Marlin 1895 "guide gun" opinion

droid1963 said:
the Marlin Guide Gun is 100% stock. 18.5" barrel, straight grip. was made to be a brush gun, and designed for fast shouldering/follow-up shots... here's a video posted by another CGN'er CampCook on youtube

[youtube]5XCB4A911SM[/youtube]
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Great shooting!

I timed you for each shot as follows:

Shot #

1. 2.48 sec
2. 2.22 sec
3. 1.94 sec
4. 2.00 sec

The time is from the first movement of your arm to firing the round.

My only question is why not have the round chambered with the hammer down for this test. I would think that this would be the typical situation when hunting in areas where you might meet dangerous game.

No matter what, the timing probably would be somewhat similar???

Duke1
 
I have had a GG for a long time(Just after they came out) They are a great Bush,Backup,Stopping Rifle when loaded with 400 gr and up.My oldest son carries it with him on a quad at work,He operates Gas wells in the NW corner of AB.
I have nothing but great things to say about the 1895 GG in 45/70.
 
Panman said:
I have a real hankerin for an 1895 SBL. I like the pistol grip, large loop, and integrated rail for a scout scope if so inclined. It is on my 2010 wish list. :D

zoom_1895sbl.jpg
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x2:agree:
 
I had one for a bit, but sold it rather quickly. I just wasnt really enamoured with it, the stock shape really beat the piss out of you with heavy loads. I have a b71 carbine in 348 and a 20'' 375 H&H that suit me just fine.
 
they are FUN, but aren't all big-bores. :D
I had an 1895M (had a st. stock) and sold it to obtain an SBL. Like most here, I prefer the ergos of the pistol grip.

I'll also add that they are surprisingly accurate at 100 yards.

I'd suggest you hold off your purchase until the spring if you can. Marlin is going to introduce another SBL model that will be traditionally blued, with a brown laminated stock. It will have the other goodies that the stainless SBL has (XS weaver rail, sights & big loop) but should be cheaper.

Head over to the Marlin Owners Forum and look under 45/70 for all kinds of info and enjoyable reading.
 
I have had a couple GG's over the years. However my preference towards carrying lighter-weight firearms these days finds me leaving my GG in the safe more often. They're like a BBW at close to 7.5 pounds, but they definitely fill a niche. I would always recommend trying one to any potential buyer. If you discover it's not for you you shouldn't have any trouble flogging it on the EE.
 
I love mine. If I was only able to keep one gun, that would be it.

GGScope01.jpg


The only think I would maybe change on it is the stock. I think a pistol grip would be more comfortable.
 
duke1 said:
My only question is why not have the round chambered with the hammer down for this test. I would think that this would be the typical situation when hunting in areas where you might meet dangerous game.
Duke1
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I am at a gun club if I was in the bush I may have chambered a round first with the hammer on 1/2 #### but I have trained so much doing it this way that even if I had a round in the chamber I would probably lever the action ejecting the loaded round that was chambered... :redface:

zuke said:
Where did you read up on polishing?
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You don't need to read up on it just send your rifle to the gunsmith that worked on my Marlin 1895GS that I am using in the video, his name is Peter but he goes by Rusty Wood here on CGNTZ he is located in Mission, BC.

I am extremely happy with the work he did on my rifle and handguns and I do not know of another gunsmith in Canada that specializes in smoothing lever action actions like he does.



Here is another video this time I loaded 4 rounds in the mag tube and fired them as fast as I could.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-AVr7gNmrU&feature=related
 
450 Marlin

I have the 1895m (in 450 Marlin of course) and like the guide guns I find it to
be a superbly balanced, beautifully compact gun that is great for hauling
around the back country. Many people complain about the recoil, but I found
that shooting from field positions (using Hornady's 325 and 350 grain factory
loads) that it wasn't all that harsh. I mean it does kick, but I've heard people
describe it as obnoxious and I figure they must be holding the stock in the
area of their groins when they light one off :eek:, or they don't know how to
hold a gun properly. That said, it can be a little tiring to shoot off the bench
though. Some people are of the opinion that you go with the 45-70 if you
reload and the 450 Marlin if you don't. But I'll let you in on a little secret: You
can reload the 450 Marlin just as easily as you can the 45-70 and they work
just as well. The only draw back I can see is the size of the lever loop, which
is a little small for gloved hands and the stock iron sights absolutely suck, in
my opinion. You can get larger after market lever loops, at a cost of course
and a set of ghost rings is pretty much a standard upgrade. Or you might
want to look at Marlins 1895 SBL - don't you love it when a manufacturer
actually pays attention to what their customers are doing :D - looks like a
sweet little unit to me. When they chamber the SBL in 450 Marlin, I'll have an
1895m for sale.;)
 
I have the 1895SS (standard length) that was purchased scoped. I took it off, and instead have a set of XS Ghost ring sights that are MUCH quicker (for me).

While I'd rather have the length of the guide gun, the pistol grip stock on the SS is much nice, IMHO. I don't like the straight stock at ALL.
 
I got a very-lightly-used Guide Gun a couple of years ago and it shot so well with so many different loads that I couldn't imagine why the original owner sold it. Then, shortly after the SBL came out, I found a barely-used one at Epps, bought it and almost immediately sold the Guide Gun. It may not be classically styled, but this is functional lever-gun perfection.
 
Ive got a SS Guide gun, the factory pad is total pos, found the gun hard on the shoulder to shoot with it, recoil is reasonable. Less than a 12 gauge with slugs compared to a 45/70 factory round. The stock trigger has alittle bit of slack-creep, I bought a WW trigger kit to fix this. The factory sites are junk. I got some fibre optics from Williams for this. I really like this gun alot its nicely built.
 
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