henry repeating company new gun

I own six Henry rifles... And despite their detractors, they are among my favorite firearms... I have a Frontier (brass conversion) in .22 LR, and Golden Boy in .22 LR, and Golden Boy in .22 Mag, a Big Boy .357 and .44 and a Brass conversion .30/30. I will definitely spring for the new Henry replica... I read an article about the extreme attention to detail and quality manufacturing that Anothony Imperato is focusing on this project... It is sure to be an heirloom piece.
 
I've had a Uberti Henry in 44-40 for a long time. It's my favourite CAS rifle for long range. By using the 200 yd setting on the ladder sight, off hand it's easy to ring a 200 yd 24" gong repeatedly with a standard CAS load.
I see many shot as main match rifles as well, but there I prefer my Uberti '66 in 44-40 as it handles faster in my hands. The barrel of a Henry heats up PDQ with BP, BTW, something to be aware of.
The other caveat with a Henry is NOT to drop the follower on any number of rounds by slapping the nose cap shut. You LOWER it under control. I've been present twice when that caused a detonation of three rds, damaging the rifle and in one case, injuring the shooter and I know of at least one other case.
In none of these instances was the shooter using anything but RNFPs and the rest of the ammo did not have any high primers. Historically, this was not unheard of with 44 Henry RF using fulminate of mercury priming compound.

Another heads up for Henry users is to allow passage of the follower, not blocking it with your hand. If you think that this wouldn't happen, you simply have not shot a Henry much.
A trick is to either count your rounds (which a CAS shooter does automatically) to know when it it's time to let it pass, or arch your hand to allow it free passage. The Henry is not a rifle for fools or the untrained.

If the 'new' Henry is made to the same standard as the non-historic offerings, this is going to be a worthy acquisition for lever action lovers.

Next time you're watching "Dances With Wolves", notice where the follower is on Kevin Costner's Henry as he's busy dropping bison with the puny .44Henry RF. I'm not sure if they made the 'fox paw' in "Lonesome Dove".
 
I believe there was a transitional model Henry that had the King patent side loading gate. When the Henry hit the market, it was touted as the "Improved Henry" to capitalize on the reputation of the Henry.

Before there were repro Henry's, it was common to remove the forestock from '66 rifles to achieve the impression.

that would be a 1866 Winchester same gun pretty much but with a loading gate
 
Whew - 9lbs empty, and then you fill it with 14 .44-40 cartridges. This lady is big boned.

I'd love to have her out for the day, and then maybe a nice steak dinner, but I don't know I'd sacrifice $2300 US pesos on it.
 
Yep, the Henry with it's one piece barrel/slotted mag tube is no lightweight. Hence it's long range capability. The barrel configuration is as solid as it gets.

BTW - I get 12 rds of 44-40 in mine, plus one up the spout. That was 'firepower' in the era, even upstaging the Spencer. I could increase that by one round, but since I'm not holding off the Grey Back horde, why bother?

It's common now in SASS circles to alter the rifle to take the shorty .44 and .45 "gamer" cartridges which more closely resemble the .44 Henry RF in OAL. Then you can stuff it to the max.

Whew - 9lbs empty, and then you fill it with 14 .44-40 cartridges. This lady is big boned.

I'd love to have her out for the day, and then maybe a nice steak dinner, but I don't know I'd sacrifice $2300 US pesos on it.
 
Yep, the Henry with it's one piece barrel/slotted mag tube is no lightweight. Hence it's long range capability. The barrel configuration is as solid as it gets.

BTW - I get 12 rds of 44-40 in mine, plus one up the spout. That was 'firepower' in the era, even upstaging the Spencer. I could increase that by one round, but since I'm not holding off the Grey Back horde, why bother?

It's common now in SASS circles to alter the rifle to take the shorty .44 and .45 "gamer" cartridges which more closely resemble the .44 Henry RF in OAL. Then you can stuff it to the max.

the spencer is a faster reload with tubes though
 
WANNA BET? It might be a little more convenient, but that's about it.

A pal has a 56-50 repro he reloads with homemade tubes he carries in the inside pocket of his frock coat. This is his main match rifle, so he is experienced with it. Obviously, he is not a "gamer"; going for "style" points instead.
I can draw up the follower and swivel the nose cap a lot faster on my Henry, dropping in rounds from a pouch, pocket or bandolier. But, too much haste could be disastrous, if I ever let that follower slam down like an elevator shaft!

He can only load 7 rds. Since most CAS stages require 10 rds, he is severely handicapped, having to single load three rds to complete a stage, an awkward proposition when the clock is running.
Normal operation requires cocking the rifle and operating the lever to chamber a round. Spencer shooters do this rather than the reverse to avoid letting the hammer slip with a chambered round, just as do most SxS shooters.

I recently watched a video of a costumed "frontiersman" (German, I believe) load and fire his Henry with BP. He was dropping in the rounds with the rifle in a vertical position! The proper technique is to hold the rifle horizontally to load.
I can imagine that a detonation with BP loads would be quite spectacular! Much more so than that of the smokeless variety I've witnessed. I don't want to find out first hand.

the spencer is a faster reload with tubes though
 
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