Lots of Lever Action Rifles in 44 Mag.

[daisygordoninc]

Any opinions on why so many lever action rifles are being built and sold in 44 mag. What is the
actual advantage over just a regular rifle caliber of some kind, 30-30, or any other? They must
not be effective for any great distance, or am I missing something. I actually own a new Winchester
92 in 44 mag. I got it on sale at a Cabela's a few years back, actually my wife bought it for me as
a birthday present but I have never actually shot it. I have not seen this discussed, likely it has been
here on this site.

[Griff]

I bought a Winchester 94 in .44RemMag in 1972 while I was in the Navy. It was probably more painful to shoot with full-house loads than the same rifle in .30-30... as it is lighter... having the same barrel profile and a bigger hole thru it. With 44Special loads, it was a hoot! But, I didn't reload at the time... being overseas during our little fiasco in SEA. But... with those nice HPs, if the Cap'n got us close enough, it sank those jettisoned fuel tanks nicely! I couldn't stitch holes in them like I could with the M1919, but... it opened up nice bigguns! Yep, the .44Mag kicks hard at both ends.

Out to 100-125 yards, it's a game stopper. And if you're wearing a sidearm in the same caliber, it increases your range. Some folks argue that it's just as effective as the .30-30 out to just as far. I don't agree. Unlike the .30-30, it doesn't benefit from longer barrels quite as well as does the .30-30 or other "rifle" calibers. As with all calibers chambered in the '92, 1894 Marlin, or 94 Winchester, sights are a limiting factor. But, I'll take a little longer shot with the flatter shooting .30-30 than I will with my pistol caliber rifles, all other factors being equal.

The only reason I can think of the .44Magnum's popularity in leverguns is simply "magnumitis". While bullet selection has improved dramatically since 1972, it's still lacking good, reliable feeding, effective bullets in a multitude of weights and styles. When I bought mine, the only good feeding cartridge was the 240 grain jacketed HP. Most SWCs of the time had wide meplats, and either jammed on the roof of the carrier or hung up on the mouth of the chamber. The shorter .44Specials didn't have quite the issues that full-length .44s did, but still sometimes required jostling around to feed. Mine was stolen in early '74, and the insurance company finally gave up on getting me a replacement. When I returned from VN in late 1973, I started reloading almost immediately... but still found that bullet selection was limited.

Since then, I've found that the 45Colt is a better suited cartridge for all my needs in a pistol caliber long gun. Both for cowboy action shooting and for hunting. I have a wider selection of bullets to choose from... from RFN at 160 grains, to 300 gr HP or FPs for hunting. And, in the Rossi '92 at least, I can load them to .44Mag thumper levels. For most of my hunting, I tend to stick to the 240 grain jacketed HP or FP, and for target shooting, either CAS or paper punchin', the 200 RFN is superb. I can get bullets designed with wide, deep lube grooves that carry enough lube for BP loads, that work very well.

The 45Colt, like the 44Mag doesn't gain a lot of velocity in longer barrels, but the added sight radius is a boon.

YMMV.

[92&94]

I always figured it was part of the long tradition of chambering rifles in common pistol calibers - an important consideration when ammunition was somewhat more expensive than it is now.

These days 44 mag is one of the more readily available rimmed pistol rounds - it and .38/.357 are available just about anywhere that sells cartridges. So if a company wants to make a short action rifle for pistol calibers, it is a logical chambering to offer.

I don't believe rifles were viewed as long range only, traditionally speaking. There was a lot more hunting than target shooting going on, so you'd probably choose a rifle over a relatively inaccurate pistol most of the time. Why waste a bullet that cost as much as a couple meals after all? I'm no historian though, so someone more up on this subject could tell me I'm full of it with no offense taken.

[Pete44ru]

.

IMO:

1) The .44 Rem Mag has been VERY popular, ever since it was first introduced.

2) The .44 Rem Mag has proven deadly on medium game (deer, black bear, etc) over the years, with both hand & long guns.

(FWIW, my 8-member Maine hunting party has been taking large whitetails at distances up to 125yds for the past 40 years)

3) The levergun is one of the better rifle choices (along with pumpguns & autoloaders) for fast-developing game hunting situations.

4) Did I mention that a .44 Rem Mag rifle is easy on the shoulder ?


No, the .44 Rem Mag isn't a 200-300 yard gun (Elmer Keith's 600yd shots not withstanding) - but there's a whole bunch of country that doesn't offer game shots much over 150-200 yds, either.


.

[barbarossa]

One of my favourite deer rifles is my Ruger no 3 in 44mag

[FLINT]

another contributing factor is that I think I've heard that some states that used to be shotgun only are now allowing pistol cartridges and/or straight cartridges for deer now. Even just one state full of hunters would be a huge instant demand for pistol cartridge rifles.

[mikld]

I've been reloading .44 Magnum for mebbe 30 years and have found it to be extremely versatile. I have loaded bullets from 123 gr. balls over a dusting of Bullseye, to full magnum loads of 265 gr RNFP over 2400 or WC820. Add that versatility to a light, easy handling, easy shooting rifle/carbine and you have an instant winner. My Puma is as accurate as I can shoot (4"@100) with iron sights, and a hair better with receiver sights. I haven't hunted in many years, but I don't think a deer sized animal would survive at 100 yds or less...

My "funnest gun" list runs something like this; my Garand, my Puma, my AK, and then my 10-22. Hard to decide which gun to take shootin' and the Puma also has a "cool factor"...

[Merle]

I have a Marlin M1894, which was bought for my wife. When I decided to scope it, I chose an inexpensive load - the WW-USA 240 gr JSP to sight it in. I found it shot so well that there was no need to try anything else, plus I expect the JSP to be a better choice than a JHP in the longer barrel. Since then, I have seen a number of glowing reports on its accuracy and effectiveness, but I have yet to prove it one way or the other.

[shiloh505]

Ohio now allows straight wall cartridges for deer hunting including .44 mag. They have become very popular as a result. I work for Cabela's at the firearms counter and we're selling a lot of Henry's in .44 mag and .357 mag. Buyers are saying they're buying for the deer season.

[2ndovc]

Ohio now allows straight wall cartridges for deer hunting including .44 mag. They have become very popular as a result. I work for Cabela's at the firearms counter and we're selling a lot of Henry's in .44 mag and .357 mag. Buyers are saying they're buying for the deer season.

Indiana allows them as well. They're a lot of fun to shoot too!


jb

[Grizz]

My son and I have taken lots and lots and lots of deer in Alaska with 44 mag, both pistol and carbine. My daughter took deer and a caribou with a 44 mag hand gun.

It is popular because it is a hammer on game of that size. We lived on what we gathered and the marlin never failed us. On paper it's about the same as a 30-30 to around 100 yards, with more ammo. Important when you might be harvesting a half-dozen to a dozen deer in a day.

It is popular because it is very handy, ammo is very common, and it is very easy to cast and load for. It's a great skiff gun hunting the shoreline of myriad islands, and I would guess equally handy on a horse, mule, skidoo, and 4-wheeler. or 2-wheeler even.

Other than the fact that it is a wimp compared to 45/70, there is nothing I don't like about 'em.

[lazarus870]

10 rounds on tap, +1 in the chamber, in a lightweight rifle with a 20" barrel. 44 loads can be loaded pretty stout. The guns are plain FUN to shoot. I love taking my Winchester .44's out. I have a swinging target where if you hit it dead-on with a .22 rifle, it will make one full revolution. If you hit it with a .44 mag rifle, it spins six or seven times around and then falls over, lol.

44 round these parts is cheaper than 30-30, and the gun holds more of 'em. My pistol-caliber rifles (Marlin 1894 and Winchester 1892) have a short action, quick cycle.

Oh yeah, you can hunt with them too.
A 30-30 is flatter shooting than 44 past a certain point sure, but if my 44 can't reach it my scoped 30-06 can...

[1894c]

.44Mag is a good Mule Deer gun, I'm using a .357Mag at this point, life is good with a pistol cartridge levergun... :)

[AJMD429]

Any opinions on why so many lever action rifles are being built and sold in 44 mag. What is the
actual advantage over just a regular rifle caliber of some kind, 30-30, or any other? They must
not be effective for any great distance, or am I missing something. I actually own a new Winchester
92 in 44 mag. I got it on sale at a Cabela's a few years back, actually my wife bought it for me as
a birthday present but I have never actually shot it. I have not seen this discussed, likely it has been
here on this site.

• The Marlin 44 Mag holds 10 shots in the magazine versus the six in a 30-30, plus the 1894 is more compact.
  Larger meplat so light loads still make meat well.
  Legal for deer more places.
  More accurate than most shotguns using saboted pistol bullets.
  Less recoil than many other hunting options for deer.
  Way easier to learn to shoot than a muzzleloader or handgun.

Even though I've hunted deer with a muzzleloader, a revolver, and shotgun, in addition to a levergun, they ALL were killed with "pistol" bullets, since I used saboted loads in the muzzleloader and shotgun. The levergun just gets rid of the plastic.

[Blaine]

If there is a more lethal pistol bullet load than a .429 180gr JHP going full bore out of a carbine, I'm not sure what it would be. Absolutely explosive.
I'm prolly going to move my 1894 along, keep the 629PP, and use the .444 for any big bore work I need done. My snappy handloads hurt too much out of my little Marlin.

[RIHMFIRE]

Lots of guys...like me....sometimes want to carry a rifle and pistol in the same caliber....
good deer rifle.....mines a SRC, chemical case color and big loop...pretty darn accurate...good brush gun

[daisygordoninc]

Thanks, I better get my 44 mag. model 92 which is brand new to the range and try it out.
It's a beautiful gun, didn't know it might be so practical for hunting deer. However as I have
said earlier my dad and I shot many deer in our orchard with a Winchester 92 in 25-20.
We were usually fairly close and shot them without any meat being ruined. I don't remember
injuring one.

[earlmck]

As a reloader... the 44 mag case is wonderful. And it lasts forever: vastly superior to the 44/40 case and somewhat superior to the 45 Colt case.

[Grizz]

If there is a more lethal pistol bullet load than a .429 180gr JHP going full bore out of a carbine, I'm not sure what it would be. Absolutely explosive.
I'm prolly going to move my 1894 along, keep the 629PP, and use the .444 for any big bore work I need done. My snappy handloads hurt too much out of my little Marlin.

I'd say the BTB 405gr is a good candidate to outperform it, in terminal forensic terms.

[Blaine]

If there is a more lethal pistol bullet load than a .429 180gr JHP going full bore out of a carbine, I'm not sure what it would be. Absolutely explosive.
I'm prolly going to move my 1894 along, keep the 629PP, and use the .444 for any big bore work I need done. My snappy handloads hurt too much out of my little Marlin.

I'd say the BTB 405gr is a good candidate to outperform it, in terminal forensic terms.

It would certainly out penetrate the 180 jhp for sure. I guess I was thinking light bodied two, or four legged critters. IIRC, Garrett's website has testimonies of their .44 mag Hammerheads going stem to stern on big bears..Without looking, I think those are 320ish..

[AJMD429]

If there is a more lethal pistol bullet load than a .429 180gr JHP going full bore out of a carbine, I'm not sure what it would be. Absolutely explosive.
I'm prolly going to move my 1894 along, keep the 629PP, and use the .444 for any big bore work I need done. My snappy handloads hurt too much out of my little Marlin.

I'd say the BTB 405gr is a good candidate to outperform it, in terminal forensic terms.

I was thinking of the 440 grain JSP my BHA Carbine spits out at 1800 fps for 3300 ft-lbs with a wide 50-caliber meplat...

However that gun may be a 'carbine', but it is heavy....

Maybe a better comparison with the 1894 Marlin in 44 Mag would be the Rossi 92 in 454 Casull, with a 360 grain @ 1500 fps or so.

But BlaineG said "more lethal" - and none of these make a Whitetail more-dead than a 240 grain JSP at 1750 or so.

My Marlin 1894 is my go-to for whitetail - it just always works - almost boringly consistent. Only meat damage has been one time when it went through the shoulder bone first, and a bit of bone was sent into meat. Other shots just made two holes in the thorax, collapsing the lungs, and most of them making a similar hole in the heart. DRT. And that's not even comparing the Cor-Bon and Buffalo Bore type loads out there for 44 Mag, which are more powerful than the regular Winchester 'White Box'.

So - if I'm after a whitetail, I'm gonna use my 44 Mag most of the time, but if a Cape Buffalo comes by, I'll grab the BHA.

As a reloader... the 44 mag case is wonderful. And it lasts forever: vastly superior to the 44/40 case and somewhat superior to the 45 Colt case.

Definitely - mine either last for at least a dozen loads, or crack the first time fired (some brittle factory loads).

[Grizz]

it's a point but we're comparing the middling bore .43s . . .