Picked up my new .45-70 Marlin Guide Gun 1895GBL. It's got great fit and finish, I was a little skeptical after all I had read in online forums. But like anything else it seems there are multiple opinions on every subject (For true gun reviews, I like realguns.com for his excellent descriptions, dry whit, sarcasm and real experience) Out of the box it was very accurate, hitting a 6" target offhand @ 100 yards with the first 6 shots (that's about all I wanted to shoot at first). It's a smooth handling gun with tolerable recoil. I bought it for hog hunting down south, but now Wayne County in Upstate NY is going to allow rifles this fall so it'll get some use here too when I'm not using my Ruger 77 MKII 7 mm mag. A few modifications from Wild West Guns like a new trigger and ejector along with a scope (eye sight is fading) and it'll be perfect. :ylsmoke:
New Marlin 1895GBL
- Thread starter ruger1
- Start date
Madmax, what area of NY do you call home? Actually it will do less damage to the meat being a slower bullet. I've shot deer and hogs with my 7mm mag and it will tear up meat if not placed right. We try to shoot hogs just behind the ear and it drops them in their tracks with no meat loss.
HeneyJ, nice XLR, very sharp gun!
HeneyJ, nice XLR, very sharp gun!
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stolenheron
Explorer
you will love your big bore. I just picked up a JM stamped Marlin 1895M (.450 marlin): guide gun with 18.5" ported barrel. I've been pounding rounds down range since I bought it... and my body has been taking a beating as well, but it is fun.
I'm having a friend make a nice leather sling and leather cartridge holder for the buttstock for now. maybe go with a trigger job, a slightly enlarged muleman lever, and an optic.
join marlinowners.com if you havent already.
I'm having a friend make a nice leather sling and leather cartridge holder for the buttstock for now. maybe go with a trigger job, a slightly enlarged muleman lever, and an optic.
join marlinowners.com if you havent already.
I just installed the "bear proof" ejector and nickle "trigger happy" trigger. Wow what a difference on both accounts. The ejector took some filing down to fit in the grove, but it really gets the casings out of there. The trigger is now crisp and no flopping. I cut the stock down 3/4" so I can use an additional slide on pad, removed the iron sights and mounted the Leupold scope. I'll laser sight it in tomorrow and then shoot it some.:ylsmoke:
0uTkAsT
Gun Toting Gearhead
An 1895SBL is definitely on my want list. I've been after one for a few years but haven't run in to one for the right price at the right time.
It's easy to love these lever guns. My Remlin 336Y was a basket case, but I paid just a hair over $300 for it so I decided to keep it and see what could be done to fix it. After a few days worth of TLC and a new set of Skinner sights, it turned out to be a pretty decent rifle. And after carrying it across nine states and several multi-day backpacking adventures, it has become like a companion. Handloading for the .30-30 is fun too... I can only imagine what I could do with a .45-70.
It's easy to love these lever guns. My Remlin 336Y was a basket case, but I paid just a hair over $300 for it so I decided to keep it and see what could be done to fix it. After a few days worth of TLC and a new set of Skinner sights, it turned out to be a pretty decent rifle. And after carrying it across nine states and several multi-day backpacking adventures, it has become like a companion. Handloading for the .30-30 is fun too... I can only imagine what I could do with a .45-70.
I like the .45-70 but I learned a valuable lesson in bullet construction and shot placement. I was invited to shoot a bison out of a herd for a friend of mine, they try to shoot them behind the ear for a quick kill. The first shot put the buffalo down, but he got back up. the second shot didn't seem to phase him much either. At the time I didn't have the scope on, the distance was 35 yards and the placement was 2 inches off. So I used my scoped Ruger 77 in 7mm Rem mag for the final shot that put him down for good instantly. The .45-70 bullets were Remington jacketed hollow points and I should have used a hard cast or Barnes Buster type bullet. I'm hoping with better bullets and having the scope, on that next time the results will be much better.
Madmax, like your Ruger Alaskan. I carry a Taurus RB 444 in .44 RM when we hike in bear country out west. My hog hunting gear consists of snake boots, thermocell, Ruger M77MKII in 7mm RM, Taurus RB in .44RM, three sharp knives, one filet knife (more handy than one could imagine) and sharpener. The TC Encore was in .270 (I traded it off for my .45-70) 
Thanks. I never liked stainless and synthetic either, but we hunt all over and in all kinds of weather so it was just the logical choice. The recoil is not all that bad, just a tad less than my .300 Weatherby mag with a wood stock was. I've used it for everything from woodchucks to buffalo and it shoots very well.