why did we all choose lever actions?

Welcome to the Leverguns.Com Forum. This is a high-class place so act respectable. We discuss most anything here ... politely.

Moderators: AmBraCol, Hobie

Forum rules
Welcome to the Leverguns.Com General Discussions Forum. This is a high-class place so act respectable. We discuss most anything here other than politics... politely.

Please post political post in the new Politics forum.
Post Reply
User avatar
gamekeeper
Spambot Zapper
Posts: 17322
Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 3:32 pm
Location: Over the pond unfortunately.

why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by gamekeeper »

Age four I was given a very old King BB rifle, later I watched John Wayne firing a big loop Winchester 92 on top of a stagecoach, I guess that influenced my choice when older. My first lever action firearm was a German Erma .22, (well it looked like Winchester), my next was a Marlin Mountie followed by a US built Winchester. Since I have bought a Rossi and a couple of Uberti clones and another trio of US built Winchesters. I've had bolt actions and semi autos but nothing feels as right as a lever action.
You guys have a much wider choice of firearms so what turned you on to lever actions ?
If more men loved and cherished their wives as much as I love bacon the world would be a much better place.
gcs
Levergunner 3.0
Posts: 570
Joined: Thu Sep 13, 2007 12:42 pm

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by gcs »

My first year deer hunting, (at 16) I used a scoped 30-06 my father gave me. After lugging that around i decided I needed something lighter, and didn't need the scope, I was primarily still hunting and snow tracking, ranges from a few yards to maybe 100, but usually under 75...plus...I like them.. :mrgreen: Been using the same gun, a Marlin 30-30 ever since..
shasta_steve
Levergunner 1.0
Posts: 69
Joined: Thu Aug 13, 2020 9:19 pm
Location: Sacramento

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by shasta_steve »

For me it is kind of a later life thing. My grandfather was a rancher so there were always several lever guns around. Dad worked in the woods or sawmills and always had several around but to be honest most were not really our main hunting guns. My very first gun, that was all mine, was a single shot 20ga my uncle gave me for my 10th birthday but around the same time Dad and Mom got me an Ithaca ,22 lever action. Those were my two main guns growing up. A girlfriend got away with the 20ga but I still have the Ithaca. When I turned 12 my uncle gave me his .308 Model 99 and that was my primary deer rifle for years. It was and is a great rifle. When I turned 18 I bought a 700 Rem in 25-06 and that was pretty much the end of my lever action phase. I did end up getting a few levers over the years and Dad gave me most of his guns when he was no longer able to shoot but to be honest I was far from a collector. More of a gatherer of whatever type of gun I could get my hands on for a decent price.

To be honest I pretty much stopped hunting or shooting much at all. Life and jobs got in the way. Living in the City means that I have to plan to go shoot and I hate it. I got, and still am, heavy into salmon fishing. Hunting and shooting pretty much went away.

Earlier this year my Uncle passed away and he had a pretty decent collection, of mostly older rifles, and it was my job to split them up among three of us. I guess this is what sparked my interest in lever guns again and shooting in general again. Now I am looking to fill in some of the gaps in the collection and to get back into some of the shooting and hunting I did as a kid.
yooper2
Levergunner 3.0
Posts: 845
Joined: Mon Jun 20, 2011 11:07 pm
Location: Midcoast Maine

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by yooper2 »

My grandfather was very much a singleshot and muzzleloader man. That's how I was started out as well, first shots were with a .32 caplock and my first rifle was a Martini Cadet in 32-20. I started working in a boatyard at 13 and after a few months I had a bit of money and decided I ought to have one nice modern "working" rifle I could hunt anything with and use around the farm. One of my grandad's friends gave me an issue of Handloader with an article by Ken Waters about loading for the Marlin 1895 and that sealed it. Especially since my grandad had everything for reloading 45-70.
I went around to a couple gunshops and pawnshops with the old guy and at that time Marlin was only making rifles with Micro-groove barrels. My grandad had heard the tale about them not shooting cast well so I was pretty discouraged. After a couple of months of this routine I finally wrote Ken Waters a letter telling him what I was after and asking if he knew how to make cast shoot in Micro-groove barrels with full power loads. He did one better and put me in touch with a guy who was selling a first run 1895 with Ballard rifling and straight grip stock. He also sent me copies of his earlier articles on loading the 45-70.
While I still love singleshots and muzzleloaders my 1895 started me down the levergun road and many have joined it since. I've shot about 40 deer with it (crop damage permits), 2 black bear, and a moose. A lot of guns have joined it but it remains my go to rifle when I need meat or if I hear something that sounds bigger than a coyote outside.

Eric
User avatar
marlinman93
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 6432
Joined: Sun Apr 01, 2007 3:40 pm
Location: Oregon

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by marlinman93 »

I didn't start out with leverguns as they were beyond my budget when I was young and starting to build my collection. But by my late 20's I had a good enough income to be able to buy higher priced guns, and a levergun had always just wreaked of nostalgia, and western lore. So I began collecting leverguns.
Eventually I moved on to antique single shot rifles, and sold many of my leverguns off. But still have enough to keep me interested in them.
Pre WWI Marlins and Singleshot rifles!
http://members.tripod.com/~OregonArmsCollectors/
User avatar
2ndovc
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 9302
Joined: Fri Sep 07, 2007 11:59 am
Location: OH, South Shore of Lake Erie

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by 2ndovc »

My dad had a wall full of long guns in a room that was kind of a Den/ TV room when I was growing up. He only had one lever action, a '50s vintage Model 94. He and my grandfather were very much into custom bolt actions and Winchester Model 70s. That and military surplus arms of the day, 1903s and A3s, Trapdoors, 1911s. The surplus stuff made a big impression me. My mom's dad however always had lever actions around, though I would never know what unless he'd just bought something or was handing me one and tell me to go out and shoot that Raccoon, or woodchuck, etc. His eyesight was getting bad and if he knew we were coming for a visit, he's always have something for me to go take care of. When he died, I got most of what he had left, a Winchester 95 in 35WCF, a 94 in 38-55 a 92 in 44-40 along with a Colt Police, .38 Spl. I enjoy shooting the Lever actions the most but there are days that I like to take out my Sako and put one bullet on top of another. :D

jb 8)
jasonB " Another Dirty Yankee"


" Tomorrow the sun will rise. Who knows what the tide could bring?"
User avatar
fordwannabe
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 3369
Joined: Thu Apr 02, 2009 8:52 am
Location: Womelsdorf PA

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by fordwannabe »

First, I am left handed and they were ambidextrous. Second my heroes have always been cowboys JW, Roy, Gene, Lucas, the boys from the Poderosa, and the Barkley’s from the Big Valley. Third the year I turned 12 was my first year hunting. My Grandfather kept all the hunting guns in his closet and handed them out to “the men” in turn. When my turn came he looked down at me and said “ well you’re too darn dumb to use a real gun( meaning I was a lefty and he had bolt guns) so he hands me a 1940’s Winchester 1894 in 30-30. I don’t have that gun but I have never been without at least one, no matter how broke I was. At this point I have at least two or three.
a Pennsylvanian who has been accused of clinging to my religion and my guns......Good assessment skills.
User avatar
Griff
Posting leader...
Posts: 20803
Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2007 4:56 pm
Location: OH MY GAWD they installed a STOP light!!!

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Griff »

I was six, and spending the summer with my step-dad's brother. He used a 38-55 Winchester 94 and brought home a bear & deer on the same day... Fast forward 15-½ years and I bought a $5 lottery ticket... I won a 1972 mdl 64A in .30-30! Then... off the coast of Viet Nam the ship's store supervisor asked me if I wanted to have a mdl 94... for $39. Well, yeah!
Griff,
SASS/CMSA #93
NRA Patron
GUSA #93

There is a fine line between hobby & obsession!
AND... I'm over it!!
No I ain't ready, but let's do it anyway!
Walker
Levergunner 3.0
Posts: 649
Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2010 1:25 am
Location: Oklahoma

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Walker »

Dad's 1951 model 94. All of my other uncles hunted with surplus bolt actions, muzzle loaders, bows, or shotguns. We both had a Western addiction and where we hunted the 94 worked best.
User avatar
CowboyTutt
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 3712
Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2007 8:27 pm
Location: Mission Viejo, CA

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by CowboyTutt »

I'm glad to see this thread finally getting some traction! I don't have the legacy with firearms that most of you do. My story is a bit different as it didn't even start until I was like age 35 or something. My best friend who was a Marine got me into guns with a wonderful trip to shoot outside in the very high mountains over looking Warner Springs in eastern San Diego County. He changed my life by doing so. First gun purchase ever, a 45 Colt Ruger Bisley from Oceanside, CA. 2nd purchase, a 454 Casull Raging Bull. When it came time for my first rifle purchase, I was agonized in what to do. I had read Paco's article on the 454 Casull Rossi Puma. It was that or a Ruger #1 in some caliber. I guess because I recognized the traditional aspects and charisma of these rifles but with a modern functioning I went with the Puma. Paco would not gunsmith a Puma for me, but he referred me to McPherson. McPherson took on the job for no good reason, and it took 2 trips to get the little '92 to work just right. We even consulted with Steve aka Nate Kiowa Jones in the process. Good times. Mic eventually went all out to tune this little Brazilian made rifle to the best it can be. But he won't do another, too much work. It works great now and has for many years. From there, for me, more leverguns came from that. They just have charisma in a way that most long guns don't have. They are great for left handed shooters like me as well. -Tutt
"It ain't dead! As long as there's ONE COWBOY taking care of ONE COW, it ain't dead!!!" (the Cowboy Way)
-Monte Walsh (Selleck version)

"These battered wings still kick up dust." -Peter Gabriel
3leggedturtle
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 4145
Joined: Fri Dec 21, 2007 11:34 am
Location: north of Palacios about 1400 miles

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by 3leggedturtle »

I did because I'm smart, have good taste and common sense. :mrgreen: Todd/3leg
Last edited by 3leggedturtle on Fri Dec 18, 2020 11:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
30/30 Winchester: Not accurate enough fer varmints, barely adequate for small deer; BUT In a 10" to 14" barrelled pistol; is good for moose/elk to 200 yards; ground squirrels to 300 metres

250 Savage... its what the 223 wishes it could be...!
User avatar
CowboyTutt
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 3712
Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2007 8:27 pm
Location: Mission Viejo, CA

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by CowboyTutt »

Would agree!!!! -Tutt
"It ain't dead! As long as there's ONE COWBOY taking care of ONE COW, it ain't dead!!!" (the Cowboy Way)
-Monte Walsh (Selleck version)

"These battered wings still kick up dust." -Peter Gabriel
User avatar
ollogger
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 2794
Joined: Mon Jul 05, 2010 2:47 pm
Location: Wheatland Wyoming
Contact:

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by ollogger »

It was 1960, i was gifted a Daisy 94 at 5 years old i had the world by the tail, maybe in 69 i saved the money for a Marlin in 30-30, since then 95 % of the long guns have been Savage - Winchester - Marlin & a couple Rossi lever guns




Brad
M. M. Wright
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 4296
Joined: Wed Sep 15, 2010 12:57 pm
Location: Vinita, I.T.

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by M. M. Wright »

After the war, (WWII) a buddy of Dad's gave me a muzzle loading sxs and a Remington Rolling Block he had liberated. Started me liking guns and then while I was working for Uncle Sam my operations sargeant remarked that no man should have to shoot an ugly rifle. Now he had an 88 Winchester I was impressed with so the next time I went home I brought back my 94 SRC in 25-35 and put it in our armory. Still have it too but a bunch of others have joined it yet it's one of my favorites. I've tried a bunch of bolt guns and sporterized militaries but they had no soul. Plenty of accuracy and dependability but just no soul. I really like old Colts, especially Frontier Six Shooters and it just seems natural to have mates for them and what could be better than a 73 SRC?
M. M. Wright, Sheriff, Green county Arkansas (1860)
Currently living my eternal life.
NRA Life
SASS
ITSASS
User avatar
Sixgun
Posting leader...
Posts: 18563
Joined: Sun Sep 16, 2007 7:17 pm
Location: S.E. Pa. Where The Finest Winchesters & Colts Reside

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Sixgun »

Like many here, watching TV westerns. In '66 my dad bought me a 66 Canadian Centennial and the next year went out and kilt my first deer with it.

I was watching "High Chaparral" in about 1968 and I was laughing because in one of the episodes the cowboys were all happy because they just got a mess of "Winchester 44's". I knew then that the only Winchester was a 30-30 and told my dad the TV people messed up....fast forward to '71 when I saw an ad for a 1873 in 44. I couldn't believe it! So I got a book and started reading..by the time I was 20 I owned several 1873's, '92's, one 1886 in 45-90 and a SAA Bisley in 38-40.
Last edited by Sixgun on Sun Dec 20, 2020 8:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Model A Uzi’s
Image
piller
Posting leader...
Posts: 15188
Joined: Sat Sep 29, 2007 9:49 pm
Location: South of Dallas

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by piller »

A friend had a Daisy bb gun when I was a kid. It was lots of fun. I think that was the spark. My Dad and his family were mostly into shotguns as we lived in the Bread Basket, and actually the very center of the dust bowl, and birds were plentiful and deer were practically non-existant. While in college, a friend who lived in the apartment complex that PillHer and I lived in was a hunter. He got me talked into going deer hunting with him. I found a Marlin at a Pawn Shop that I could afford. It was a model 30AW. Talk about accurate! 3/4 inch or better at 100 yards. PillHer sneaked it out to a gunsmith and had the stock cut down for her. I got a Rem 700, but later got a Marlin 336. I have since got a couple more leverguns. For the 100 yard hunting I have mostly done, the .30-30 is as good as it gets. PillHer still has that model 30AW. Still rivals my Rem 700 in .270 and in .30-06 at 100 yards, and beats many guns at 100 yards.
D. Brian Casady
Quid Llatine Dictum Sit, Altum Viditur.
Advanced is being able to do the basics while your leg is on fire---Bill Jeans
Don't ever take a fence down until you know why it was put up---Robert Frost
User avatar
gamekeeper
Spambot Zapper
Posts: 17322
Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 3:32 pm
Location: Over the pond unfortunately.

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by gamekeeper »

3leggedturtle wrote: Fri Dec 18, 2020 10:46 pm I did because I'm smart, have good taste and common sense. :mrgreen: Todd/3leg
I really like this answer.... :mrgreen:
If more men loved and cherished their wives as much as I love bacon the world would be a much better place.
User avatar
OldWin
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 8962
Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2009 2:38 pm

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by OldWin »

When I was a kid, my dad owned one rifle. It was a circa 1920 model 94 eastern carbine.
Everyone else I knew had a 94 in 30-30 too. The exception was my grandfather, who had a 64 in 30-30.
When I was little, I thought every lever action was a Winchester, and every Winchester a 30-30........except the Daisy Pal I got when I was 3.
I always watched westerns with my dad and noticed there were some that looked different. I always was curious about the older guns. When I was 11, my dad took his birthday and Christmas money to buy me a rifle. I had a choice between a new Ruger 44 carbine or a early post war 94 carbine in 30-30. I naturally picked the Winchester. I used to pore over the differences between my dad's old one and mine. That's when I got bit.
All my money went to old Winchesters, books on them, or gas to get out to my buddies shop and nag him incessantly. I tried to learn all I could. This is a fairly poor area, so there wasn't a lot to look at and see.
My interest spread to Military, handguns, and anything that would shoot. My interest spread to my dad, and we made a small gunroom in the house and started reloading with old, used equipment we scrounged up. I still have the Herters No.3 press we started with.
I wouldn't change any of it.
"Oh bother", said Pooh, as he chambered another round.
User avatar
Old Savage
Posting leader...
Posts: 16686
Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2007 3:43 pm
Location: Southern California

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Old Savage »

Levers are cool! ;-)
In the High Desert of Southern Calif. ..."on the cutting edge of going back in time"...

Image
User avatar
crs
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 3153
Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 10:32 am
Location: Republic of Texas
Contact:

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by crs »

I shot my M19 .357 a lot and it was lonely.
One day at a gun show, I came across a Winchester 1892 chambered in .357 Magnum with a 20 inch Douglas barrel and Bishop custom stocks and the price was right.
Problem solved .
CRS, NRA Benefactor Member, TSRA, DRSS, DWWC, Whittington Center
Android Ballistics App at http://www.xplat.net/
JOG
Levergunner 3.0
Posts: 600
Joined: Wed Feb 06, 2019 5:04 pm
Location: southern Maine

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by JOG »

For me it started like most of you gentleman. A Christmas gift in a long box that had some weight to it. Yes a Daisy Red Ryder. I watch all the old western's, movie's and tv show's.
My first centerfire was a Winchester 94 in 30-30 of course. From there it developed into a small collection of lever action's. I've mostly had Winchester's and Marlin's. I had a few rimfire Henry's and one big boy in 44 mag. I kept most of the Winny's and Marlin I've picked up over the year's. I've traded off the Henry's for some reason. I would not hesitate to buy one now that they have a side loading gate! My greatest regret is not buying a late model original Winchester 92 with a 20 inch barrel in 38-55. A friend of a friend had about 10 or 12 year's ago. It was in really nice shape no rust no pitting and smooth cycling. The gentleman wanted 1,000.00 for it. No gumwood on this Winchester, just nice walnut. I had just bought a 1949 Winchester in 30-30 maybe the week before. That mistake haunt's my dream's! I have never seen one as nice since. All the original 92 I've ran into at show were in rough shape. My buddy bought on at a show two year's ago that was pretty well beat to hell! I cant for the life of me remember what caliber it was. He paid $1,700 for that old beater. I think the land's and grove's were non existent. In his defense he in a wheelchair, so more of a collector than a avid shooter. I guess it's that time period in American history that has always interested me. 1860 to the 1890's! The cowboy's the Indian's the gunfighter's!
Last edited by JOG on Mon Dec 21, 2020 1:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
FWiedner
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 8862
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2007 9:50 pm
Location: North Texas

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by FWiedner »

When I was a boy my Dad set me to hunt deer with a Marlin 336. When I was at home watching TV, the men on the shows I watched used Winchester 92s. When I went into the USMC at 17 and I could afford my own guns, the first gun I bought was a Marlin 336... and an AR-15 carbine.

I just thought that leverguns were guns, and what men owned and used.

:)
Last edited by FWiedner on Sun Dec 20, 2020 8:11 am, edited 1 time in total.
Government office attracts the power-mad, yet it's people who just want to be left alone to live life on their own terms who are considered dangerous.

History teaches that it's a small window in which people can fight back before it is too dangerous to fight back.
User avatar
AJMD429
Posting leader...
Posts: 31932
Joined: Sun Sep 09, 2007 10:03 am
Location: Hoosierland
Contact:

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by AJMD429 »

I 'inherited' an old Stevens 22 LR bolt action, and that was my tool when around age 9 (as ''oldest male of the household') I was assigned the task of protecting the vegetable garden, which meant shooting groundhogs, since you can't fence them out, and protecting the sheep, which meant shooting feral dogs (mostly from a nearby subdivision). Around age 12, my brother bought me a Ruger 10/22 ('semiautomatic high-capacity 22-caliber assault-weapon') and it became the tool of choice, especially for the feral dogs.

In high school, I saved chore-money, and bought a handgun - a Ruger Mark-I, so I had a 'pair' of 22 LR's.

My senior year, I had more money saved up, so decided to go 'center-fire', and got a Ruger M-77V in 6mm Remington 'just because'. Of course I needed a centerfire handgun, and couldn't think of one to 'pair' with the 6mm Remington, so I chose a Ruger Super Blackhawk, since it seemed practical, and I could afford it. Those five firearms were my 'battery' for a couple years.

But I needed something to 'pair' with the Super Blackhawk, and wanted some kind of center-fire rifle that was far handier than the heavy-barreled M-77V. The Marlin 1894 in 44 Mag seemed the obvious choice.

Since at that time I was handloading 6mm with a Lee 'Target' loader (micrometer-seating, inside-neck-turning, version of their little mallet-based reloading kit), volume of that cartridge was low, but my 44 Magnum loads (also using a Lee, but the non-target version) I had by the hundreds and hundreds. So I shot the Marlin 1894....ALOT.... It quickly became my 'go-to' woods-walking rifle, and after that I was hooked.

I had inherited a non-working 1889 Marlin in 32-20 in the interim, but wouldn't get that up and running for awhile (broken firing pin). So in the meantime I of course used spare funds to buy a more practical concealed-carry handgun (or two, or three), and just HAD to buy some semiauto rifles, surplus Garands, and all the other gun-show stuff a broke college-kid who is willing to live in a cheap ghetto apartment and drive a $50 car and eat generic Mac&Cheese six days a week can afford.

Fast forward to when I actually had a decent job and more sense, and I started getting more leverguns. I found them practical and useful, and saw less need for bolt actions (although for shooting long skinny pointy bullets I still prefer bolt actions) and semiautos (although for poop-hits-fan in the form of more-than-one-bad-guy I would still reach for a semiauto). Plus, they don't intimidate 'newbie' shooters when I invite them over to learn about guns. Finally, they are easy to reload for, cheap to shoot, usually do well with plain cast bullets, and.....are just plain FUN....
Doctors for Sensible Gun Laws
"first do no harm" - gun control LAWS lead to far more deaths than 'easy access' ever could.


Want REAL change? . . . . . "Boortz/Nugent in 2012 . . . ! "
User avatar
KWK
Senior Levergunner
Posts: 1389
Joined: Fri Sep 07, 2007 10:31 am
Location: U.S.A.
Contact:

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by KWK »

No one in my family owned firearms. A technician where I worked introduced me to shooting, and he was a fan of Marlin lever actions. He also had a few bolt actions and an AR. I found that for me, the lever was by far the most enjoyable to use.
Lastmohecken
Senior Levergunner
Posts: 1970
Joined: Sat Sep 15, 2007 1:42 pm
Location: Arkansas

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Lastmohecken »

I grew up watching westerns on TV, so I got to see my hero's mostly with leveractions, however, they were often not period correct but we put up with it.

Being left handed certainly enforced my love for leveractions. I grew up forced to use bolt action .22's and my dad's old Swedish Mauser carbine, and Remington 03A3, and single barrel shotgun and except for a Daisy BB gun, I didn't actually own my first leveraction until I was about 13, when my grandfather traded me a Model 94 Winchester 30/30, which was pretty new, about a 1970 vintage for a wrecked motorcycle I had. I think he did it mostly to get me away from the motorcycle. That was my first centerfire leveraction.

A few years later, I bought a brand new Marlin 45/70, but later traded it off for a Remington 700, 30-06 after hitting way low on a long shot at a deer. I hunted too much open farm country to appreciate the 45/70 much at that time. But I have owned a lot of 30/30's both Marlin and mostly Winchesters. But later on, I bought a Browning BLR in .308 Win and pretty much retired my bolt actions, however I would go back to them every once in a while. But the BLR has become my go to gun for the last 30 years or more. It has the reach and accuracy I wanted, and the handling qualities of Winchester with a scope.

But I have always love vintage and modern leveractions, and I own many pre-64 Winchesters, and post 64 also, and replica Uberti's 73's and a 66 Yellowboy, 95 and 86 and 92 Brownings, but I don't own any angle ejects or top tang safety guns with rebounding hammers as I have had missfires with some of those.

I keep a pre-64 Winchester Mod 94 30/30 in a saddle scabard on my side by side, it's my always gun for the farm.
NRA Life Member, Patron
User avatar
jeepnik
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 6830
Joined: Sun Apr 08, 2007 1:39 pm
Location: On the Beach

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by jeepnik »

I'm a southpaw. While cases ejecting out the right can be irritating, most bolt guns just don't work well. I do have several lefty bolt guns, but options are much slimmer. Since most of my levers don't have safeties, and the Marlins that did don't anymore they work very well for me.
Jeepnik AKA "Old Eyes"
"Go low, go slow and preferably in the dark" The old Sarge (he was maybe 24.
"Freedom is never more that a generation from extinction" Ronald Reagan
"Every man should have at least one good rifle and know how to use it" Dad
rossim92
Senior Levergunner
Posts: 1416
Joined: Sat Jan 01, 2011 2:42 am
Location: mechanicsville, md.

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by rossim92 »

you gotta admit, it's the cool factor. Look at clint eastwood and john wayne. the dynamic duo of westerns hands down. I wish i can draw as fast as clint , stare down his nemesis, and get the ladies like he does. John wayne had a big person persona, he was like cheap toilet paper, he didn't take crapp off of anybody.
Last edited by rossim92 on Mon Dec 21, 2020 5:22 am, edited 1 time in total.
Rossi 92 .357 lever , and a cz pcr 9mm
Henry .22 lever, Remington speedmaster 552 .22 lr
Marlin Glenfield .22 boltaction
gforce 12ga semi
Taylor's Tactical 1911 A1 FS in .45acp
winchester 1873 44.40
Marlin 336W .30.30
beeman sportsman rs2 dual caliber pellet rifle
henry .22 magnum pumpaction/octagon barrel
stag 5.56 m4 with reddot
BenT
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 2716
Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 9:21 pm
Location: Northern Wisconsin

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by BenT »

Great thread. I grew up on a small farm in the Driftless area of Wisconsin. My family wasn't into guns, they were just tools. My Grandfather had a Springfield single shot 22 and a Steven single shot 12 gauge. My father had a 742 in 30-06 and a H&R 22 handgun for coon hunting. In fact I don't remember even being in a gun shop until I was 18. Westerns were King and when it came time to buy a deer rifle when I was 13. We went to the Butcher shop because he sold guns. He had them mounted on the wall above the canned goods. I had $100 dollars and they had a model 94 Winchester on sale for $94. I got the gun and a box of shells. It was 1977. Hunting was my outlet, so I stacked up deer with 94 until I moved to Minnesota and started hunting with people there and no longer hunted in the woods but on the edge of fields where I realize I needed a little more power than the 30-30. After a few years of borrowing bolt actions and every gunshop trying to selling me a bolt action. They just seemed heavy and awkward , then I came across a BLR in 308, never seen one before. Bought it and got back on the levergun train stacking up deer. I have never shot a deer with a bolt action.

Then when I moved back to Wisconsin. People would talk down the leverguns and I would buy them for $50 to 75. If they didn't work for less. I learned to fix them, shine them up and flip them for more money. Gun shops would put old lever guns aside for me and broken guns I would buy for cheap. This was my hobby. Fixing and shooting all kinds of leverguns and keeping the ones I liked. I would turn Win 94 carbines into rifles in different calibers. I find them Mechanically cool and historically interesting, on how everyone was trying to build a better mouse trap in the day. For the last 15 years I have been trying to shoot a deer with every levergun I own.
User avatar
Scott Tschirhart
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 3838
Joined: Fri Oct 16, 2020 2:56 pm
Location: San Antonio, Texas

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

John Wayne.

My grandpa had an old octagon barrel 1894 rifle with a 26 inch barrel in .30 wcf. I sinfully coveted that rifle. By the time I was old enough to know about such things, Grandpa was using a .270. Dad thought the .30-30 wasn't enough gun so he used a Springfield Sporter in .30-06. ( Though my brother and I killed our share of deer with an old DCM Inland M1 Carbine.)

When I went to Houston I bought a new Winchester 94 Trapper in .30-30. I carried it in my patrol car and elsewhere on both sides of the Rio Bravo. It was a lot more gun than the M1 Carbine and I never thought it was not powerful enough. I still have it and it would likely be the last gun I would sell.
User avatar
Buck Elliott
Member Emeritus
Posts: 2830
Joined: Mon Sep 10, 2007 12:15 pm
Location: Halfway up Sheep Mountain -- Cody, Wyoming

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Buck Elliott »

They're what I grew up with. - a little Marlin .22, and Uncle Bill's 94 Winchester, .32 Special. "
Last edited by Buck Elliott on Mon Dec 21, 2020 2:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
Regards

Buck

Life has a way of making the foreseeable that which never happens, and the unforeseeable, that which your life becomes...
piller
Posting leader...
Posts: 15188
Joined: Sat Sep 29, 2007 9:49 pm
Location: South of Dallas

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by piller »

Sounds like we all have somewhat similar stories. Very cool!
D. Brian Casady
Quid Llatine Dictum Sit, Altum Viditur.
Advanced is being able to do the basics while your leg is on fire---Bill Jeans
Don't ever take a fence down until you know why it was put up---Robert Frost
User avatar
AJMD429
Posting leader...
Posts: 31932
Joined: Sun Sep 09, 2007 10:03 am
Location: Hoosierland
Contact:

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by AJMD429 »

"...For the last 15 years I have been trying to shoot a deer with every levergun I own..."

:shock:

That poor deer must be tough....is it still alive....??? :D

I do have some leverguns I know I'll probably never harvest a deer with, which is sort of sad in a way, so I see what you mean. I really SHOULD use my 35 Remington Marlin 336 next year - it just seems a natural deer-hunting gun...!
Doctors for Sensible Gun Laws
"first do no harm" - gun control LAWS lead to far more deaths than 'easy access' ever could.


Want REAL change? . . . . . "Boortz/Nugent in 2012 . . . ! "
User avatar
Ysabel Kid
Moderator
Posts: 27790
Joined: Mon Sep 17, 2007 7:10 pm
Location: South Carolina, USA
Contact:

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Ysabel Kid »

Like others, I grew up watching John Wayne movies , spaghetti westerns, and TV western reruns. Granted, back then every lever gun was a '92 or '94, regardless of the era the movie was set in (like the Civil War - yikes!). When we played cowboys & indians, or anything else involving "finger guns" and imagination, I would lever the invisible gun and even sometimes twirl cock it like the Duke. Just grew up loving them. :D
Image
User avatar
JimT
Shootist
Posts: 5468
Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 5:04 pm

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by JimT »

Growing up they were around the place .. the choice was a levergun, a shotgun or a single shot .22 and while my first gun was the single shot .22 I always wanted a levergun.
User avatar
6pt-sika
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 9466
Joined: Wed Dec 19, 2007 7:15 pm
Location: Virginia

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by 6pt-sika »

I was given a very nice Winchester 1892 in 32-20 for Xmas when I was 14 or 15 . The following year I got an 1892 in 25-20 for Xmas . Ten years later I traded them both for something or other . Picked up a Winchester 1894TD a year or two later . Then at the turn of the millineum I had acquired a couple tons of WW’s and I wanted to try lever silhouette so 100+ Marlins found their way to me over the following eight or nine years . Now I’m down to a pair of 444’s and the WIN 1894TD . I suspect two of those will get paired off also but I’ll keep one of the 444’s to shoot up all the cast bullets I have on the shelf .
Parkers , Mannlicher Schoenauer’s , 6.5mm's and my family in the Philippines !
Turdyturdy
Levergunner 1.0
Posts: 71
Joined: Sun Jun 23, 2019 11:11 am

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Turdyturdy »

In my formative years there was always lever actions used for hunting. My grandfather used a Winchester model 92 38WCF that I have today. My father hunted with a model 94 Winchester 30-30 carbine that my son owns today. My father bought me a new model 94 in 1962 that I still own. We still use those lever guns for the fall rifle deer season in Vermont. My eyesight got to the point I could no longer see the sights on the 94 so I added a Williams receiver sight and the matching taller fiber optic front sight.What a difference! I can actually hit something with it again. I know, sacrilegious but being a lefty I could not put a side mount scope on it.
User avatar
Grizz
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 11808
Joined: Fri Aug 31, 2007 7:15 pm

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Grizz »

yup. bb guns and cowboy movies, early education works wonders...
piller
Posting leader...
Posts: 15188
Joined: Sat Sep 29, 2007 9:49 pm
Location: South of Dallas

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by piller »

Turdyturdy wrote: Tue Dec 22, 2020 5:05 am In my formative years there was always lever actions used for hunting. My grandfather used a Winchester model 92 38WCF that I have today. My father hunted with a model 94 Winchester 30-30 carbine that my son owns today. My father bought me a new model 94 in 1962 that I still own. We still use those lever guns for the fall rifle deer season in Vermont. My eyesight got to the point I could no longer see the sights on the 94 so I added a Williams receiver sight and the matching taller fiber optic front sight.What a difference! I can actually hit something with it again. I know, sacrilegious but being a lefty I could not put a side mount scope on it.
It is still a model 94, and all you did was make it so that you could use it again. Sacrilege would be to have put it away and not used it.
D. Brian Casady
Quid Llatine Dictum Sit, Altum Viditur.
Advanced is being able to do the basics while your leg is on fire---Bill Jeans
Don't ever take a fence down until you know why it was put up---Robert Frost
User avatar
Ysabel Kid
Moderator
Posts: 27790
Joined: Mon Sep 17, 2007 7:10 pm
Location: South Carolina, USA
Contact:

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Ysabel Kid »

piller wrote: Wed Dec 23, 2020 2:26 am
Turdyturdy wrote: Tue Dec 22, 2020 5:05 am In my formative years there was always lever actions used for hunting. My grandfather used a Winchester model 92 38WCF that I have today. My father hunted with a model 94 Winchester 30-30 carbine that my son owns today. My father bought me a new model 94 in 1962 that I still own. We still use those lever guns for the fall rifle deer season in Vermont. My eyesight got to the point I could no longer see the sights on the 94 so I added a Williams receiver sight and the matching taller fiber optic front sight.What a difference! I can actually hit something with it again. I know, sacrilegious but being a lefty I could not put a side mount scope on it.
It is still a model 94, and all you did was make it so that you could use it again. Sacrilege would be to have put it away and not used it.
+1
Image
User avatar
Griff
Posting leader...
Posts: 20803
Joined: Sat Mar 31, 2007 4:56 pm
Location: OH MY GAWD they installed a STOP light!!!

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by Griff »

Ysabel Kid wrote: Wed Dec 23, 2020 10:14 pm
piller wrote: Wed Dec 23, 2020 2:26 am
Turdyturdy wrote: Tue Dec 22, 2020 5:05 amIn my formative years there was always lever actions used for hunting. My grandfather used a Winchester model 92 38WCF that I have today. My father hunted with a model 94 Winchester 30-30 carbine that my son owns today. My father bought me a new model 94 in 1962 that I still own. We still use those lever guns for the fall rifle deer season in Vermont. My eyesight got to the point I could no longer see the sights on the 94 so I added a Williams receiver sight and the matching taller fiber optic front sight.What a difference! I can actually hit something with it again. I know, sacrilegious but being a lefty I could not put a side mount scope on it.
It is still a model 94, and all you did was make it so that you could use it again. Sacrilege would be to have put it away and not used it.
+1
+2! Sacrilege would have been putting that side mount scope on it!
Griff,
SASS/CMSA #93
NRA Patron
GUSA #93

There is a fine line between hobby & obsession!
AND... I'm over it!!
No I ain't ready, but let's do it anyway!
User avatar
RIHMFIRE
Advanced Levergunner
Posts: 7627
Joined: Fri Sep 07, 2007 11:51 am
Location: Florida

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by RIHMFIRE »

IT STARTED WITH THIS IN THE EARLY 70's 1926 30-30 FROM MY GREAT UNCLE
20140224_122322.jpg
AND IT WOULD LEAD TO THIS
day at the range 009.jpg
AND A COUPLE MORE!!!!!!!!!!! :wink:
STILL HAVE THE RACK TOO!
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
LETS GO SHOOT'N BOYS
mickbr
Levergunner 3.0
Posts: 903
Joined: Mon Jan 22, 2018 11:29 pm

Re: why did we all choose lever actions?

Post by mickbr »

An army career flogged my hearing pretty badly by my 30's.I got a lever action for those little pistol cartridges and subsonics.
Post Reply