Guy Miner
Master Loader
- Apr 6, 2006
- 17,489
- 4,656
Over the years I had a couple of 45/70 Marlin rifles, the original ported Guide Gun, and later a 22" Marlin 1895 which I greatly preferred. Ten years ago I sold that 1895 to a good friend, so I could buy my 375 H&H Ruger Number One rifle.
Well, I must have known I would want another 45/70 in the future, 'cause I kept my RCBS loading dies, some brass, a little bit of loaded ammo, a small stash of bullets...
Well... Today was the first range session with the new Remlin/Marlin. :grin:
It turned out to be about 96 degrees at the range this afternoon, so I didn't do much shooting. Five rounds, offhand, at a mere 25 yards was enough. Then I headed for air conditioning. Yup, 96 is plenty for this Pacific Northwest fellow.
It wasn't true "rapid fire" but I didn't dally around either. I learned that:
The rifle cycled well and functioned perfectly. GOOD!
The factory sights were set up well enough to make short-range hits with the ammo I'd loaded. That's good. We have bears, wolves, and mountain lions. If I have to use the 1895 to protect myself or other campers/hikers, it will work fine just as built by Marlin/Remington.
Load was the 350 gr RNSP Hornady bullet over 56.5 grains of IMR 3031, the starting load for lever action rifles according to Hodgdon. It's supposed to gin up about 2,000 fps. Recoil was apparent. The good ol' 45/70 can rock ya a bit from these lever action rifles. :grin: Not bad though, just enough to let ya know that yes, this is not a 223 that we're messing with.
First shots, offhand at 25 yards with the factory sights and my handloaded 350 gr ammunition:
It's good to have a big bore Marlin again. Only six weeks until bear season opens. I suspect that I'll have this rifle with me... My 2.5x Leupold is mounted in Quick Release rings from Warne. I can see the factory sights just fine when I pop the scope off. Within a week or so, I'll test it at 100 yards with the 2.5x scope installed.
Regards, Guy
Well, I must have known I would want another 45/70 in the future, 'cause I kept my RCBS loading dies, some brass, a little bit of loaded ammo, a small stash of bullets...
Well... Today was the first range session with the new Remlin/Marlin. :grin:
It turned out to be about 96 degrees at the range this afternoon, so I didn't do much shooting. Five rounds, offhand, at a mere 25 yards was enough. Then I headed for air conditioning. Yup, 96 is plenty for this Pacific Northwest fellow.
It wasn't true "rapid fire" but I didn't dally around either. I learned that:
The rifle cycled well and functioned perfectly. GOOD!
The factory sights were set up well enough to make short-range hits with the ammo I'd loaded. That's good. We have bears, wolves, and mountain lions. If I have to use the 1895 to protect myself or other campers/hikers, it will work fine just as built by Marlin/Remington.
Load was the 350 gr RNSP Hornady bullet over 56.5 grains of IMR 3031, the starting load for lever action rifles according to Hodgdon. It's supposed to gin up about 2,000 fps. Recoil was apparent. The good ol' 45/70 can rock ya a bit from these lever action rifles. :grin: Not bad though, just enough to let ya know that yes, this is not a 223 that we're messing with.
First shots, offhand at 25 yards with the factory sights and my handloaded 350 gr ammunition:
It's good to have a big bore Marlin again. Only six weeks until bear season opens. I suspect that I'll have this rifle with me... My 2.5x Leupold is mounted in Quick Release rings from Warne. I can see the factory sights just fine when I pop the scope off. Within a week or so, I'll test it at 100 yards with the 2.5x scope installed.
Regards, Guy
