Canadian Airgun Forum

Who says you shouldn't be shopping online for guns at 2 am?!?!?

After a sleepy but entirely necessary walk to the commode in the early hours (the wee hours???) of the morning, I thought it best that I just check for any recent developments on CGN!!! AND lowe and behold there it was!! A Marlin 1894cs in .38sp / .357 mag !! And at a very appealing price!!!!

Now, I already own a totally awesome rifle to use at cowboy action matches. My Uberti '73 was short stroked and slicked up by Longhunter's shop and is pretty much the
"Valyrian steel" of lever action rifles BUT these Marlins are also very well respected and have a dedicated following. So I thought I'd see if I'd be fast enough (and local enough ) to be the new owner. And sure enough I put in a winning offer and was able to go pick it up this afternoon.

It's a very (very, very ) nice rifle and a totally different animal from the Winchester lever guns. My brief test with snap caps confirmed that it will chew up .38sp at a high rate of speed and it points very naturally with the weight towards the rear and the short barrel.

I'm not yet sure if it's a long term keeper but I'm sure looking forward to using it in a few matches and learning more about it!!

Dave

nice buy. I like the furniture

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Rodney

Thanks mate! It's a really nice gun!

Nice handy little rifles, however I'd prefer that peep sight to be mounted further to the rear- on the rear screw holes if possible. A tang mounted peep sight like for the Win.

94's would be even better. A .38/.357 would make for a fun gun.

With .357 brass, a 180gr. cast or jacketed bullet @ 1,500fps to 1,600fps would make a neat little deer/black bear rifle.

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Best Wishes
Daryl

Thanks for the comments!
Daryl; I agree with you about the placement of the peep sight although as I shoulder the rifle it's pretty easy to pick up a decent sight picture . My main interest is in cowboy shooting so if I hang onto this rifle it will get an action job and will be digesting .38sp cowboy loads, but it's always nice to have the option to run some magnums on the range from time to time.

I think my CBAction .38SPL load was 3gr. Trail Boss - v-low recoil poppers! For cowboy action I think the open sights would be best, but testing will prove or disprove that of course. Make sure you give the chamber a good scrubbing after using the shorter rounds.

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Best Wishes
Daryl

That's a sweet "find and buy" Dave!! I trust you are having a heck of a time with it over the last few months. Happy Shooting!!

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Megiddo65

Congrats and enjoy

Very nice.

I had 2 Marlin levers, a .444 and one like yours. I hand loaded for both. 265gr Hornandy for the .444 and 125gr JHP for the .357 (not for hunting). Never had any luck in .357 with cast...too fast, barrel would lead up something fierce.

If you ever do hunt with it, keep in mind the normal thin jacket pistol bullets are NOT recommended for larger game like deer. The thin jacket meant for handgun velocity expansion cant withstand the velocity the rifle barrel will push them out at (1800 or 1900 "plus" iirc), and you can end up with an animal that has a coffee cup shape & depth wound.

The .444 was a really good brush gun with sling and aftermarket peep. Took 2 deer with it. Both one shot kills with the fully expanded Hornandy just under the skin on the far side.

Marlins are built like tanks and your new gun in such a "mild" caliber should last you a lifetime.

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When the 425-hp "street Hemi" version hit the street in 1965, it was akin to taking an M230 chain gun to an arcade shooting gallery
Peter

Ahhhh, you got it........nice!!! Makes me want to take out the 30-30

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Jonathan

Moderator

Helipilot - the Speer 180gr. FP's will be find for deer from your .357. You should be able to get close to 1,650fps from the rifle with them, using Lil'Gun or Win. 296, which is the same powder as H110. These will work a treat on deer and black bear.

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Best Wishes
Daryl

Nice gun, its the first time a ever saw a Marlin with the straight grip like a winchester.

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If I had only one wish, it would be to be able to "unsay" things.