Big bore lever actions calibre choices what would you choose

ogre · Member Joined: Jan 15, 2006 Posts: 79 Location: Melbourne

Hi

In a multi shot lever actioned rifle which big bore cartridge would you choose??
And why

At a mates place last night and he had and old Guns and Game on the coffee table. July-septi 2001

Had an article about "hog fishing" and a write up of the Win 94 "444 timber carbine"

He said he was thinking of getting a 444 win 94.
I countered that the marlin in 45/70 would be better
And the discussion went from there.

I'm interested to hear your guysâ€™ thoughts on which cartridge rifle combination is better for Australian conditions and Australian game and ferals.
(Don't know if Sambar needs to be included for the discussion because the guy has a 7mm Rem mag he uses for Sambar.)

Thanks guys

Later
P

Coyote_Hunter_

ogre â€“

All of the Big Bores (.444, .45-70 and 450 Marlin) have their advantages. And with the right bullets any of them are suitable for anything that walks this earth.

The .444 has a good selection of factory ammo available while factory ammo for the 450 is extremely limited. The .45-70 has the broadest selection of factory ammo available.

Bullet selections for the .444 run from about 180g to 300g or over, while for the .45â€™s the selection is from 250g to 540g.

My own choice was the .45-70. My loads run from 300g hardcast plinking loads at 1100fps and very mild recoil to 350g bonded bullets at 2183fps for elk hunting to 460g hardcast at 1812fps for backyard rhinos to 500g Speer African Grand Slam Tungsten Solids at 1512fps for stopping runaway freight trains. There are many loads in-between.

Having been a lever gun fan all my life, I think its hard to go wrong â€“ except by not having one.

1895ss · Last edited by 1895ss on Sat Mar 18, 2006 2:43 pm; edited 1 time in total

I agree Coyote_Hunter_,
I would say pick one but remember, it won't be long before you will want another one. They are all great calibers, like C_H_ said. Smile

By the way I also have the 45-70.

roklok

I would (and did) go with the 45-70 Marlin.I dont know much about Australian hunting but this rifle has taken all the African big game handily using Garretts ammunition.Elephant,rhino,hippo,cape buffalo.An important question,does he handload?If not he may be better off with .444 as factory 45-70 ammo is rather anemic(except for custom loads like Garretts or Buffalo Bore)to avoid destroying old rifles and their owners.The 45-70 has the advantage of being able to use heavier bullets.

Vince

Coyote_Hunter_ wrote:

ogre â€“

All of the Big Bores (.444, .45-70 and 450 Marlin) have their advantages. And with the right bullets any of them are suitable for anything that walks this earth.

The .444 has a good selection of factory ammo available while factory ammo for the 450 is extremely limited. The .45-70 has the broadest selection of factory ammo available.

Bullet selections for the .444 run from about 180g to 300g or over, while for the .45â€™s the selection is from 250g to 540g.

My own choice was the .45-70. My loads run from 300g hardcast plinking loads at 11100fps and very mild recoil to 350g bonded bullets at 2183fps for elk hunting to 460g hardcast at 1812fps for backyard rhinos to 500g Speer African Grand Slam Tungsten Solids at 1512fps for stopping runaway freight trains. There are many loads in-between.

Having been a lever gun fan all my life, I think its hard to go wrong â€“ except by not having one.

Gidday Coyote_Hunter. Have to agree with you on your selection. I think the 45.70 is a far more versatile round than the .444. Just one question:

How do you get this sort of velocity out of the 45.70 "11100fps"??? wtf

That is awesome power. Shocked

I would not be happy with the recoil thats for sure. Shocked

But seriously, in my opinion, FWIW, the 45.70 is pretty much overkill on Australian game unless you are hunting buffalo in NT on a regular basis. Any of the .30 calibre rounds, the .308 or 30.06, are really all you need. Pigs, roos, deer, goats....they will all fall easily to this calibre.

Cheers, Vince

ogre · Member Joined: Jan 15, 2006 Posts: 79 Location: Melbourne

Vince wrote:

But seriously, in my opinion, FWIW, the 45.70 is pretty much overkill on Australian game unless you are hunting buffalo in NT on a regular basis. Any of the .30 calibre rounds, the .308 or 30.06, are really all you need. Pigs, roos, deer, goats....they will all fall easily to this calibre.

Cheers, Vince

Agrred but where do you find them in a handy lever action??
later
P

Gil Martin · Posted: Sat Mar 18, 2006 6:23 am Post subject: It depends

I have a Marlin .444 and a .45/70 and like both of them. They are very accurate and I usually end up shooting cast bullets. Either one should work out just fine. My all time favorite big bore lever is a Winchester Model 71 in .348. Original rifles are getting hard to find, but some years back Browning did a run of these rifles. All the best...
Gil

Vince

ogre wrote:

Agrred but where do you find them in a handy lever action??
later
P

Gidday Ogre. Browning offer a number of lever action options. Check out this link: BROWNING LEVER GUNS
Apart from that I can't really offer any suggestions.

I have a Winchester Model 94 in 30.30 and reckon it is a great rifle, although there are those that say the Marlin is a better option in that calibre because they are supposedly more accurate.

What do you actually want to hunt with the lever gun, or are you just interested in what others think about them?

Cheers, Vince

george20042007

thought I'd add my 2 cents. I have a Marlin 1894CB in .45 LC and a Marlin 1895 in .45-70. Between the two I have the animal spectrum covered. I do all of my own reloading, so, being that I use Marlins I can push both to the extreme. I'm sure by now you have heard or read articles on the Hornady LEVEREVOLUTION ammunition. This brings on new performance levels to the factory ammo line. I'm sure my reloads are better yet, but, my interest is with the bullet itself. Can't wait to hand load using it. And who said a lever gun has no range? When I can't hit it at long distance I just pull out my S&W 460 XVR, But, I sure do like my lever guns.

Coyote_Hunter_

Vince wrote:

How do you get this sort of velocity out of the 45.70 "11100fps"??? wtf

That is awesome power. Shocked

I would not be happy with the recoil thats for sure. Shocked

Thanks for pointing out the error - I corrected the velocity to show 1100fps.

Handloader · Posted: Fri Mar 24, 2006 9:41 pm Post subject: Re: It depends

GilMartin wrote:

. . . My all time favorite big bore lever is a Winchester Model 71 in .348. Original rifles are getting hard to find, but some years back Browning did a run of these rifles. All the best...
Gil

GilMartin: now that's class! I waited two decades to find my M71 Deluxe and it is my all time favorite lever action. I liked it so much I traded some lesser stuff for a Browning 71 Carbine. They are superb rifles, the epitome of lever action development from Winchester and a reasonable replica from Browning.

Last year I won a Marlin Guide Gun in 45-70. I was impressed with this rifle for its accuracy and soft recoil, even with stepped up loads, especially after installing a LimbSaver. I'm headed to Alaska and this stainless version will come along for the hunt. This rifle is available at reasonable prices as is the ammo.

Crackshot

I had a Marlin 1895 45/70 until wife bought me a Winchester Timber Carbine in 444, I like 444 alot better!

Flint54

What is the minimum caliber to be considered a big bore. If is is .4 plus then my ideal lever gun would be a Winchester 95 in .405, Teddy loved his and took large and dangerous game with it.

Now if the begining caliber would drop down to .35 as a minimum I would have to go with a Browning lever in .358 Winchester. This is an awsome round that was put out to pasture way too early. I would have no problems going after any edible game on this continent. I would even feel comfortable with it in Africa as long as I was not after any of the largest and meanest of the bunch. Cool

george20042007

I'm glad to see so many commenting on lever actions. There seems to be a quite a few using 45-70 loads, so, I have one question. What is your favorite hand load in 45-70?

Vince

george20042007 wrote:

I'm glad to see so many commenting on lever actions. There seems to be a quite a few using 45-70 loads, so, I have one question. What is your favorite hand load in 45-70?

Careful George....you might be opening Pandora's box by asking a question like that mate. Very Happy

There are some very proud 45.70 users in these forums.......but us Winchester Mod 94 30.30 shooters keep 'em honest.

Cheers, Vince