Marlin Lever Action Rifle .357 or .45Colt?

Canuck44

Canuck44

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I am looking at buying a Marlin Lever gun in either .38spl/.357mag or .45Colt. I have a crate of .38spl cases and a fair bit of ,45colt cases so that is not a consideration. My main concern is reliability and accuracy using lead bullets. I have a .45Colt S/A handgun so having the rifle in the same caliber would make some sense. Gun is for general shooting and deer hunting in the Charlottes.

I would like to hear what your excperiences are with either the guns or calibers.

Take Care

Bob
 
I have 2 marlin rifle one is a 44mag and the other is a 35cal rem and i love them both great guns smooth action alot better then winchester :):stirthepot2:
 
my 45 colt shot 3 cloverleafs in the blackhawk- given that you already have a colt saa in that caliber it should be a no brainer- both guns( the 357 and the 45) weigh roughly the same, and you get better knockdown with the 45- heavier bullet - frankly, when i graduated to revolvers( i already had a 94 trapper in 44) i could see no viable use for a 357/38 spcl when you had a 44 unless you were buying factory ammo- but that's just me
 
I competed in CAS with a Marlin .45LC. It was a great gun, very accurate with no problems of any kind. Of course I sold it and lived to regret it. I would buy the .45LC Marlin again. Your pistol and rifle should be of the same caliber. I have heard of feeding problems with the .357 but I do not know firsthand. Good luck.
 
Thanks guys that was the information I was looking for. I won't be joining CAS but intend to do a lot of shooting with the rifle. Did either of you expereince much leading in your rifles? I have a great 255gr custom bullet I use in my revolver and will use it in my rifle as well. The bullet does not have a gas check but with the right lube combination I would not expect leading to be a problem.

Take Care

Bob
 
you won't NEED a gascheck at 45 colt velocities- as far as leading goes, it SHOULDN'T happen unless it's b/c of the MICRO-GROOVE rifling in the marlin- again, the velocities aren't high enough- custom bullets or not- 255 is the standrd weight bullet anyway in the 45 colt- as long as you stick to the maximum standard loads and dont get into the ultra crazy loads for the contender and ruger, you should be fine- a lot of us load 1/5 or 1/10 jacketed just to clear the barrel in case there's any lead build up in there
 
Yes I am not into super hot loadings but for the rifle load to close to maximum recommended manual loadings for the revolver. As far as leading is concerned easy to get out with chor boy wrapped around an old wire brush. A couple of swipes and the leading is out.

Take Care

Bob
 
If you're not going to be shooting in volume (ie. CAS), then I would go with the 45. If you want to load it up and use it as a hunting rifle, the 45LC would be more versatile. Also, most of these leverguns tend to have the same exterior barrel diameter, so with a bigger hole down the middle, the 45LC should be lighter and handier. I've found most 35/357 leverguns are pretty nose-heavy.
 
Definately stick to the 45 Colt ! Especially for hunting purposes IMO.
I've had Three 45 Colt Marlins and every single one shot and functioned Excellent. One I had over 5000 rds through it when I sold it and it still worked great !:cool:
 
Before you settle on the Marlin, if Im not out of line here, as I dont do the cowboy shooting sports, I would recomend taking a look at the Henry Repeating arms rifles, I just picked one up before Christmas as a saddle gun and what a beautiful accurate rig!! It is the smoothest cycleing lever gun I have ever owned. Im waiting on a 30/30 to come in and a 44mag. And I am not a fan of lever guns at all, until now.
 
Canuck44 said:
Thanks guys that was the information I was looking for. I won't be joining CAS but intend to do a lot of shooting with the rifle. Did either of you expereince much leading in your rifles? I have a great 255gr custom bullet I use in my revolver and will use it in my rifle as well. The bullet does not have a gas check but with the right lube combination I would not expect leading to be a problem.

Take Care

Bob
Click to expand...

I never had any leading problem. I fired a couple thousand rounds through that rifle and when I traded it in they thought that it was new.
 
HOWDY ; The Marlin 357 mirco-groove will shoot lead just fine . IT can be senitive to overall length of the cartgridge for cyleing .1.5 inch is the min. on mine . IT is great in carbine form , 18.5 inch barrel .
The marlin 45 colt cowboy in 24 inch barrel shoots best with 250 grain bullets and a mid level load or greater to seal the case againgt the chamber walls so as not to get powder blow back over the bolt into your eyes .This is common issue with 200 lead cowboy loads on the too lite side of the loading manual .
I shoot my 45 colt in field pistol silhouettes and do well , even against the scoped rifle crowd . the load drops at 100 yqrds but groups well. Years of cowboy shooting has done nothing but make it work better . I have loaded to HOT levels just fine .
I use the 357 for cheap loads and USA loss brass matchs BUT I prefer the 45 colt and cannot part with it ,it is more useful and vertile for various gun games .
GO 45 colt ballard rifing Marlin , the current ones have a 20 inch barrel that you may find handy
Enjoy !
 
I have a Marlin Cowboy Limited in 45 LC and another in 357-38sp. They both shot great with no feeding issues of any kind. If I had to choose one over the other I would take the 45 but only because I prefer to shoot 45's for CAS.
 
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