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oh it's an S&W wheel gun! Yeah that sounds terrible. My 629 mountain gun in .44mag is actually not fun to shoot. I do run it to stay current on it since it's my woods sidearm. I have some nice wood grips on it which helps a lot. The stock knurled plastic ones literally cut up my hands

The 329PD goes beyond "not fun" - it is painful. Even with light bullet loads (165 gr .44 special), your hand stings.

The really nice thing about it though is that you hardly know you are carrying it - so if you don't want/need to shoot it much, but want the power and versatility of a .44 mag when in the woods, then it is an ok compromise - if you can deal with the recoil.

I have a 460V (.460 magnum) that is a beast - both in size/weight and power (300 grain @ 2000 fps - It approaches .45-70 ballistics in a revolver) - but it weighs 60+ ounces, more than double the weight of the 329PD and has a comp, so it is a pussycat compared to the 329PD. You know you have shot a magnum, but it isn't painful and can be fun to shoot - it just isn't fun to carry.

The two revolvers are at opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to weight - if not recoil.
 
Very good manner of firearms collection(common cal). I have done the same with more then one cal. My 44 mag's are a Ruger Redhawk, and a Ruger 10/44 carbine. Two great weapons. You might want to consider a 10/44 they are semi-auto. Have 16 inch barrels. And I consistantly hit the 10 ring at 100 yards. They are easily capable of that range.
 
FYI - The Trapper carbine I'm familiar with appears to have been introduced in the 80s and discontinued in the 90s. I haven't located any firm data but I believe 80s - 90s to be correct. They seem to valued in the $800 ballpark.

My pal's chrono shows his grain or two under max handloads with a 240 gr. XTP at 1650 - 1675 FPS using H-110 or Win. 296. That's from memory and for reference only.

Hope you find what you are looking for.
 
I had a Winchester 94 made in 1970 SRC in 44 mag, it was and still is a beautiful rifle that functioned flawlessly.
I reluctantly traded it to a friend, but he truly wanted to use it the way it was meant to be used, and he is a true friend, hard to come by these days it seems.
He still has it and tells me regularly about hitting the 100yd steel with iron sights, the countless venison that it's put on the dinner table, and that just reaffirms it made its way to the best home for it.
 
I have a marlin in a 20 inch .44 mag, newer production, that I bought for similar reasons to what you're looking for (camping companion) and to use as a brush gun when deer hunting. Mine went back to Marlin twice before it would feed correctly and I found it to be rather picky on what ammo it would feed. Now that I've established that it doesn't like winchester white box .44 mag jsp's, its been very reliable and is super accurate for what it is. Just a word of caution with buying newer marlins.
 
Had a Marlin in .44mag that was the worst recoiling long gun I ever shot. Not big recoil like a 45-120 but sharp. I think it is the stock drop. Also had a case separation in it, which means the bolt had too much play. I think it would be great for 44 special but not the full Keith loads I had worked up. As much as I like saddle rifles I would consider a Ruger auto carbine instead. Got tired of lugging around the Redhawk when loaded weighs more than many rifles.
 
I really have been happy with our Rossi 92 in said. (My daughter calls it "shiny pew". :s0112:)

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IMHO.....
Looking for the "best bet" of smoothness and reliability in a lever action?

HINT: Look at the SASS world. SASS shooters are also looking for smoothness and reliability. Because along with those factors, comes SPEED. Mind you that we're talking pistol calibers at this point and in as much as strength.....well, "good enough" is just that, good enough.

So from my observations of the winners. They are usually........ Winchester 1873 and 1866 (actually the clones, as not too many originals are being run) and the Marlin 1894. Of note to me......is that the Win 1892 (includes the Rossi) and Win 1894 is not seen that often.

Why?

Not even mentioning the machining and QC at this point. One should study/delve into the action/designs of the lever actions. Yes....the guns are usually tuned (including trigger jobs, short stroking as well as the common gunsmith stonework). And of course, the best/fastest competitors do a lot of practice. But the toggle link system has a lot going for it vs. locking lugs that will lock up a bolt. Remember......for them......smooth and reliable are the criteria to judge (SPEED comes from that). It's NOT about the strength. Because good enough is good enough.

But.....it's your money. So, it's up to you, to decide, what you want.

Aloha, Mark

PS.....SASS competitors don't usually use a .44 mag. But, a lot of the lever guns can also be found in 45 LC.;) Though most will use a .38 special/.357 mag for the low recoil. But then....I've also even seen the .32 caliber used for even lower recoil.
 
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The advantage of the Marlin design is that it has side ejection. This means you can mount a scope in the standard full rearward position on the receiver. With the others, if you want to mount a scope it has to be a scout style long-eye relief scope mounted on the barrel. All the same problems as with a long eye relief scope on a pistol. Of course, to many, mounting a scope on a lever gun would be a travesty. But if I ever buy a .44 lever gun, it will be a Marlin, and I'll mount a scope on the receiver.
 
So from my observations of the winners. They are usually........ Winchester 1873 and 1866 (actually the clones, as not too many originals are being run) and the Marlin 1894. Of note to me......is that the Win 1892 (includes the Rossi) and Win 1894 is not seen that often.
Yeah,, in the earlier days of CAS/SASS, the '92s were king of the hill, this was before the Marlin 1894 action.
The earlier Winchesters and Marlins that used the 94/336 actions were disasters in competition, they were designed for rifle-length cartridges, and while they work kind of ok for pistol rounds, they're 2nd rate at best.
The Marlins took over with the top shooters, but they still need work to run at speed.
The big advantage of the 66/73s is that all the cartridge handling is in a straight line,, no angled lifting or feeding to hang-up or jam.
The game has become one of pure speed, using loads that can barely get out of the barrel,, I witnessed one shooter who's .38 loads would not penetrate a sheet of heavy cardboard at 20 yards, but they were fast to shoot.
For general shooting fun it's hard to beat a slicked-up 92.
 
The advantage of the Marlin design is that it has side ejection. This means you can mount a scope in the standard full rearward position on the receiver. With the others, if you want to mount a scope it has to be a scout style long-eye relief scope mounted on the barrel. All the same problems as with a long eye relief scope on a pistol. Of course, to many, mounting a scope on a lever gun would be a travesty. But if I ever buy a .44 lever gun, it will be a Marlin, and I'll mount a scope on the receiver.

I am a fan of the Scout scope concept, especially on short range carbines (like a .44 mag carbine, or for that matter just about any lever action, except maybe my BLR, which will have a Scout scope too) where the benefits outweigh the disadvantages.
 
I have a Winchester Model 94 in .44Mag. It was the budget gun with the hardwood (birch?) stock. It has a rough action and is not fun to use, nor gives any pride of ownership, but it's fine for a truck gun.

I also got a Rossi 92 in .357Mag with a 16" barrel, just about the lightest and handiest long gun I own. It too was rough but I took it apart and polished the action so it is smooth now. Put on a peep sight too. I think the .357 makes more sense than the .44 unless you are in grizzly country. That .44 ammo can get heavy.
 
Yeah,, in the earlier days of CAS/SASS, the '92s were king of the hill, this was before the Marlin 1894 action.
The earlier Winchesters and Marlins that used the 94/336 actions were disasters in competition, they were designed for rifle-length cartridges, and while they work kind of ok for pistol rounds, they're 2nd rate at best.
The Marlins took over with the top shooters, but they still need work to run at speed.
The big advantage of the 66/73s is that all the cartridge handling is in a straight line,, no angled lifting or feeding to hang-up or jam.
The game has become one of pure speed, using loads that can barely get out of the barrel,, I witnessed one shooter who's .38 loads would not penetrate a sheet of heavy cardboard at 20 yards, but they were fast to shoot.
For general shooting fun it's hard to beat a slicked-up 92.

I somewhat agree with the above (speaking from a SASS view). However.....

Me personally......IMHO.......I'd stay away from the Win. '92 (and clones -Rossi) for SASS shooting.

Reasons include the high cost of the REAL Win. '92s and the Rossi products are hit or miss (not to mention the SAFETY). Of course.......if set up correctly......they can be winners too. Speaking of which. Some actions (add the thought of aftermarket parts availability) are just easier to home gunsmith. Sending stuff out can be very expensive.

In other words.....I'd go with the Marlin 1894 before those choices.

Then....
The *Winchester 1873/1866 (translate to the Uberti clones) are IMHO when set up correctly are.....

A beauty to behold.

Personally, I won't buy the NEW FANGLED Henry Rifle Co. products.

And before someone/anyone gets offended. Remember, that everyone is entitled to agree or disagree. It's a free country.

*Original Winchester 1866/1873s are not seen very often.

Aloha, Mark
 
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What about the newer Marlins are they worth looking at
The now 'former' Remlins are hit and miss.

I looked at one a while back that was excellent and if I were looking to buy one of this model and caliber I would not have hesitated.

I suspect the Remlins will 'dry up' pretty quickly so if you find one you like you might want to pick it up and take your chances as there is no word on when Ruger might start producing them.
 

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