comparing 44 mag leverguns

So I had finally decided to get the Marlin 1894 Cowboy Ltd., 20" octagon. My dad called me to day and said he found a stainless Puma octagon, 20" in 44 mag, and he bought it....for me if I want it or he'd keep it anyways.

My questions now are: How to carry this thing? Sling swivels? Backpack scabbard?

He paid $675, and the Marlin goes for $1030. Is the quality worth the savings? I need this to be a very very reliable bush rifle, not just a range / hunting gun. Should I take the Puma or hold out for the Marlin?

I am not sure if either have swivels...the web seems to be quite scant with that information, and I am not sure if I trust the pictures on the websites, as model seem to change a bit here and there.

The biggest issue I worry about is build quality and reliability for lots of firing.....I like to practive with my bush guns a lot in the case they need to be used. My 45-70 and 870's see a fair bit of fire time, and I don't need the Puma sights coming loose or something like that.
 
wannabe said:
......and then you would have a prohibited weapon:eek:.....
Click to expand...

Yeah, whoops.

I was reading a magazine article tonight about trapper length carbines... forgot we have such common sense laws and definitions here. Please disregard my previous post.
 
I have the Browning 92 in 44Mag and use it for hunting deer and switch to a Marlin 45-70 GG for hunting moose. I would like to give the Ruger 44Mag semi a try.

browning%2092.JPG
 
wow, can't believe this thread is still going:). actually got both in the end. a marlin 1894 and a trails end winchester 94. sold the marlin, kept the winchester.
 
The late 94s keep getting a bad rap for quality, the Browning 92s are made in japan, the hotbed of levergun hunters........I'd go with the Marlin, mine is a def. keeper.
 
44 vs 444

Can you lever gun guys go a little further and compare 44 cal to 30.30, 444, or 45/70? Which is the better of the 4? I own a Henry Golden Boy 22LR and that Henry Big Boy 44 does look appealing, just don't know anything about those heavy bullet big game calibers - have always been a 25.06 and 7 mag shooter.
thanks
 
This isn't a very valid comparison as the 45/70 is far more powerful then any of the others, when loaded heavy in the Marlin it nips at the heels of the .458 Win. mag., with heavy cast flatnose 480gr. bullets at 1900+fps., the .44 about equals the 30/30 and is probably better inside 50yds, the 30/30 beyond. The .444 Marlin falls in between, mainly due to the lighter, shorter bullets, required for OAL/action length and slow rate of twist. A new 400gr. WFN GC being tested may change some minds about the .444.
 
44 mag lever

I have an older 44 marlin carbine I think it has a 20 inch barrel and it has no safety on it . not sure of the year it was manufactured but it shoots great and loves H110 powder . micro grove rifleing . I saw a puma at the target range and it was in 454 and I was;nt impressed at all with the workmanship. poor quality but I did;nt have the heart to tell buddy what I thought . stick with the marlin or wichester and don;t be in a rush to buy junk . from what I have been told the marlin has a stronger reciever . if I deside to part with it I;ll contact you . take care . :cool:
 
i've got a winchester 94 trapper, (90's ) and it's just about perfect for a back-up gun if the savage 99 quits - which it never has- the only 2 caveats i have is 1- the scope mount aft block tends to block the irons, and 2 that STUPID cross bolt safety- i know you're not supposed to scope a lever, but my eyes aren't what they used to be , and it/s only 1,5 to 4x anyway- but the compact 2.5 bushnell looked even better- right now it'sa 3x9 that i had kicking around that's on there- but talk about accurate- i got 3 shots to cover a dime at 100 with factory stuff- in a 44 with hunting factory loads, that ain't bad- i also did a bit of bubbaing - removed the front band scres , replaced it with a longer one, and attached a sling swivel up there , and put the woodscrew sling swivel on top at the back, and i've got a m60 sling on there( god how i love those things-the nylon ones with the big wide shoulder patch in the middle- snaffled every one i could get my hands on- there may be a lot of stupid stuff in the army esp with the m60, but that sling was something somebody actually thought out) so it tranitions from my back to my hands quickly without dismounting
 
44 Mags

One of the best looking 44 mags is the winchester repros in 92 short rifle version. 20 inch barrel with a nicer weight than the carbine version. Downside is they are hard to find and have a top tang safety. I imported one from the US and the cost was scary. They are listed again in the winchester catalogue but have not seen any new ones in canada yet.
The brownings are good value no top tang safety available in the carbine version. Probably made by the same factory as the winchester repros. The quality of both is very good.
Some of the Marilins are nice and again good quailty.
I have seen all of the above on the exchange except for the winchester repro.
Quite a few original 92's were converted to 44 mag. There was one recently on the exchange. If the conversion is good with a good barrel they are excellent. Converting one from scratch starts to get pricy, I know I did it.
My practical picks would be used Browning 92 as number one and a used Marlin 1894 as number 2. The Browning only comes in the carbine version but the Marlins were made as carbine style, sporter with short barrel half mag and short rifle style with pistol grip.
 
Bought a Marlin 94 in 357 from P&D on a whim couple years back, they also had some 44s, wish I got one of those as well (pre-safety models). THE most fun gun to shoot.
 
dscf2693aba1.jpg

Shot with FinePix E550 at 2009-01-27

1) Shilo Sharps #3 Sporting Rifle in .45/70
2) 1906 mfg Winchester M92 SRC in .44 Magnum
3) Marlin M1894S in .44 Magnum
4) Browning B92 in .357 Magnum



Virtually everyone has a horror story about 1 or more firearms that they have owned. He's my lever horror story;

In '94 I was looking for a lever in .357 because I was doing alot of .357 shooting out of my M66 and wanted a cheap and easy round that I could reload in abundance. After looking around for about 6-8 months I couldn't find one, I even phoned Winchester! The nice lady said that they didn't have enough calls to start manufacturing them again. Remember this was before Cowboy Action got bigger.

I finally gave up on .357 and found a Winchester Wrangler in .44 Magnum. Shades of John Wayne that large loop lever was kewl! Little did I realize that with 2 years, I'd start shooting Cowboy Action. I did lots of testing and came up 7.2 grains of Unique pushing a 240 grain LSWC bullet as an accurate target load.

Within the first 20 rds down range, the pot metal feed ramp broke. Off for warranty work! Eight months later I get the rifle back. After every 50 rds the rear sight elevator would fall off. So we have to install a Williams rear sight! Shooting again after every 50 rds the screws in the receiver would work loose. Locktite!! After 1,500 rds the tubular magazine spring gave up the ghost! Wolfe Gunsprings to the rescue. After this the Lever Link broke, 3 months and 5 nasty letters later, Winchester told me they would sell me the part but without warranty! They wanted me to send the gun to the warranty centre again! Post 64 Winchester Levers are junk!!!!

That was the last straw, I found a sucker to buy the Winchester and bought a Marlin M1894S, after 8,000 rds through it, it broke a firing pin. I love the quality Marlin builds in. If your are a high volume shooter, Marlin is the only gun for you. Mind you I have a 1906 manufactured Winchester 92 that is fantastic.

P.S. My Wrangler was one of 4 Wranglers in town with the same problems.
 
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