Marlin Cowboy 44 mag

olsenjb

I'm getting the itch for a new gun, and a friend got me thinking about a Marlin Cowboy lever action. I think the 45-70 would be a lot of fun, but a bit too expensive for me to shoot much. So, I'm thinking about the 44 mag. Just wondering if anyone has any experience with them? Accuracy? Seems like it could be a really fun gun.

savage170

i have one been very good rifle makes good short range deer and hog rifle Hornaday is coming out with leveroution ammo for 44mag should extend ranges . I have some ordered should be here in a week. anxious to see difference at 100 yds

Laredo Lefty

I have a Marlin Cowboy but in .38 Spl. Its a very nice gun, accurate etc.
The actions when new from the factory are a little stiff. It could be smoothed out considerably by a gunsmith.

Marv

I use the Marlin Cowboy .44 for SASS shoots and have found it to be very accurate with lite .44 magnums and with .44 special loads. I haven't had much experience with it shooting full magnums but have found it to work well with both jacketed and heavy gas checked bullets. I've tested them on paper at 50 yards and nearly everything I shot through it would group around 2". If that sounds bad, it is more indicative of me than the rifle. I'm not much of a paper shooter. I am interested in the Hornady LeverEvolution ammo and will try it this summer. I've shot it more than any of my other rifles the last couple of years and will take it deer hunting next time I go.

Mort4570

Thousands of cowboy shooters shoot them and reccomend them to others,and the one's I know swear by them.
They can be smoothed up to operate using only 3 fingers in the lever,whch is way cool...and fast.!

SCorvers

I've had an 44 Mag. 1894 for close to 30 years. It has the Micro-Groove barrel and is very accurate. Mine will clover leaf at 50 yds when I do my part. Awesome short range deer riffle.
Needless to say the action is smooth and trigger pull good after all this time.

tsr1965

The Marlin 1894 is a great little gun, and very accurate. I am not sure if there is a difference in the rifling of the COWBAY gun, and their standard version(one might prefer cast bullets over jacketed).

If you hurry, you might be able to find a NEWER Winchester 1892 on the auction side also. These are extremely smooth, and very accurate.

dcs shooters

I've had my 1894, 44mag since the mid '70's. A very accurate rifle. Used it in Fla. for hogs and deer. It never let me down once. The cowboy with a longer bbl. should be very good.

Wolf.

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I have a Marlin Cowboy in .45LC. I also have a Marlin 45-70.

Both these guns are very nice and they are accurate, as well.

As noted earlier, these guns, when new, are rather tight in the action. You can help alleviate this by ordering a spring kit from either longhunter dot com or Brownells. The cowboy shooters recommend longhunter springs, but of course others are probably acceptable as well. Saves burning up a bunch of ammo with the main purpose of breaking in the action.

The .45-70 is quite a shooter. I have the model 1895 with a straight stock. I like the straight stock better than the pistol grip stock. I was able to hit a 12" square 9 out of 10 at 200 yards off-hand with iron sights. I almost got a coyote running at 400 yards one day, off-hand. If I had led him a tad more, he'd be toast and the impact right behind his * added speed to his departure. So, the point is, the gun feels good and it hits where I aim it. The recoil does not bother me and I recover for the next shot quickly. But, many people don't like what they consider to be a heavy recoil from the .45-70 round. It goes without saying that the .45-70 will probably drop anything on the planet. An outfit in Alaska, Wild West Guns, customizes these .45-70 Marlins into a 16" barreled take-down gun with rear ghost sights and other nifty features.

I haven't used the .45LC cowboy for anything other than SASS, cowboy action shooting, so no reports from me as to its viability as a deer or hog gun, but I sure like it. The barrel on the cowboy model is shorter than the others, which is a plus to me. I beleive that a gun with an 18"-20" barrel is as effective at 300 yards as the longer barreled guns.

gunsmith21

my neighbor has a ruger .44 and iv'e shot it at paper at 100 yds. w/ his 3x9 scope...uses full .44 mags...great accuracy and little recoil...shorter barrel than my .30-.06...and more fun.....were u interested in a lever action only? his was dialed-in big time ....we were making 1 1/2 in. groups consistently....