Henry vs Marlin

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Late coming but I did not see the OP opening his wallet yet so I guess it is still going.

If you want the tube buy the henry.....IMHO if you can't finish a HD type deal with what is in the tube the easy loading of the gate is not going to help much. If HD was the main use of the thing I would want the gate anyway....just much more simple to top off.

I have an older marlin and just love it to death, never an issue with 38 or 357....it just works, and is a ball to shoot. Some powder puff 38's and it is like shooting a big 22.....just fun plinking.

It is an option....something older.

I understand the want for the 357 over something like a 30-30.....if you must use it in an HD role....at 7 yards even a dead on hit....is that bullet going to stay in said bad guy.....and being one that has been on a two way range, you do tend to be a bit rattled if you, wife, kids lives are on the line.....even if the 30-30 is much cheaper.
 
Chiming in a second time, again not to advocate one way or the other, but for an HD scenario my preference would be for smoothest action with .38 Special to keep my hearing and vision intact while the lead is flying.

Most people don’t have the luxury of time to grab their rifle, a handful of extra ammo to top off with for a massive fire fight, AND ear pro when the door gets kicked in.
 
“Henry vs. Marlin”

Well done sir!
You just started a fire, poured gas on it and fanned the flames!

Carry on...

:)
 
I really like the Henry’s but a Marlin 336 I picked up 15 years ago is also a great gun. And for hunting I prefer the side loading gate over the tube on the Henry. Not a good reason just personal preference.
 
Chiming in a second time, again not to advocate one way or the other, but for an HD scenario my preference would be for smoothest action with .38 Special to keep my hearing and vision intact while the lead is flying.

Rather than use any rifle for HD, I would much prefer a short-barreled 12 gauge pump, loaded with #4 buckshot.
At the distances involved in a home invasion the shot won't spread much even from a cylinder bore, but enough to make a very disabling wound.
Easier to reload a 12 gauge as well, especially in the dark.
 
For me its a Marlin it just feels and looks right ,but I grew up watching cowboy movies. Several years ago my father gifted me a Marlin 1894 in 44 magnum. He got a good deal on it at a pawn shop with a real smooth action and a honking big 6 to 12 scope on it but could never get it to shoot any kind of a group. I looked up the serial number and it looks to have been made in 1972 . Some time over the last 4o years some one took a pipe cutter and loped the barrel down to 18.5 inches removing the front sight. They left it sharp with a couple of jagged spikes on the edge. Over the last year I cut a new dovetail for a front sight ,first time for me and nerve racking not wanting to mess up. I just finished smoothing the edges of the barrel and crowning this week. Because of all the rain went to an indoor range Thursday at 33 yards it took 4 shots to zero iron sights .Feels good doing something yourself. Now I because of my old eyes I want to find a micro red dot for it. This along with a Taurus tracker 44 magnum and a pump shotgun will be going on our bucket list 4 month R.V. trip thru the west and up to Alaska and back in 2021. All are legal in states we are going but will have to ship pistol to Alaska. We plan on boondocking and me fishing in semi remote areas including kayaking overnights so all will be comforting. Not to hijack thread but anyone use an electric mountain bike? I have worsting mobility issues because of a destroyed ankle and am looking for something I can get around easier on trails along rives and such.
 
Marlin lasts and lasts. Probably so would the Henry. Marlin for utility has a proven track record under field conditions. Marlin was made for durability in the field. Henry seems more of a display / gift / occasional shooter. Marlin you take out into the snow and rain / in the truck / in the saddle scabbard. Marlin is field oriented and a no-nonsense carry-rifle. Henry would work for that, but the Henry is flavored for a slightly different forum.

Americans produce great designs and builds in firearms. Lever guns in general speak American.
 
Bought my 1st Henry 3 years ago. And I LOVE it!
Its a Big Boysteel in 45 Colt.

Fit & function are flawless.
I reached out to CEO Antony Imperato just to say
how much I love it & he not only emailed back but
but he sent me a box of Henry goodies.
Winterhat, tin coffee cup, scarf, wooden keychain etc
I am definitely a Henry fan & will by another.
Lookin at another BBS, Maybe a 357 or 327.
I have handguns in both calibers
 
Marlin lasts and lasts. Probably so would the Henry. Marlin for utility has a proven track record under field conditions. Marlin was made for durability in the field. Henry seems more of a display / gift / occasional shooter. Marlin you take out into the snow and rain / in the truck / in the saddle scabbard. Marlin is field oriented and a no-nonsense carry-rifle. Henry would work for that, but the Henry is flavored for a slightly different forum.

Americans produce great designs and builds in firearms. Lever guns in general speak American.
I think you're looking at the Henry "original" replica of the 1860. Not a Marlin equivalent model like the Big Boy Steel.

And the Winchester 1895 has been produced in several configurations over the last 15 or so years. I have one in .405WCF and it is a fantastic rifle.
 
I think you're looking at the Henry "original" replica of the 1860. Not a Marlin equivalent model like the Big Boy Steel.

And the Winchester 1895 has been produced in several configurations over the last 15 or so years. I have one in .405WCF and it is a fantastic rifle.

.405 would be the only one I'd be interested in, nice as they are.
 
.405 would be the only one I'd be interested in, nice as they are.
Me too. I thought about one of the .30-40 carbines but that's a lot of beef for the cartridge. The .405 is a tackdriver. It's serial number 12 and rumored to have been originally a .270 that they sent back to Miroku for conversion to .405 because they didn't sell.
 
Me too. I thought about one of the .30-40 carbines but that's a lot of beef for the cartridge. The .405 is a tackdriver. It's serial number 12 and rumored to have been originally a .270 that they sent back to Miroku for conversion to .405 because they didn't sell.
.270 always seemed like a dumb chambering for the 1895 to me......getting it swapped to a .405 presale, makes for an interesting tho lol.
 
Yeah, I don't actually remember any Marlins in westerns. Not off the top of my head. Lots of Winchesters though.


I recall seeing Marlins in THE BIG VALLEY, they used a modern version with the round bolt and long oval ejection port which made it an anachronism, since they should have used a square bolt version which closed the ejection port.

Also in HAVE GUN, WILL TRAVEL, Paladin was shown with the correct bolt style Marlin. It had his trademark knight-head symbol on the right side of the stock. HAVE GUN, WILL TRAVEL was one of the rare westerns of the era which occasionally featured guns other than 1892 Winchesters and Colt Single Action Army revolvers .
 
Henry seems more of a display / gift / occasional shooter.

I won't say I've abused by Henry 45-70 or any of my Marlins, but I have put a lot of rounds through the Henry and it's still smooth and accurate and hasn't shook loose yet. I know the display/commemorative type you're referring to, but the standard steel models are rugged and can take a beating. (I'm hard on EVERYTHING)
 
HAVE GUN, WILL TRAVEL was one of the rare westerns of the era which occasionally featured guns other than 1892 Winchesters and Colt Single Action Army revolvers .

Noteworthy, too, was the infamous Deringer concealed behind Paladin's belt buckle. The little concealed carry pistol got Paladin out of more than a few pickles.
 
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Stopped by the LGS today and checked out some new Marlins. Now, this store is idiotic in that they zip tie all rifles actions shut and put trigger locks on, so I had no way of knowing if they were cycling fine or not.

But the cosmetic faults I spotted on multiple rifles tells me that Marlin is still producing garbage.

Now, they did have an 1895 stainless that seemed fine, and I know most people that brag about Marlins have 1895s, so maybe they are being made on another line or something where the workers don't have to wear helmets.

But the stuff I saw on their new flagship "Dark" model was pretty bad...

Wood to metal fit was just embarrassing. You could see daylight through the Dark model...

IMG_20200218_163058202.jpg

IMG_20200218_162901379.jpg

IMG_20200218_162851553.jpg

At least all of the sights were on straight, but this rifle was already starting to rust just sitting on the rack...

IMG_20200218_162838834.jpg

IMG_20200218_162941195.jpg

I didn't see anything today that would convince me that Marlin has gotten their act together. Sorry.
 
Stopped by the LGS today and checked out some new Marlins. Now, this store is idiotic in that they zip tie all rifles actions shut and put trigger locks on, so I had no way of knowing if they were cycling fine or not.

But the cosmetic faults I spotted on multiple rifles tells me that Marlin is still producing garbage.

Now, they did have an 1895 stainless that seemed fine, and I know most people that brag about Marlins have 1895s, so maybe they are being made on another line or something where the workers don't have to wear helmets.

But the stuff I saw on their new flagship "Dark" model was pretty bad...

Wood to metal fit was just embarrassing. You could see daylight through the Dark model...

View attachment 893040

View attachment 893041

View attachment 893042

At least all of the sights were on straight, but this rifle was already starting to rust just sitting on the rack...

View attachment 893043

View attachment 893044

I didn't see anything today that would convince me that Marlin has gotten their act together. Sorry.


Now, do the same inspection of Henry rifles and tell us what you see.
 
Stopped by the LGS today and checked out some new Marlins. Now, this store is idiotic in that they zip tie all rifles actions shut and put trigger locks on, so I had no way of knowing if they were cycling fine or not.

But the cosmetic faults I spotted on multiple rifles tells me that Marlin is still producing garbage.

Now, they did have an 1895 stainless that seemed fine, and I know most people that brag about Marlins have 1895s, so maybe they are being made on another line or something where the workers don't have to wear helmets.

But the stuff I saw on their new flagship "Dark" model was pretty bad...

Wood to metal fit was just embarrassing. You could see daylight through the Dark model...

View attachment 893040

View attachment 893041

View attachment 893042

At least all of the sights were on straight, but this rifle was already starting to rust just sitting on the rack...

View attachment 893043

View attachment 893044

I didn't see anything today that would convince me that Marlin has gotten their act together. Sorry.
I did the same hunt for a decent marlin last year , pitiful quality. The one I found that looked decent had an action that was sandpaper rough and receiver had severe tooling marks inside. People keep saying Marlins back... I wish. I haven't seen a single recent marlin worth a darn . Sad, I want marlin back to even half of their former glory.
 
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