Tactical lever actions - what's the appeal?

[Tam Dl]

If the action were able to withstand 300WM or 375H&H pressure levels, they would be a much more viable alternative.

The anemic ballistic performance 30-30 and 45-70 are of little interest to most serious hunters. I’m not saying they don’t have their place, they absolutely do. But the overwhelming majority don’t choose this as their platform.

If they really want to attract NEW consumers, they need modern cartridge options. Show me a 300PRC lever action because putting a Picatinny rail and black polymer stock on one is merely lipstick on a pig.

Not tacky, but:

Browning BLR is available in 300 Win Mag. 24 inch barrel, breaks to 2 equal lengths; stainless steel and nickle. So an option for Alaska. Some other cartridges like 7 rem mag, and wsms are offered or have been in the past. I would go for one in 30-06, and have it rebored as 9.3x62. Or that from the 1895 Winchester platform.

Off the shelf you can get some heavies like 45-90 (same capacity as 458 win mag) Sometimes the 50-110. the 405 is all over the place, just no brass. It is in the range of the 404. And there are custom options I would prefer to pay up for, than a lot of fancy doodahs.



Jeff Cooper proposed what he called the Brooklyn Special, which was the Winchester 94 trapper with 16" barrel, for people in cities where handguns were illegal, this was all before the assault weapons ban. He said, as he would ,that he preferred the trigger and shootability of the 94 to the AR, which at the time was not off patent and a "platform" for customization. Well, people finally discovered the idea for themselves. I would go so far as to say optics rails, and light mounts make sense. One advantage to the plain jane models is they make you out as less of a psycho when the law gets involved, though at this point that is a slender thread.

Those of you who know about cropping will appreciate you never need to be empty with a lever.

It is about time for lead dispenser:

 

[Doug Hamilton]

Desperation to try and do something different that will sell

"Desperation" really has nothing to do with it. Finding new products to sell has always been the goal in any market.

 

[C.W. Richter]

Yet another widget marketed for areas where semis aren't legal. Is it available in 30-30? LOL Where I live, for the big game seasons the regs state "guns may be loaded to capacity." As no semis are legal, i guess you could have 10-30 shots (if you had 3 tags and prefer running targets!?) lol

 

[112Savage]

First, they’re fun to shoot.
Second, its another niche of the industry and rails allow people to put more stuff ($$$) on the rifle
Lastly, when suppressed there is no port pop on a lever action. The would be the only draw for me when compared to a traditional lever action.

The box magazines, if reliable and if the rifle is accurate, would make them more interesting for 223 sized cases with spitzer shaped bullets.

 

[BeeMaa]

First, they’re fun to shoot.
Second, its another niche of the industry and rails allow people to put more stuff ($$$) on the rifle
Lastly, when suppressed there is no port pop on a lever action. The would be the only draw for me when compared to a traditional lever action.

The box magazines, if reliable and if the rifle is accurate, would make them more interesting for 223 sized cases with spitzer shaped bullets.

This is the problem. The action isn't capable of housing a 5.56NATO because it operates above 62,000 psi. The 45-70 operates at 25,000 psi and the 30-30 is at 38,000 psi. These rifles are chambered in cartridges designed in the 19th century, not the 20th or 21st.

And don't get me started with the 357MAG and 44MAG being designed in the 20th century because they are both well below 50,000 psi. Even the 223REM (cousin to the 5.56NATO) is at 55,000 psi and well beyond the capabilities of a mass produced lever action rifle.

The lever action is designed for lower pressure cartridges...period.

 

[Wyatt Smith]

My dad, who is a real marlin fan, asked me why I bought a Winchester 94 as opposed to a Marlin 336.
“The Marlin is too modern.” I replied.

 

[Doug Hamilton]

This is the problem. The action isn't capable of housing a 5.56NATO because it operates above 62,000 psi. The 45-70 operates at 25,000 psi and the 30-30 is at 38,000 psi. These rifles are chambered in cartridges designed in the 19th century, not the 20th or 21st.

And don't get me started with the 357MAG and 44MAG being designed in the 20th century because they are both well below 50,000 psi. Even the 223REM (cousin to the 5.56NATO) is at 55,000 psi and well beyond the capabilities of a mass produced lever action rifle.

The lever action is designed for lower pressure cartridges...period.

My uncle had a Winchester 88 in .308 and a friend of mine has a BLR in .270. Another friend has a Savage 99 in .308 while his son has one in .243. So lever actions can be made in higher pressure cartridges. Personally, I inherited a couple of .30-30s but don't hunt with them. I think of lever actions as "quaint." I do shoot my dad's Marlin 39 though, just because it's fun!

 

[Doug Hamilton]

My dad, who is a real marlin fan, asked me why I bought a Winchester 94 as opposed to a Marlin 336.
“The Marlin is too modern.” I replied.

Yeah. Who ever saw John Wayne with a Marlin?