Marlin 1894, OT!

woodpuppy · Post by **woodpuppy** » Fri Jul 30, 2004 5:50 pm

Hi, a bit off topic, but I thought I'd ask the members of this board as you've all been helpful and knowledgable- and tolerant of newbies!

I'm interested in a Marlin 1894 CBC in .45LC, the one with the color-cased receiver and 20" barrel. I'd like to load BP for it, sort of get a jump on the BP learning curve. It's mostly for fun, plinking, steel plates. I'm not looking for long range accuracy. That's what the Shiloh will get me, and what my M1 does now!

Please comment on the 20" barrel length, pros/cons recoil etc. as well as loading the .45LC for BP. Loading it for smokeless should prove to be a breeze.

cheers,
Dave

p.s.
Happy Friday! I've been waitin' all week for it! Traditional archery shoot tomorrow, muzzleloading on Sunday.....aaaaaahhhhhhh.

JAGG · Post by **JAGG** » Sat Jul 31, 2004 7:12 am

WP ! The 45lc is a good round but it was never made in a rifle because of it's small rim and a problem with the extractors on rifles ! I would go with w 44/40 unless this rim problem has been solved ! The 20 inch barrel is fine as far as burning the powder goes ! Load with 2fg for which ever round you get ! JAGG

Lee Stone · Post by **Lee Stone** » Sat Jul 31, 2004 2:53 pm

My model '73 Uberti made Saddle Ring Carbine in .45 Colt has had no problem at all with .45 Colt cartridges. It also handles .45 Schofield very well and holds more of them. I also have had no "blow by" problems with the .45 cases and thus have not experienced any fouling problems in the receiver some folks complain of when using real gunpowder.

Bad Ass Wallace · Post by **Bad Ass Wallace** » Sat Jul 31, 2004 3:17 pm

Woody,
I load BP for my Marlin CB 45LC as well as '92's in 44/40 & 38/40. For a 'long range load' step up to Swiss 3F. The slighly higher pressures will expand the brass to seal the chamber against gas blowback much better than 2F.
With any of these calibres, it should be remembered that the thin brass walls of the 44/40 & 38/40 were so designed to seal, modern 45LC tends to be a bit too thick. For multiple shots without excessive fouling, use grease cookies in all loads.

Shiloh Sharpie · Post by **Shiloh Sharpie** » Thu Aug 05, 2004 1:48 pm

[quote="JAGG"]WP ! The 45lc is a good round but it was never made in a rifle because of it's small rim and a problem with the extractors on rifles ! I would go with w 44/40 unless this rim problem has been solved ! The 20 inch barrel is fine as far as burning the powder goes ! Load with 2fg for which ever round you get ! JAGG[/quote]

This is true of original cartridges, but is not true of modern ones where the rim is beefed up. .45Colt is fine for this rilfe. I have thousands of round through mine without issue to porove it. The .44-40 in my opinion is tougher to reload in my opinion and can reult in many crushed cases.

Matthew_Q · Post by **Matthew_Q** » Thu Aug 05, 2004 2:23 pm

Have a little fun with it! Get a supressor for it!

I have a buddy that has a .30 supressor for a nice .308 bolt rifle he has. He got a lever action .30-30 and put synthetic stocks on it, and had the muzzle threaded. It's his 'tactical levergun'.

I have future plans to get a lever gun in .357 Mag and do the same thing. Put some manner of holosight or dot sight on it and load heavy bullets at subsonic speeds. Great for plinking!

Crazy Horse · Post by **Crazy Horse** » Sun Aug 15, 2004 5:34 am

I have Uberti 1866, 1873, Win. 94 and a marlin CB 24" all in 45 Colt. I like all of them. The 24" Marlin CB is the most accurate. I have never had any trouble out of any of them.