Best Lever Action Rifle

[Compatriot]

Hey ya'll,

I'm new here and have developed an interest in finding a good lever action rifle. The purpose would be for plinking, but I would also like it to be chambered in something powerful in case I need to ward off zombies with it. I definitely can't afford to shoot anything that would be 10$ a round, but I understand there is are some powerful rounds that won't break the bank too much. I would love to hear your opinions and bonus points if it comes with mounting rails for optics/flashlights.

 

[bgcatty]

Henry X Models in .357 or .44 mag. I think you can get tactical with them including suppressors.

 

[Mgderf]

You actually picked exactly the wrong time to get into lever guns.
They are at some of the highest prices I've seen in my life.
Marlin was the lever gun king ( in my humble opinion) for some 40 years or more, then hit a huge quality problem shortly after the sale to Remington.
Things got better at the end of Remington's run and quality picked back up, but too late.
Ruger recently purchased the Marlin brand and have started producing quality guns again under the Marlin name.

Now, setting brands aside, let's talk calibers.
Pistol calibers are some of the most popular, and can be economical if you handload.
.357 mag , .44 mag, .45 Colt..will all "kill zombies" but not inexpensively.
You may want to look at something like the .30-30 Winchester.
It is an iconic American deer cartridge, not terribly expensive for factory ammo, can be found most everywhere, and if handloading, can be loaded down to squirrel power loads or up to buffalo loads.

 

[MrSmitty]

Zombies need to be shot in the head
.22 LR can kill zombies, by shooting them in the head
A .22 lever gun, or semi auto .22 would be a great zombie gun, if you shoot them in the head… with a .22
The defense rests your honor

 

[DadSmith]

Zombies need to be shot in the head
.22 LR can kill zombies, by shooting them in the head
A .22 lever gun, or semi auto .22 would be a great zombie gun, if you shoot them in the head… with a .22
The defense rests your honor

Lol zombies....

In time they will rot away if ever such a sci-fi thing were to ever happen.

Edit: unless you mean this kind of zombie.

adjective

1. of or relating to something that was declared concluded, finished, or dead, but surprisingly continues to linger, or comes back in a different version: Joe Biden

 

[pute62]

I'd probably pay more for an older Marlin 30-30 or model 39 but there's quite a few Henry's I would buy in a heartbeat if I had the money.

 

[92FSTech]

"Best" levergun is hard to qualify. My son's friend just asked me this question yesterday as he's in the market for one, and had found a used Winchester 94 in .30-30 for $1000. I'll kind of give you the same answer.

Like others have said, this is a bad time to be in the market for a levergun. Prices are absolutely ridiculous. I remember not all that long ago when you could find used Marlins and Winchesters for $400 regularly, and sometimes even less. These days they typically 3-4x that. We can all whine about it, but for some reason that's just the price they demand now.

If you want the classic top-eject cowboy gun, the Winchester 94 isn't a bad choice. They're nice rifles, have the Winchester name, and tend to be pretty smooth. They're hard to take apart, have limited options for mounting a scope if you ever want to do that, and .30-30 ammo is not as cheap as it once was.

The Rossi 92 is an interesting option as well. It's similar to the Winchester in that it top-ejects (so difficult to mount a scope), but they're not quite as nicely finished in my experience, and they have a goofy safety on the top of the bolt. That said, they're about as close as you can come to affordable these days, and are also available in a wide variety of options including stainless and 16" barrels. I almost bought one when I was in the market for a .44, but a buddy offered me his Marlin at a price I couldn't refuse, so I went that route instead.

When I got into leverguns, I went with the Marlin, because they were affordable and had more scope mounting options. I now have copies in pretty much every caliber except some of the more boutique big-bores and .35 Remington. As has been mentioned, there was a period near the end of the Marlin ownership and beginning of Remington ownership where they had some quality control issues. Remington did get the issues ironed out, though, and I have a couple of Remington-produced guns that are nicer than one of my "JM" stamped rifles. I point that out to encourage you to buy the gun in front of you, not necessarily the name stamped on the barrel....blindly buying into the "JM" hype won't necessarily get you a better gun. From what I hear, Ruger has been putting out a solid product, but availability is spotty and prices are crazy.

One thing to be aware of with the 1894s, though, is a design flaw in how the lever engages the lifter. Over time, the sharp edge of the lever cam will wear a groove in the bottom of the lifter and allow it to drop down just enough that it will start to double-feed rounds from the magazine tube, which locks up the gun hard. Google "Marlin Jam" for more details. Back when I had this issue with my .357, parts were readily available and I just replaced the lifter. When my .44 started doing it, that was no longer the case and I had to slightly bend the lifter in a vice to resolve the issue. That was scary because I knew if I broke it there was no easy replacement available. This issue can be mitigated somewhat by preemptively radiusing the edge of the lever cam, but just be aware that it exists with that design.

Henry is making a really nice center-fire levergun these days. They're a bit bulkier than the Marlin, but they're smooth and the addition of a loading gate to their design gives you the option of loading both through the side of the receiver and at the tube. This also facilitates easier unloading. The Henry, like the Marlin, has a solid top receiver so mounting a scope is pretty straightforward. The Henry .22s feel cheaper than the Marlin 39, but also cost less and are actually pretty fun to shoot. My brother has a Golden Boy and my son is looking a their 16" carbine, and I think both are fine options in a .22 depending upon how fancy you want it to be.

If you want a slick, fast shooting gun, and are ok sticking with a pistol caliber, one of the 1873 clones with the toggle-link action is the way to go. The cowboy action guys tend to favor these, and having played with some I can see why. They are very smooth! But they're also $1500-$1700, and that's for something like a Chiappa, a company which in my experience hasn't always turned out a product of acceptable quality.

There are a few other options out there...Mossberg, Chiappa, and a few other import companies all make their own variant. The ones I've handled have not impressed, and I can't really recommend any of them.

Of my own collection, if I could only keep one it would probably be my Marlin 1894 in .357 made in 1982. It was the first one that I bought, has the thin handguard, and is an absolute tack driver. It's the cheapest to feed (apart from the .22s), and can be loaded with everything from mild .38s up to stout 180gr .357 Mag that approaches the bottom end of some .30-30 loads. It's not as capable as some of the other calibers that I own, but it's good enough for hunting in Indiana, and it's great fun at the range.

One final thought and then I'll shut up...if you're not into reloading yet, a levergun purchase is the time to start thinking about it. Most of the calibers in question are straight-wall and easy to reload for, and they're also expensive to buy commercially so if you shoot the gun much at all, you'll quickly see a return on investment for your reloading gear. .45-70 is about $2/round commercially, and now that I have brass and cast my own bullets, I can load it for well under $0.50/round. Even .38/.357 isn't cheap these days, and reloading can save you a bundle. Your brass lasts longer, too, as a levergun is less likely to damage or lose it than a semi-auto.

 

[55fairlane]

Hard to go wrong with a vintage winchester, but the prices are outrageous.......I have a very nice winchester 94 in 30 winchester center fire (30-30) smooth action, good trigger, light weight, easy to swing around in thick brush....

 

[Mgderf]

Mossberg offers their model 464 lever gun in .39-30.
A couple of years ago I bought one for just under $500.
No idea how much they are today.

 

[Mongo59]

The 30-30 has ballistics very similar to the 7.62x39 or AK round. Hits with a wallop but it drops like a rock. It will definitely get the job done but will take some getting use to if going for range.

The same thing for pistol rounds, gets the job done but will take some getting use to when going for range but offers boxes of 50 for what boxes of 20 for rifles cost.

Remember, shots like you saw on TV and in the movies are the exception, not the rule.

If your desire is to shoot longer range at some time, then the Savage 99 is the rifle for you. It doesn't have that western look tho it was there toward the end of the "wild west". It comes in rifle calibers, has an internal magazine and can really take you from just getting started to the end of possibility. The .300 Savage round is one of the best light weight rounds produced and in my humble opinion is if we used it in WWI we would never had gone to the 30-06 or even downsized to the 5.56. But it didn't come out in time to make the great war.

Take your time and do your research. If you buy just for the 'look' then you will also have the reasons they continued to change and modify these guns over the years. The Indians chose the Savage 99 which is why Savage's logo is the profile of a chief.

Even the modern Henry had to modify to come out with the Long Ranger, Savage foresaw this back in the late 1800's.

Food for thought...

 

[two70]

The 30-30 has ballistics very similar to the 7.62x39 or AK round. Hits with a wallop but it drops like a rock. It will definitely get the job done but will take some getting use to if going for range.

The same thing for pistol rounds, gets the job done but will take some getting use to when going for range but offers boxes of 50 for what boxes of 20 for rifles cost.

Remember, shots like you saw on TV and in the movies are the exception, not the rule.

If your desire is to shoot longer range at some time, then the Savage 99 is the rifle for you. It doesn't have that western look tho it was there toward the end of the "wild west". It comes in rifle calibers, has an internal magazine and can really take you from just getting started to the end of possibility. The .300 Savage round is one of the best light weight rounds produced and in my humble opinion is if we used it in WWI we would never had gone to the 30-06 or even downsized to the 5.56. But it didn't come out in time to make the great war.

Take your time and do your research. If you buy just for the 'look' then you will also have the reasons they continued to change and modify these guns over the years. The Indians chose the Savage 99 which is why Savage's logo is the profile of a chief.

Even the modern Henry had to modify to come out with the Long Ranger, Savage foresaw this back in the late 1800's.

Food for thought...

Excellent post and mention of the Savage 99! I agree that the .30-30 is probably the choice if you want an easy to find, reasonably affordable rifle cartridge from a traditional looking lever gun.

A few places where I differ: The .35 Remington offers better performance than the .30-30 and is arguably the best all around traditional lever gun cartridge. Unfortunately, ammo is hard to find and far more expensive than the .30-30. It is best left to those that reload.

IMO, saying the .300 Savage would have precluded the adoption of 5.56 is a huge stretch. The .300 Savage is slightly smaller and less powerful than .308/7.62x51 and by slightly, I mean very slightly. Yet, the .308 failed to stave off the adoption of the 5.56.

The John Browning designed Winchester 1895 came about around the same time or slightly before the Savage 99 depending on how you interpret the development process for each. It also allowed for more modern rifle cartridges with pointed bullets but unlike the Savage was capable of handling long action cartridges.

Much later Winchester released the Model 88 which was more similar and a direct competitor to the Savage 99. Sako also produced the Finnwolf, which is very similar to the 88, to compete with those two.

In more lever action designs, the Henry Long Ranger is basically just a copy of the Browning BLR which proceeded it by decades and has been offered in a much wider variety of chamberings.

 

[Hookeye]

Have a Winchester 9422M (.22 magnum).
Good for varmints, but too much for small edible creatures.
Expensive (compared to .22lr) for plinking. Cheaper than centerfires though.
Its in the back of the safe.
MUCH prefer my CZ457 bolt rig (scoped).

If one likes to blast pop cans and just shoot a lot, get a .22 lr lever gun.

Outside of informal higher volume shooting, just don't see the fun of a lever gun.

Have had Win, Marlin, Savage lever guns. Used em, but never warmed up to moving my trigger hand. Pump I like better.

Now I do like a falling block rifle, but thats not a lever gun (regardless of what folks say when you're at the range LOL).

 

[Compatriot]

You actually picked exactly the wrong time to get into lever guns.
They are at some of the highest prices I've seen in my life.
Marlin was the lever gun king ( in my humble opinion) for some 40 years or more, then hit a huge quality problem shortly after the sale to Remington.
Things got better at the end of Remington's run and quality picked back up, but too late.
Ruger recently purchased the Marlin brand and have started producing quality guns again under the Marlin name.

Now, setting brands aside, let's talk calibers.
Pistol calibers are some of the most popular, and can be economical if you handload.
.357 mag , .44 mag, .45 Colt..will all "kill zombies" but not inexpensively.
You may want to look at something like the .30-30 Winchester.
It is an iconic American deer cartridge, not terribly expensive for factory ammo, can be found most everywhere, and if handloading, can be loaded down to squirrel power loads or up to buffalo loads.

I appreciate all of the replies, but yours was especially informative. I have settled on a Marlin 336 as my dream weapon. It's chambered in .30-30, and I'm sure I could find a die that would be compatible with my father's reloading equipment. If I "pull the trigger" on buying one, I will share glorious photos of my purchase in this thread.

God bless!

 

[Michigan Slim]

If you were closer I'd let you handle a dozen and show you how to load ammo for them. Uh, if IF I actually had that many.
Um, no hon. That's your daughter's gun. Yep that one too. Nope, that one is your son's. That one is mine. Had it since before we got married. Honest! Those other? What others? How DID you get my safe combo anyway?!?!

 

[Michigan Slim]

Find a Rossi 92 in .357 or .44. Good guns that run a long time. You can slick them up too. Steves Guns sells all you need to do it and a video to help.

 

[Leo]

Hey ya'll,

I'm new here and have developed an interest in finding a good lever action rifle. The purpose would be for plinking, but I would also like it to be chambered in something powerful in case I need to ward off zombies with it. I definitely can't afford to shoot anything that would be 10$ a round, but I understand there is are some powerful rounds that won't break the bank too much. I would love to hear your opinions and bonus points if it comes with mounting rails for optics/flashlights.

Teddy Roosevelt felt the 1895 Winchester chambered for the .405 Winchester round was the ultimate lever gun.

Having personally purchased Marlin lever guns in .30-30 and .45-70, I think Marlin is a good purchase. Then the choice is how tough you think your zombies are?

 

[Mgderf]

I've always had a soft spot for the iconic .30-30, but my discovery a few years ago of the venerable .35 Remington made me fall in love with levers all over again.

 

[Hopper]

I'm also a HUGE fan of the CZ 457 bolt lineup. I have a couple and they run circles around my Ruger RPR, which is also a great rig.

Something to noodle... and maybe a faux pas on my part... I sold my Henry Golden Boy in 22LR and bought a Henry Pump in 22LR. I'm all about the cowboy scene at heart, but holy WOW the Henry Pump is a HOOT!! Some call these "gallery guns" going back to county fairs, but there's something for me that's hypnotic about racking the action like a shotgun.

I bought plenty of 22LR during the Trump administration, so I'm having a lot of fun at a nickel per round.

 

[Leadeye]

Although my favorites are old Winchesters, as was mentioned above they are really expensive these days. More partial to pistol calibers as I can reload these with cast bullets and get good accuracy for less money. I hunt with a Marlin 1894 in 44 Mag and it has never let me down. I've shot a fair amount of 30-30 but am more partial to 32-40 and 32 Winchester Special so I find myself making those calibers out of my 30-30 cases. I have a Marlin 444 and Winchester 1895 in 405 WCF if I ever need the power.

 

[snapping turtle]

I can not part with any levers but I can make my list of my top five kinda in order of quality overall.
1: Winchester 9422 M XTR
2: Marlin 336 SC 35 REM
3: browning BLR 81 308
4; Marlin 1894 limited 44 mag
5: Marlin 1895 45-70 limited

Most shoot and carried Marlin 39A

If you were to replace the top 5 above we would be at over 9k and number 4 and 5 since they were limited in production to 249 and 501 respectively you would never see one for sale.