with an exposed hammer is among them. It is akin to a screen door on a submarine. It looks gaudy, serves no function, and is an impediment to an otherwise nimble gun.

Agree the half cock is sufficient on lever guns that have it. But TNWNGR was comparing cross bolt vs tang, hence my question.

- OS

[gregintenn]

The tang safety is a bit less visible?