Marlin 1895sbl

[Urj]

Anyone have any thoughts on this rifle? Looks pretty friggen cool. I've got an itch for some recoil and was thinking of picking up a firearm for camping/backpacking in case some dangerous wildlife decided to join the party.

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/firearms/bigbore/1895SBL.asp

I also thought about picking up a standard stainless 1895 in 45-70 and customizing it but it may be better to go with the SBL.

 

[The Goose]

I way wicked want one, but cannot be found yet,

 

[Lucas McCain]

I chose the 1894 in .44 mag. You get similar balistics but it holds more bullets because they are shorter. I can also shoot the ammo in my model 629 revolver.

 

[The Goose]

I chose the 1894 in .44 mag. You get similar balistics but it holds more bullets because they are shorter. I can also shoot the ammo in my model 629 revolver.

I have a stainless steel 1894 in .44 mag. It is a great little carbine. I love it. I also load .44 special for it which has negligible recoil.

 

[highlander]

There's a review of the Marlin on Gun Blast.com. Sorry,Lucas I'd rather the 45/70 than the 44 mag no matter how many more shots you got. The 400-500 gr bullet that the 45/70 can handle will blow holes through most anything and the Garrett Hammerhead round is just plain nasty. I've put 450 gr cast bullets from my 1885 Browning SS through a 14" piece of apple tree at 100 yards and frankly I was amazed it went that deep.

 

[The Goose]

There's a review of the Marlin on Gun Blast.com. Sorry,Lucas I'd rather the 45/70 than the 44 mag no matter how many more shots you got. The 400-500 gr bullet that the 45/70 can handle will blow holes through most anything and the Garrett Hammerhead round is just plain nasty. I've put 450 gr cast bullets from my 1885 Browning SS through a 14" piece of apple tree at 100 yards and frankly I was amazed it went that deep.

+1 on the .45-70. I have 3 different rifles chambered for that round. It is also extremely versatile. It can be loaded very mild for plinking or mid power for deer sized game or, depending upon the strength of the rifle it can almost rival the African calibers. It is also the pumpkin smashing round par excellence. I load a Remington 405 JSP over 44 grs of Reloder 7 and it just explodes a pumpkin. I will definitely get an sbl when they become available. I used to own a Guide Gun and regret letting it go.

 

[Knob Creek]

Boston's Gun Bible recommends a 45/70 lever Action for a good Scout rifle. With this Marlin model you could add a EER Scope and be in business. And thanks to CAS there are one-piece firing pins and spring kits available to improve it.

 

[SA John]

Urj: I have a stainless Guide Gun on my sailboat and a full-size 95 in .45-70 at home. I also have my father's old Winchester 1886 is .45-70. I think (if you are a reloader) the .45-70 is a better choice over the proprietary Marlin .450 because the brass is easier to find and you can pretty much match performance with the .45-70 in appropriate guns. (no Trapdoors) I also think the .45-70 is one of the greatest hunting rounds ever - maybe the best for North America. Few men can shoot a centerfire rifle accurately past 175 yards and within that range you will find 95% of your game anyway. The big .45 has no equal in game killing among smallbores when used under 200 yards. Up close, it can out perform all of them easily. It's the easiest rifle round to reload. It kicks at the high end but it isn't any worse than a 12 gauge riot gun. I used to shoot my dad's 1886 as a young teenager with 405gr cast bullets at 1500fps and never thought much about it. Recoil can be put out of your mind and gotten past. Both of my Marlins shoot that same load with accuracy I will not print as you would think I was not telling the truth.

Now for the un-PC part: As a killer of sharks it has no equal. I once watched my father shoot a big hammerhead that had been following our sailboat for several days. (circa 1968) This was getting annoying because we had been crossing to Hawaii and wanted to swim on occasion to stay somewhat clean. "Henry" ,as my sister had named him, would not be discouraged - shots in the water around him did nothing. Finally, Henry took one (.45-70) between the running lights. He was drifting on our stern wave not 6" under the water. His back and dorsal fin all the way out of the drink. Henry was about 14 feet long and had a girth like a large whiskey barrel. No idea what he weighed, he didn't stay around long enough to swing from the spring scale. The shot took him high between the eyes and angled back at about 45 degrees into his body. (facing us) On the shot he simple rotated 180 degrees, like a Spitfire dropping out of formation, and headed for the bottom. You could glimps one small hole about three feet back of his gills and front fins where the slug went through on his belly. It looked like a figher plane leaking engine oil. He went down and we never saw Henry again. Dad figured the bullet had gone through at least 4 feet of shark. Shark is very tough stuff. The .45-70 is plenty.

John

 

[BOBKATT]

That gun would be perfect if it was in 45-70 and didn't have the tactical rail on it.

 

[SA John]

That gun would be perfect if it was in 45-70 and didn't have the tactical rail on it.

Amen to that. I hate the rail business. Marling should also stick good peep and post sights on all their 95s. It's the best iron sight there is.

 

[gerrycaruso]

I shoot the .45/70 out of an1873 trapdoor, an 1874 Sharps and an 1886 lever action. The beauty of the caliber is that even if you don't reload, you can get factory ammo tailored to each of those action types. I'd get the guide gun in .45/70

 

[Johnny Redhorse]

Got two 1895 guide guns in 45-70, one with a scope and the other with fiber optics. Love em both!!!

 

[MassMark]

I had a Marlin Guide Gun in .450 Marlin and it was an ass-kicker. I would have kept it had it the nice round lever on the 1895. I loved shooting that gun - made a .45-70 feel tame, but couldn't afford to loose much more knuckle skin in that small boxy lever. As to the rail - why not? Makes mounting scopes fast and easy and offers a variety of options for optics...This looks like one badass gun - just prepare yourself for the whomp of the .450 - it will wake your ass up for sure...

 

[Urj]

The particular model in question is a 45-70. I know little about the round but it fascinates me for some reason, and from the posts here it seems rightly so. I think I'd throw a 1-4 power scout scope on the guide gun's rail, something like the Millet dms-1.

Here's a part two to the original question: for the intended purpose (camping/backpacking defense, possible hunting) Should I go with one of these 45-70 guide guns or a 12ga shotgun?

I have a mossberg 500 but it's a 28" field type with a polychoke that belonged to my grandfather and not really what I had in mind for the purpose. Should I go with a newer shotgun instead of the guide gun?

 

[MassMark]

The particular model in question is a 45-70. I know little about the round but it fascinates me for some reason, and from the posts here it seems rightly so. I think I'd throw a 1-4 power scout scope on the guide gun's rail, something like the Millet dms-1.

Here's a part two to the original question: for the intended purpose (camping/backpacking defense, possible hunting) Should I go with one of these 45-70 guide guns or a 12ga shotgun?

I have a mossberg 500 but it's a 28" field type with a polychoke that belonged to my grandfather and not really what I had in mind for the purpose. Should I go with a newer shotgun instead of the guide gun?

Well, squirrel hunting with a Guide Gun will be a bit iffy... Seriously, if it wasn't for the lever on the old Guide Gun, I would have kept it...This gun is down on my list of needs, (especially now), but if I had cash reserves, I'd buy that beast in a heartbeat...The .450 is a monster, but the 45-70 is a monster that can be worked with. You know you want this gun....Don't you now?

 

[Urj]

Haha...there are many guns I want. Very few I can afford, and still too many to make a decision on!

I'm enjoying working on my guns more than shooting them lately so maybe I'll pick up a standard 1895GS and put all the mods on myself (loop lever, rail, sights, stock set) and have the barrel cut down.

 

[SA John]

Urj: For what you spelled out, the 12 gauge shotgun has no peers. The .45-70 levergun will fill the bill, too, but for SD and all-around hunting, the shotgun would be my first choice.

 

[Urj]

Will a 12ga put down a charging bear reliably? What load would need to be used?

 

[SA John]

I've never even seen a black bear in the wild. You shouldn't worry about bears unless you wander around Sitka or Yellowstone while wearing bacon-flavored underwear. But since you asked, I'll give you an opinion as worthless as any other guy's thoughts whose never shot a bad bear either. Seems to me if you have to shoot a bear he's going to be very, very close. You don't really have to kill him on the spot. This would be ideal, but if you hit said bear full in the face with a load of heavy buckshot at 15 feet, I suspect he'll not only loose his sight, but his hostile intent if not his brains too. Single lead buckshot pellets at 40 yards are about like .22 rimfire bullets. But a swarm of them clustered like a fist will break facial bones, take out eyes, teeth, noses and generally f*** up any bear enough to let you get away. The pellets might even get through his skull enmass and get to the brain. I would choose a buckshot load over a slug as the slug (if not centered) might glance off the skull and mearly cut a channel along the flesh. What I've outlined is all a guess on my part. If a bear attacked me, I'd pull a model 36 S&W and shoot myself in the right temple. It might work out better in the end.

John

 

[MassMark]

Will a 12ga put down a charging bear reliably? What load would need to be used?

The most reliable method for stopping a bear attack is a can of pepper spray...By the way, reminds me - I need to send Rob a PM....