Marlin 1894 357

A

a j cave

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This is for those who have this gun. I have a friend that wants a 357/38 lever. I have a Puma in 45 I like. The Marlin is available local & at a ok price (600). How do you like your gun? Smooth, critical of OAL, function, & can it be worked on by average joe? Accuracy is also a ?? Please share before he spends his hard come by cash. Thanks to all, Aj. :wave:
 
If is very good shape, $600 is an excellent price. Been a long time since I saw a reasonably prices marlin 357 on the EE. They are in demand.

I had a marlin in 44 mag, wish I kept it. It was pre-cross bolt safety.
 
I've had 4 of the Marlins, only 1 left. All were very smooth, easy to work on and clean. Cool little guns to play around with and tune up. Accuracy varied, but they all would ring a 3" gong with ease at 100y with American Eagle ammo.
 
I have one of those 1894c's with the 20 inch barrel, I like it a fair bit, enough that I sold my rimfires and just keep two small rice sacks stocked with 38 special and 357 mag. If you hand load its a very economical gun to shoot. It is somewhat picky of bullet nose shapes and if theres a crimp or not.
 
I like mine a lot! It is fun, easy to clean & is so nice to carry in the woods for rabbit & grouse, that it gets out after big game seasons are over, more than my .22
I like the fact that I can handload my ammo to suit myself. At 5-1/2 lbs & with an 18-1/2" barrel & with hardly any recoil even with the heavier loaded cartridges, it is a sweet rifle indeed.

I have taken rabbit & grouse with it, but feeding full wad cutters one at a time is kind of slow...

In my gun cast bullets in either SWC or RNFP feed without any problem!
It's no wonder they are hard to find these days, as those of us that are fortunate to have them
really don't want to part with them.

I hope you can find one, you would enjoy it!
 
I liked the .44's that I had, but in thinning the herd, I kept the 77/44's & 94/44's and let the Marlins go...
 
Tell him to buy the 1894 now! If he doesnt like it he can easily sell it for what he bought it for trade for what he wants down the road.
I have an original pre safety in .357 and it groups really nicely at 25-30 yards with a peep site. Cycles well and is a lot of fun to shoot.
It fires .38 special just as well as .357 but is a little picky with . hard edged Semi wad cutters. It has become my favorite rifle for plinking.
Oh well here it is right now!
 
caperbound said:
If is very good shape, $600 is an excellent price. Been a long time since I saw a reasonably prices marlin 357 on the EE. They are in demand...
Click to expand...

Pretty much "unobtanium" these days, so if he wants it, he'd better strike quick. Only caveat might be if it is from the early "Remlin" days when quality went down. I have one (c.1990) in .44 mag. that I really like and wouldn't mind one in .357 but the Rossi is about all that's available- and also around $600. Apparently the Rossi is also pretty good, though.
 
Got a JM stamped Marlin 1894 cowboy limited...aka octagonal barrel, the configuration I love, in .357.

It's heavier and not as swift as the 1894c but I love this model the most. It was made some time in 2008 and has a cross bolt safety which doesn't seem to affect anything really. No idea why people, especially right hand people, dislike it.
 
Here's a little teaser/challenge for you .357 lever guys...I have a stainless Marlin in .357. Has walnut furniture in very nice condition. If one of you guys can come up with a nice condition LEFT HAND Browning A-Bolt in .22 Hornet, I'll consider trading you the Marlin straight across or maybe even plus $ if it's nib.

I plan on shooting the Marlin for the first time tomorrow, will let you know how it goes ;). Of course, if the Marlin is a tack driver, I reserve the right to reconsider :).
 
So I had the Marlin out today. Sighted it in with an old Nikko-Sterling 4x32 that was kicking around (and just won't die). Shot AE .357 Mag 158 gr JSP and Hornady 140 gr FTX ammo. This little rifle is fantastic! Dialed it in at 1" high at 25m and proceeded to bang away. Found an old 4' chunk of 6x6 post that became my 'long range' target of opportunity. I couldn't believe the penetration with the 140 FTX ammo! Sailed right through the 6x6 at a little over 130 long paces :) with relatively little damage on the exit. I wouldn't hesitate to use the 140's on a deer hunt within a reasonable distance. I think I found my newest short range coyote calling rifle. Can't wait to see what she does when I get around to picking up a set of dies.

I wish I hadn't waited so long for this rifle.

OP- tell your friend to scoop it up or he'll regret it years from now.

Edit- forgot to mention, I had no issues whatsoever with feeding or function. Smooth as butter, and surprisingly accurate too. The trigger was a nice surprise as well, very crisp with minimal creep.
 
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I have a Marlin with a 16" ported barrel. Fun little plinker. Had the gunsmith tweaked it so that it feeds my .38 reliably.
 
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