Well after listening to all the chest beating and "he said she said" crap on the internet I decided to quench my curiousity and acquire 3 Marlin Big Bores to see if all the hype is true or simply a matter of justification.
I have owned a Marlin 444S for many years and developed great respect for the rifle and it's chambering, however, curiousity got the cat so I went out and purchased a 1895G in 45/70 and a 1895M in 450 Marlin to give these chamberings an honest down to earth comparison.
I looked at a number of different aspects I felt were crutial when looking at purchasing one of these rifles
1) Reliability
2) Accuracy
3) Recoil
4) Component acessability
5) Handling
6) Handloadability (Jacketed and Cast)
Rifles:
Marlin 444S (444 Marlin, Microgroove, 22" bbl)
Marlin 1895G (45/70, Ballard, 18.5 bbl)
Marlin 1895M (450 Marlin, Ballard, 18.5 bbl)
Results:
1) Reliability
Ease of cycling was the major focus as all Marlin levers I have owned are extremely reliable in thier general functioning. Both jacketted and cast were cycled checking for smoothness and binding.
Of the three the 450 was by far the smoothest followed by the 444 and a very distant third was the 45/70. The 45/70 with it's large rim felt very clunky compared to the previous two rifles.
2) Accuracy
Testing was done @ 100 yrds (5 shot groups) with both factory rounds and handloads (450 handloads were from a friend)
In general the 444 came out on top averaging just over 1" (center to center). The 450 and 45/70 were equal averaging around 1.5 - 2"
At greater distance (200 yrds) the 444 was the clear winner. Barrel length undoubtedly had something to do with this, however velocity was a key factor.
Note - leading in all three rifles was non-exisant as all rifles were firelapped and the proper sized cast used.
3) Recoil
The 444 was the clear winner here. The 45/70 and 450 were simply punishing given the same velocity/ bullet combination. Even with the factory 45/70 rounds recoil was noticably greater in the 45/70 over the 444
4) Component acessibility
The 45/70 wins this category in acessibility to brass and factory fodder. To date both the 444 and 450 suffer from availability problems.
5) Handling
Both the 45/70 and 450 were easier to handle in my opinion due to thier shorter length. Again the only drawback is recoil and for the 45/70 the clunky feeding.
6) Handloadability
All calibers are equally handloadable and in fact shine when handloaded properly. The 45/70 stands to benefit the most when handloaded as factory foder is usually downloaded to trapdoor specs. The 450 on the otherhand can see only a modest improvement as the factory stuff is pretty much loaded to the max.
Bullet weight/ construction is a factor with the 444 when using jacketed but with cast the sky is the limit with all three.
Killing power in my experience is pretty much equal amoug the three cartidges. All will penetrate deeply and provide for very deep/ large wound channels.
Undoubtedly this is the topic of much debate, but I will say this: In my opinion each of the above cartridges is capable of taking any game animal on this continent. All will do it with equal efficiency. I have never seen and animal react any differently when hit by any of these. Simply put it is "bang - flop"
And the winner is:
At the end of the day each rifle/ caliber combination came out pretty much even given the parameters tested.
For those who want less recoil and slightly extended range the 444 would be my choice
For those not botherd by recoil and would like a smooth handling rifle the 450 would be the way to go
If ammo availability is your major concern the nod goes to the 45/70
I find it rather unfortunate with all the chest ponding that goes on with respect to these rifles/ calibers. It not only fills the new buyer with doubt but detracts many new shooters from truely enjoying a big bore lever.
I have owned a Marlin 444S for many years and developed great respect for the rifle and it's chambering, however, curiousity got the cat so I went out and purchased a 1895G in 45/70 and a 1895M in 450 Marlin to give these chamberings an honest down to earth comparison.
I looked at a number of different aspects I felt were crutial when looking at purchasing one of these rifles
1) Reliability
2) Accuracy
3) Recoil
4) Component acessability
5) Handling
6) Handloadability (Jacketed and Cast)
Rifles:
Marlin 444S (444 Marlin, Microgroove, 22" bbl)
Marlin 1895G (45/70, Ballard, 18.5 bbl)
Marlin 1895M (450 Marlin, Ballard, 18.5 bbl)
Results:
1) Reliability
Ease of cycling was the major focus as all Marlin levers I have owned are extremely reliable in thier general functioning. Both jacketted and cast were cycled checking for smoothness and binding.
Of the three the 450 was by far the smoothest followed by the 444 and a very distant third was the 45/70. The 45/70 with it's large rim felt very clunky compared to the previous two rifles.
2) Accuracy
Testing was done @ 100 yrds (5 shot groups) with both factory rounds and handloads (450 handloads were from a friend)
In general the 444 came out on top averaging just over 1" (center to center). The 450 and 45/70 were equal averaging around 1.5 - 2"
At greater distance (200 yrds) the 444 was the clear winner. Barrel length undoubtedly had something to do with this, however velocity was a key factor.
Note - leading in all three rifles was non-exisant as all rifles were firelapped and the proper sized cast used.
3) Recoil
The 444 was the clear winner here. The 45/70 and 450 were simply punishing given the same velocity/ bullet combination. Even with the factory 45/70 rounds recoil was noticably greater in the 45/70 over the 444
4) Component acessibility
The 45/70 wins this category in acessibility to brass and factory fodder. To date both the 444 and 450 suffer from availability problems.
5) Handling
Both the 45/70 and 450 were easier to handle in my opinion due to thier shorter length. Again the only drawback is recoil and for the 45/70 the clunky feeding.
6) Handloadability
All calibers are equally handloadable and in fact shine when handloaded properly. The 45/70 stands to benefit the most when handloaded as factory foder is usually downloaded to trapdoor specs. The 450 on the otherhand can see only a modest improvement as the factory stuff is pretty much loaded to the max.
Bullet weight/ construction is a factor with the 444 when using jacketed but with cast the sky is the limit with all three.
Killing power in my experience is pretty much equal amoug the three cartidges. All will penetrate deeply and provide for very deep/ large wound channels.
Undoubtedly this is the topic of much debate, but I will say this: In my opinion each of the above cartridges is capable of taking any game animal on this continent. All will do it with equal efficiency. I have never seen and animal react any differently when hit by any of these. Simply put it is "bang - flop"
And the winner is:
At the end of the day each rifle/ caliber combination came out pretty much even given the parameters tested.
For those who want less recoil and slightly extended range the 444 would be my choice
For those not botherd by recoil and would like a smooth handling rifle the 450 would be the way to go
If ammo availability is your major concern the nod goes to the 45/70
I find it rather unfortunate with all the chest ponding that goes on with respect to these rifles/ calibers. It not only fills the new buyer with doubt but detracts many new shooters from truely enjoying a big bore lever.
